MONTGOMERY, Ala. – The No.22 University of North Georgia (UNG) men's tennis team closed out the regular season with a 4-2 neutral site win over No. 27 Mississippi College (MC) in Montgomery, Ala. Thursday afternoon.

The Nighthawks (10-6, 2-3 Peach Belt) have now successfully recorded their fourth season in the last five years with double digit wins. The win over the Choctaws (14-9, 5-3 Gulf South) marked UNG's third victory over a ranked opponent this season.

The Nighthawks came away with the ranked victory thanks in part to their play in the doubles portion of the match.

After freshman Franco Rebora and sophomore Marcos Castellanos snagged a 6-2 win in the #2 doubles match, the two teams were tied 1-1 in doubles.

UNG came away with the overall match point when freshman Juan Cruz Blanco and senior Robin Eldin defeated the No. 29 ranked duo by the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) in Alex Blanchard and Rafael Sabio. 

In a thrilling 7-6 victory, Blanco and Eldin overcame the pressure and erupted for an 11-9 win in the tiebreaker to secure the overall team point in the match.

In the #4 singles match, Blanco rode the adrenaline from his doubles victory as he dominated Gustavo Tedesco 6-2, 6-2 for another victory.

The #6 singles match then saw Nighthawk junior Eliseo Alcalde take down Alvaro Saint Martin 6-4, 7-6 (9-7 tiebreaker) to secure the second singles win for UNG and its third point overall, putting the team on the verge of clinching the match.

Rebora rallied from a 2-6 loss in the first set of the #2 singles contest with 6-3 and 6-4 wins over Sabio to earn his seventh singles victory of the year. He leads all Nighthawk freshmen in singles wins this season. His victory on Thursday clinched another ranked win for UNG.

The Nighthawks now set their sights on the postseason as the 2025 Peach Belt Conference Tournament looms. The tournament takes place April 25-27 in Columbus, Ga. as UNG hopes to hoist the first PBC Tournament trophy in program history.