Match Results

MONROEVILLE, Pa.—The Otterbein University men's tennis team dropped out of the NCAA championships, losing in the second round, 5-0, to fifth-ranked Carnegie Mellon University Saturday in Monroeville, Pa.
 
The match was moved indoors to The Club Monroeville due to inclement weather in the Pittsburgh, Pa. area.
 
"There's a reason Carnegie Mellon is ranked fifth in the nation," said head coach Mark Anderson. "They are strong from top to bottom. They were especially strong in doubles.
 
"It would have been easy for the guys to have packed it in after the doubles," Anderson continued. "But, instead, they battled for every point. My only regret is that Will Willson didn't get the chance to finish his match after winning the first set."
 
Host Carnegie Mellon moved quickly through doubles play, winning on all three courts.
 
Tyler Gibbons and Kendall Coffman were the first to finish with an 8-1 loss on court three. Will Willson and David Seckel followed with an 8-2 loss in first doubles. Ryan Shutt and Zach McDivitt closed out doubles with an 8-1 loss on court two.
 
Otterbein kept the matches close in singles play, but could not exceed the strength of the Tartans, who closed out the match with wins on courts four and two.
 
Willson, at first singles, turned in one of Otterbein's stronger performances. He won his first set, 6-2, against NCCA-qualifier Abhishek Alla and was tied, 4-4, in the second set before Carnegie Mellon scored its fifth point to win the match.
 
The Cardinals also kept the matches close on courts two and three. Shutt lost second singles by scores of 6-4, 6-4, and Seckel, at third singles, dropped his first set, 6-4, and was trailing, 4-3, in the second set when the match was called.
 
Despite the loss, the 2013-14 season will go down into the Otterbein record books for a number of reasons.
 
The Cardinals set a school record for wins in a season, 19, on their way to regular-season and tournament championships in the Ohio Athletic Conference. The season also marked the first NCAA appearance for the men's program and, with a 5-0 win over Messiah College Friday in the opening round, first win in the NCAA tournament.
 
"It was a great season," Anderson said. "Every time I thought the guys played their best, they played even better in the next match. They achieved every goal. This is a great group of men. Even though we will really miss Ryan Shutt and Tyler Gibbons, both of whom were instrumental members of the team for four years, I can't wait for the things to come in the 2014-2015 season.