Feb. 21, 2015
COLUMBUS, Ohio – The University of Notre Dame men’s tennis team looked to challenge Ohio State’s NCAA record 200-match home win streak on Saturday, but the No. 17 Irish were unable to pull off the upset and fell to the No. 9 Buckeyes 6-1 at the Varsity Tennis Center.
Ohio State claimed the doubles point, splitting the matches on Courts 1 and 2 before securing a tiebreaker victory at No. 3. Notre Dame’s fourth-ranked pairing of Alex Lawson and Billy Pecor fell to No. 7 Ralf Steinbach and Kevin Metka, 6-3, at the top of the lineup, but No. 17 Eddy Covalschi and Josh Hagar notched the win over Herkko Pollanen and Mikael Torpegaard by the same score at No. 2. Quentin Monaghan and Eric Schnurrenberger battled OSU’s 36th-ranked Chris Diaz and Hunter Callahan to take a 6-5 lead, but dropped the next game and the tiebreaker for a 7-6(5) setback.
The Buckeyes then claimed the next three points with straight-set wins on Courts 2, 4 and 6. No. 30 Torpegaard defeated No. 92 Hagar, 6-2, 6-3, at No. 2; No. 110 Hunter Callahan beat Eric Schnurrenberger, 6-2, 6-2 at No. 4; and Metka claimed the win over Nicolas Montoya at No. 6, 6-4, 6-3.
No. 29 Monaghan put the Irish on the board on Court 1, cruising to a 6-1, 6-3 win over Diaz. With the match already decided, however, Eddy Covalschi and Billy Pecor both fell in third sets on Courts 3 and 5, respectively.
The Irish will return home for another top 10 opponent, welcoming No. 6 Illinois to the Eck Tennis Pavilion at 4 p.m. ET next Saturday. For the latest updates on Irish men’s tennis, follow @NDMensTennis on Twitter and likeNotre Dame Men’s Tennis on Facebook.
No. 9 Ohio State 6, No. 17 Notre Dame 1
SINGLES
1. No. 29 Quentin Monaghan (ND) def. No. 53 Chris Diaz (OSU), 6-1, 6-3
2. No. 30 Mikael Torpegaard (OSU) def. No. 92 Josh Hagar (ND), 6-2, 6-3
3. Herkko Pollanen (OSU) def. Eddy Covalschi (ND), 4-6, 6-4, 1-0 (10-5)
4. No. 110 Hunter Callahan (OSU) def. Eric Schnurrenberger (ND), 6-2, 6-2
5. No. 68 Ralf Steinbach (OSU) def. Billy Pecor (ND), 0-6, 6-3, 7-6(4)
6. Kevin Metka (OSU) def. Nicolas Montoya (ND), 6-4, 6-3
DOUBLES
1. No. 7 Ralf Steinbach / Kevin Metka (OSU) def. No. 4 Alex Lawson / Billy Pecor (ND), 6-3
2. No. 17 Eddy Covalschi / Josh Hagar (ND) def. Herkko Pollanen / Mikael Torpegaard (OSU), 6-3
3. No. 36 Chris Diaz / Hunter Callahan (OSU) def. Quentin Monaghan / Eric Schnurrenberger (ND), 7-6(5)
Joanne Norell, Media Relations Assistant
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