Ota Nabs Landmark Conference Men's Tennis Weekly Award To Start His Junior Campaign

BALTIMORE, Md. – Tetsuya Ota (Wesley Chapel, Fla./Saddlebrook Prep), a member of the Goucher College men's tennis team, has been named the Landmark Conference Men's Tennis Athlete of the Week for the week of Sept. 16-22. It is the first time this season the junior has earned the honor and the fifth time in his career he has bestowed the honor.

Ota, the reigning Landmark Conference Player of the Year, went 3-1 in singles play and 2-2 in doubles play to finish sixth at the Loyola Men's Tennis Invitational over the weekend, a predominantly NCAA Division I Tournament over the weekend. Ota defeated his opening round singles opponent from the Mount 6-1, 6-4 and teamed up with Omosesan Adebamgbe (Philadelphia, Pa./Lower Merion) to win 6-3 in doubles to earn a 2-1 win to move onto the next round. Ota continued to dominate singles play with a 6-1, 6-2 win, but fell 6-4 in doubles play to fall 2-1 to the Greyhounds. Loyola was the opponent again in the third round and the player took Ota to tiebreakers in both sets, but Ota won 7-6 (6-1), 7-6 (6-2) and won with Adebamgbe in doubles 6-1 to secure a 2-1 win and advance to the fifth-place match. Ota lost a three-set match to a player from Morgan State and lost doubles, but had a great showing and looked like he belonged with the Division I competition. 

Ota also earned the weekly honor for the weeks of March 4-10, 2019, March 25-31, 2019, April 8-14, 2019 and February 19-25, 2018. The junior is also the 2018 Landmark Conference Rookie of the Year and a two-time all-conference first-team selection.

Goucher returns to action and wraps up the fall at the ITA South Atlantic Regional on Oct. 4-6.