Northwestern
Ohio State
Northwestern Ousted From Big Ten Tournament by Ohio State
4/25/2015 12:00:00 AM | Women's Tennis
EVANSTON, Ill. -- An incredible championship streak came to an end Saturday in the semifinals of the 2015 Big Ten Tournament.
No. 18 Ohio State ousted Northwestern from the field, ending a reign of 16 straight years on top. The Buckeyes won the doubles point and three of the first four singles matches to claim a 4-1 victory and advance to the championship match on Sunday.
Ohio State and Michigan, the tournament's top two seeds, will meet at noon at the Vandy Christie Tennis Center with the title on the line.
The doubles point was decided in three very competitive matches. No one held a lead higher than two points on any court, but the Buckeyes rallied late to win two. Olivia Sneed and Anna Sanford bested Lok Sze Leung and Alex Chatt, 8-6, at No. 3 to give Ohio State the edge, and moments later, Gabriella De Santis and Sandy Niehaus edged Alicia Barnett and Erin Larner at No. 1 by the same score.
The Buckeyes jumped out to a 3-0 lead with a pair of straight set wins to start singles play. Sandy Niehaus won at No. 3 and was followed by Gabriella De Santis at No. 1.
Erin Larner turned in a nice performance at No. 2 to put the Wildcats on the board. The freshman breezed through the first set but dropped the second. Larner scored tough point after tough point in the third and final set to secure the win.
The remaining three matches all went to third sets, and a second straight comeback seemed to be in the works, but Ohio State won a nail-biter at No. 4 to clinch the winning point.
Northwestern will find out its NCAA tournament destination and matchup during the NCAA Selection Show on Tuesday, April 28 at 4 p.m.
Results
Singles
No. 1 -- Gabriella De Santis (OSU) def. Alicia Barnett (NU), 6-4, 6-3
No. 2 -- Erin Larner (NU) def. Anna Sanford (OSU), 6-3, 3-6, 6-2
No. 3 -- Sandy Niehaus (OSU) def. Lok Sze Leung (NU), 6-2, 6-2
No. 4 -- Miho Kowase (OSU) def. Alex Chatt (NU), 1-6, 6-1, 6-3
No. 5 -- Rheeya Doshi (NU) vs. Grainne O'Neill (OSU), 5-7, 6-1, 3-3 (unfinished)
No. 6 -- Olivia Sneed (OSU) vs. Brooke Rischbieth (NU), 6-4, 4-6, 1-0 (unfinished)
Order of Finish: 3, 1, 2, 4*
Doubles
No. 1 -- De Santis/Niehaus (OSU) def. Barnett/Larner (NU), 8-6
No. 2 -- Kowase/Angeles Paz (OSU) vs. Doshi/Rischbieth (NU), 7-6 (unfinished)
No. 3 -- Sneed/Sanford (OSU) def. Leung/Chatt (NU), 8-6
Order of Finish: 3, 1*
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