May 2, 2010

Box Score

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. - For the seventh-straight year, second-seeded Illinois (19-10) and top-seeded Ohio State (32-1) met in the championship match of the Big Ten Tournament. And, unfortunately, for the fifth-consecutive year, the Buckeyes came out on top with a 4-1 victory Sunday afternoon at the IU Tennis Center. Against the Big Ten, Ohio State extended its winning streak to 65 consecutive, including postseason play, 51 straight on the road, and are 117-5 in their last 122 matches. Illinois has advanced to 15-straight tournament title matches and claimed eight from 1997-2005.

"I'd like to thank all of our loyal fans for making the trip out this weekend," head coach Brad Dancer said. "It made for a great playing environment and we appreciate the support. I had a good feeling going into today and I thought our guys would be ready and play better as a team throughout than we did today so it's definitely a disappointing loss for us. (In terms of hosting NCAAs), I think the bottom line is that we've proven we're a good team this year, we fight really hard, but we haven't been able to breakthrough and beat an elite team this year. That still remains a goal for this team and I think it's up to the coaching staff to figure out what we need to do between now and the next 10 days to be ready for that.

The Big Ten Tournament requires matches to be played outside unless inclement weather forces play indoors. Despite dark clouds hovering above, the mandatory attempt to play the match outside lasted until just minutes before the scheduled start time of Noon ET, when a persistent light rain convinced officials to move the match indoors, with a new start time of 1:15 ET to allow the Big Ten Network ample opportunity to set up its cameras. The match will air tape-delayed on Sunday, May 9 at 6 p.m. CT.

Despite the delay, both squads came out firing in a 75-minute battle that ensued for the duration of doubles play. At the No. 3 spot, junior Connor Roth and freshman Stephen Hoh traded points with Ohio State's Justin Kronauge and Balazs Novak throughout the majority of the match and took a late 6-5 advantage, before the Buckeyes responded with three-straight games to claim the first match of the day, 8-6. It was a similar story on court two, as the No. 83 duo of junior Johnny Hamui and sophomore Dennis Nevolo went back and forth against Matt Allare and Shuhei Uzawa until Ohio State rattled off three-straight games to secure a 7-4 lead. The Illini responded with three-straight games of their own to even the score at seven apiece before the Buckeyes took the lead for good and clinched the doubles point with an 8-6 win. At No. 1 doubles, the 60th-ranked tandem of senior Marek Czerwinski and junior Abe Souza rallied back from a 6-0 deficit to cut the lead to 7-5, before No. 15 Chase Buchanan and Dino Marcan tallied the final game for the 8-5 victory.

In singles, three Illini claimed first-set victories, but it wasn't enough as Ohio State recorded wins at Nos. 1, 4 and 6 to clinch the match. Souza picked up the Illini's lone win of the day, as Dino Marcan retired after receiving point and game code violations during the second set. Souza had claimed the first set, 6-3 and was winning in the second set, 3-1 at the time the match was retired. The win is Souza's 34th of the season, tying him with Brian Wilson for ninth all-time for most singles wins in a season.

Illinois will now await its fate for the opening round of the 2010 NCAA Championships scheduled to take place at regional sites, May 14-15. The Division I men's and women's tennis selection announcements will air between 4-5 p.m. CT on Tuesday, May 4 on ESPNews. Visit fightingillini.com for additional information at the conclusion of the selection show.

Match Results
#4 Ohio State 4, #14 Illinois 1

Singles competition
1. #9 Chase Buchanan (OSU) def. #42 Dennis Nevolo (ILL) 6-4, 6-0
2. #31 Justin Kronauge (OSU) vs. #73 Marek Czerwinski (ILL) 3-6, 3-1, unfinished
3. #87 Abe Souza (ILL) def. Dino Marcan (OSU) 6-3, 3-1, retired
4. Balazs Novak (OSU) def. Johnny Hamui (ILL) 6-1, 6-2
5. Matt Allare (OSU) vs. Stephen Hoh (ILL) 4-6, 2-3, unfinished
6. Shuhei Uzawa (OSU) def. Connor Roth (ILL) 6-0, 6-0

Doubles competition
1. #15 Chase Buchanan/Dino Marcan (OSU) def. #60 Marek Czerwinski/Abe Souza (ILL) 8-5
2. Matt Allare/Shuhei Uzawa (OSU) def. #83 Johnny Hamui/Dennis Nevolo (ILL) 9-7
3. Justin Kronauge/Balazs Novak (OSU) def. Connor Roth/Stephen Hoh (ILL) 8-6

Order of finish: Doubles (3,2,1); Singles (3,6,1,4)