CARY, N.C. (April, 28, 2023) — The No. 2 seeded Morgan State men's tennis team came up just short against No. 3 North Carolina Central Friday afternoon, falling 4-2 at the Cary Tennis Center.
The last semifinal of the afternoon was also the most exciting, as the No. 6 singles match between the Eagles' Facundo Olmedo and the Bears' Bertin Karenzi went to the third-set tiebreaker. Karenzi held the lead in that tiebreaker, but Olmedo used a late push to take the tiebreaker 9-7 and win the match 7-6, 1-6, 7-6 and clinch the overall win.
The Eagles also notched singles victories at No. 3 (Kareem Abdul Hakim, 6-1, 7-5 over Rhajzon Rankins), No. 4 (Naresh Bharathy over Sebastian Lopez, 6-3, 2-6, 7-6) and No. 5 (Shaka Cristolletti over Makkijha Brown, 6-7, 7-6, 7-6).
Morgan State saw MEAC Player of the Year Mikael Carpenter win at No. 1 singles, 6-2, 3-6, 6-4 over Sebastian Pino, and Niles Rachal at No. 2, 6-3, 6-0 over Oliver Saarinen.
Olmedo's comeback meant the doubles point did not need to be contested.
The women's championship final will begin at 9 a.m., with the men's title match following at 1 p.m. Both matches will stream live on ESPN+.
For more information, please visit the Championship Central page.
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Morgan State University, founded in 1867, is a Carnegie-classified high research (R2) institution offering nearly 140 academic programs leading to degrees from the baccalaureate to the doctorate. As Maryland's Preeminent Public Urban Research University, and the only university to have its entire campus designated as a National Treasure by the National Trust for Historic Preservation, Morgan serves a multiethnic and multiracial student body and seeks to ensure that the doors of higher education are opened as wide as possible to as many as possible. For more information about Morgan State University, visit www.morgan.edu.
