2017 Season Preview: NC Wesleyan

Location: Rocky Mount, NC

Coach: Dustin Hale (2 Seasons)

ITA National Ranking: N/A

ITA Regional Ranking: 9 (Atlantic South)

Blog Power Ranking: 41

Twitter Handle: @NCWBishopTennis

 

Photo courtesy of @NCWBishoptennis twitter
Photo courtesy of @NCWBishoptennis twitter

Greetings once again! We all know that Atlantic South has been a little bit of a grinch towards this team in the past, however in the spirit of Christmas, I’m going to try to be jolly and optimistic about this team that has a lot to prove. Their fall season was not as impressive as I would have hoped, however with hard work in the off-season anything can happen, especially when you’re training with Ferrer. I see you Brokakis.

Best-Case Scenario: The Battling Bishops were slightly inconsistent last year with a couple losses that really hurt them in the long run. However, with a similar schedule this year, there a couple of very good opportunities for this team to break back into the rankings. A realistic best-case scenario is that they jump back into the top 30 and bow out in the second or third round of NCAAs.

Worst-Case Scenario: Going back to the inconsistency of NC Wesleyan, last year they were handled by CNU, Stevens, Mary Washington, Kenyon, Case, and Hop. In my eyes at least half of those matches were pretty winnable because in the same season they also beat respectable teams like TCNJ and W&L (who they lost to a couple weeks later at NCAAs #inconsistency). This year could have similar undertones where they really only have only one “good” win with a few bad losses that keep them out of the ITA rankings.

Schedule Analysis: I am a fan of the Bishops’ schedule, because it’s teeming with plenty of opportunities and chances to let the rackets do the talking. You can find the full schedule here.

Coach Hale has set up meetings against #16 Johns Hopkins, #22 Stevens, #27 Mary Washington, #28 Christopher Newport, #31 Pacific (OR), #37 Sewanee and #38 Washington and Lee. While there are no teams within the top 20, I think this is exactly where this team needs to be to get back on the bus.

They jump right into a couple of their toughest matches of the year against perennially competitive Atlantic South teams Mary Washington and Sewanee as well as a depleted Stevens. All of these matches are winnable, however it will not be easy. Stevens is in my opinion the biggest chance out of the 3 after a graduation hit the Ducks hard, but Sewanee could also be a big chance to step up. I would be pleased if the Bishops came out of the weekend 2-1, but don’t be surprised if NC Wes has a tough weekend to start the spring 1-2 or even 0-3.

The Bishops will then get a Division II matchup against Shaw (who I know very little about) before heading off to a relatively easy Spring Break trip in South Carolina. I say relatively because they take on Wilkes which could be a potential trap match if NC Wesleyan is caught on their heels. They will then get a tune up match against another DII foe Barton before taking on CNU. CNU will be a very tricky match, however I can potentially see the Bishops winning this one and begin the climb back into the ITA rankings.

The very next weekend Pacific comes to town, which should also be a good match and opportunity for NC Wes to move up. The last two big matches on the schedule are against DII Chowan and finally ending the season with a rematch of the brutal 4-5 loss last year at NCAAs against Washington and Lee. In my opinion Washington and Lee will be the most winnable match out of any of the nationally ranked teams so look for the Bishops to get their “good” win here if they have not yet.

They also take on Hopkins sometime later in the year and depending on how the Bishops are playing as well as how the Jays are playing, it could really be a flip of the coin. While I do see Hopkins taking this match we all know they are capable of underperforming, see the 1-8 loss to the Bishops in 2015 and the 4-5 losses to CNU, Swarthmore and Mary Washington last year. However NC Wesleyan could really make a name for themselves if they can pull out this one.

Keys to Success: I believe that in order for NC Wesleyan to play up to their capability there are really 3 big keys to success.

 

The big man, Sebastian Sikh, is going to have to step up this Spring.
The big man, Sebastian Sikh, is going to have to step up this Spring.
  • The Big 3: Telles, Brokakis and Sikh all need to play well in order for the Bishops to win. Telles had arguably the best fall and will look to build on that in the Spring. Brokakis had fairly good results is now apparently training with Ferrer somewhere, which probably doesn’t mean too much in reality but it’s cool to say. Sikh was seemingly nowhere to be found suffering a few tough losses in ITAs and the UMW invite. Look for him to rebound in a big way and set the Bishops’ big 3 on track.
  • Doubles: Last year in their 6 losses to nationally ranked Division 3 teams, the Bishops only had 3 total doubles wins. 3… If they want to make a statement then they need to really focus in on doubles and improve them for this year, otherwise look for a season eerily reminiscent of last year.
  • The Fire: I have seen the Bishops play a few times and it seems like sometimes they just lack a fire to win outside of the guys who are on court. There’s something to be said about a good #benchmob, and I think a little fire and comaraderie among the players would go a long way, especially in tighter matches against top teams.

Realistic Prediction: I can see NC Wesleyan having a slow start to their season and dropping  two matches out of the first 3 matches, but having a strong second half of the season falling only twice more to CNU and Hopkins. I’m going to go with a 18-4 record in DIII competition (matches against Barton, Chowan and Shaw not included since I know little to nothing about them). This should be enough to steer the ship in the right direction with wins over Stevens (or Sewanee, I can’t decide), Pacific OR and CNU to get the Bishops back into the top 40! (ASouth, please don’t kill me for saying that)

 

There you have it! Another Saturday, another preview. Time to go enjoy some egg nog and watch Home Alone. Christmas time is the best time of the year, end of story. As usual, comments and questions are always appreciated and don’t forget to follow me on Twitter at @D3RegASouth or send me an email at d3regionalasouth@gmail.com. Next week I will be previewing Washington and Lee! Until then, RegASouth out.

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