WTEN: Buckeyes Eliminated from Big Ten Tournament by No. 10 Michigan, 4-0
COLUMBUS, Ohio - The 58th-ranked Ohio State women's tennis team's run at the Big Ten tournament came to an end Saturday afternoon after the team lost in the semifinals against No. 10-ranked and top seed Michigan, 4-0.
The Wolverines (22-3, 10-0 Big Ten) earned a pair of quick, 8-1 doubles decisions to take the doubles point to start the match against the Buckeyes (15-11, 7-3 Big Ten). Mimi Nguyen and Sam Critser downed Gabby Steele and Fidan Manashirova on court three while Whitney Taney and Rika Tatsuno, the 65th-ranked doubles tandem in the country, defeated Kara Cecil and Noelle Malley on court two.
Michigan's top duo of Brooke Bolender and Denise Muresan, ranked No. 9 nationally, held a 5-2 lead against Paloma Escobedo and Cami Hubbs before play was abandoned.
The Wolverines, the Big Ten regular-season champion, earned a trio of singles victories in the heart of the lineup to close out the Buckeyes. Critser, ranked 66th nationally, battled Cecil to a 6-3, 6-0 finish on court four before 100th-ranked Taney put away Steele on court three, 6-2, 6-0.
Bolender, ranked 74th nationally, notched the final win as she downed Kelsey Haviland, 6-1, 6-3, on court two.
Escobedo's match against seventh-ranked Muresan was forced into a third set before it was left unfinished. Manashirova and Hubbs both dropped first sets in tiebreakers and were in the middle of second sets against Tatsuno and Nguyen, respectively, before the matches were abandoned.
2011 Big Ten Tournament
Ann Arbor, Mich.
No. 10 Michigan 4 (22-3), No. 58 Ohio State 0 (15-11)
Singles
No. 1 -- No. 7 Denise Muresan (U-M) vs. Paloma Escobedo (OSU), 6-1, 4-6, 1-0 abandoned
No. 2 -- No. 74 Brooke Bolender (U-M) d. Kelsey Haviland (OSU), 6-1, 6-3
No. 3 -- No. 100 Whitney Taney (U-M) d. Gabby Steele (OSU), 6-2, 6-0
No. 4 -- No. 66 Sam Critser (U-M) d. Kara Cecil (OSU), 6-3, 6-0
No. 5 -- Rika Tatsuno (U-M) vs. Fidan Manashirova (OSU), 7-6, 0-3 abandoned
No. 6 -- Mimi Nguyen (U-M) vs. Cami Hubbs (OSU), 7-6 (3), 2-2 abandoned
Doubles
No. 1 -- No. 9 Brooke Bolender/Denise Muresan (U-M) vs. Paloma Escobedo/Cami Hubbs (OSU), 5-2 abandoned
No. 2 -- No. 65 Whitney Taney/Rika Tatsuno (U-M) d. Kara Cecil/Noelle Malley (OSU), 8-1
No. 3 -- Mimi Nguyen/Sam Critser (U-M) d. Gabby Steele/Fidan Manashirova (OSU), 8-1
Order of Completion: Doubles 3-2; Singles 4-3-2
