No. 3 Buckeyes Fall to No. 2 Auburn in NCAA Semifinals

Saturday, May 16

Athens, Ga.

4 p.m.

Ohio State

Auburn

Photo by: Ohio State Athletics

No. 3 Buckeyes Fall to No. 2 Auburn in NCAA Semifinals

5/16/2026 8:36:00 PM | Women's Tennis

Box Score Photo Gallery

Ohio State was making its second appearance in the national semifinals

COLUMBUS, Ohio – The No. 3-seed Ohio State women's tennis team saw its run in the NCAA Championship end with a 4-1 loss to No. 2 Auburn in the semifinals Saturday at the Dan Magill Tennis Complex in Athens, Ga. The No. 4 ranked Buckeyes end their season 27-5, the third-most wins in a single season in program history.

The semifinal appearance was the Buckeyes' second and the first since 2017. Ohio State downed No. 11 Pepperdine 4-0 in the quarterfinals Friday after wins at home over Youngstown State, Notre Dame and No. 14 Vanderbilt in the first three rounds. The Buckeyes have qualified for 12 consecutive and 22 overall NCAA championships.

In the semifinals, Auburn opened the match with the doubles point, notching victories on courts two and one. Buckeye Teah Chavez evened the match with a court one win, but the Tigers took courts six, three and four to secure the victory and advance to the final.

How it Happened

Auburn won two ranked doubles matchups on courts two and one for a 1-0 lead.
On court two, No. 8-ranked Angella Okutoyi and Merna Refaat defeated No. 34 Hephzibah Oluwadare and Teah Chavez, 6-1. The No. 2-ranked duo of Ava Esposito and DJ Bennett topped No. 23 23 Flora Johnson and Luciana Perry, 6-3, on court one.
The match on court three was abandoned with Buckeyes Sophia Cisse-Ignatiev and Audrey Spencer even at four-all with Ekaterina Khairutdinova and Ashton Bowers.
No. 5-ranked Chavez rolled to a 6-1, 6-0 win over No. 16 Bennett to put the Buckeyes on the board.
Auburn won four first sets and closed out straight set wins on three for the victory.
On court six, No. 68 Esposito defeated Alessia Cau, 7-5, 6-0.
The court three match was won by No. 55 Okutovi over Cisse-Ignatiev, 6-4, 6-3.
Refaat defeated No. 123 Spencer, 6-4, 6-2, on court four, for the Tigers' fourth point.
On court two, No. 4 Perry was up a set but down in the second against No. 31 Khairutdinova and on court five Nishino was down a set and behind a break in the second.

The Results
Ohio State vs Auburn
May 16, 2026 at Athens, Ga.
(Dan Magill Tennis Complex)

#2 Auburn 4, #4 Ohio State 1

Singles competition
1. #5 Teah Chavez (OSU) def. #16 DJ Bennett (AUB) 6-1, 6-0
2. #31 E. Khairutdinova (AUB) vs. #4 Luciana Perry (OSU) 5-7, 5-3, unfinished
3. #55 Angella Okutoyi (AUB) def. Sophia Cisse-Ignatiev (OSU) 6-4, 6-3
4. Merna Refaat (AUB) def. #123 Audrey Spencer (OSU) 6-4, 6-2
5. #58 Ashton Bowers (AUB) vs. #76 Nao Nishino (OSU) 6-2, 6-5, unfinished
6. #68 Ava Esposito (AUB) def. Alessia Cau (OSU) 7-5, 6-0

Doubles competition
1. #2 Ava Esposito/DJ Bennett (AUB) def. #23 Flora Johnson/Luciana Perry (OSU) 6-3
2. #8 Angella Okutoyi/Merna Refaat (AUB) def. #34 Hephzibah Oluwadare/Teah Chavez (OSU) 6-1
3. E. Khairutdinova/Ashton Bowers (AUB) vs. Sophia Cisse-Ignatiev/Audrey Spencer (OSU) 4-4, unfinished

Match Notes:
Ohio State 27-5; National ranking #4
Auburn 37-3; National ranking #2
Order of finish: Doubles (2,1); Singles (1,6,3,4)
NCAA Championship Semifinal
Auburn No. 2 seed, Ohio State No. 3
T-2:16