DURHAM, N.C. – After more than four grueling hours of intense competition between two men's tennis teams with unblemished records in MEAC Southern Division play, South Carolina State University captured the final singles match to edge North Carolina Central University, 4-3.
 
SC State (7-11, 3-0 MEAC) swept the three doubles matches to take a 1-0 advantage.
 
NCCU (4-11, 3-1 MEAC) rallied to even the match at 2-2 with singles victories by senior Gabriel Cucalon (6-3, 6-4 over Juan Ramirez) and freshman Thanos Spyropoulos (6-4, 6-3 over Omer Gorgun). The Eagles were in a position to move ahead with freshman Christos Dagklis holding a 4-1 cushion in the third set at No. 3 singles, but SCSU's Marcelo Rodriguez battled back for a 6-4, 4-6, 7-5 victory, providing the Bulldogs with a 3-2 lead.
 
NCCU junior Pablo Juez Torres outlasted Selim Ben Ali Ben Ali in a three-set thriller at No. 6 singles (6-4, 2-6, 6-3) to once again tie the critical divisional contest, 3-3.
 
With the match hanging in the balance, the No. 5 singles battle between NCCU senior Sebastian Bromley and SCSU's Gerardo Arzaluz was the last on the courts and in a deciding third set. In the end, Arzaluz hung on to defeat Bromley 6-2, 0-6, 6-1, sealing the team victory for the Bulldogs.
 
The Eagles close out their regular season on Friday, April 12 by hosting Radford on Senior Day, as NCCU celebrates the standout career of Cucalon. First serve is scheduled for 1 p.m.
 
The MEAC Tennis Championships will be held on April 25-27 at Folkes-Stevens Tennis Center in Norfolk, Virginia.