Match Results
OAC Tournament Page

WESTERVILLE, Ohio – The No. 4-seeded Otterbein men's tennis team defeated fifth-seeded Capital, 5-4, in an Ohio Athletic Conference (OAC) Tournament quarterfinal match late Tuesday afternoon.

The Cardinals (12-10 overall) advance to the semifinals of the conference tournament for the seventh-consecutive year and have reached a double-digit win total over that entire span.

Otterbein now turns its attention to top-seeded and defending OAC Champion John Carroll, as the two matchup Friday at 1 p.m. at the Lindner Tennis Center in Mason, Ohio. Stay tuned to the Cards' schedule page for a link to live stats for the match.

The Cards entered the match winners of just one of their final three matches of the regular season, this following a four-match win streak spanning eight days early last month. The winning streak included a 5-4 triumph for Otterbein over rival Capital on home court on Apr. 8, as the Cards used a 2-1 advantage following doubles play to help fuel the league victory.

Capital flipped the script in today's match though, taking a 2-1 lead of its own after doubles competition thanks to an 8-1 victory in first doubles and an 8-5 win in the second spot. The Cards were able to halt the Crusaders' momentum though in third doubles as sophomore Juan Vera and freshman Logan Sullivan claimed an 8-3 victory over Capital's Ben Heiland and Hunter Walter.

Otterbein was firing on all cylinders to start singles play, recording three-straight wins in fourth through six singles, as sophomore Derek Krieger, freshman Riley Yost and Vera, respectively, helped the Cards take a 4-2 lead.

Krieger battled in his match as the No. 4 with a 6-4, 6-4 victory over Santino DiMichaelangelo, while Yost topped Heiland in the sixth spot 6-1, 7-6 (4). Vera made it a clean sweep of the trio of matches with a 6-4, 6-2 defeat of Walter in fifth singles.

The Crusaders did not go away quietly though as C.J. Martin claimed a 6-4, 6-1 win in the second spot over senior Ben Keen, before Dale Booher tied the match at four points apiece with a 6-1, 6-4 win over senior Perry Williams in the top spot.

Sophomore Tyler Wharton then clinched the match for the Cards with a 7-6 (4), 6-3 victory over John Robert following a back-and-forth battle in third singles.