No.13 Wake Forest defeated by No.1 Ohio State



by LORENZO CIOTTI

No.13 Wake Forest defeated by No.1 Ohio State
© Photo by JEFFREY A. CAMARATI

No.13 Wake Forest University men's tennis team lost 6-1 to No.1 Ohio State, at the Ty Tucker Center in Columbus, Ohio. The Demon Deacons will return to action Thursday as they travel to face No. 2 South Carolina.

Coach Tony Bresky said after the match: "It was a tough day. Obviously Ohio State is really good, but we didn't play our best. They're tough to beat at home and they have a long winning streak here for a reason. We made some good things, but there are things we need to improve on. We look forward to another ranked test in South Carolina on Thursday."

The Demon Deacons were led by graduate student Holden Koons who earned a 4-6, 6-3, 10-4 victory in fifth singles. After losing the opening set, Koons used a series of shots to secure a 6-3 victory in the second set, to force an all-or-nothing deciding set. Koons then secured the Demon Deacons' only point of the match with a spirited 10–4 victory in the third set.

Koons' win marked the first point No. 1 Ohio State (8-0) had given up all season. In addition to the doubles victory, Koons and DK teammate Suresh Ekambaram earned a 6-2 win in first doubles over Andrew Lutschaunig/Justin Boulais. Wake Forest faced an early deficit in doubles, losing 3-1 in second and third doubles. The Demon Deacons led 2-1 at the first court.

Ohio State clinched the match with a win on fourth singles, before taking a 5-0 lead with a win on court three. The Buckeyes then took a 6-0 lead with a win in first singles. Holden Koons picked up the Demon Deacons' only point after securing a comeback win over Robert Cash (4-6, 6-3, 10-4).

Men's doubles

1. #18 DK Suresh Ekambaram/Holden Koons (WFU) def. Andrew Lutschaunig/Justin Boulais (OSU) 6-2
2. Cannon Kingsley/JJ Tracy (OSU) def. Filippo Moroni/Matteo Thomson (WFU) 6-4
3. #27 Bryce Nakashima/Robert Cash (OSU) def. Luciano Tacchi/Luca Pow (WFU) 6-3

Men's singles

1. Kingsley Cannon (OSU) def. #54 DK Suresh Ekambaram (WFU) 3-6, 6-1, 6-4
2. Justin Boulais (OSU) def. #7 Filippo Moroni (WFU) 6-3, 6-0
3. #4 JJ Tracy (OSU) def. Luciano Tacchi (WFU) 6-3, 6-2
4. #11 Jack Anthrop (OSU) def. Matthew Thomson (WFU) 6-1, 1-6, 6-1
5. Holden Koons (WFU) def. Robert Cash (OSU) 4-6, 6-3, 10-4
6. #103 Alexander Bernard (OSU) def. Luca Pow (WFU) 6-1, 6-3


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Ohio State