COLUMBUS, Ohio — The Ohio State men’s tennis team has been dominating, winning 18 straight Big Ten Titles, but last year fell one match short of winning the NCAA team title.
Now, as the number one seed in the tournament, they’re seeking redemption.
What You Need To Know
- The Ohio State men's tennis team is hoping to win its first-ever NCAA team National Championship
- Andrew Lutshaunig is a sixth-year player for the team
- He came back for his final season of eligibility after winning the NCAA doubles title last season and undergoing shoulder surgery in the off-season
- Ty Tucker has coached the team since 1999 and hopes to finally get that team title to add to the team's accolades
Serve after serve, sixth-year senior Andrew Lutschaunig has had quite a bit of success here at Ohio State.
“Won the doubles with James last year, so that was the highest high possible," Lutshaunig said.
Just the second duo in program history to win an NCAA Championship in doubles. An unexpected crown for Lutshaunig as he was battling a shoulder injury.
“To be honest, I would be lying if I said I saw that coming in the doubles," he said. "I really didn’t expect to go that far.”
After undergoing surgery after last season, he wasn’t sure he would return for his final year of eligibility, but he knew this team was special.
“Why would you not want to be a part of what we have going, because we’re as good as we can be right now,” Lutshaunig said.
While his season hasn’t been as successful as last, the sixth-year player says the motivation to be a good teammate and help this team toward its goal of winning a team national championship has been the extra push he needed to come back from injury.
“I just kept that in the back of my mind, throughout rehab and stuff. I need to do this for them,” he said. “I need to do it for myself, the coaches to go out on that high note that we all want and haven’t gotten yet.”
And that sacrifice, he said, is worth it. The team has claimed the best winning percentage in program history. Not to mention just winning its 18th straight Big Ten Title and overall 17th Big Ten tournament.
“It’s definitely extra motivation,” Lutshaunig said. “The coaches mention it all the time. It’s like we’re part of such a proud program that Ty and Kro have built. Ty has done it for so long. And these older guys who are a part of that streak, they still follow us and keep up with how we’re doing. You don’t want to be the team to break it.”
A lot of that success is thanks to head coach Ty Tucker- who’s been at the helm since 1999. He’s chasing the program’s first team National Championship.
“It would mean a lot to all the players, all the coaches, past and present, everybody who’s put a lot of blood, sweat and tears into it, for a lack of a better term," Tucker said. "It would be nice. For these guys who have been together, they got their season canceled with COVID and they stayed. They could have gone on with their lives and got a job or some guys want to be professional tennis players. But they came back with one goal, to win a national title.”
While Lutschaunig didn’t qualify to compete and defend his doubles national championship, he’s making sure he does everything he can for a team win.
“I hope to take care of business on the doubles court and then be the loudest one here on the sidelines," he said.
Hoping to end his time as a Buckeye on top.
“Quite literally mean everything, for a lack of a better way to put it," he said. "It sounds corny, but it really is everything to us.”
The men’s tennis team is set to host the first two rounds of the NCAA Tournament as the top overall seed. The team also had three players competing for a singles national championship and a set of players competing for a doubles national championship. OSU will take on Cleveland State in the opening round Friday afternoon starting at 1, with the winner taking on either Vanderbilt or Oklahoma State on Saturday afternoon.
