The No. 13 Ohio State women’s tennis team is championship-bound after walking away with a victory against Arizona State Saturday at the Intercollegiate Tennis Association Kickoff Weekend hosted at the Ty Tucker Tennis Center on its own home courts. 

The Buckeyes (3-1, 0-0 Big Ten) concluded their weekend triumph with a 4-0 win against the Sun Devils starting with a doubles point and ending with three singles points from senior Irina Cantos Siemers and freshmen Audrey Spencer and Teah Chavez. 

Cantos Siemers and Spencer started off strong with a 4-2 lead in their doubles match on court two against the senior Sun Devil Giulia Morlet and freshman Ada Piestrzynska, which ended in a 6-3 win for the Buckeyes.

On court one, junior Sydni Ratliff and freshman Luciana Perry handed the Buckeyes their first point against Arizona State after defeating their opponents, Patricija Spaka and Chelsea Fontenel, 6-4 in their doubles match. 

This was Ohio State’s third-consecutive doubles point win in a row, and head coach Melissa Schaub said she hopes to continue that streak in its upcoming games. 

“Doubles points have been big for us,” Schaub said. “I think that’s something we need to continue working on.” 

The Buckeyes continued to succeed in the singles matches by taking a one-set lead in all six matches against Arizona State, and Spencer winning her first and second sets 6-1 against Piestrzynska on court six, keeping Ohio State in the lead 2-0. 

Over on court one, the No. 15 Cantos Siemers made a quick comeback from Morlet’s lead at the beginning of the first set by winning 6-4 and carried her momentum into the second set with a 5-0 lead against the Sun Devils. 

The Buckeyes were soon handed another point from Cantos Siemers’ 6-0 win against the Sun Devils in the second set, advancing their lead to 3-0.

“Cantos [Siemers] was down 3-1 in the first set and she made a comeback, that’s what she does,” Schaub said. “She’s our captain and she likes putting everybody on her back which is amazing to watch.” 

All eyes were turned to court five where Chavez and junior Sun Devil Spaka played their singles match, which began in a first-set-struggle for the first-year Buckeye but ended in her favor with a 6-4 win. 

“I was down 4-1 in the first set, but I came back and won five games straight,” Chavez said. “For me, that was my biggest challenge – digging in deep, being gritty and finding a way to win. That’s what the Buckeyes are all about, is finding a way to win.” 

Chavez found a way to win by continuing her fight in the second set winning 6-3 and giving the Buckeyes their final point of the night, ending in a final score of 4-0 against Arizona State. 

The Buckeye win has sent them to the ITA Division I Women’s Team Indoor Championships in Seattle beginning Feb. 9. 

This was Chavez’s second match playing in the Ty Tucker Tennis Center as a Buckeye and “clinching that match under pressure is not easy as a freshman,” Schaub said. 

“This is one of the best feelings,” Chavez said. “Growing up, tennis was such an individual sport, but now in college, you’re playing for someone bigger than yourself – you’re playing for your team, and I love winning for my team.” 

This was the Ohio State women’s tennis team’s eighth time reaching the ITA National Indoor Championships in the last nine years, including each of the last five seasons. 

Ohio State’s win Saturday night stopped the Sun Devils women’s tennis team in its first time looking to advance to the national championships for the first time in four years. 

“We’re a pretty gritty team,” Chavez said. “We love the energy and we feed off of it and I think that’s one of our biggest strengths.” 

Before the Buckeyes head to Seattle, they will host No. 15 Duke Friday and No. 12 UCLA Sunday on their home courts again in Columbus.