DURHAM, N.C. – In the regular season finale, the North Carolina Central men's tennis team swept Shaw 7-0 on Friday afternoon. The Eagles head into the postseason with a 15-5 record for the first time in the Division I era.

Before the first serve, two NCCU seniors were honored for their contributions to the men's program. Oliver Saarinen and Hugo Hidalgo Vega received mementos and high praise from head coach D. Curtis Lawson pre-match with teammates, coaches, friends, family and members of the NCCU community looking on.

After the presentation, NC Central went to work, garnering the doubles point for a 1-0 lead. Saarinen and Kareem Abdul Hakim took the No.1 Doubles slot, 6-2, followed by Neiman Sneed and Lucas Artigas' 6-4 victory in the No.3 Doubles position. Shaw would win No.2 Doubles after a 7-5 tiebreaker decided the match.

The action continued with the Maroon & Gray triumphing in every singles match. Abdul Hakim was the first to add to NC Central's point total, winning 6-1, 6-4 in the No.1 slot. Rodrigo Alves followed suit with a 6-0, 6-2 victory in the No.2 position.

Antoni Pankowski came out on top, clinching the match with a pair of 6-2 sets in No.4 Singles. Naresh Bharathy was next to add to the win column after a 6-2, 6-4 match in the No.3 position.

In No.5 Singles, Leo Fortier-Gariepy earned the same set scores as Bharathy. Saarinen, in fitting fashion, was the last Eagle to complete his match with 6-2, 6-3 sets.

NCCU will make the short drive to the Cary Tennis Park next week for the 2025 MEAC Tennis Championship on April 24-26, beginning its postseason.

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