NORFOLK, Va., Mar. 20, 2024 — Morgan State senior Mikeal Carpenter was named Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) Men’s Tennis Player of the Week, presented by Coca-Cola.  Norfolk State freshman Antoni Pankowski was named Men’s Rookie of the Week.  Howard University junior Sifa Butcher was named Women’s Tennis Player of the Week, while North Carolina Central freshman Patricia Palencia was named Women’s Rookie of the Week.

Mikeal Carpenter (Sr. Suitland, Maryland) led the Bears to a 2-0 win streak, as he went 4-0 in all matches played through the week.  He defeated NEC opponent from FDU at No. 1 singles in a three-set match, after a 6-3 victory at No. 1 doubles.  He matched up with his teammate Makkijha Brown at No.1 doubles with a 6-2 victory against West Chester the very next day, where he finished with a two-set victory at No.1 singles. 

Antoni Pankowski (Fr. Jelania Góra, Poland) won his singles match against Navy in three sets.  He lost his first set 6-4, then kept his opponent winless in set two (6-0).  He went to finish the third set 6-2 to add in a point for the Spartans.  Pankoski was part of a No. 2 doubles victory against Navy’s Steve Nguyen and Jason Kim.  He paired up with his Spartan teammate Jakub Solarski with a 6-2 win.  The Spartans No 2. Doubles duo repeated a 6-2 victory the very next day against Longwood.  Shortly after, he defeated Longwood’s Luis Reis in three sets at fifth singles.

Sifa Butcher (Jr. Sarasota, Florida) led the Bison to a 3-0 win streak, where she won all three matches at No.1 singles.  Against Bowling Green, she won 6-1, 6-4 for the Bison after a No. 3 doubles victory with her teammate Dana Hall (6-2).  In a 4-3 victory against Loyola, she won in two sets at No. 1 singles against the Greyhound’s Olivia Tracey.  Two days later she led the Bison to a 4-1 victory against Atlantic 10 opponent St. Joes, where she defeated Tort-Umpierre in two sets (6-2,6-3) at No.1 singles. 

Patricia Palencia (Fr. Barquisimeto, Venezuela) helped the Eagles win two straight matches at 5-2 against North Carolina A&T and Gardner Webb.  When paired with sophomore Candice Bernier, Palencia earned two doubles wins, one by default and the other in a 6-3 victory.  She added a point for NCCU with another win by default in singles against North Carolina A&.  In her singles match against Gardner-Webb, she was pushed to a three set tiebreaker.  Palencia won the first set 6-3 before falling 6-7 in the second after falling in a 7-0 tiebreaker that could’ve won the match. With a set won between both competitors, Palencia won 11-9 in the match tiebreaker for her fourth singles win in a row.

Other Top Performers   
Alejandra Hidalgo Vega (North Carolina Central) defeated both of her singles opponents making it four in a row in singles, including an 11-point tie-break win for the match.  Ahe also counted for a doubles victory at 6-3 against North Carolina A&T. 

Hugo Hidalgo Vega (North Carolina Central) went 2-0 in singles and doubles last week in their only match against North Carolina A&T State University to help secure the only two points scored by NCCU. . He has now won four singles matches in a row dating back to Feb. 29 against BYU.

Irena Ioana Iurea (Norfolk State) Helped secure both points against Longwood.  She paired up with Gabriela Davidescu for a victory at No. 1 doubles for a 6-2 win, before winning at No. 3 singles in two sets.
Gabriela Davidescu (Norfolk State) Won in two sets at No. 1 singles against Longwood after winning 6-2 with Ioana Iurea at No. 1 doubles.

Ava Chambers (Howard University) finished the week with back-to-back victorys at No. 2 singles against Loyola and St. Joes. 

Eva Golembiovski (Delaware State) picked up singles win against Indiana University East.