Ohio State
Purdue
No. 3 Ohio State Clinches Share of Big Ten Title – Ohio State Buckeyes
4/18/2012 12:00:00 AM | Men's Tennis
April 18, 2012
COLUMBUS, Ohio– Behind three doubles wins and six straight-set singles victories, the No. 3 Ohio State men’s tennis team shut out Purdue 7-0 to clinch a share of the Big Ten regular-season title Wednesday afternoon at the Schwartz Tennis Center in West Lafayette, Ind. The 2012 title is the Buckeyes’ seventh-consecutive.
“It was nice to clinch a share of the Big Ten title today,” Ty Tucker, head coach, said. “The goal is to finish the Big Ten season undefeated and we will try to do that against a very good Michigan team Sunday at noon.”
Peter Kobelt’s 6-1, 6-3 win over Szymon Tatarczyk sealed Ohio State’s 28th win (28-2; 10-0 Big Ten) of the season and 10th in the Big Ten Conference. Kobelt improves to 21-10 overall.
Ohio State will return to action at noon Sunday vs. No. 21 Michigan on Senior Day. Chase Buchanan and Steven Williams will be recognized immediately following the contest. The match is scheduled to take place at the Varsity Outdoor Courts, which are just north of the Les Wexner Football Complex. The Wolverines, who own an 8-1 conference record and are still in the hunt for a share of the regular-season league title as well, will face Penn State Friday before traveling to Columbus.
The Buckeye duo of Peter Kobelt and Connor Smith handed Szymon Tatarczyk and Krisztian Krocsko an 8-5 loss to begin the afternoon. Winners of seven consecutive matches, Kobelt and Smith have amassed 23 victories on the season.
The No. 1 pair of Buchanan and Blaz Rola downed No. 73 Aaron Dujovne and Diego Acosta 8-4 to help Ohio State win the doubles point. With the victory, Buchanan and Rola improve to 27-3 overall, including an 18-3 ledger at No. 1 doubles.
At No. 3 doubles, No. 34 Devin McCarthy and Ille Van Engelen collected their team-best 29th win (29-8) after beating Mark Kovacs and Pawel Poziomski 8-5.
Ranked 12th nationally, Buchanan surrendered just one game in his 6-0, 6-1 victory over Acosta at No. 2 singles. Buchanan has now won nine consecutive matches en route to a 24-6 record. McCarthy lifted the Buckeyes to a 3-0 lead when he beat Krocsko 6-3, 6-2 on court No. 4. McCarthy, who has won 11 consecutive matches, is 25-6 overall.
In the remaining singles matches, sixth ranked Rola defeated Kovacs 6-3, 7-6 at No. 1 singles. Rola has a team-leading 29 wins on the season, including a 9-1 mark at the No. 1 position. Receiving the starting nod at No. 6 singles, Hunter Callahan downed Evan Hawkins 6-4, 6-3. In just his eighth dual match of the year, Callahan is 10-3 overall, including 3-0 in the Big Ten Conference. Smith was victorious at No. 5 singles 6-1, 6-4 vs. Dujovne and with the win moves to 26-6 overall and 8-1 in the league.
Break Points
• Ohio State has won 89 consecutive Big Ten matches (regular season and Big Ten tournament) and 141 of its previous 146.
• Ohio State has won 145 consecutive home matches in Columbus (18-0 in 2012).
• As the No. 3 team nationally, Ohio State is 77-3.
• Ohio State has won 70 of its last 72 regular-season (non-tournament) road contests dating back to 2006.
• The Buckeyes have won 27 doubles points out of 29 this season.
• The Buckeyes have been victorious in 45 of their previous 48 matches.
• Since 2001, Ohio State is 273-38 when ranked in the ITA Top 25. That percentage improves to 226-15 from the 2005-06 season onward.
• The Buckeyes have been ranked in the ITA Top 10 for 192 consecutive matches (beginning March 7, 2006).
• The Scarlet and Gray are 10-2 vs. teams ranked in the ITA Top 25 and 20-2 vs. teams in the Top 75.
• Blaz Rola leads the team with 29 singles wins, while Chase Buchanan leads with 35 doubles wins.
Tennis Match Results
No. 3 Ohio State 7, No. 74 Purdue 0
April 18, 2012 at West Lafayette, Ind.
Schwartz Tennis Center
Singles
1. No. 6 Blaz Rola, Ohio State def. Mark Kovacs, Purdue, 6-3, 7-6
2. No. 12 Chase Buchanan, Ohio State def. Diego Acosta, Purdue, 6-0, 6-1
3. No. 67 Peter Kobelt, Ohio State def. Szymon Tatarczyk, Purdue, 6-1, 6-3
4. No. 83 Devin McCarthy, Ohio State def. Krisztian Krocsko, Purdue, 6-3, 6-2
5. No. 101 Connor Smith, Ohio State def. Aaron Dujovne, Purdue, 6-1, 6-4
6. Hunter Callahan, Ohio State def. Evan Hawkins, Purdue, 6-4, 6-3
Doubles
1. No. 1 Chase Buchanan/Blaz Rola, Ohio State def. No. 73 Aaron Dujovne/Diego Acosta, Purdue, 8-4
2. Peter Kobelt/Connor Smith, Ohio State def. Szymon Tatarczyk/Krisztian Krocsko, Purdue 8-5
3. No. 34 Devin McCarthy/Ille Van Engelen, Ohio State def. Mark Kovacs/Pawel Poziomski, Purdue, 8-5
Match Notes:
Purdue 10-13, 2-7 Big Ten
Ohio State 28-2, 10-0 Big Ten; National ranking No. 3
T-2:43
Order of Finish: Doubles (2,1,3), Singles (2, 4, 3, 1, 6, 5)
