That outdoor national championship remains elusive for the Ohio State men’s tennis program.
After entering the 2023 NCAA Men’s Tennis Championships as the No. 3 seed, the Buckeyes made it all the way through the bracket, even upsetting No. 2 seed TCU in the semifinals 4-0 to earn a right to play for a national title against defending national champion and No. 5 seed Virginia.
But that’s where things ended down in Orlando.
Unfortunately for the Buckeyes. they never really found themselves in the match and fell to the Cavaliers 4-0. OSU lost the doubles point when it dropped two of the three matches to fall behind 1-0 and never really recovered in the singles matches to make a game of it.
UVA got straight-set wins on courts one, two, and three to secure the win easily 4-0. Justin Boulais (6-4, 6-2), Cannon Kingsley (6-4, 6-2), and JJ Tracy (6-2, 6-1) all fell with James Trotter, Alexander Bernard, and Jack Anthrop all still in action but no longer needed to determine the outcome.
With the loss, Ohio State finishes the season with a 34-3 and comes just a whisker away from winning the national title again while taking home the Big Ten regular season and tournament titles.
Not the trophy we were looking for. Tough finish to a great season. Thanks for being with us every step along the way. #GoBucks pic.twitter.com/xtThPDB7K8
— Ohio State M Tennis (@OhioStateMTEN) May 21, 2023
Focus will now turn to the individual and doubles NCAA championships with Kingsley, Boulais, Tracy, Trotter, and Bernard all in action for the singles tournament, and Andrew Lutschaunig and Robert Cash joining teammates in the doubles tournament.
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