Ohio State
Nebraska
Buckeyes Charge Into B1G Semis with 4-0 Win Over Nebraska – Ohio State Buckeyes
4/29/2016 12:00:00 AM | Men's Tennis
April 29, 2016
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MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. – For the second time in a little less than a month, No. 4-ranked Ohio State claimed a 4-0 sweep over Big Ten foe Nebraska. Friday’s matchup came in the quarterfinals of the big Ten Tournament sending the Buckeyes on to Saturday’s semifinals.
Ohio State is now 28-2 on the season and will meet No. 24 Michigan on Saturday at Noon. The Wolverines downed Iowa 4-1 on Friday afternoon to advance to the semis.
“It was a good win for the Buckeyes,” said Director of Tennis Ty Tucker. “Any team you play in the quarterfinals of the Big Ten Tournament is going to be good. Everyone’s got scholarships and everyone’s got good players, so it was nice to get the doubles point and then go on from there.”
The Buckeyes got out of the gate well by claiming the doubles point with wins at the Nos. 2 and 3 spots. Hugo Di Feo and Matt Mendez improved to 8-0 on the season with a convincing 6-1 victory over Bradford Zitsch and Andrew Dzulynsky on court three. Shortly after Mikael Torpegaard and Martin Joyce fell 6-3 at No. 1, Ralf Steinbach and Herkko Pollanen defeated Marc Herrmann and Scott Elsass 6-4 on court two to win the point.
Ohio State then rolled that momentum into the singles and would win the first set in all five matches. Senior Chris Diaz put the second point on the board for the Buckeyes with a 6-1, 6-2 win over Herrmann. This was Diaz’s 14th win of the season and he has lost just once in the last month.
Joyce pushed the lead to 3-0 as he used his strong serve to down Tomislav Antoljak 6-2, 6-4 on court six. The Hinsdale, Ill., native has yet to be defeated in 2016 and is now 18-2 overall.
Torpgaard, the No. 1 ranked player in the country, provided the clinching point for the Buckeyes with a 7-6, 6-3 triumph over fellow All-Big Ten first teamer Dusty Boyer. Torpegaard surrendered with one break lead in the first and was pushed to a tie-breaker which he eventually won 7-4. He then raced out to a 4-1 lead in the second set before finishing off his 27th victory on the year 6-3.
The Buckeyes have now advanced to the semifinals of the Big Ten Tournament for the 16th-straight season and are in search of their 11th tournament title in program history. In the first meeting this season with Michigan, the Buckeyes rolled to a 4-0 victory on Easter Sunday in Columbus.
The match is scheduled to be played outdoors and no live scoring or video of the match will be available. If the match is moved indoor due to inclement weather, live scoring and video will be accessible.
#4 Ohio State 4, Nebraska 0
Singles competition
1. #1 Mikael Torpegaard (OSU) def. #93 Dusty Boyer (NEB) 7-6 (7-4), 6-3
2. #96 Chris Diaz (OSU) def. Marc Herrmann (NEB) 6-1, 6-2
3. #41 Hugo Di Feo (OSU) vs. Toby Boyer (NEB) 6-2, 3-5, unfinished
4. Ralf Steinbach (OSU) vs. Andrew Dzulynsky (NEB) 6-3, 5-3, unfinished
5. #103 Herkko Pollanen (OSU) vs. Bradford Zitsch (NEB) 7-6 (7-4), 2-1, unfinished
6. Martin Joyce (OSU) def. Tomislav Antoljak (NEB) 6-2, 6-4
Doubles competition
1. Dusty Boyer/Toby Boyer (NEB) def. Mikael Torpegaard/Martin Joyce (OSU) 6-3
2. Ralf Steinbach/Herkko Pollanen (OSU) def. Marc Herrmann/Scott Elsass (NEB) 6-4
3. Hugo Di Feo/Matt Mendez (OSU) def. Bradford Zitsch/Andrew Dzulynsky (NEB) 6-1
Match Notes:
Nebraska 14-12
Ohio State 28-2; National ranking #4
Order of finish: Doubles (3,1,2); Singles (2,6,1)
Big Ten Tournament Quarterfinal Match
