BLOOMINGTON, Ind. -- Ohio State (15-0, 1-0 Big Ten) netted a 5-2 victory against Indiana (7-6, 0-1 Big Ten) Monday afternoon. The victory versus the Hoosiers extended the Buckeyes' regular-season conference win streak to 83 consecutive matches, which dates back to the 2005 campaign.
Senior Peter Kobelt claimed match point for the second time in three days, defeating Sam Monette 6-2, 6-7 (4-7), 6-3 at No. 1 singles to improve to 9-1 in the dual season.
In doubles action, the No. 2 duo of Kobelt and Kevin Metka were first off the court, defeating Daniel Bednarczyk and Sam Monette 8-7 (7-3) on No. 1, saving a match point when serving down 6-7. Redshirt junior Hunter Callahan and freshman Herkko Pollanen then fell to Sven Lalic and Dimitrije Tasic on court No. 2, 8-3. The doubles point came down to court No. 3, where redshirt sophomore Chris Diaz and redshirt freshman Ralf Steinbach fell to Stefan Lugonjic and Chris Essick, in a close 8-7 (7-5) finish.
Down 1-0 in singles play, Ohio State rebounded quickly and collected first set wins in five of six matches. Steinbach was the first to finish on court No. 5 and won in straight sets 6-2, 6-2 against Elliott Yee. Callahan then followed on court No. 6 with his 13th consecutive win with a 6-2, 6-4 score against Essick. On court No. 3, Pollanen put the Buckeyes within one point of the road win with a 6-3, 6-4 victory against Tasic. After earning the win, play was completed on courts No. 2 and 4, respectively. Metka lost to Bednarczyk 6-3, 5-7, 6-2 on court No. 4, snapping a 12-match win streak for the OSU redshirt junior, while Diaz earned the win on court No. 2, winning 7-6, 6-7 (3-7), 1-0 (10-4).
