CHARLESTON, W.Va. – The West Liberty University men's tennis team rolled to a 4-2 victory against Mercyhurst here Monday in an NCAA Division II Atlantic Region One Tournament semifinal at the Schoenbaum Park Courts.
    Coach Ron Hulewicz's Hilltoppers will be back on the Schoenbaum Park Courts Tuesday at 11:30 a.m. to take on top-seeded and No. 19-ranked Charleston for the regional title and a berth in the NCAA Division II Nationals later this month.
     West Liberty took control of the match from the start, claiming the doubles point in less than 45 minutes. Isfan Makhmudov and Daisuke Aota teamed up for a convincing 6-2 win against the Lakers' Ben Davis and Noha De Sousa at No. 2 doubles and the No. 3 doubles tandem followed suit with a 6-3 nod over MU's Hristo Plasheski and Morris Haab.
    The Hilltoppers kept right on rolling as singles play got under way. Moritz Erpel blitzed Mercyhurst's David Akinpetide, 6-1 6-1, at No. 1 singles and Anton Schulz made short work of Milan Jankovic, 6-3 6-2, in the No. 2 singles slot for a 3-0 WLU advantage.
    One loss away from the end of their season, the Lakers tried to turn the tide. De Sousa gave Mercyhurst its first point with a 6-4 6-3 nod over Aota at No. 4 singles and Morris Haab cut the West Liberty lead to 3-2 with a hard-fought, 6-4 2-6 6-4, victory over Nevio Dux at No. 6 singles.
    Makhmudov provided the clincher for the Hilltoppers, pulling out an 8-6 tiebreaker win in the second set of his No. 5 singles match against Plasheski to cap a straight-set victory.
    Tuesday's regional title tilt will be a rematch of the MEC Tournament championship match and the third meeting of the year between the Hilltoppers and Golden Eagles. Charleston handed WLU a 6-1 loss in the regular season and prevailed by a 4-1 tally in the MEC final.
    The winner of Tuesday's match punches its ticket to the 2022 NCAA Division II Nationals, scheduled for May 18-22 in Altamonte Springs, Fla. Rollins College and the Greater Orlando Sports Commission are hosting the event.
  Anton Schulz/Nevio Dux (WLU) vs. David Akinpetide/Milan Jankovic (MU), 3-5 (DNF)
Isfan Makhmudov/Daisuke Aota (WLU) d. Ben Davis/Noha De Sousa (MU), 6-2
Moritz Erpel/Gianluca Gerndt (WLU) d. Hristo Plasheski/Morris Haab (MU), 6-3 Erpel (WLU) d. Akinpetide (MU), 6-1 6-1
Schulz (WLU) d. Jankovic (MU), 6-3 6-2
Gerndt (WLU) vs. Davis (MU), 6-7(7) 2-4 (DNF)
De Sousa (MU) d. Aota (WLU), 6-4 6-3
Makhmudov (WLU) d. Plasheski (MU), 6-2 7-6(6)
Haab (MU) d. Dux (WLU), 6-4 2-6 6-4