Ohio State redshirt sophomore Lucia Marzal serves during the Ohio State-Vanderbilt NCAA Tournament match on May 8. Ohio State won 4-3. Credit: Mackenzie Shanklin | Photo Editor
With the match tied 3-3, redshirt sophomore Lucia Marzal found herself needing a third-set victory following a 6-3 win in the first and a tough 7-5 loss in the second.
Rather than letting Vanderbilt sophomore Marcella Cruz’s momentum and fierce competitiveness get the best of her, she battled back and won her eighth consecutive match behind a dominant 6-1 third set to complete the Buckeyes’ comeback.
No. 15 Ohio State (23-3, 15-1) found itself in a 2-0 deficit to start its match against Vanderbilt (13-10, 5-8) Saturday, but responded by winning four of the last five singles matches to punch its ticket to Orlando, Florida to play in the Third Round of the NCAA Tournament.
Ohio State’s doubles teams looked like they picked up right where they left off, jumping out to quick 2-1 leads in all three matches.
The Intercollegiate Tennis Association’s No. 52 tandem of Ohio State juniors Kolie Allen and Isabelle Boulais were the only pair to secure their victory, though, defeating No. 28 sophomore Holly Staff and freshman Anna Ross 6-3.
However, both Buckeyes teams of graduate Lisa Hofbauer/Marzal and No. 80 sophomore Irina Cantos Siemers/senior Luna Dormet were outscored 5-1 in the next six games to lose their matches both by a final of 6-3.
The two losses marked the first time since Feb. 7 against Northwestern that Ohio State did not take the 1-0 advantage after doubles.
No. 18 Cantos Siemers faced off against No. 43 Christina Rosca on Court 1 to lead off singles play Saturday, but lost to the fifth-year senior 6-3, 6-1.
Cantos Siemers had not lost in both her singles and doubles matches since Feb. 5 against No. 1 North Carolina.
Hofbauer got back on track in her singles match against Ross, who entered with a seven-match losing streak.
The Birkfeld, Austria, native made it eight consecutive losses to end Ross’ season, winning in straight sets 6-0, 7-5, moving to 8-2 against No. 4 competitors.
The second Ohio State singles victory of the afternoon came off the racket of Boulais. She won the first set 6-4 and found herself in a back-and-forth second set with fifth-year senior Emma Kurtz.
Boulais scored eight of the last 12 points in the second frame to claim the 6-4 set victory and knot it up at 2-2.
Dormet scored the third team point in a row for the Buckeyes in her dominant 6-4, 6-3 win over Staff, who has now lost seven matches in a row.
The Tours, France, native — who head coach Melissa Schaub said coming into the tournament she expected to exceed expectations — extended her singles winning streak to 12 games.
Allen was the only other Buckeye to fall in singles play, dropping her match against freshman Anessa Lee to tie the game at 3-3 before Marzal clinched it in her singles win.
Ohio State’s victory pushed its winning streak to 15 matches — a feat they will put to the test May 16 in the Third Round of the NCAA Tournament against the winner of No. 2 Texas and Arizona State in Orlando, Florida.
