Box Score CARY, N.C. – The No. 4 seed Norfolk State women's tennis team stepped up to the occasion on Thursday, emphatically taking down No. 5 seed Delaware State 4-0 in the quarterfinal round of the MEAC Tennis Championships.
 
The Spartans (12-11, 3-3 MEAC) advanced to the tournament's semifinals for the first time since 2021 with the victory. Norfolk State continued an incredible turnaround, rising from a 2-17 season in 2024 to now standing one win away from securing a spot in the conference championship match.
 
Norfolk State won the opening doubles point to take an early 1-0 lead over the Hornets (5-10, 2-4). After Delaware State won 6-0 on Court 1, Ines Sabadie and Sofiya Tsitavets evened the bout with a 6-2 triumph on Court 2. Carolina Nicholls and Yuliya Yurkova clinched the first point from there, earning a 6-4 victory on Court 3.
 
Sabina Iurea got the Spartans rolling in singles play, cruising past Brooklyn Bowen 6-0, 6-1 at the No. 5 position. Nicholls pushed the Spartans ahead 3-0 from there, defeating Victoria Linkovski 6-3, 6-2 on position three.
 
The Spartans wasted no time sealing the match. No more than 60 seconds after Nicholls' victory, Tsitavets closed out a 6-1, 7-5 triumph at the top position against Kit Yi Kaye Au-Yeung.
 
Norfolk State will face No. 1 seed South Carolina State in the semifinals on Friday morning, slated for a 9 a.m. start. The match will air live on ESPN+.
 
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