Ohio State
University of Illinois
No. 2 Buckeyes Return Home, Face No. 14 Illinois and Northwestern
3/25/2026 9:45:00 AM | Men's Tennis
Ohio State takes on the Illini Friday, Wildcats Sunday
#2 Ohio State vs. No. 14 Illinois and Northwestern     Â
Dates:Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â March 27/29
Times:Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â 6 p.m./11 a.m.
Venue:Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Ty Tucker Tennis Center
Live Scoring:Â Â Â Â Â Sidearm
Live Video:Â Â Â Â Â OhioStateBuckeyes.com
Rosters:        Ohio State | Illinois | Northwestern
Rankings:Â Â Â Â Â Â ITA Rankings
COLUMBUS, Ohio -- No. 2 Ohio State (17-3, 4-1 Big Ten)Â welcomes No. 14 Illinois (15-4, 5-1)Â Friday (6 p.m.) and No. 69 Northwestern 913-8, 1-5) Sunday (11 a.m.) to the Ty Tucker Tennis Center this weekend.
The Buckeyes went undefeated in their three-game road trip last week against No. 10 Texas A&M (4-1), No. 60 Indiana (4-1) and Purdue (4-0).Â
- The Buckeyes opened the season ranked No. 6 in the ITA preseason rankings, they moved up to No. 2 in the first rankings and jumped to No. 1 before falling to No. 5. In the latest rankings, Ohio State ranked No. 2 for the second time this season.
- Ohio State started the season 11-0 at home, in that span, the Buckeyes swept eight opponents at Ty Tucker Tennis Center.
- Against nationally ranked opponents, Ohio State is 9-3, the Buckeyes started 5-0 against teams in the Top 5.
- Nikita Filin, Alexander Bernard and Preston Stearns are all undefeated in Big Ten singles competition. Filin leads the way with a 5-0 record, he racked up three singles victories last week. Bernard is currently on a five-match winning streak and Stearns has won three-consecutive matches.
- Ohio State and Illinois remain close all-time with a 65-60-1 record, but the Buckeyes dominated the recent matches with 11-consecutive wins over the Fighting Illini. Illinois were ranked No. 10 last week before falling to Michigan State, they are currently 5-1 in the Big Ten.
- The Buckeyes lead the all-time series against Northwestern at 60-45 and have defeated the Wildcats in 18-consecutive contests. Ohio State is 25-1 since Ty Tucker became head coach. The Wildcats have lost their past four matches, all against Big Ten opponentsÂ
- Five Buckeyes remained on the leaderboard in the latest ITA singles rankings. Aidan Kim is the highest Buckeye at No. 9 followed by Preston Stearns at No. 16, Anthrop at No. 27, Alex Okonkwo at No. 32 and Filin at No. 85.
- Five Ohio State pairs are ranked in the latest ITA doubles rankings with Brandon Carpico and Filin holding their spot at No. 1, Alexander Bernard and Okonkwo at No. 17, Kim and Nakashima at No. 28, Anthrop and Loren Byers at No. 52 and Anthrop and Stearns at No. 56.Â
- After the two-game home stand, the Buckeyes will continue Big Ten competition on the west coast against UCLA and USC April 3 and 5.
Players Mentioned
