NCCU Rallies To Topple Norfolk State
NORFOLK, Va. – The North Carolina Central University women's tennis team rallied for a 4-3 win over Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) Northern Division champion Norfolk State University on Saturday afternoon on the strength of four singles victories.
The Lady Eagles, who will enter the 2016 MEAC Women's Tennis Championship as the fourth seed in the Southern Division for a second straight year, will play the same top-seeded Spartans from the Northern Division in the quarterfinals on Thursday at 8:30 a.m. The Lady Eagles upset the top seed from the Northern Division last season to advance to the semifinals for the second time in the past three seasons.
The MEAC Tourney will be contested at the Folkes/Stevens Tennis Complex on the campus of Old Dominion University in Norfolk, Virginia from Thursday-Saturday.
NCCU finished its regular season with a 5-12 overall record and 2-3 in the MEAC Southern Division. Norfolk State was a perfect 6-0 in the MEAC Northern Division but slipped under .500 for the regular season at 9-10 due to the loss to the Lady Eagles.
The Spartans swept doubles to take an early 1-nil team advantage before wins by senior Aissa Muamba, senior Mia Ramic, junior Lynsey Cover and sophomore Jamie Rogers allowed NCCU to comeback for the triumph.
Muamba won her fifth straight match with a dominating 6-3, 6-0 in the marquee matchup. The Laval, Canada product has a team-best 10-5 singles mark and has now posted 10-plus wins in all four of her seasons representing the Maroon and Gray. Muamba has 57 career singles wins.
Ramic recorded a strong win on court two, knocking off a First Team All-MEAC performer from a year ago in Liza Gordeeva by a convincing 6-2, 6-1 margin. Ramic enters her final playoffs with a 7-9 singles ledger in 2016.
Cover tallied her second straight win at No. 5 with a 6-4, 6-1 victory to supply NCCU with its third team point. Cover had not won in singles all season until her back-to-back triumphs over the weekend.
Rogers finished off the comeback win for NCCU by winning the decisive encounter from the fourth position in the lineup. After escaping the first set with an 8-6 tiebreak win, Rogers maintained the momentum in the following set to prevail by a final score of 7-6 (6), 6-3. Rogers (10-6) matches Muamba with 10 singles wins.
For more information visit www.nccueaglepride.com.
NSU FINISHES TWINBILL LOSING TO NOTRE DAME
NORFOLK, Va. – Norfolk State hosted Notre Dame for the final regular season match of the year, and the Fighting Irish handed NSU a 7-0 loss on Sunday afternoon at the NSU Tennis Complex.
The Spartans got one final test before the MEAC Championship that begins on Thursday. Despite getting swept, Norfolk State found some success in doubles against its ACC-caliber opponent.
At the third position, the Spartans had the most success, as junior Liza Gordeeva and freshman Marta Gomar fell by a 6-4 margin to Rachel Chong and Julie Vrabel.
NSU lost by a 6-2 score in both of the other two doubles matchups. At the top spot, junior Ana Popovic and sophomore Dajana Cvjetkovic fell to Quinn Gleason and Jane Fennelly. At the second slot, seniors Andrea Macchiavello and Mafalda Lhorca succumbed to Brooke Broda and Allison Miller.
Notre Dame ran its season record to 12-12 on the year, while NSU fell to 9-11.
"It was a treat to have Notre Dame on campus this afternoon," said head coach Worth Richardson. "This served as great preparation for the MEAC tournament later this week."
Lhorca won the most games in singles, falling at the sixth spot to Chong by a 6-2, 6-2 margin. Gordeeva suffered a 6-2, 6-1 setback to Miller at the second position, while Mary Closs downed Gomar, 6-1 and 6-1, at No. 3 singles.
At the top of the lineup, Gleason posted a 6-1, 6-0 triumph over Cvjetkovic. The Irish had complete sweeps as well at the fourth and fifth spots. Broda won 6-0 and 6-0 over Macchiavello at the fourth slot, while Fennelly did the same over Popovic at the fifth position.
NSU, the No. 1 seed in the Northern Division at 6-0, will begin the MEAC tournament on Thursday at 8:30 a.m. at ODU's Folkes-Stevens Tennis Center.
For more information visit www.nsuspartans.com.