Ohio State
#15 Illinois
Buckeyes Defeat Illinois to Finish First Weekend of Conference Play
3/24/2024 3:21:00 PM | Men's Tennis
COLUMBUS, Ohio – For the second time this season, No. 1 Ohio State defeated No. 15 Illinois by a score of 4-1. Sunday’s match capped the opening weekend of Big Ten play and the Buckeyes are 2-0.
Ohio State is now 20-1 on the year while Illinois falls to 10-6 and 1-1 in Big Ten play.
Senior Cannon Kingsley went 2-0 on the day and is now just one singles win shy of 100 in his career.
Andrew Lutschaunig and Justin Boulais broke early on court two in doubles and held serve the rest of the way for a 6-3 win. Kingsley and JJ Tracy went down a break at 4-3 but rallied to win the next three games and clinch the doubles point with a 6-4 win.
That seemed to be the crucial point as Ohio State rolled that momentum into singles and won five of the six first sets. Kingsley was the first done with a 6-4, 6-3 win over No. 47 Hunter Heck. Illinois got their lone point of the match with a win on court one but then the super sophomores finished the match.
Jack Anthrop and Alexander Bernard have not lost a dual singles match this season and they both stayed perfect with wins on Sunday. Anthrop won 6-4, 6-3 on court three over Alex Petrov and Bernard won 6-4, 6-2 on court five over No. 116 Oliver Okonkwo. Tracy was up 6-3, 5-2 and had a 40-40 point when the match was decided.
The Buckeyes will hit the road for the next couple of weekends. They will play at Purdue next Friday and at Indiana next Sunday.
#1 Ohio State 4, #15 Illinois 1
Singles
1. #31 Karlis Ozolins (ILL) def. #25 Justin Boulais (OSU) 6-4, 6-3
2. #22 Cannon Kingsley (OSU) def. #47 Hunter Heck (ILL) 6-4, 6-3
3. #19 Jack Anthrop (OSU) def. Alex Petrov (ILL) 6-4, 6-3
4. #12 JJ Tracy (OSU) def. #83 Kenta Miyoshi (ILL) 6-3, 5-2, unfinished
5. #99 Alexander Bernard (OSU) def. #116 Oliver Okonkwo (ILL) 6-4, 6-2
6. Robert Cash (OSU) def. William Mroz (ILL) 6-3, 4-4, unfinished
Doubles
1. Robert Cash/Bryce Nakashima (OSU) vs. Lucas Horve/Oliver Okonkwo (ILL) 4-3, unfinished
2. Andrew Lutschaunig/Justin Boulais (OSU) def. Hunter Heck/Karlis Ozolins (ILL) 6-3
3. Cannon Kingsley/JJ Tracy (OSU) def. Mathis Debru/Kenta Miyoshi (ILL) 6-4
Match Notes:
Ohio State 20-1; National ranking #1
Illinois 10-6; National ranking #15
Order of finish: Doubles (2,3); Singles (2,1,3,5)
Attendance: 403
Time: 2:05
Team Stats
#1 Doubles Match
#2 Doubles Match
#3 Doubles Match
Order of Finish:
2,3
#1 Singles Match
#2 Singles Match
#3 Singles Match
#4 Singles Match
#5 Singles Match
#6 Singles Match
Order of Finish:
2,1,3,5
