University of Minnesota Athletics
University of Minnesota
Ohio State
Minnesota Falls to OSU in Semifinal Match
4/25/2015 12:00:00 AM | Men's Tennis
URBANA, Ill. - The 23rd-ranked Minnesota men's tennis team was eliminated from the Big Ten Tournament Saturday with a 4-0 loss to 12th-ranked Ohio State in the semifinal round in Urbana, Ill. The Gophers, who shared the Big Ten regular-season title with the Buckeyes and tournament host Illinois, fell to 20-7 on the season.
OSU gained the early advantage by handing Minnesota its fifth doubles competition loss of the season.
The Buckeyes earned an 8-4 win at No. 3 before 56th-ranked Jack Hamburg and Mathieu Froment pulled the Maroon and Gold even with an 8-6 upset of fourth-ranked Kevin Metka and Ralf Steinbach at No. 1. Herkko Pollanen and Mikal Torpegaard made it 1-0 Ohio State, however, by becoming just the second doubles tandem to defeat Leandro Toledo and Felix Corwin on the spring at No. 2.
In singles, the 97th-ranked Steinbach gave his team a 2-0 lead with a win at No. 6 and Hunter Callahan won at the fourth position to put the Buckeyes in front by three.
Shortly after Callahan's match finished, Metka sealed the team result with a straight-set victory at No. 5.
No. 25-ranked Toledo, No. 57 Matic Spec and Corwin did not finish their matches at the top three positions, respectively. Toledo had won his first set against No. 47-ranked Chris Diaz.
The Gophers will learn their 2015 NCAA Tournament fate Tuesday at 4:30 p.m. CT. The NCAA selection show will air on NCAA.com.
No. 12 Ohio State 4, No. 23 Minnesota 0
Urbana, Ill. (Atkins Tennis Center)
Singles competition
1. No. 49 Chris Diaz (OSU) vs. No. 25 Leandro Toledo (MINN) 3-6, 4-4, unfinished
2. No. 47 Mikal Torpegaard (OSU) vs. No. 57 Matic Spec (MINN) 6-4, 3-4, unfinished
3. Herkko Pollanen (OSU) vs. Felix Corwin (MINN) 7-5, 1-0, unfinished
4. Hunter Callahan (OSU) def. Ruben Weber (MINN) 6-4, 6-4
5. Kevin Metka (OSU) def. Jack Hamburg (MINN) 6-3, 6-4
6. No. 97 Ralf Steinbach (OSU) def. Mathieu Froment (MINN) 6-2, 6-2
Doubles competition
1. No. 56 Mathieu Froment/Jack Hamburg (MINN) def. No. 4 Kevin Metka/Ralf Steinbach (OSU) 8-6
2. Herkko Pollanen/Mikal Torpegaard (OSU) def. Felix Corwin/Leandro Toledo (MINN) 8-4
3. No. 85 Hunter Callahan/Chris Diaz (OSU) def. Eric Frueh/Matic Spec (MINN) 8-4
Match Notes
Minnesota 20-7 (10-1 Big Ten)
Ohio State 25-7 (10-1 Big Ten)
Order of finish: Doubles (3,1,2); Singles (6,4,5)
Players Mentioned
