SOUTH FULTON, Ga. – North Carolina Central's men's tennis team concluded its run at the 2026 HBCU National Tennis Championships with a third-place finish. The Eagles competed Sept. 17-20 at the South Fulton Tennis Center, marking the 25th anniversary of the event.

The Eagles remained in the top half of the standings throughout the tournament, battling for position with Alcorn State, Xavier (La.) and Alabama State. Alcorn State claimed the championship for the first time with 63 points. XULA jumped from fourth to second on the final day with 58 points, while last year's champions, NCCU, finished third with 54 points.

Sergio Lopez turned in an impressive performance, advancing to the championship final in Flight A Singles. Lopez defeated Alcorn State's Hlib Kovalenka in the Round of 16, then edged Howard's Michael Major, 12-10, in a tiebreaker in the quarterfinals. He followed with a dominant 6-0, 6-1 victory over Alabama State's Flor De Sitter in the semifinals. XULA's Christian Sanchez defeated Lopez to claim the Flight A Singles championship.

Pol Puig Montiel and Leo Fortier-Gariepy also advanced to a championship final, reaching the Flight B Doubles title match. The Eagle duo faced Jackson State's Davesh Sarawanan and Ching Chang Chui, falling 6-2 to the Tigers. The JSU pair also ended the possibility of an all-NCCU final by defeating the Eagles' Lucas Hartley and Angel Maffezzoli in the semifinals.

Adrian Nedelcu reached the Flight B Singles semifinals, where Alabama A&M's Mihnea Petru Stanciu advanced to the final. Nedelcu earned another opportunity to compete in the 3-4 playoff and came away victorious, defeating JSU's Angel Hernandez in a pair of 6-4 sets.

Mark Nawa, Hartley and Puig Montiel also picked up victories in their respective consolation rounds.

Next up, the Maroon and Gray make the short trip to Cary Tennis Park for the MEAC Invitational, Oct. 1-3, where the conference's singles and doubles champions will be crowned.

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