NORFOLK, Va. – The Norfolk State men's tennis team came painfully close to a shorthanded victory on Tuesday, falling 4-3 against Hofstra at NSU Tennis Complex.
Despite having only five available players, the Spartans nearly pulled off the win.
Hofstra won at No. 3 doubles by default, and the teams split the other two doubles matches. Ostap Kovalenko and Jonathan Mahrt Guyou took down
Deniz Okyay and
Boris Lunin 6-0 at the No. 2 position, before
Jakub Solarski and
Antoni Pankowski defeated Hideki Matsuoka and Matthew Garcia 6-4 on Court 1.
The Pride went ahead 2-0 with a win by default at No. 6 singles, before Kovalenko defeated Okyay 6-2, 7-4 on Court 1.
Pankowski earned another win at the No. 3 slot, this time by opponent retirement. Solarski brought the Spartans within one with a 7-6, 6-4 win over Josh Reynolds on Court 2.
Making his first appearance of the afternoon,
Frederick McRae came from behind to defeat Matthew Garcia 7-6, 6-3, 1-0 (12-10) in a thrilling battle at the No. 4 position. The triumph tied the match 3-3, but Hofstra's Odani Kaita earned a 6-3, 6-4 win at the No. 5 position to close the day.
Norfolk State returns to action on Thursday at North Carolina A&T.
For complete coverage of Norfolk State Athletics, please follow the Spartans on social media at @nsuspartans (Twitter), /NorfolkStateAthletics (Facebook), @NSUAthletics (Instagram), @nsuathletics (YouTube) or visit the official home of Norfolk State Athletics at nsuspartans.com.