Men's Tennis Falls 4-0 to No. 3 Ohio State in NCAA Regional Final

Saturday, May 13

Columbus, Ohio

3 p.m.

University of Louisville

Ohio State

Men's Tennis Falls 4-0 to No. 3 Ohio State in NCAA Regional Final

May 13, 2017 | Men's Tennis

Cards finish the season with a 22-10 overall record

COLUMBUS, Ohio- The University of Louisville men's tennis team fell 4-0 to No. 3 in the second round of the NCAA Championship Saturday afternoon at Ohio State's Varsity Tennis Courts. The Cardinals finish the season with a 22-10 overall record while making the twelfth NCAA appearance in program history.

"We fell short today. OSU jumped on us in doubles and had us backpedaling," said UofL head coach Rex Ecarma. "We got some traction in the first sets of singles with Parker winning and several other first set leads. Unfortunately, we lost two of those in tiebreakers which put us behind the eight ball. They finished the second set well like a top-three NCAA seed should. But it does not make me any less proud of what this team accomplished this season. They made the biggest turnaround of any team in the country. They put us in the top half of the best conference in the country and back in the national rankings in the team, singles and doubles."

The Buckeyes took an early lead with doubles wins on courts two and three. Ohio State's No. 30-ranked Hugo Di Feo and Martin Joyce topped juniors Ciro Lampasas and Nicolas Rouanet 6-2 at No. 2. The point was decided at the No. 3 spot where JJ Wolf and Hunter Tubert defeated sophomores Christopher Morin-Kougoucheff and George Hedley 6-2.

In singles, Ohio State quickly took a 2-0 lead at the five spot where Kerkko Pollanen beat sophomore Brandon Lancaster 6-0, 6-2. On court three, ninth-ranked Di Feo defeated Rouanet 6-3, 6-2 to extend the lead to 3-0. The match ended at the No. 4 position when Martin Joyce topped Hedley 7-5, 6-2.

On court two, Wynn picked up a 6-4 first-set win over No. 46 JJ Wolf and was leading 5-4 in the second set when the match was decided. At the No. 6 spot, OSU's Kyle Seelig outlasted freshman Clement Filho 7-6 (6) in the first set and was up 2-1 in the second. On court one, the Buckeyes' Mikael Torpegaard, ranked second in the nation in singles, edged Morin-Kougoucheff 7-6 (4) in the third set and was up 5-2 in the second when their match was suspended.

"I think this is our sixth NCAA Regional final in program history but this team really does have a special place in my heart," said Ecarma. "I enjoyed every individual workout, team practice, home match and road trip with these guys. I will miss them a lot over the summer but they are all back in the fall except Sean Donohue, who is graduating with honors."

#3 Ohio State 4, #42 Louisville 0
May 13, 2017 at Columbus, Ohio
(OSU Varsity Tennis Courts)
Singles
1. #2 Mikael Torpegaard (OSU) vs. #111 C. Morin-Kougoucheff (LOU) 7-6 (7-4), 5-2, unfinished
2. #46 JJ Wolf (OSU) vs. Parker Wynn (LOU) 4-6, 4-5, unfinished
3. #9 Hugo Di Feo (OSU) def. Nicolas Rouanet (LOU) 6-3, 6-2
4. Martin Joyce (OSU) def. George Hedley (LOU) 7-5, 6-2
5. Herkko Pollanen (OSU) def. Brandon Lancaster (LOU) 6-0, 6-2
6. Kyle Seelig (OSU) vs. Clement Filho (LOU) 7-6 (8-6), 2-1, unfinished
Doubles
1. #16 Mikael Torpegaard/Herkko Pollanen (OSU) vs. #23 Sean Donohue/Parker Wynn (LOU) 4-2, unfinished
2. #30 Hugo Di Feo/Martin Joyce (OSU) def. Nicolas Rouanet/Ciro Lampasas (LOU) 6-2
3. JJ Wolf/Hunter Tubert (OSU) def. C. Morin-Kougoucheff/George Hedley (LOU) 6-2

Match Notes:
Order of finish: Doubles (2,3); Singles (5,3,4)
Official: Jeri Banks T-1:58 A-301