2016 Women’s Season Preview: #25 Denison Big Red

It’s finally here! My final preview of the 2016 season. After writing several of these, I’m pretty excited for matches to start. Today, I’ll take a gander at a team that was a national powerhouse throughout the 2000s and is back on the map this season – Denison.

Head Coach: Peter Burling (26th Season)

Location: Granville, OH

Preseason ITA Ranking: 25

Twitter Handle: @denisontennis

burling
Joel Quenneville?
joel-quenneville
Peter Burling?

Overview: When I say that Denison was once a national powerhouse, I’m not just saying that to be nice; I really mean it. A lot of the credit for Denison’s historical success is attributed to Joel Quenneville’s long lost brother, Peter Burling. Since taking over the program in 2000, the Big Red head coach has led his team to 11 NCAA Tournament appearances, six quarterfinal births, and one third-place finish. Conference-wise, Denison dominated the NCAC from 2000-2011. In that time period, they won 10 championships.

Unfortunately, DePauw’s entrance into the NCAC after the 2010-2011 season marked the end of an era. The Tigers were the new big dogs. In fact, DePauw has beaten Denison for the conference title each of the past three seasons. We should expect the same this year, right? If you think so, then you probably didn’t read my DePauw preview, so shame on you.

Denison has been climbing up the charts and enters the year as the 25th ranked team in D-III. Importantly, the Big Red return most of their starting lineup that helped them get to this point. Expectations are high for this experienced group.

Key Losses: Heather Abzug (No. 3 Doubles), Rochell Issa (should be a sophomore but not on the roster (No. 4 Singles/No. 2 Doubles))

Key Additions: Emma Alsup (2-star), Ashley Hammons (2-star), Lauren Hawley (3-star), Megan Hickey, Charlotte Purnode

Lineup Analysis

I must preface my lineup analysis by letting you know that most of the results I allude to are coming from the ITA Results page. Sometimes those results are incorrect. Unfortunately, Denison does not provide each player’s match-by-match results.

#1 Singles: Taylor Hawkins (Sr.) – There is a slight chance that Hawkins will play No. 2 this season, as she did in the Big Red’s only dual of the fall, but with her experience, I’m giving the senior the nod over her sophomore teammate. Plus, Hawkins held the top spot all last season, where she had some nice wins, the most notable coming against Case’s Nithya Kanagasegar. I can’t say that Hawkins is a top tier No. 1 player, since she went 12-8 last year, but she is reliable. Looking at the fall, Hawkins had a fine run at ITAs, losing in the round of 16 to Case’s stud freshman Jessica Liu. Not a bad loss, but not desirable either. Still, I’m not worried. The senior is primed to play her best tennis yet.

#2 Singles: Courtney Brown (So.) – In her first year of collegiate tennis, Courtney Brown did more than hold her own at No. 2, compiling a 13-5 record. Despite her winning record, the freshman was unable to garner victories against opponents in top 15 teams. That’s understandable since she was only a freshman, but some of those Ls have to turn into Ws for Denison to turn the corner. Unfortunately, Brown had a tough go in the main draw of ITAs this fall, losing a three setter in the round of 64 to Chicago’s No. 6, freshman Katarina Stevanovich. But, the sophomore fought back and reached the consolation semis. Expect another good year.

#3 Singles: Meg Chiumento (Sr.) – If there’s one player on this roster that’s a virtual lock, it’s Chiumento. Look at some of the teams she beat at No. 3 last year – Case, DePauw, UW-Whitewater, Trinity (Conn.), Tufts. In fact, her only losses were to Hope (twice) and Wash U, as she accumulated a 14-3 record. Just as impressively, the senior did the best out of any Denison player at ITAs this fall. Even with a tough draw, Chiumento cruised into the quarterfinal. Along the way, she defeated Wash U’s projected No. 6 Grace Deering and DePauw’s projected No. 1 Maddie Lee. In the final 8, she squared off against Chicago’s No. 2 Rachel Kim, falling in two very respectable sets 7-6 (8), 7-6 (2). Keep in mind that Kim may very well qualify for NCAAs in singles this year. Chiumento has improved every season, so there’s no reason to believe she won’t be a star this spring.

#4 Singles: Laura Hawley (Fr.) – Freshman alert! I was a little worried when I saw that Rochell Issa was not on the roster after garnering an 11-3 record at the 4 spot as a freshman. But Hawley is good enough to emulate Issa’s results. Though she lost to Rachel Kim in the round of 32 at ITAs, the freshman had an impressive win over Jessica Liu at the Oberlin Invite. This is the same Jessica Liu that defeated Hawkins at ITAs. Coach Burling has a reputation of making the most out of his 3-star recruits, and Hawley should be no exception.

#5 Singles: Emily Holloway (Jr.) – The junior was abroad in the fall but claimed the 5 spot last year, so I see no reason why she won’t be there again. Despite a strong start to the season, Holloway ended the spring of 2015 with six straight losses. There were some nice wins in there as well, against Tufts and Trinity (Conn.). A couple freshmen, aside from Hawley, had solid fall campaigns, so I can see one of them (probably Emma Alsup), moving to No. 5 and Holloway to No. 6. If Holloway is placed at 6, this team is deadly.

#6 Singles: Emma Alsup (Fr.) – Alsup couldn’t have asked for a much better start to her collegiate tennis career. She defeated Case’s projected No. 5, senior Sara Zargham, at the Oberlin Invitational and ousted Ohio Northern’s No. 1 (and 17-seed) Lynn Kelly at ITAs. Just like I mentioned in my analysis of Holloway, I could see Alsup moving up if she continues to get big results.

Doubles – Looking at the projected singles lineup, Denison has the ability of taking at least 3 points on any given day. If they earn even 1 doubles point, every match will be competitive. However, doubles hasn’t been as strong for Denison in the past. But the Big Red have experience on their side. Hawkins and Chiumento are expected to claim the top spot; while they had a disappointing early round loss at ITAs, they should come back for a strong spring season. Brown and Hawley had the best run at ITAs, making it to the quarters before losing to the top seed from Case. Along the way, they beat one of the top Chicago tandems. Finally, I’m going to guess that Holloway and Alsup will be penciled in at No. 3. Holloway did well at No. 3 last year, earning an 11-6 record, so she’ll be back in the doubles lineup.

Schedule Analysis

http://denisonbigred.com/sports/wten/2015-16/schedule

Denison’s season begins in less than 48 hours when it takes on Hope in Michigan. After that, the team will face two more NCAC foes in February. Given how top heavy the conference is, the Big Red are expected to have an unblemished NCAC record going into March. However, there is potential for a loss when Denison faces a surging Chicago team on February 27th. That match will give us insight into what results we should expect the rest of the way.

Let’s talk about March. Two key notes. One – Denison heads to Puerto Rico for its Spring Break trip and will face a couple D-I and D-II teams; that’s so cool! 2. The Big Red compete against Case on March 26th, which will be an important regional match and could have Pool C implications.

April is by far the toughest for Denison. The month starts off with the Midwest Invite, where Denison will have its hands full against the top-ranked teams in the Midwest. While I don’t see them winning the whole Invite, the Big Red have a chance at making a deep run. Two weeks later is the most anticipated match of the season against DePauw. While DePauw will try to make it competitive, Denison will most likely end up celebrating. Then, the Big Red will compete for an NCAA automatic bid at the NCAC tournament.

Conclusion

Allow me to be blunt – this is Denison’s year. Not only is DePauw down, but Denison’s core is both experienced and successful. There is no reason why the Big Red should not easily take control of the NCAC and make it to the round of 16 at NCAAs. It’s great to see Denison back on the map!

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