NEWPORT NEWS, Va. – The Norfolk State men's tennis team earned a late-night victory on Friday at Christopher Newport, defeating the Captains 6-1 at James River Country Club.
 
The Spartans won two of the three doubles matches to earn the opening point of the evening. Antoni Pankowski and Jakub Solarski earned a 6-4 victory at the No. 1 position, but the Captains responded with a 6-3 win at the No. 2 position. Boris Lunin and Frederick McRae took care of the No. 3 slot, defeating Gus Mitchell and Ahun Vodela 6-2.
 
The Spartans didn't hold back from there. Pankowski earned a straight-set victory on Court 5, beating Gus Mitchell 6-1, 6-3.
 
McRae continued the momentum for the Spartans with a 6-3, 6-3 win over Nesh Kumaresan at the No. 2 slot, before Solarski defeated Ryan Monroe 6-1, 6-3 at the No. 4 position.
 
Freshman Deniz Okyay took down Vincent Truong 6-4, 6-4 at the No. 3 position as the match went further into the night.
 
Vladisav Gorbatenko showed great resilience in his victory at the top of the lineup. After dropping the first set, Gorbatenko bounced back to defeat Eddy Porsmyr Hansen 4-6, 6-3 1-0 (10-7).
 
Christopher Newport picked up its first point of the day at No. 6 singles, as Ashton Legum took down Lunin in a marathon match. The final score of the back-and-forth bout: 7-6 (8-6), 6-7 (5-7), 1-0 (10-6).
 
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