Ohio State
Wisconsin
Buckeyes Rally to Down Wisconsin at Home, 4-3 – Ohio State Buckeyes
4/6/2012 12:00:00 AM | Women's Tennis
April 6, 2012
COLUMBUS, Ohio – The Ohio State women’s tennis team rallied to earn four singles wins and a 4-3 victory over conference rival Wisconsin at home Friday afternoon. Ohio State’s (7-12, 2-4 Big Ten) Tiffany Dittmer and Kelsey Dieters both came back after dropping opening sets to take three-set decisions to down the Badgers (10-8, 1-5 Big Ten) following wins from Kara Cecil and Fidan Manashirova.
“The team was able to fight back today,” Chuck Merzbacher, Ohio State head coach, said. “It was important for us coming into this match to show our toughness to set the tone for the rest of the season. We showed it today, down match point with Dieters and Dittmer. I’m proud of this entire team.”
The win is the first for the Buckeyes in their initial full match at the new Ohio State University Varsity Outdoor Tennis Courts. The team completed doubles at the venue twice this season, but were forced inside for singles due to inclement weather both times.
Ohio State will face Minnesota at 11 a.m. Sunday at the outdoor facility.
The Badgers swept doubles matches to take a 1-0 lead. On court three, Angela Cupa and Sarah Loebel defeated the Buckeye duo of Dieters and Dittmer, 8-3, and at No. 2 Hannah Berner and Nova Patel won 8-4 over Kelsey Haviland and Cecil. On court one Alaina Trgovich and Nicky Stracar downed Ohio State’s Manashirova and Gabby Steele won in a tiebreaker, 8-7 (1).
Cecil tied the match with a straight-set win on court two, 6-2, 6-2. Patel pushed the Badgers back ahead (2-1) with a 6-3, 6-2 win over Steele. The teams then split the next two matches to keep the Badgers up by one (3-2). On court three Manashirova won in three sets, 6-2, 3-6, 6-2, over Berner before Trgovich pulled away for a 7-6 (5), 6-4 win over Haviland on court one.
On court six, Dittmer rallied against Chupa to tie the match at 3-all. After dropping the first set, 7-5, she won the second 6-4 and posted a 7-5 win in the third for the victory. Dieters also climbed from a first-set deficit to take the last two games, including a second-set tiebreaker during which the freshman faced Loebel’s match point. Dieters reclaimed the upper hand to pick up the tiebreaker win, 7-5, before racing to a 6-2 third-set victory to clinch the team’s second conference victory this season.
“I didn’t pay attention to the score during the tiebreaker, I just focused on my game,” Dieters said after the comeback. “I was able to gain some momentum and win the third set. It is a great win for the team.”
Tennis Match Results
Wisconsin vs Ohio State
Apr 06, 2012 at Columbus, Ohio
(OSU Varsity Outdoor Tennis Courts)
Ohio State 4, Wisconsin 3
Singles competition
1. Alaina Trgovich (WIS) def. Kelsey Haviland (OSU) 7-6 (7-5), 6-4
2. Kara Cecil (OSU) def. Nicky Stracar (WIS) 6-2, 6-2
3. Fidan Manashirova (OSU) def. Hannah Berner (WIS) 6-2, 3-6, 6-2
4. Kelsey Dieters (OSU) def. Sarah Loebel (WIS) 3-6, 7-6 (7-5), 6-2
5. Nova Patel (WIS) def. Gabby Steele (OSU) 6-3, 6-2
6. Tiffany Dittmer (OSU) def. Angela Chupa (WIS) 5-7, 6-4, 7-5
Doubles competition
1. Alaina Trgovich/Nicky Stracar (WIS) def. Fidan Manashirova/Gabby Steele (OSU) 8-7 (7-1)
2. Hannah Berner/Nova Patel (WIS) def. Kelsey Haviland/Kara Cecil (OSU) 8-4
3. Angela Chupa/Sarah Loebel (WIS) def. Kelsey Dieters/Tiffany Dittmer (OSU) 8-3
Match Notes:
Wisconsin 10-8 (1-5 Big Ten)
Ohio State 7-12 (2-4 Big Ten)
Order of finish: Doubles (3,2,1); Singles (2,5,3,1,6,4)
Team Stats
#1 Doubles Match
#2 Doubles Match
#3 Doubles Match
Order of Finish:
3,2,1
#1 Singles Match
#2 Singles Match
#3 Singles Match
#4 Singles Match
#5 Singles Match
#6 Singles Match
Order of Finish:
2,5,3,1,6,4
