COLUMBUS, Ohio – No. 14 Illinois fell to No. 2 Ohio State, 5-2, in a top-15 road battle on Friday night.
The Fighting Illini picked up wins at No. 1 and 6 singles, but it was not enough as the Buckeyes defended their home courts by claiming the doubles point and singles victories at No. 2, 3, 4, and 5. With the defeat, the Orange and Blue are now 15-5 overall and 5-2 in Big Ten play this season.
In doubles play, the hosts grabbed a 1-0 advantage in the dual behind triumphs on Courts 2 and 3.
After the sides transitioned to singles action, the Illini won two of six possible opening sets. The Buckeyes took advantage of their strong start by tallying straight-set decisions on Courts 2, 3, and 4, which clinched the team's victory.
With the match being played out, the Orange and Blue got on the board behind Hayden Jones' three-set triumph over Alexander Bernard on Court 6. The Illini freshman's 6-2, 2-6, 6-4 victory marked the first Big Ten singles win of his career.
Ohio State recorded another singles success on Court 5, but Kenta Miyoshi finished the night with a three-set, come-from-behind victory on the top singles court. His 6-7(4), 6-4, 7-6(4) tally over No. 9-ranked Aidan Kim served as his highest-ranked victory of the season and extended his winning streak to five.
RESULTS
Doubles
No. 1: #41 William Mroz/Kenta Miyoshi (Illinois) vs. #1 Nikita Filin/Brandon Carpico (Ohio State), 4-5, unfinished
No. 2: #17 Alex Okonkwo/Alexander Bernard (Ohio State) def. Zach Viiala/David Bakonyi (Illinois), 6-3
No. 3: #28 Aidan Kim/Bryce Nakashima (Ohio State) def. Gabriel Debru/Sasha Colleu (Illinois), 6-2
Order of finish: 3, 2
Singles
No. 1: #23 Kenta Miyoshi (Illinois) def. #9 Aidan Kim (Ohio State), 6-7(4), 6-4, 7-6(4)
No. 2: #27 Jack Anthrop (Ohio State) def. #28 Gabriel Debru (Illinois), 6-1, 6-2
No. 3: #16 Preston Stearns (Ohio State) def. #101 William Mroz (Illinois), 6-4, 7-5
No. 4: #32 Alex Okonkwo (Ohio State) def. Adam Jilly (Illinois), 6-2, 6-3
No. 5: #85 Nikita Filin (Ohio State) def. Zach Viiala (Illinois), 4-6, 6-4, 7-6(2)
No. 6: Hayden Jones (Illinois) def. Alexander Bernard (Ohio State), 6-2, 2-6, 6-4
Order of finish: 4, 2, 3, 6, 5, 1
UP NEXT
No. 14 Illinois (15-5, 5-2 B1G) concludes the weekend with a road match at Penn State on Sunday morning. The Fighting Illini will face the Nittany Lions at 9 a.m. CT.
