WEST WINDSOR, N.J. – In a see-saw title match, No. 2 Wagner defeated No. 1 Binghamton men's tennis 4-2 in the championship match of the Northeast Conference Tournament Saturday afternoon at the Mercer County Tennis Center .
"The guys fought hard today," head coach
Nick Zieziula stated. "It was a battle. Nobody backed down. We had a lot of obstacles and challenges this year, but the guys kept going. We got the No. 1 seed but ultimately credit to Wagner on a well-played match."
The Bearcats started out strong in doubles action with doubles pairs
Ronin Lotlikar/
Harry Liao and
Filipe Costa/
Dylan Breen each claiming a victory by a score of 6-3 to give Binghamton the 1-0 lead.
The start of singles play began with Wagner claiming the first point in the No. 1 singles match.
At No. 5 singles, freshman
Giannis Sakkas fell in the first set 6-2 but had a huge turnaround in set two, winning 6-1 to force a third set. In the deciding frame, he claimed the victory by a score of 6-3 to give Binghamton their second point of the day.
The Seahawks rattled off two more points in just a five-minute time span, putting the score at 3-2 with only singles matches No. 3 and 4 left to play.
With all eyes on the Grandstand court,
Harry Liao and
Andre Ajed were Binghamton's final competitors on Saturday. Ajed fell in his first set but dominated the second 6-1. His match continued to go back-and-forth on game points, while Liao's match was happening right beside him.
Liao battled with Tom Lamers in the No. 3 singles, Lamers took the first set 6-4, with Liao coming right back in the second 6-3 to force a deciding third set. The two traded game points up until the 5-5 mark, when Wagner was able to seal the deal with the next two games, finalizing the 7-5 championship-clinching set and match.
"Great job by Wagner ... I'm happy for Coach Azran," coach Zieziula said. "There aren't many female coaches in D1 men's sports in the country. There should be more opportunities so huge credit to her for the year she's had leading her team to a championship."
Lotlikar and Costa were named to the league's All-Tournament Team.
This concludes the 2025-26 campaign for the Bearcats.
