ROME, Ga. – The North Carolina Central men's tennis team played its final match of a historic season after falling in a close 4-3 outing to Chattanooga on Thursday at the Rome Tennis Center. The Eagles and Mocs were competing for a spot in the finals of the UTR Sports NIT Championship.

The Eagles struck first, securing the doubles point. Antoni Pankowski and Leo Fortier-Gariepy won No.3 Doubles 6-3 and Hugo Hidalgo Vega and Rodrigo Alves followed suit in a 7-5 decision at the No.1 slot.

Things were even after the completion of the No.5 Singles match, as UTC triumphed. The Mocs then won two straight singles matches at the No. 2 and 6 positions.

Hidalgo Vega and Alves remained steady, taking the next two victories for NC Central. Alves fell in his first set before coming back to win the final two, 6-3, 7-6 in the No.3 slot. Hidalgo Vega also needed three sets but got it done with a pair of 6-3 sets after falling behind early at the No.1 position.

The Mocs wrapped up the match in No.4 Singles as NCCU's Naresh Bharathy took his opponent to three sets, with Chattanooga ultimately moving on to the finals.

The Maroon & Gray finished the season 17-7 overall, which is their most wins in the Division I era in a single season. More history was made when Hidalgo Vega earned a national ranking by ITA in singles.

NCCU won on the courts and also in the classroom, finishing with a 3.85 cumulative grade-point average. Hidalgo Vega and Oliver Saarinen prepare to turn their tassels, sealing memorable college careers.

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

Men's Semifinals: Chattanooga (CTU) def. North Carolina Central (NCCU), 4-3

Doubles
No. 1 Rodrigo Alves/Hugo Hidalgo Vega (NCCU) def. Gabriel Castillo-Sanchez/Jakub Jupa (UTC), 7-5
No. 2 Ryan Mudre/Jaxon Lamb (UTC) def. Kareem Hakim/Oliver Saarinen (NCCU), 7-5
No. 3 Leo Fortier-Gariepy/Antoni Pankowski (NCCU) def. Ethan Carr/Valentine Walker (UTC), 6-3
NCCU wins the doubles point.

Singles
No. 1 Hugo Hidalgo Vega (NCCU) def. Jakub Jupa (UTC), 4-6, 6-3, 6-3
No. 2 Gabriel Castillo-Sanchez (UTC) def. Kareem Hakim (NCCU), 6-4, 6-4
No. 3 Rodrigo Alves (NCCU) def. Ryan Mudre (UTC), 1-6, 6-3, 7-6(0)
No. 4 Cortland Grove (UTC) def. Naresh Mithran Bharathy (NCCU), 6-7(0), 6-3, 6-4
No. 5 Kristof Kincses (UTC) def. Antoni Pankowski (NCCU), 7-5, 6-4
No. 6 Jaxon Lamb (UTC) def. Leo Fortier-Gariepy (NCCU), 5-7, 6-2, 6-2