CARY, N.C. – In their first-ever appearance in the MEAC Tennis Championship final, the North Carolina Central women's team fell 4-0 to the defending champs of South Carolina State on Saturday morning at the Cary Tennis Park.

SCSU took an early lead after securing the doubles point with victories in the No.1 and 3 positions. Mariana Zottoli and Valeria San Miguel Soria's No.2 Doubles match went unfinished with the duo up 5-4.

Patricia Palencia was upended in No.4 Singles with 6-3, 6-2 sets, giving SCSU a 2-0 advantage. An extension of the lead occurred with a No.6 Singles 6-4, 6-1 defeat by Gabriela Mejia Arenas.

The last match to go final was No.1 Singles as Alejandra Hidalgo Vega dropped 6-4, 7-5 sets to Sofiya Chursina. That was the last point that South Carolina State needed to win the MEAC title.

Valentina de Aquino Monsanto's and San Miguel Soria's matches were in the third set before the winning point, while Zottoli was tied 3-3 in the second set, as all three matches went unfinished.

Palencia was named to the 2025 MEAC All-Tournament team for the No.4 singles slot. Zottoli and San Miguel Soria also took home All-Tournament honors for No.2 Doubles.

NCCU completes the season with a 13-9 overall record. The Eagles were one win shy of tying a school-best Division I era record of 14-8 in the 2013 season.

For more information on NCCU Athletics, visit NCCUEaglePride.com, or download the NCCU Eagles Athletics app.