Ohio State fifth-year Justin Boulais stands ready to serve during his singles match against Tennessee’s Shunsuke Mitsui at the Ty Tucker Tennis Center Feb. 4, 2022. Ohio State won 4-0. Credit: Casey Smith | Lantern File Photo
Ohio State had one thing over South Carolina Sunday afternoon — revenge.
Sunday was the first time the No. 1 Buckeyes (9-0, 0-0 Big Ten) went against the No. 4 Gamecocks (3-3, 0-0 Southeastern Conference) since March 8, 2023, when Ohio State lost 4-1 at South Carolina’s home courts in Colombia, South Carolina. But this time, the No. 1 Buckeyes (9-0, 0-0 Big Ten) made their comeback at the Ty Tucker Tennis Center.
Although the Buckeyes lost the doubles point for the first time this season, they made a quick turnaround after their straight singles match sweep on all six courts and topped the Gamecocks 6-1.
“This was a match that we all really wanted because [South Carolina] beat us at their place last year,” senior JJ Tracy said. “It was a big revenge match and we played well.”
The Buckeye fifth-year Robert Cash and freshman Bryce Nakashima earned the first and only doubles win for Ohio State in their match against Jelani Sarr and Carter Morgan on court three.
Ohio State’s chance at winning the doubles point was turned down on courts one and two when the Gamecocks’ Lucas Andrade da Silva and James Story topped fifth-year Cannon Kingsley and Tracy 6-3, and Toby Samuel and Casey Hoole clinched the doubles point after winning their match 6-4 over Ohio State fifth-years Justin Boulais and Andrew Lutschaunig.
“We got off to a rough start with the doubles point,” sophomore Alex Bernard said. “Everyone came out strong though, so that’s always good to see.”
South Carolina’s lead became short-lived in singles, starting with Bernard’s first- and second-set wins against Sean Daryabeigi on court six, tying the Buckeyes and Gamecocks 1-1.
“I returned really well today,” Bernard said. “[Daryabeigi] wasn’t the biggest server, so I was doing a good job of getting in every point, and then being able to capitalize on second serves.”
Cash was quick to follow Bernard’s two-set victory after winning his first set 6-1 and his second set 6-2 against Andrade da Silva on court five, giving the Buckeyes their second point overall and putting them in the lead.
On court two, No. 25 Boulais had a strong first set after defeating his opponent Hoole 6-0. The fifth-year Buckeye stopped Hoole from winning a game for nine games straight and topped the junior Gamecock 6-4 in the second set, continuing the Buckeyes’ lead.
No. 7 Tracy earned the clinching point on court three after his straight-set win over Story gave Ohio State its fourth point overall.
“I felt great today,” Tracy said. “I think everybody’s firing, we’re all ready to go, and it’s a great feeling – everybody’s playing for each other.”
With the Buckeyes in a 4-1 lead, the No. 13 redshirt sophomore Jack Anthrop also succeeded in a straight set win against Sarr on court four, and Kingsley quickly followed on court one by winning 6-2 against Samuel in the third set after dropping the first set and coming back in the second.
Kingsley earned the Buckeyes their sixth and final point of the day to claim a 6-1 victory over South Carolina.
“This win was a great stepping stone for the team as we go into the ITA Indoors,” Tracy said. “I think we’re firing all cylinders at the right time.”
The Buckeyes are now undefeated 9-0 this season and have earned three wins over top-15 ranked teams including No. 3 Virginia, No. 13 Wake Forest and No. 4 South Carolina.
“These are the kinds of matches we train for,” Bernard said. “With a high-ranked team coming in here, our goal is to walk away with a good win, and that’s what we did today so we’re all super happy.”
Ohio State is headed to New York for the Intercollegiate Tennis Association Team Indoor National Championships Friday through Monday, where the Buckeyes will likely be the No. 1 seed.
“We’re gonna have to be physically ready,” Bernard said. “There’s gonna be a lot of tough matches in a row, so we’ve just got to stay on top of our game and be ready to compete hard.”
