MADISON, Wis. – The Wisconsin men's tennis team couldn't claw its way back against No. 3 Ohio State on Sunday afternoon, falling 4-0 to the Buckeyes in the 2016 home finale.
 
"Ohio State is a very good team, and when you play a very good team you don't get free points, you don't get mental errors, and that can get a little suffocating at times," said head coach Danny Westerman. "A lot of these guys haven't been in these situations, and unfortunately that showed."
 
Playing their first outdoor match all season, the Badgers (14-6, 4-5 Big Ten) fell behind early, as Ohio State claimed the overall doubles point with wins at the No. 1 and 3 spots. 
 
In singles action, Ohio State's Mikael Torpegaard, who is the No. 2 ranked singles player in the nation, swept sophomore Josef Dodridge, 6-0, 6-0.
 
The Buckeyes garnered their third point after Ralf Steinbach defeated freshman Osgar O'Hoisin, 6-1, 6-0. Ohio State clinched the match after Hugo Di Feo, ranked 36th in the nation, defeated sophomore Lamar Remy, 6-0, 6-4. 
 
Sophomore Chema Carranza was a bright spot for the Badgers singles play, playing a tight match at the No. 3 spot against Chris Diaz, who is currently 87th in the ITA rankings. Carranza dominated the first set, 6-2, and was only down 5-3 in the second before Ohio State clinched the fourth overall point, effectively ending all remaining matches.

Sunday also marked the final home match for UW's seniors, Jakhongir Jalalov and Alexander Kokorev.
 
The Badgers will travel to No. 70 Indiana and No. 59 Purdue next weekend to close out the regular season. 
 
"We need to get some good, hard, outdoor practices in," Westerman said. "We haven't been outside very much, and Indiana and Purdue have probably been outside a little bit more than we have."
 
After the Badgers conclude the regular season next weekend, they'll head to the Big Ten tournament in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The winner of the tournament will receive an automatic bid to the NCAA tournament.

"We need to continue to realize that we have to take care of the little things," said Westerman. "If we can bounce back after some adversity a little quicker, I think we'll be much more prepared."
 
Results – Apr. 17
MEN'S SINGLES:
1. #2 Mikael Torpegaard (OSU) def. Josef Dodridge (UW), 6-0, 6-0
2. #36 Hugo Di Feo (OSU) def. Lamar Remy (UW), 6-0, 6-4
3. Chema Carramza (UW) vs. #87 Chris Diaz (OSU), 6-2, 3-5, unfinished
4. Ralf Steinbach (OSU) def. Osgar O'Hoisin (UW), 6-1, 6-0
5. #92 Herkko Pollanen (OSU) vs. Darius Mackenzie (UW), 6-3, 2-5, unfinished
6. Martin Joyce (OSU) vs. John Zordani (UW), 6-1, 3-5, unfinished
 
MEN'S DOUBLES:
1. #78 Mikael Torpegaard/Martin Joyce (OSU) def. Josef Dodridge/Lamar Remy (UW), 6-3
2. Jakhongir Jalalov/Chema Carranza (UW) vs. Ralf Steinbach/Herkko Pollanen (OSU), 5-4, unfinished
3. Matt Mendez/Hugo Di Feo (OSU) def. Darius Mackenzie/John Zordani (UW), 6-3

Order of finish: Doubles (1,3); Singles (1,4,2)