Ohio State
Vanderbilt (NCAA Tournament Second Round) **
Buckeyes Moving on to NCAA Round of 16
5/8/2021 4:21:00 PM | Women's Tennis
COLUMBUS, Ohio – With a 4-3 win over Vanderbilt, the No. 15 seed Ohio State women's tennis team is moving on to the NCAA Championship Round of 16. The Buckeyes dropped the doubles point for the first time in 21 matches but rebounded with four singles wins to advance.
After taking the doubles point and court one, Vanderbilt held a 2-0 lead. Buckeyes Lisa Hofbauer, Luna Dormet and Isabelle Boulais all won in straight sets to give the Buckeyes a 3-2 advantage. The Commodores tied the team score at three, leaving court five, which had just started a third set, to decide the match and Buckeye Lucia Marzal provided the clinching point. After dropping the second set she broke to open the third and jumped out to a 5-0 lead, closing out a 6-1 set win.
Ohio State, now 23-3 on the year and on a 15-match winning streak, will play the winner of No. 2 seed Texas vs. Arizona State at 1 p.m. Sunday May 16 at the USTA National Campus in Orlando, Fla.
Moving on!#NCAATennis #GoBuckeyes pic.twitter.com/Pygv8TKmar
— Ohio State Women's Tennis (@OhioStateWTEN) May 8, 2021
Quoting head coach Melissa Schaub
"A year ago when everything was cut short you're thinking about how the next season is going to go. We have put a lot of work in this season and for us to get to the Round of 16 – it's a happy lockerroom for sure.
"Losing the doubles point was tough. We've had the 1-0 lead in most matches this year. After doubles we talked about how now we get a chance to see what we're made of. We came out and fought hard at every spot and gave ourselves a chance.
"For Lucia to have to play nearly her whole third set as the only court left with the match on the line showed a lot of guts. She played tough and I'm really happy for her."
Noting the Win
- The Buckeyes improved to 6-0 all-time in NCAA matches in Columbus. The squad also hosted in 2016 and '17.
- This is the third time Ohio State has advanced to the NCAA Round of 16.
- Ohio State is making its seventh straight NCAA appearance and the 17th in program history.
- The Buckeyes are 5-1 all-time against Vanderbilt. It was the first meeting between the teams in the NCAA tournament.
In Doubles
- For the first time in 21 matches the Buckeyes dropped the doubles point.
- 50-ranked Isabelle Boulais and Kolie Allen won a matchup of ranked teams, as they defeated Vanderbilt's No. 28 Anna Ross and Holly Staff on court one, 6-3. The Buckeyes are 15-2 this spring.
- The Commodores took the other doubles matches with 6-3 wins.
- The tandem of Lucia Marzal and Lisa Hofbauer fell to No. 63-ranked Emma Kurtz and Marcella Cruz on court two and on court three Luna Dormet and Irina Cantos Siemers, ranked 80th, lost to Christina Rosca and Anessa Lee. The loss was the first of the year for Dormet and Cantos Siemers as a tandem this year (13-1).
In Singles
- 43-ranked Rosca put the Commodores up 2-0 with a 6-3, 6-1 win over No. 18-ranked Cantos Siemers on court one.
- On court four, Hofbauer did not drop a game in the first set vs. Ross. In the second, the Commodore was up a break before Hofbauer battled to get back on serve at 5-all. The Buckeye graduate student then held, winning on the deciding point, for a 6-5 lead and broke for a 7-5 set win to seal her match.
- Boulais followed with a straight set win on court two against Kurtz, coming back from down a break in both sets and winning 6-4. In the first she rallied from an early break, breaking for a 5-4 lead and serving it out. In the second set, the Buckeye junior was broken to trail 3-4 but responded with a break of her own for a 4-all match. She then held for 5-4 and finished it out with another break.
- Dormet put the Buckeyes a point away with a 6-4, 6-3 win over Staff on court six. She jumped out to a 4-0 lead and was able to stay ahead through the set in the first. In the second, Dormet won three games in a row for a 4-1 lead and again closed it out.
- The Commodores' Lee tied the team match at 3-all as she won 6-3, 7-5 over Allen on court three, breaking for the match win.
- The match came down to court five between Marzal and Cruz. The Buckeye won the first set 6-3. In the second she came back from down 2-5, breaking for a 5-all match. Cruz held to go ahead 6-5 and then broke to take the set 7-5 and force a third set.
- Marzal opened the third set with a break and carried the momentum to a 5-all lead. She dropped her serve for a 5-1 match but answered with a break of her own to send the Buckeyes to Orlando.
- Marzal leads the Buckeyes with a 24-3 overall record this year and is 22-2 in dual matches, on an eight-match winning streak. Hofbauer is 14-6 in dual play and 15-8 overall this year. Boulais improved to 12-5 overall and in dual play and Dormet is now 21-1 on the year and 19-1 in dual matches. She is on a 12-match winning streak.
The Results
Vanderbilt vs Ohio State
May 08, 2021 at Columbus, Ohio
(Auer Tennis Complex)
#16 Ohio State 4, #28 Vanderbilt 3
Singles competition
- #43 Christina Rosca (VANDY) def. #18 Irina Cantos Siemers (OSU) 6-3, 6-1
- Isabelle Boulais (OSU) def. Emma Kurtz (VANDY) 6-4, 6-4
- Anessa Lee (VANDY) def. Kolie Allen (OSU) 6-3, 7-5
- Lisa Hofbauer (OSU) def. Anna Ross (VANDY) 6-0, 7-5
- Lucia Marzal (OSU) def. Marcella Cruz (VANDY) 6-3, 5-7, 6-1
- Luna Dormet (OSU) def. Holly Staff (VANDY) 6-4, 6-3
Doubles competition
- #50 Kolie Allen/Isabelle Boulais (OSU) def. #28 Anna Ross/Holly Staff (VANDY) 6-3
- #63 Emma Kurtz/Marcella Cruz (VANDY) def. Lucia Marzal/Lisa Hofbauer (OSU) 6-3
- Christina Rosca/Anessa Lee (VANDY) def. Luna Dormet/Irina Cantos Siemers (OSU) 6-3
Match Notes:
Vanderbilt 14-10; National ranking #28
Ohio State 23-3; National ranking #16
Order of finish: Doubles (1,2,3); Singles (1,4,2,6,3,5)
NCAA Tournament Second Round
Ohio State No. 15 seed
Official: Julio Colon T-2:57 A-116
