College Tennis News - No. 9 Buckeyes Defeat No. 12 Pepperdine, 4-1

COLUMBUS, Ohio– Behind back-to-back wins by seniors Devin McCarthy and Connor Smith, the No. 9 Ohio State men’s tennis team defeated No. 12 Pepperdine, 4-1, Tuesday afternoon at the Ralphs-Straus Tennis Center in Malibu, Calif. With the win, the Buckeyes improve to 15-2 overall and 6-2 vs. teams ranked in the Intercollegiate Tennis Association Top 25.

Leading the Waves, 2-1, the Scarlet and Gray received wins by McCarthy and Smith at No. 2 and 5 singles, respectively, to cap the victory. McCarthy beat Francis Alcantara in straight sets, 6-4, 6-3, before Smith clinched the match-winning point. After dropping the first set, 6-4, Smith rallied with 6-1, 6-4 wins in the final two sets.

Ohio State was forced to play out all three doubles matches after the Buckeye tandem of Smith and Kevin Metka lost to Finn Tearney and Alcantara, 8-3, at No. 1 doubles. On court No. 2, Ohio State’s Blaz Rola and Ille Van Engelen answered the initial Buckeye loss with an 8-2 victory vs. Sebastian Fanselow and Alex Sarkissian. With the doubles point coming down to the No. 3 position, McCarthy and Hunter Callahan were playing Mousheg Hovhannisyan and David Sofaer in a tight match that reached a 7-7 tie until the Buckeye duo broke Hovhannisyan and Sofaer’s serve to take an 8-7 lead and serve for the match. McCarthy and Callahan took advantage of the opportunity and won the match, 9-7, to lift the Scarlet and Gray to their 16th doubles win of the season.

Following the dramatic Ohio State doubles win, the Buckeyes jumped out to a 2-0 lead when Fanselow, ranked 11th in the nation, was forced to retire on court No. 1 vs. Rola, who is No. 20. The Waves cut Ohio State’s lead to one (2-1) after Van Engelen dropped a 6-4, 6-2 decision to Tearney at the No. 3 spot. However, the Scarlet and Gray soon earned their third road win of the season on wins by McCarthy and Smith.

Up next, Ohio State will host three consecutive matches starting March 19 when Louisville travels to Columbus for a 5 p.m. start. The Buckeyes will commence the heart of their Big Ten schedule when they play Purdue at 6 p.m. March 22 and Indiana at noon March 24.

Tennis Match Results
Ohio State vs. Pepperdine
March 12, 2013 at Malibu, Calif.
(Ralphs-Straus Tennis Center)

No. 9 Ohio State 4, No. 12 Pepperdine 1

Singles competition
1. No. 20 Blaz Rola (OSU) def. No. 11 Sebastian Fanselow (PEP) 6-3, 1-0, retired
2. No. 124 Devin McCarthy (OSU) def. No. 53 Francis Alcantara (PEP) 6-4, 6-3
3. No. 83 Finn Tearney (PEP) def. Ille Van Engelen (OSU) 6-4, 6-2
4. No. 107 Alex Sarkissian (PEP) vs. No. 45 Chris Diaz (OSU) 6-2, 4-6, 5-6, unfinished
5. No. 37 Connor Smith (OSU) def. Mousheg Hovhannisyan (PEP) 4-6, 6-1, 6-4
6. David Sofaer (PEP) vs. Hunter Callahan (OSU) 5-7, 4-3, unfinished

Doubles competition
1. No. 47 Finn Tearney/Francis Alcantara (PEP) def. Connor Smith/Kevin Metka (OSU) 8-3
2. Blaz Rola/Ille Van Engelen (OSU) def. Sebastian Fanselow/Alex Sarkissian (PEP) 8-2
3. Devin McCarthy/Hunter Callahan (OSU) def. Mousheg Hovhannisyan/David Sofaer (PEP) 9-7

Match Notes:
Ohio State 15-2; National ranking No. 9
Pepperdine 10-4; National ranking No. 12
Order of finish: Doubles (1, 2, 3); Singles (1, 3, 2, 5)