COLUMBUS, Ohio – No. 18 Michigan State Men’s Tennis took four Buckeyes to third sets in singles, but fell 1-6 at the hands of top-ranked Ohio State on the road on Saturday.
“Obviously not the result we wanted here,” head coach Harry Jadun said. “Playing on the road against the top team in the country you’ve got to really believe and you’ve got to accelerate when you’ve got a lead and today we had spots where we didn’t press on them enough. A lot to build on and hope to see these guys again down the road but off the Penn State we go.”
Sophomore Ozan Baris claimed the Spartans lone point on the day. The 14th-ranked player in the nation topped 28th-ranked Justin Boulais, 6-2, 4-6, 6-4, winning on a 29-shot rally which he finalized with a lob of Boulais at the net.
Baris breaks the Buckeyes streak of 13 straight sweeps of the Spartans, claiming the first MSU point against OSU since 2013. He ties the team lead with 13 wins and as the top-ranked Big Ten player moves to 5-0 in conference play in 2024.
Things started slowly for the Spartans, dropping doubles decisions 6-3 on courts two and three and winning just two of six first sets to start singles play.
In the second sets, Ohio State completed straight-set wins on courts three and four to push it’s lead to 3-0. Two Spartans won their first sets of the day to force third sets, however, the two who won their first sets dropped the second, sending a total of four matches to third sets.
With no matches to spare, the Spartans would have to claim each of the four deciding third sets to complete a comeback and defeat the Buckeyes for the first time…
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