University of Minnesota Athletics
University of Minnesota
Ohio State
No. 33 Gophers Fall to No. 2 Buckeyes
3/30/2018 12:00:00 AM | Men's Tennis
Final Stats Photo Gallery
MINNEAPOLIS -- The No. 33 ranked Gopher Men's Tennis team fell 5-2 to No. 2 ranked Ohio State Friday night. The Gophers fought well against the Buckeyes all match, and had three players in their third set with the match tied up at 2-2.
"Obviously, this is a really good team filled with really good players," head coach Geoff Young said of Ohio State. "They played big point well, but I thought we played them well too. I thought we did a good job of using our chances when we got them."
WIth the match tied up at 2-2, Minnesota had Felix Corwin, Eli Ogilvy and Josip Krstanovic still in play in their third and final sets.
The crowd was roaring with each Minnesota point won, and helped to energize the team throughout the match against the Buckeyes.
"One of the biggest things in Big Ten matches is that fans can really make a difference," Corwin said before the match. "Even though it's a tennis court here or a court there, having people behind us definitely gives us somewhat of a mental edge."
Krstanovic was down 5-1 in his match in No. 6 singles against No. 42 ranked Kyle Seelig before clawing back to come to 5-3. Krstanovic ultimately lost his match 7-6, 1-6, 6-3.
The No. 93 ranked Corwin matched up in No. 1 singles against the No. 4 ranked player in the nation in Mikael Torpegaard. Corwin dropped the first set 6-4 before fighting back to win the second set 7-5. Corwin and Torpegaard fought to the end before Torpegaard took the final set 6-2.
Matic Spec and Stefan Milicevic both earned ranked wins in the match, with No. 104 Spec defeating No. 43 ranked J.J. Wolf 6-2, 6-3, and No. 75 Milicevic topping No. 78 John McNally 6-3, 6-4. With his dominating win in No. 2 singles, Spec improved his record on the season to 11-2.
With the crowd cheering in this battle of the heavyweights, Spec felt alive in his match and used the momentum to carry him to a win.
"It was awesome, I loved it," Spec said. "I also think the way I was playing suited me today. Just through the whole match I was feeling the ball. As soon as I started playing I knew today was going to be a good day for me."
While Minnesota dropped No. 2 and No. 3 doubles, Corwin and Krstanovic were controlling the pace in No. 1 doubles upon clinch, leading 5-3 in their first match playing together.
The Spin
While Minnesota fell to Ohio State, they walked away winning two out of four ranked matches, with Spec defeating a higher ranked opponent, and Corwin and Krstanovic falling to higher ranked opponents.
Singles
1. No. 4 Mikael Torpegaard (OSU) def. No. 93 Felix Corwin (MINN) 6-4, 5-7, 6-2
2. No. 104 Matic Spec (MINN) def. No. 43 J.J. Wolf (OSU) 6-2, 6-3
3. No. 75 Stefan Milicevic (MINN) def. No. 78 John McNally (OSU) 6-3, 6-4
4. Tim Seibert (OSU) def Eli Ogilvy (MINN) 6-3, 3-6, 6-3
5. Martin Joyce (OSU) def. Jackson Allen (MINN) 6-2, 6-0
6. No. 42 Kyle Seelig (OSU) def. Josip Krstanovic (MINN) 7-6, 1-6, 6-3
Doubles
1. Felix Corwin / Josip Krstanovic (MINN) v. Joyce/Wolf (OSU) 5-3 (Unfinished)
2. Torpegaard/McNally (OSU) def. Matic Spec / Eli Ogilvy (MINN) 6-3
3. No. 55 Mendez/Tubert (OSU) def. Stefan Milicevic / Marino Alpeza (MINN) 6-1
Order of Finish
Doubles (3,2) ... Singles (5,2,3,6,4,1)
Up Next
Minnesota will look to build on Friday's positives with a match Sunday at 12 pm against No. 44 ranked Penn State.
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Players Mentioned
