Through the Eyes of ASouth: Elite 8 – Who;s Clutch, Who’s Not? (Part 2 of 3)

Here we go into Part 2 of my Clutch Performance article.  This article will feature Middlebury, Emory, and Trinity TX in my analysis.  If you would like to visit Part 1 of my article, please click the link below.  That link includes our top 3 teams – CMS, Wash U, and Amherst.

http://www.division3tennis.com/eyes-asouth-elite-8-whos-clutch-whos-part-1-3/

Okay! Time to get going.  If you don’t know the format… VISIT PART 1 PLEASE FOR INSTRUCTIONS!!!

 

#4 Middlebury Panthers

Coach Bob Hansen – As D3West loves to call him, the “Zen Master” is someone who has years of coaching experience with the Banana Slugs.  He has tons of NCAA experience that I don’t even want to count it right now.  According to the Middlebury website, he had 24 years at Cruz and they made 13 NCAA Finals.  He has 7 championships, by far the most of the remaining coaches.  In his past two years at Midd, he has made the tournament both times with Midd reaching the Elite 8 one time.  Hansen’s most recent championship came in 2009 where Cruz went on that absurd doubles run.  Let’s just cut to the chase, Hansen is clutch.

Overall Clutch Rating – Best – Totally self-explanatory.

#1 Singles, Alex Johnston

NCAA Experience, Elite 8 Exp – (2 Years, 1 Year) – Johnston was not with the Panthers for his first two years, so he only has the benefit of playing in the Elite 8 last year.

Clutch Experience – With only the past two years under his belt, Johnston has less experience than other players but still has a ton of clutch matches.  Middlebury lived on the edge last year, with close matches against Redlands, Williams, Tufts, Skidmore, Williams again, and Hopkins + CMS at NCAAs.  This year, they’ve had close ones against Emory, GAC, Amherst, and Williams.  Plenty of stuff to analyze.

Clutch Performance – Holy shit! Last year, the one they call Johno was absurdly clutch.  In three straight close matches, Johno went three sets against Trey Meyer, Telkedzhiev of Tufts, and Sherpa of Skidmore.  He won all three matches.  Against Tufts, he won in a breaker in the third.  He did end the year losing in three sets to both Meyer and Fritz, so it’s not like he’s perfect.  In the Elite 8 last year, he won a huge tiebreaker against Joe Dorn of CMS before the match was called.  This year has been a bit of a different story.  Johno has 3-5 in tiebreakers this year and 2-3 in three setters as well.  The one HUGE win he has in a 5-4 victory over Amherst was a big 7-6, 6-0 victory over Fritz.  That’s what you call elevating your game.

Overall Clutch Rating – Very Good – Johno will get the job done more times than not in big matches.

#2 Singles, Brantner Jones

NCAA Experience, Elite 8 Exp – (4 Years, 2 Years) – Another senior at the top of the lineup for Midd.

Clutch Experience – Throughout his four years, Jones has basically been through it all as well.  He’s held a starting spot in each of his four years and even played #1 singles his sophomore year.  Call him a veteran if you like, I wouldn’t mind.

Clutch Performance – Looking back into 2012, Jones was clutch on multiple occasions.  In 5-4 matches against Pomona, Bates, and Bowdoin, Jones won all 3 times at the #1 singles spot after being a #6 player the year before.  He beat notoriously clutch Max Sabel of Pomona in three sets.  He took down the tough Timmy Berg easily, 6-2, 6-2.  Oh, and in the NCAA tournament, he took a set off Mark Kahan in a big #1 singles match and was up 1-0 in the third.  He continued his hot streak the next year, crushing Nick Cummins of Redlands in a 5-4 victory in straights.  He split most of his other big matches, which I say is more due to talent than clutch factor.  None were close with defining factors.  This year, after shaking off an early clutch loss to Rafe Mosetick of Emory, Jones has come back to win a three-setter against Dale of Amherst in Middlebury’s thrilling 5-4 victory.  He came back two weeks later in NESCACs and was leading Somiano in 3 before the match was called.  He has a ridiculous 10 three-set victories this year in singles play.

Overall Clutch Rating – Best – You had me at 10 three-set victories this year.

#3 Singles, Palmer Campbell

NCAA Experience, Elite 8 Exp – (2 Years, 1 Year)

Clutch Experience – See: Johnston’s experience

Clutch Performance – Want to hear a crazy stat?  Palmer Campbell won 3-setters on consecutive days last year against Bettwy of Cruz, Hyde of Redlands, Hudson of Pomona, and Marino of CMS.  That’s FOUR straight three setters in California sun against 4 California school players.  (edit: Hudson was a close two-setter, damn) Despite that amazing run, Campbell cooled off at the end of the year and lost important matches against Hwang of Hopkins, Sun of Williams, and Lane of CMS really easily.  This year hasn’t gotten much better in the clutch, as he’s lost to Halpern of Emory in a 5-4 Midd loss, Solmiano of Amherst in a 5-4 win, and Zykov a week later.  He’s 1-4 this year in three-setters, which is also worrying.

Overall Clutch Rating – Average – Campbell’s been through a lot in his time, but he’s struggled in big matches as of late.  I rate him as an average performer, but a weak performance in NCAA’s can drop him down to below average.

#4 Singles, Ari Smolyar

NCAA Experience, Elite 8 Exp – (1 Year, 0 Years) – Smolyar did not participate in NCAA’s last year.

Clutch Experience – See: Campbell

Clutch Performance – Despite being relatively inexperienced, Smolyar has held his own this year in high-pressure situations.  He has wins in 5-4 matches such as against Amherst (Zykov), Szczurek (Emory), and lost very close to Al Houni (GAC) in a 5-4 win.  He seems to have the Williams number after beating them twice this year in two fairly close matches as well.

Overall Clutch Rating – TBD – It’s hard to tell with Smoylar because of his lack of experience.  He’s won when he’s had to this year, but does that translate to NCAAs?  I’m unsure.

#5 Singles, Courtney Mountfield

NCAA Experience, Elite 8 Exp – (2 Years, 1 Year) – Mountfield did not play two years ago in NCAAs.

Clutch Experience – Mountfield has the benefit of playing last year in a lot of big matches as well as this year’s slate.  While being a junior, he has relatively little Elite 8 experience given that Middlebury has truly only played one match in the Elite 8.

Clutch Performance – Mountfield did not lose a match last year to a DIII player in any team tournament.  That’s in all the big matches that Midd played.  He beat Tan (Tufts) in a 5-4 match, Page (Williams), and was up on Kotrappa in their Elite 8 match.  Courtney definitely brought up his game when it counted and he proved it.  This year has been different as he’s lost to Wagner in three sets in a 5-4 match, lost to Schlidovsky (Williams) 7-6 in the third, and Joey MacGibbon (GAC) in a 5-4 win.  In Midd’s 5-4 win against Amherst, Mountfield got beaten handily by Yaraghi, 6-3, 6-1.  Where has the clutch gone this year for this previously awesome bottom of the lineup player?

Overall Clutch Rating – Average – I’ll give him the benefit of the doubt considering he started so strong last year.  Could just be a this year thing?

#6 Singles, Jackson Frons

NCAA Experience, Elite 8 Exp – (2 Years, 1 Year) – Played both years in NCAAs.

Clutch Experience – See: other sophomores

Clutch Performance – Last year was a tough year for Frons as he failed in all 3 of his clutch opportunities.  In a close one against Williams, he got up-ended 7-6 in the third by Bryan Chow.  In another close match, he got beat by Dale of Amherst, again 7-6 in the third.  Lastly, in NCAA’s he lost handily to Alex Johnson.  This year, he hasn’t really played a true third set match as all of his matches have gone to super tiebreakers.  He’s gone three sets against some weaker opponents as well, so personally I’d be scared of Frons’s clutch performance at this stage in the game.

Overall Clutch Rating – Below Average – Frons needs that big win that he can point to to prove me wrong.

Overall Team Clutch Rating – Average – With Bob Hansen leading the helm, all of these guys get a boost.  Look for Hansen to focus heavily on some of his bottom guys as it looks like they need the most help stepping up when the spotlight is on them.  Let’s see if Hansen can up the ratings of what looks to be a weaker bottom of the lineup in terms of clutch play.

#6 Emory Eagles

Coach Browning – Yay, ASouth!  By the way Emory, your site’s font is ridiculously small.  I don’t know why that’s happening but it’s bothering me.  Wait.. I’m reading this bio.. did Coach Hansen coach Coach Browning at some point at UC-Santa Cruz? Can someone confirm?  That’s awesome!  Browning has made 13 of 14 possible Elite 8’s in his career, along with three national championships.  That’s a lot.  Despite having immeasurable talent on his team, Browning still knows how to get the most out of his players in the tournament.  Although he may be behind Hansen and Follmer in terms of coaching clutchness, he’s still up there.

Overall Clutch Rating – Very Good

#1 Singles, Alex Ruderman

NCAA Experience, Elite 8 Exp – (3 Years, 2 Years) – Played all possible years in NCAAs.

Clutch Experience – Ruderman has the positives of playing on a national championship team but also has the benefit of playing on an Elite 8 team that struggled a bit last year and this year.  That means a lot of close matches and a lot of high-pressure situations.  I can think of many where he’s made an impact, so let’s get into it.

Clutch Performance – Well, in the 2011-2012 season, Alex Ruderman did not lose a single match at #6 singles for the National Champion Eagles.  Actually, he lost two sets all f*cking year.  So, that was a pretty good year for him.  2012-2013 year was a tough year for Ruderman as he moved all the way up to the #2 spot.  Thing is, he lost every match in the Elite 8 and lost a few other matches throughout the year.  His only big win was a three-set win against Haugen of Trinity TX in a 7-2 win.  This year, however, Ruderman has stuck it to everyone in every situation.  His only clutch loss is in a 5-4 loss to Razumovsky, but he redeemed himself in an epic three set win over Raz in another 5-4 win.  He has a three-set win over Alla in a 6-3 loss, a tiebreaker win over Krimbill in a 5-4 win, tiebreaker win over Johno (Midd) in a 5-4, and countless other victories.  This year, Ruderman is ice cold.

Overall Clutch Rating – Best – Probably the best and most accomplished #1 player in the tournament.

#2 Singles, Eric Halpern

NCAA Experience, Elite 8 Exp – (3 Years, 2 Years) – Played all possible years in NCAAs.

Clutch Experience – Literally the same as Ruderman

Clutch Performance – Halpern is probably one of the most clutch players in DIII.  He has a knack for losing the first set and really living on the edge before all of a sudden going on a crazy streak and winning a match in three.  It’s happened this year against Hwang at Indoors, Leisner (GAC) at the Stag-Hen, Hwang again in the regular season, and countless other big victories.  I feel like a lot of this is coming from the experience he gained at #1 singles last year, where he definitely took his lumps.

Overall Clutch Rating – Best – Halpern has proven it time after time.  If Emory is going to have success against Amherst, Halpern will be a key.

#3 Singles, Rafe Mosetick

NCAA Experience, Elite 8 Exp – (2 Years, 1 Years) – Played all possible years in NCAAs.

Clutch Experience – Played in a ton of matches last year and any matches this year as well.

Clutch Performance – The first thing that comes to my mind is when Mosetick was throwing up on the court in the UAA Final last year against Tyler Kratky and yet somehow found a way to win.  Emory lost that match, but the performance was admirable.  He started off this year in trouble at the #2 spot, which caused him to get moved down to #3.  He was able to notch a clutch win against Jones of Midd in three sets in a 5-4 victory, a win against Geier of Kenyon, and a win against Brown of Hopkins.  He did lose a close three setter in a 6-3 loss to CMU, but that’s one hiccup at the #3 spot.  He did lose last week easily against Tim Rosensteel of Kenyon, so watch out.  Rafe isn’t a sure thing at #3, but I wouldn’t say he’s not clutch.

Overall Clutch Rating – Average

#4 Singles, Ian Wagner

NCAA Experience, Elite 8 Exp – (3 Years, 2 Years) – Played all possible years in NCAAs.

Clutch Experience – It seems like Wagner has been here forever, but he’s been here since the Emory national championship in 2012.

Clutch Performance – With a ton of experience under his belt, including some incredible wins in the 2012 National Championship run, Wagner has already earned my trust in terms of clutch matches.  This year has really been no different.  He has two three set wins in close matches against Middlebury (5-4) and GAC (6-3, but closer than that).  He stepped up big against Kenyon both times in two 5-4 victories and also has a win over Dubin and Lim against their Hopkins opponents.  His one blemish is a three set loss to Kirkov in the UAA Semifinals, but we’ll give him a pass for that.

Overall Clutch Rating – Best – Wagner has been through a lot and although he might not be at top National Championship form, he’s still one of the most clutch in the business.

#5 Singles, Nick Szczurek

NCAA Experience, Elite 8 Exp – (3 Years, 2 Years) – Was not in lineup for 2012 run.

Clutch Experience – Szczurek has actually been around forever, as this will be his fourth season.  He was knocked out of the lineup in 2012, because the team was too good.  That took a year off of his NCAA time but the guy has experience.

Clutch Performance – A lot of people will remember Szczurek’s failure at Indoor Nationals last year (lost to Kevin Ye, 0 and 0) and quickly write him off.  I made the mistake of doing so this year and he has proven me wrong time and time again.  He notched a big three set win against Kenyon at Indoors, a win against Zheng (CMU) at UAAs, a win over MacGibbon of GAC at the Stag-Hen, and a win over Garcia of Hopkins in three sets in the regular season matchup.  He’s had his downs too as he lost to Fojitasek of Case in the UAA 3^rd place match and Dubin at Indoors as well, but there’s no reason to say this guy fails in the clutch.

Overall Clutch Rating – Average – Last year, I would have said below average.  Now, he’s teetering on the borderline of “Very Good.”

#6 Singles, Will Adams

NCAA Experience, Elite 8 Exp – (2 Years, 1 Year) – Adams has been in the lineup the past two years.

Clutch Experience – Anything that’s happened for the past two years, Adams has been in the thick of it.

Clutch Performance – Adams is normally a reliable option down at the #6 spot, but he’s certainly had his ups and downs in the clutch.  I remember when he won his match in 3 against Farah of Wash U at the UAA Championship. This year, he’s lost to Wadwani in the UAA Semifinal, Weissler at Indoors, and against Fiaschetti the second time they played.  He did finish the year with a big win against Healey of Case, who is a fighter, and recently beat Haas of Kenyon in straights for a huge point in the Sweet 16.  I want to say best, but I’m going to go against it.

Overall Clutch Rating – Very Good

That’s all I’ve got for today (time to rage!).  I will finish up the last three teams tomorrow morning before the blog gets to the matchup-by-matchup previews.  Then, we get into live stats on Monday with live commentary, which is what we’ve all been waiting for! Part 2 is done, and ASouth is looking for some more votes.  Get it.