Senior Peter Kobelt returns the ball during a match against Nebraska April 20 at the Varsity Tennis Center. OSU won, 6-1.
Credit: Lantern file photo
An impressive home winning streak isn’t the only success Ohio State’s men’s tennis has seen in the past few seasons.
Senior Peter Kobelt and redshirt junior Kevin Metka are set to play in the 2014 NCAA Division I Men’s Doubles Championship final on Monday, making it the second time in the last three years a Buckeye doubles team made it to the title round, according to a press release. Chase Buchanan and Blaz Rola took the university’s first doubles tandem national crown in 2012, and Rola also went on to win the men’s NCAA Singles Championship in 2013.
The match, which was earned through a 6-3 win versus freshman Arjun Kadhe and redshirt junior Jakob Sude of Oklahoma State in the semifinals Sunday, is slated to pit the OSU pair against redshirt junior Hunter Reese and junior Mikelis Libietis of Tennessee.
OSU currently ranks as the No. 4 seed, while Tennessee holds the No. 2 seed.
Kobelt and Metka – the third-ranked duo in the country who together hold a 30-6 record overall – both grew up in the suburbs of Columbus. Kobelt is a native of New Albany, while Metka hails from Worthington.
“It’s crazy we are both from the same area and we’ve gotten to this point,” Metka said in a press release. “Peter and I have great chemistry together on the court.”
A win Monday would allow the pair to be a selection into the 2014 U.S. Open doubles main draw, which is set to begin Aug. 25. Kobelt, OSU’s all-time career doubles wins leader, would pass Buchanan for a single-season record of 45 wins.
Coach Ty Tucker said the run to the final is “an unbelievable accomplishment for Ohio State and the tennis program,” according to a press release.
Associate head coach Justin Kronauge said the men must be on point in the faceoff.
“(The Tennessee tandem is) an aggressive team and we will have to serve to have a shot,” Kronauge said in a press release. “Our guys have done everything right to get to this point and will need to put pressure on (Reese and Libietis) early (Monday).”
The match is set to be played at the Dan Magill Tennis Complex in Athens, Ga., after the conclusion of the men’s and women’s singles finals at noon.
