Wednesday, 02/01/2012

COLUMBUS, Ohio – The Ohio State women’s tennis team hosts the Syracuse Orange at noon Saturday inside the OSU Varsity Tennis Center (880 Henderson Road) before traveling to State College, Pa., Monday to take on Penn State in the teams’ first Big Ten match of the year.

Admission to all regular season home matches is free.

FOLLOW ALONG
Throughout the season, stay connected with the Buckeyes on Twitter @OhioState_WTEN or on Facebook at facebook.com/OhioState_WTEN. Live stats will be provided for all home games and can be linked from the women’s tennis page at OhioStateBuckeyes.com.

CAMPUS KIDS’ DAY
As part of the United States Tennis Association’s effort to create stronger ties between junior players and collegiate tennis, the Ohio State women’s tennis team will participate in USTA Campus Kids’ Day Saturday during the match against Syracuse.

Promotions and activities at the event include:
Schedule poster giveaway
Post-match autograph session
Free Block “O” racquet stenciling
Demonstration from junior members of the Columbus Racquet Club
Register to Win prize pack
Free Donatos pizza and refreshments for kids 8th grade and under

ON DECK FOR OHIO STATE
Following the matches against Syracuse and Penn State, the Scarlet and Gray will host the Tennessee Volunteers at home Feb. 19 before traveling to Louisville, Ky., to take on the Louisville Cardinals Feb. 22.

SYRACUSE AT A GLANCE
The Orange (2-2, 1-1 Big East) enter the contest on a two-match winning streak, sweeping St. John’s and Buffalo after dropping decisions to South Florida and TCU to open the season. Senior Emily Harman leads Syracuse with a 3-1 record at the No. 1 singles spot. The Petersburg, W. Va., native has also competed at No. 1 doubles in each match this season, one alongside freshman Amanda Rodgers and three with freshman Komal Safdar.

THE ORANGE-BUCKEYES SERIES
Ohio State won its lone match against Syracuse. The teams previously met in 2007 as the Buckeyes took the home contest, 6-1.

A LOOK AT PENN STATE
The Nittany Lions (2-2, 0-0 Big Ten) hold a two-match winning streak of their own after downing UMBC and Pittsburgh at home. Penn State is led in singles and doubles by first-team All-Big Ten honoree Petra Januskova. Ranked 96th nationally, the Ottawa, Canada, native has tallied a 17-2 singles record in the 2011-12 season, including a 4-0 dual ledger. Januskova and senior Nina Sertic form the top Nittany Lion doubles tandem. The duo is 2-2 this season.

THE NITTANY LIONS-BUCKEYES SERIES
Ohio State claims a 25-16 advantage in its series against Penn State. The Buckeyes have won the last six and 15 of the last 17 meetings, including a 6-1 decision at home last season.

PERFECT IN 2012
Junior Fidan Manashirova continued her winning ways at the ITA Kick-Off event in Tallahassee, Fla., as she notched a pair of singles victories, including an upset of 61st-ranked Sun Wen of Texas A&M. The California native is 5-0 in singles in 2012 and is tied with sophomore Tiffany Dittmer for the team lead with eight wins dating back to the fall. Dittmer moved her dual match record to 3-0 with a straight-set win over Sheri Olivier of Texas A&M Jan. 29.

MERZBACHER’S WINNING WAYS
Coming into the match against Syracuse, Ohio State head coach Chuck Merzbacher has recorded 596 matches in his career as a collegiate head coach, spanning back to his first season with Northern Illinois in the 1989-90 season. In those 596 matches, he has collected 359 wins with a win percentage over 60 percent. Merzbacher has been at the helm for the Buckeyes in 400 matches, dating back to the 1996-97 season. With Ohio State, Merzbacher has achieved a .565 winning percentage on the way to 226 victories.

DOUBLE REPRESENTATION
The doubles duo of junior Kara Cecil and freshman Kelsey Dieters landed at No. 52 in the first Intercollegiate Tennis Association rankings of 2012. The tandem closed the fall season with a 5-2 record after producing a quarterfinals run at the USTA/ITA Division I Midwest Regional Championships in October. Cecil and Dieters are ranked eighth in the Midwest Region rankings. Cecil is ranked 11th in singles in the first regional rankings of 2012, as well.

The first regular season singles and doubles polls come out Feb. 14.

POLLING IN THE PAST
Ohio State moved to 56th after landing at No. 55 in the preseason polls of 2012, according to the Intercollegiate Tennis Association. This was the fifth-consecutive season the Scarlet and Gray were included in the preseason polls.

Recent Ohio State Preseason Rankings:
2012 – 55th
2011 – 33rd
2010 – 38th
2009 – 32nd
2008 – 52nd

SHAPE OF THINGS TO COME
Ten of Ohio State’s potential 2012 opponents were ranked in the second poll of the year. Led by Michigan and Northwestern at 10th and 12th, respectively, five Big Ten rivals found a place in the Top 75. The Buckeyes’ schedule also features a pair of ranked teams from the Southeastern Conference, including 18th-ranked Tennessee and 24th-ranked Arkansas.

Michigan – 10th
Northwestern – 12th
Florida State – 18th
Tennessee – 19th
Arkansas – 24th
Texas A&M – 29th
Nebraska – 39th
Purdue – 59th
LSU – 65th
Illinois – 68th

OFF ON THE RIGHT FOOT
The Buckeyes are now 12-4 in home openers under the direction of 16th-year head coach Chuck Merzbacher after defeating West Virginia Jan. 21, 7-0.

BUCKEYES GO PINK
Ohio State “went pink” in its matches against West Virginia and Dayton Jan. 21 by hosting festivities in an effort to raise money for the Stefanie Spielman Fund. Courtside tables were available for rent, an Ohio State tennis racquet raffle was held, Phi Sigma Rho hosted a bake sale and t-shirts, pom poms, ribbons, posters and temporary tattoos were given away to fans.

The event raised $476.12 toward the Spielman Fund for Breast Cancer Research, topping the 2011 total of $445. More information about the Spielman Fund can be found here: http://go.osu.edu/SpielmanFund.

OHIO STATE DOWNED BY TEXAS A&M
The 56th-ranked Ohio State women’s tennis team fell to No. 29 Texas A&M, 5-2, Sunday afternoon in the consolation match at the Intercollegiate Tennis Association Kick-Off event in Tallahassee, Fla.

The Aggies (1-1, 0-0 Big 12) claimed the doubles point and four singles matches to down the Buckeyes (2-3, 0-0 Big Ten).

BUCKEYES FALL TO FLORIDA STATE, 5-2
The 56th-ranked Ohio State women’s tennis team lost to 18th-ranked Florida State, 5-2, Saturday afternoon in Tallahassee, Fla., in the first round of the Intercollegiate Tennis Association Kick-Off Weekend.

The Scarlet and Gray (2-2, 0-0 Big Ten) notched a doubles win and a pair of singles victories after the Seminoles (2-0, 0-0 ACC) retired on courts two and three.

THE ROAD IS HARD
Ohio State opened its season on the road for the first time since defeating Marquette in Milwaukee, Wis., to begin the 2008 slate. The Buckeyes traveled to Tampa, Fla., last weekend to face 42nd-ranked South Florida. The Bulls proved victorious, 6-1, to give Ohio State its first season-opening loss since dropping a 6-1 decision to Notre Dame in 2005.

A LOOK BACK AT THE FALL
Ohio State opened its fall slate by hosting the Muirfield Collegiate Tennis Invitational at the Country Club at Muirfield Village in Dublin, Ohio, Sept. 16-18. The Buckeyes combined to post 15 victories, including 11 singles wins. Dieters earned her first collegiate victory against Claire McNulty of Dayton at the event. Dieters and Cecil also notched an upset of 60th-ranked Fellerhoff and Shine from Louisville in doubles consolation action.

Noelle Malley led the Buckeyes in action at the Martha Thorn Invitational hosted by West Virginia Oct. 7-9. The sophomore scored four singles victories to take home the Flight A singles title, capped off by a win over WVU’s Emily Mathis in the championship match. The performance earned Malley Big Ten Athlete of the Week honors Oct. 12, the first of her career.

The Buckeyes followed up as hosts of the USTA/ITA Midwest Regional. Tiffany Dittmer notched a pair of victories to earn a berth into main draw singles, while Cecil and Gabby Steele both reached the Round of 16 before falling to opponents from Notre Dame and DePaul. Cecil teamed with Dieters to reach the doubles quarterfinals, as well.

Ohio State closed the fall with a trip to Tempe, Ariz., for the Arizona State Thunderbird Invitational Nov. 4-6. The team tallied six singles victories and four doubles wins at the event, which featured competition from fellow Big Ten schools Michigan and Northwestern.