Ohio State's fifth-ranked men's tennis team squared off against No. 14 Northwestern on Friday night in Columbus. After a 4–0 sweep of the Wildcats, the Buckeyes found themselves in a familiar place – atop the Big Ten.
The victory gave head coach Ty Tucker a share of his 11th-straight regular season conference title. Following the match, Tucker credited his players, coaches, and the stability of the program.
“You can’t win without great players and we’ve been fortunate enough to recruit great players who are great student-athletes and who want to win tennis matches. Associate head coach Justin Kronauge has been here all 11 years and assistant coach David Schilling has been here 17 years so we’ve had great stability and that’s been a huge part of it. A lot of great players and coaches have been a part of this run.”
The Buckeyes have been riding a hot streak of late and will head into Sunday's regular season finale on a ten-game winning streak. A win over the Illini would give Tucker a perfect home record for the season and, more importantly, an outright Big Ten title.
Sunday's match is scheduled to begin at noon and will take place outdoors at the Varsity Tennis Courts. The Buckeyes are set to honor Chris Diaz and Ralf Steinbach after the match as a part of the Senior Day festivities.
For a full recap of Friday's match against Northwestern:
#GoBucks
— Ohio State M Tennis (@OhioState_MTEN) April 23, 2016
RECAP: https://t.co/OiubjF4nC6 pic.twitter.com/A3gZnSamWP
The women's tennis team, currently ranked No. 6 in the country, also captured a Big Ten crown, claiming a share of the league championship with a 4–0 sweep at Indiana.
Melissa Schaub's team is 10-0 in B1G play and can capture an outright title with a victory Sunday at Purdue.
“It was a really tough match,” Melissa Schaub, the Buckeyes’ head coach, said. “Indiana fought us hard. We have some things we need to work on but we competed well out there.”
