Men's Tennis | 5/7/2025 7:36:00 PM

ROME, Ga. – With the match on the line, junior Kareem Abdul Hakim sealed the Eagles' fate as North Carolina Central defeated New Mexico State 4-3 on Wednesday evening at the Rome Tennis Center. The triumph advances NCCU to the semifinals of the UTR Sports NIT Championship.  

NC Central improves to a 17-6 record, continuing its postseason with a first-round victory. The opening point was awarded to the Maroon & Gray after two doubles wins in the No.1 and 3 positions. Leo Fortier-Gariepy and Antoni Pankowski's No.3 match was determined by a 7-1 tiebreaker decision, giving the duo the 7-6 outcome and their team a 1-0 advantage.

New Mexico State wouldn't go away easily, taking the No.6 and 5 Singles points for a 2-1 lead. Hugo Hidalgo Vega evened things out in a 6-3, 6-2 performance in No.1 Singles.

The tie was brief as the NM State Aggies had a 3-2 advantage after securing No.3 Singles. Naresh Bharathy followed that up using all three sets to triumph over his opponent in the No.4 position.

With a chance to survive and advance, Abdul Hakim didn't shy away. He won the first set 6-2 as his Aggie competitor won the second set 6-4. Abdul Hakim powered through the third set in a 7-5 decision with the Eagles storming the court to celebrate.

In the semifinal bout, NC Central faces UT Chattanooga at 10 a.m. on Thursday, May 8. The winner will have a spot in the championship finals on Friday.

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