Baseball
It was a huge weekend for the Buckeye baseball team, which pulled off a shocking four-game sweep of Indiana, which entered the series at 11-3, while largely being considered one of the Big Ten’s best teams. Ohio State capped the sweep with this walk-off from Zach Dezenzo to give Ohio State a 4-3 win.
Dezenzo led the Buckeyes in game four, hitting 4-of-5 at the plate on the day with none more important than that final base hit.
“I was really confident going into that at-bat because I’ve been hitting the ball so hard,” said Dezenzo. “He threw me a really good slider on the first pitch and I took it. I was sitting fastball, and got one, and put a good swing on it. It was such a good feeling.”
Pitcher Seth Lonsway was the hero on Saturday, pitching a 17-strikeout, complete game shutout in game one of the double-header on the way to a 6-0 victory. Jack Neely, Griffan Smith and TJ Brock combined for 11 strikeouts in game two on the way to a 5-2 victory.
Garrett Burhenn led the Buckeyes in game one, going six innings, allowing just two runs on three hits while striking out five. Sam Wilson led the way at the plate with a pair of doubles and a single. Ohio State sits at 12-7 on the season now and will face off with Michigan in Ann Arbor for a three-game series next weekend.
Softball
Though the softball team has one more game to play to complete a sweep, it also improved to 12-7 this season with a dominant showing, in their case against Penn State. The Buckeyes took the first three games of the series against the Nittany Lions, led by excellent defense and pitching.
Payton Buresch pitched for the Buckeyes in a 2-1 win in game one, going seven innings while allowing just two hits and one run for her fourth win of the season. Carley Gaskill had one double and one home run on the game.
Sam Hackenbracht was the star for the Buckeyes in game two, as she went 4-for-4 with two home runs and six RBI in a 9-3 victory. Allison Smith nabbed her seventh win of the year while racking up seven strikeouts in a complete game.
Game three saw the offense and defense combine for a 9-0 thrashing. Buresch pitched four innings and allowed just two hits to improve to 5-1 on the year before freshman Emily Ruck closed the game out with back-to-back strikeouts.
Men’s Tennis
The men’s tennis team can’t be stopped. It won its fifth straight, sweeping Penn State for the second time this season on the way to a 7-0 victory to improve to 14-2 on the season. This is the tenth sweep of the season for the No. 19 Buckeyes. The full results are below, via Ohio State.
Singles
1. #46 Cannon Kingsley (OSU) def. Christian Lakoseljac (PSU) 6-2, 6-3
2. #35 John McNally (OSU) def. Bora Sengul (PSU) 5-7, 6-4, 1-0 (10-8)
3. James Trotter (OSU) def. Miko Eala (PSU) 6-3, 6-4
4. Kyle Seelig (OSU) def. Tim Ruetzel (PSU) 6-0, 3-6, 7-5
5. JJ Tracy (OSU) def. Christos Antonopoulo (PSU) 6-0, 6-2
6. #104 Robert Cash (OSU) def. Alp Sentay (PSU) 6-4, 7-5
Doubles
1. Christian Lakoseljac/Christos Antonopoulo (PSU) vs. #58 James Trotter/Justin Boulais (OSU) 1-5, unfinished
2. #68 John McNally/Robert Cash (OSU) def. Tim Ruetzel/Charl Morgan (PSU) 6-0
3. Cannon Kingsley/JJ Tracy (OSU) def. Sam Bossem/Miko Eala (PSU) 6-1
Women’s Soccer
The women’s soccer team capped its run of great form with one last regular season victory, a 1-0 win against Michigan State on April 3 to finish the season a six-game unbeaten streak and a four game winning streak.
The No. 23 Buckeyes found their lone goal from sophomore Emma Sears in just the fifth minute of the game – her sixth goal of the season.
Bailey Kolinski posted her third-consecutive shutout, parrying three Spartan shots on the net.
With its win, Ohio State learned its conference postseason fate: an April 8 matchup at home with Maryland. The full release from the team explaining the postseason setup is below.
“All 14 teams will compete in a single-elimination Big Ten Regional Weekend on April 8 and 11 at four campus sites. The winning team at each of the four regional locations will advance to the four-team Big Ten Tournament, to be played on the campus of the highest-remaining seed following the Regional Weekend. The Big Ten Tournament semifinals are set for April 15, with the tournament championship game scheduled for April 18. Game times and television coverage for all Big Ten postseason women’s soccer games will be announced at a later date.
“For the Regional Weekend, the schools are seeded and assigned to their regional sites based on the same divisional alignment used during the Big Ten football season.
“One set of East regional games will be played at Penn State’s Jeffrey Field and Ohio State’s Jesse Owens Memorial Stadium. As the top seed in the East (and the Big Ten Champion), Penn State will receive a bye in its first game and will play host to the April 8 matchup between East No. 4 seed Indiana and East No. 5 seed Michigan. The winner of that game will face Penn State on April 11.
“The other East regional site will feature two games on April 8 in Columbus, as No. 2 seed Ohio State takes on seventh-seeded Maryland, and No. 3 seed Rutgers battles sixth-seeded Michigan State. The winners of those two games will square off at Ohio State on April 11.
“Wisconsin is the top seed in the West and will receive a bye in its first game, while also playing host to the April 8 game between West No. 4 seed Northwestern and No. 5 seed Purdue at the McClimon Soccer Complex in Madison. The Badgers will take on the winner of that game on April 11.
“The other West regional will be played at Illinois’ Demirjian Park, with the April 8 games featuring the second-seeded Fighting Illini against No. 7 seed Iowa, and No. 3 seed Minnesota taking on No. 6 seed Nebraska. The winners will advance to an April 11 matchup, also in Champaign.
“Following the Regional Weekend, the April 15 semifinals will be reseeded with the highest remaining seed playing host to the lowest remaining seed, while the second-highest remaining seed faces the second-lowest seed in the other semifinal. The winners of those games will meet for the Big Ten Tournament title on April 18, with the champion receiving the conference’s automatic qualification to the NCAA Tournament.”
Women’s Gymnastics
Ohio State capped its season with a fourth-place finish at NCAA Regional Final, short of the top two finish needed to qualify for the NCAA Championships. Ohio State finished behind Michigan (198.100), California (197.750) and UCLA (197.275), scoring 195.625 points.
Ella Hodges took fourth-place on the beam, while Claire Gagliardi landed fifth on floor. Colby Miller put up an excellent showing on the bars and landed a 9.900.
Men’s Gymnastics
The No. 5 Ohio State men’s gymnastics team took a seventh-place finish at the 2021 Big Ten Championships with 394.900 team points. Michigan won the event with 411.000 points.
Junior Jesse Tyndall was the bright spot for the Buckeyes and finished the all-around competition tied for fifth place with an 80.400 to earn a spot on the All-Big Ten First Team.
Field Hockey
After a season filled with frustratingly close losses, Ohio State took out some anger on Indiana this weekend, throttling the Hoosiers in back-to-back matchups to improve to 2-7 on the season.
Ohio State rode a Mackenzie Allessie hat trick in game one to a 5-0 victory, with goals from Sammy Stone and Katie Pyle as well. Ohio State outshot Indiana 23-0, which seems… good?
“Great win today at home,” said head coach Jarred Martin. “Nice to put in some goals, but I am also happy that we were able to get the shutout against an Indiana team that has a quick counter attack. We have had some tough losses that have stung; however, we have been playing good hockey and have improved each weekend. I am just proud of the team for staying focused and believing in the work they have put in at practice, in video, and with their fitness.
“I liked how our passing game looked and how we were able to generate attack in a variety of ways. I still think there is more in this team and we will keep working to grow. This conference has shown how competitive the Big Ten is top to bottom so we need to make sure we are at our best starting on Sunday with a rematch with IU.”
Ohio State took game two on senior day, 6-0, with another Allessie hat trick in the bag.
“It was a great way to celebrate Senior Day and for this team and honor our seniors,” said Martin. “To win again at home with a shutout is a great indicator of what we did on the offensive end creating shots but also how our team worked together on defense to limit chances.”
Stone, Niki Trzaska and freshman Lotte Algra all scored as well, with the former two being recognized in the senior day festivities.
“It was poetic to have our two senior captains also score today and contribute to the team win is an added bonus,” said Martin. “Nikki and Sammy have done so much for this program over their time here and we are in a better place as Ohio State Field Hockey because of their efforts and selflessness. It was also great to see Mara and Julianna as we honor the four members of the class of 2021. They are amazing young women who I have had the privilege to coach. They have bright futures ahead in their respective fields and I can’t wait to see where their next steps lead them. This group holds a special place in my heart as the incoming class when I got the job at Ohio State and I have been fortunate enough to see them grow as hockey players, as leaders, and as young women. This year is different in a lot of ways, and I told the seniors that we have games left here at home and within this season. The exciting parts are still approaching and I am glad our senior captains are leading us to this final push.”
Track And Field
The men’s and women’s track and field teams registered seven first-place performances, 13 top-three podium finishes at the Big Ten North Florida Invitational.
Senior Eric Harrison led the way and was unbeaten in four races. He took first in the 100-meter preliminaries and then won the 100 in a personal best time of 10.17. Next, he won the 200 in a near-personal best time of 20.52. Finally, he was a member of Ohio State’s winning 4×100-meter relay team that recorded a 39.72, along with Kainnan Ramsey, Adrian Curry and Donnie James.
Senior All-American Anavia Battle took two wins, claiming the 100-meter dash in a personal-best time of 11.17 and the 4×100-meter relay with a time of 44.99 alongside Alexus Pyles, Nya Bussey and Yanique Dayle.
Men’s Volleyball
The men’s volleyball team closed their regular season at 9-9 overall after splitting their final series with Quincy. The Buckeyes took match one with a 3-0 sweep (25-20, 25-19, 25-18), led by Sotiris Siapanis, who had a match-high 10 kills.
Match two went to Quincy, 3-2 (25-22, 19-25, 16-25, 25-21, 15-10). The fifth-seeded Buckeyes will face off with No. 4 Ball State in the first round of the MIVA tournament on April 10.
Men’s Soccer
Ohio State earned the No. 7 seed in the Big Ten tournament and will face off with No. 2 Penn State on April 10 in the first round. The Buckeyes qualified despite a rough end to the regular season, which saw them fall in each of their last four games, including a 1-0 loss to Michigan State to close the year on April 4. Ohio State lost in its lone match with Penn State this season, a 1-0 defeat on March 23.
Men’s Lacrosse
No. 14 Ohio State fell to No. 8 Rutgers 10-9 to drop to 3-4 on the season, despite a late-game comeback bid.
Jack Myers paced the Ohio State offense with five points (four goals, one assist) but Ohio State couldn’t find an equalizer in the fourth period despite trailing by just one goal. Griffin Hughes added a hat trick of his own.
“Another tough, hard-nosed Big Ten lacrosse game,” said head coach Nick Myers. “Credit to Rutgers for making the plays at the end that they had to. We’re obviously disappointed in the result but encouraged by how hard we fought. Back to work next week and back at home in The ‘Shoe.”
Ohio State outshot Rutgers, 41-38. It’ll take the field next against Johns Hopkins on April 10.
