MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. – The No. 17 Fighting Illini men's tennis team met No. 4 Ohio State in the Big Ten Tournament final for the ninth time in the last 11 years on Sunday afternoon and the No. 1 seed Buckeyes came away with a 4-1 victory to claim the 2016 Big Ten Tournament Championship. No. 3 seed Illinois' lone point came from sophomore Aron Hiltzik who garnered a win at No. 3 singles.
"We got outplayed today by Ohio state. They were a better team than us," head coach Brad Dancer said. "We are showing some improvement in our singles play. Doubles will have to be something that we will take a close look at before the NCAA tournament. We have a great group of guys. It has been a fun and we are looking forward to the NCAA tournament."
In doubles, Jared Hiltzik and Pengxuan Jiang made quick work of No. 31 Steinbach/Joyce on court two with a 6-1 victory but the Illini couldn't close out the Buckeyes in doubles. Illinois fell behind early to the Ohio State by dropping the doubles point with losses on courts one and two.
No. 71 Aron Hiltzik evened the score at 1-1 with a straight set (6-2, 6-4) win over No. 41 Hugo Di Feo on court three. Illinois became the first Big Ten team to score a point against Ohio State this season.
Ohio State claimed wins at No. 1, No. 5 and No. 6 singles to clinch the victory.
Alex Jesse fell to Martin Joyce 6-2, 6-4 on court six. No. 4 Aleks Vukic suffered just his third loss of the season, as he was bested by No. 1 Mikael Torpegaard by the scores of 7-6(1), 6-1.
Ohio State clinched the match on court five as Pengxuan Jiang fell to Herkko Pollanen 6-2, 2-6, 6-1 on court five.
The Orange and Blue will now wait for their selection in the NCAA Tennis Championships. The field will be announced on Tuesday, May 3, at 4:30 p.m. CT. The first and second rounds of the NCAA Tennis Championships are scheduled for May 13-15 at 16 four-team sites.
Big Ten Men's Tennis Tournament
May 1, 2016
Baseline Tennis Center | Minneapolis, Minn.
Championship Match: Ohio State 4, Illinois 1
Singles
1. Mikael Torpegaard (OSU) def. Aleks Vukic (ILL) 7-6 (1), 6-1
2. Chris Diaz (OSU) vs. Jared Hiltzik (ILL) 6-2, 3-6, 1-4 unfinished
3. Aron Hiltzik (ILL) def. Hugo Di Feo (OSU) 6-2, 6-4
4. Ralf Steinbach (OSU) vs. Julian Childers (ILL) 6-4, 5-7 unfinished
5. Herkko Pollanen (OSU) def. Pengxuan Jiang (ILL) 6-2, 2-6, 6-1
6. Martin Joyce (OSU) def. Alex Jesse (ILL) 6-2, 6-4
Doubles
1. Mikael Torpegaard/ Herkko Pollanen (OSU) def. Aleks Vukic/ Aron Hiltzik (ILL) 6-2
2. Pengxuan Jiang/ Jared Hiltzik (ILL) def. Ralf Steinbach/ Martin Joyce (OSU) 6-1
3. Matt Mendez/ Hugo Di Feo (OSU) def. Julian Childers/ Brian Page (ILL) 6-2
Order of Finish: Doubles (2, 1, 3); Singles (3, 6, 1, 5)
