BETHLEHEM, Pa. (March 1, 2024) – Morgan State men's tennis returned to action against Lehigh at the Lewis Indoor Tennis Center. The Mountain Hawks played to clinch and defeated the Bears 4-1.

Lehigh (4-5) earned an opening doubles point over Morgan (1-3). Aristotelis Bezianis and Jackson Morash earned a 6-2 victory over Morgan's Antonio Santos and Anthony Parris just before Sean Jaeger and Jordan Paul picked up a 6-2 win of their own against Makkijha Brown and Bertin Karenzi. Lehigh's wins at numbers two and three halted play in the doubles match at number one, awarding the meet's first point to the Mountain Hawks.

Lehigh also struck first in singles play with a 6-2, 6-0 win from Jaeger against Karenzi at number four. Shortly after, Bezianis secured a 6-2, 6-2 victory at number three against Brown to put Lehigh ahead 3-0 over the Bears.

At the number one spot, Matt Kleiman squared off against reigning MEAC Player of the Year Mikeal Carpenter, who picked up a 6-3, 6-4 win to get his team on the board. Following Kleiman's result, matches began at numbers five and six, as Marc Blekhman's match at number two seemed to be heading for a third set. However, Blekhman's match would not be completed, as Morash put the finishing touches on the Lehigh victory with a 6-2, 6-1 win at number five against Parris to clinch the dual.

Singles
Mikeal Carpenter (MSU) def. Matt Kleiman (Lehigh) 6-3, 6-4
Marc Blekhman (Lehigh) vs. Niles Rachal (MSU) 7-5, 4-6, 3-3 DNF
Aristotelis Bezianis (Lehigh) def. Makkijha Brown (MSU) 6-2, 6-2
Sean Jaeger (Lehigh) def. Bertin Karenzi (MSU) 6-2, 6-0
Jackson Morash (Lehigh) def. Anthony Parris (MSU) 6-2, 6-1
Benedict Horn-Bourque (Lehigh) vs. Antonio Santos (MSU) 6-0, 3-1 DNF

Doubles
Kleiman/Blekhman (Lehigh) vs. Carpenter/Rachal (MSU) 5-4 DNF
Paul/Jaeger (Lehigh) def. Brown/Karenzi (MSU) 6-2
Bezianis/Morash (Lehigh) def. Santos/Parris (MSU) 6-2

Order of finish: Doubles (3, 2), Singles (4, 3, 1, 5)

FOLLOW MORGAN STATE ATHLETICS IN CYBERSPACE 
There are many ways to keep up with MSU athletics online and on the go:
• Visit www.morganstatebears.com, the official web site of Bears athletics, for news, schedules, stats, bios and more. 
• Follow us on social media:
 Facebook: /MorganStateBears
 Twitter: @MorganStBears
 Instagram: /MorganStateBears

ABOUT MORGAN
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