Hawkeyes Fall to No. 1 Ohio State

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IOWA CITY, Iowa — The University of Iowa men’s tennis team lost 4-1 to top-ranked Ohio State on Sunday at the Hawkeye Tennis & Recreation Complex.
 
The doubles point was tightly contested with the visitors ultimately claiming the point. The Buckeyes’ 18th-ranked doubles team won 6-2 on court one. Courts two and three went back-and-forth with Ohio State edging Nikita Snezhko and Joe Tyler, 7-5, on court three. Kareem Allaf and Will Davies played well against the 33rd-ranked team of Martin Joyce and JJ Wolf at No. 2 before the match was suspended.
 
Oliver Okonkwo recorded the only win in singles for the Hawkeyes. The freshman won in straight sets, 6-3, 6-4, over Martin Joyce on court three. Okonkwo won three of his four matches this weekend (two singles, one doubles). Ohio State clinched the match with victories on courts one, two, and six. Davies and Tyler’s respective matches went unfinished. Sunday was Iowa’s third straight contest against a ranked opponent.
 
Iowa, which lost only its second home match (11-2) today, returns to action next weekend with three matches on the road. On Saturday, the Hawkeyes challenge Purdue in West Lafayette, followed by two matches Sunday against Indiana in Bloomington and IUPUI in Indianapolis.
 
Quoting Mellecker Family Head Coach Ross Wilson
“We played great in doubles, like we have all year, against the No. 1 team in the country. It was tough we couldn’t get it done, but it showed what level we are able to compete. It’s just a couple things we need to clean up. In singles, it was good to see Nikita win his first set. Will had a couple set points in the first. Joe’s match was very close. We competed really well and at a high level. We need to keep it up coming down the stretch the next two weeks.”
 
#1 Ohio State 4, #48 Iowa 1
April 7, 2019 | 1:30 p.m. (CT) | Iowa City, Iowa | Hawkeye Tennis & Recreation Complex
 
Singles
1. #1 JJ Wolf (OSU) def. Kareem Allaf (UI): 6-2, 6-2
2. #24 John McNally (OSU) def. Jonas Larsen (UI): 6-3, 6-4
3. Oliver Okonkwo (UI) def. Martin Joyce (OSU): 6-3, 6-4
4. Will Davies (UI) vs. #68 Kyle Seelig (OSU): 6-7(5), 3-4, unfinished
5. Joe Tyler (UI) vs. Alex Kobelt (OSU): 2-6, 6-4, 3-4, unfinished
6. Tim Seibert (OSU) def. Nikita Snezhko (UI): 3-6, 6-1, 6-2
 
Doubles
1. #18 Seelig/Kobelt (OSU) def. #74 Davies/Okonkwo (UI): 6-2
2. Allaf/Larsen (UI) vs. #33 Joyce/Wolf (OSU): 5-6, unfinished
3. McNally/Tubert (OSU) def. Snezhko/Tyler (UI): 7-5
 
Match Notes
#1 Ohio State 23-2 (7-0 Big Ten)
#48 Iowa 13-7 (4-3 Big Ten)
Order of finish: Doubles (1,3); Singles (1,2,3,6)

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