CHICAGO – Making its first appearance at the ITA National Team Indoor Championships in program history, the Tulane men’s tennis team suffered a 4-0 defeat to top-ranked Ohio State in Friday’s first round at the Midtown Athletic Club. Seeded 16th in the tournament and ranked 19th nationally, Tulane (4-4) will meet ninth-seeded and 10th-ranked Stanford in Saturday’s consolation semifinal at 3:30 p.m. The last time they met, the Green Wave dropped a 4-1 decision to the Cardinal at the 2018 ITA Kickoff regional final in Berkeley, Calif. Friday’s doubles point was extremely tight throughout, as all three courts remained on serve at the midway point. The Buckeyes (10-0) eventually exploited breaks on courts one and three, respectively, to take a 1-0 lead in the overall match.
The Green Wave kept things tight early in singles, but Ohio State pulled away late to claim the first set on five of six courts. The Buckeyes propelled forward with that momentum and scored a trio of straight-set victories at No. 1, No. 5 and No. 6 to clinch the match despite some late rallies by Tulane. Sophomore Hamish Stewart held a 7-5, 4-2 (40-15 in the game) advantage at No. 3 against 12th-ranked Kyle Seelig, while junior and 63rd-ranked Ewan Moore battled back from a lost first set to hold a 6-5 edge in the second frame against 62nd-ranked John McNally when the stoppage was enforced.
Ohio State 4, Tulane 0
Singles competition
1. #2 JJ Wolf (OSU) def. #42 Luis Erlenbusch (TLN) 6-2, 6-1
2. #62 John McNally (OSU) vs. #63 Ewan Moore (TLN) 6-2, 5-6, unfinished
3. #12 Kyle Seelig (OSU) vs. Hamish Stewart (TLN) 5-7, 2-4, unfinished
4. Martin Joyce (OSU) vs. Dane Esses (TLN) 6-2, 5-4, unfinished
5. #86 Alex Kobelt (OSU) def. #76 Tyler Schick (TLN) 7-5, 6-4
6. Hunter Tubert (OSU) def. Tim Ruetzel (TLN) 6-3, 6-1
Doubles competition
1. JJ Wolf/Martin Joyce (OSU) def. Ewan Moore/Akos Kotorman (TLN) 6-4
2. Alex Kobelt/James Trotter (OSU) vs. Luis Erlenbusch/Tyler Schick (TLN) 6-5, unfinished
3. Hunter Tubert/John McNally (OSU) def. Hamish Stewart/Tim Ruetzel (TLN) 6-3
Tulane 4-4; National ranking #19
Ohio State 10-0; National ranking #1
Order of finish: Doubles (3,1); Singles (1,6,5)
Article courtesy of Tulane Sports Information Department.
