Well, the second best tournament of the year is done, according to me, ASouth. It was a phenomenal weekend, despite the fact I didn’t get to watch most of it, so we had to rely on our many connections to try and get the full story of the weekend. Expect a couple recap articles from this tournament to come out – this was a very impactful weekend and really the first time we know anything about any of the teams that we cover. The Guru so kindly put together a roundtable of 10 questions below that some of us chose to answer for your reading pleasure. Read away.
10) What was the best match of the tournament?
Midwest: This is an easy one. The third place match between Carnegie and Wash U was a classic. Whenever I see a doubles sweep, I think the match is over. In fact, I was talking to Northeast about this, and he said that around 95 percent of the time a team sweeps dubs, they end up winning the match. For the Bears to sweep a team that was up 2-1 on Emory the previous day, while at the same time Wash U was down 1-2 against Chicago in the semifinal, was quite impressive. But, Carnegie stormed back with five first sets that weren’t even close. You all know what happened next, but the coolest part was that it was freshman vs senior in the deciding match at 6. CMU’s Kunal Wadwani was coming off a huge win over Emory’s Josh Goodman, while Wash U’s Robin Engel was coming off a 2,2 loss to Chicago’s Ninan Kumar. For me, all signs were pointing to a Wadwani victory, but man, the freshman really came through. What an epic match!
Guru: I’m going with the backdraw semifinal between Case Western and Trinity TX. There may not have been as much on the line as some other matches, but Case showed a ton of heart and pulled off a comeback when the circumstances looked very dire. There were a couple matches where one team almost came back from a big deficit, but this was the only genuine comeback.
ASouth: It’s really between two matches for me – either Trinity/Case or Emory/CMU in the semifinals. Both were 5-4 and both technically had a lot on the line. Case really needed to get a victory over someone in the field because beating Kenyon at this point isn’t really saying much. They did so with a gritty 5-4 win over TU. However, I’ll turn my attention to the Emory/CMU match because CMU had chances to win this one. First, Rozenvasser returned. Then, CMU won 2 doubles matches. In singles, Emory made quick work at 3 and 4 but the rest of the matches were close at 1,2, and 5. Watching Manji/Levine and Jemison/Rozenvasser was a treat and those were two of the best matches I saw all tournament. Josepher staged a comeback against the inexperienced Prettyman. CMU tested the Eagles, but Emory went to another level for a good 20 minutes. The fact that they had to do that made this match the best match of the tournament.
AVZ: Part of this needs to be put into context as what we are looking for in terms of “best match.” I am going to go with the best performance and that goes to none other than Emory. The beat down they handed a highly talented Chicago squad was impressive to say the least. I am sure the doubles sweep took the wind out of the Maroons sails, but Emory made quick work for a second consecutive title.
West: I’m going with Emory/CMU simply because we saw the Eagles get challenged. They went down 1-2 and then saw CMU win a singles match and take two more to three sets. When they were legitimately in danger of losing for the first time, you could almost hear them click into gear and they absolutely dominated the rest of the tournament. The rest of the country should be a little worried about what they just witnessed, but CMU can also take pride in pushing the #1 team in the country to the very limit. Great match.
9) Will Kenyon finish top 4 in the central region in 2017?
Guru: No doubt the Lords have struggled, but they have what it takes to right the ship and at least move back into the Top 15 in the country. Kenyon has not finished outside the Top 15 in the country since 2007 and despite this possibly being their weakest team in that timeframe, I think they scrape together enough good play late in the season to pass teams like Gustavus, DePauw, Whitewater and Kalamazoo. The Lords had a rough weekend but I am confident they will improve.
AS: Not my region, but I was encouraged by the fact that Kenyon fought against Pomona and almost got themselves a big win. However, I was not encouraged by the 0-3 showing and in particular the 9-0 drubbing by Wash U. Kenyon had a winnable match against Trinity TX as well and couldn’t really come through. While this team might have the talent to be top 4 in the region, this season is going downhill quick.
AVZ: Sadly I don’t think that Kenyon will and at best will be #5 in the region. The loss to Kalamazoo puts them firmly behind the Hornets. With Chicago and Wash U solid at 1 and 2, Case Western is likely a top 4 candidate. The biggest concern for a team like Kenyon right now is that they have to be perfect from here on out. They are going to have big time battles with Depauw and Denison just to win the AQ bid let alone worry about being in the top 4 of the region.
Midwest: Luckily for Kenyon, they seem to make good things happen at the end of the season, if we take last year as an example. The crazy thing is that aside from Chicago and Wash U, there are about 5 teams I could see fighting for a top four finish between Kalamazoo, Gustavus, DePauw, Coe, and potentially UW-Whitewater. I think this young Lords’ squad puts things together from here on out and finishes in the top 4.
8) Results tell us Trinity TX may have been the best doubles team this weekend. Can they get back into the Top 10 this year?
AS: I don’t see why we would think that they can. I think they can get a top 10 win, but I don’t think they can stay in the top 10. They are vulnerable to upsets in the 10-20 range because they have a weaker top of the lineup and a weaker bottom of the lineup. Teams can potentially take a doubles lead on the right day and then beat them at 1 and probably 6 to upset them. I love the Tigers and I love their attitudes, but someone is going to have to take a big leap this year for them to become a top 10 team.
West: I’m going to agree with AS here. With Krull and Deuel graduating, this was always bound to be a relatively down year for the Tigers, and I don’t see them finishing the year in the top 10. They do, however, have home matches against Middlebury, CMS, and Emory on their schedule, and with the way they played doubles this weekend, I think they have a shot to pick up a W in there, though they’ll be major underdogs. Bottom line is that they’re a very young team. They have three sophomores and two freshmen in their starting singles lineup (after Oliver’s relief performance against Kenyon). They have another solid recruiting class coming in next year, so I expect their stay outside the top 10 to be brief. Nevertheless, they remain a threat to take out a team like Wash U or CMU in the Sweet Sixteen if they get a chance.
7) Discuss one positive and one negative for Case from this weekend.
AVZ: One positive for Case is they continue to find ways to win matches. They might be overmatched, but they just know how to make matches close and win. The back half of the lineup is very solid and Daum and Bendetto found some success at the top doubles spot after a few early hiccups. The biggest negative has got to be that whomever Case throws out at #2 and #3 singles is going to struggle to provide the team a W.
Guru: Starting with the good for Case, it’s that they should be very satisfied with their effort and knowing that their fellow teammates will never give up. They were down and out against Trinity and found a way to win against a solid Top 15 team. It was a very commendable effort. Unfortunately, most of the good news ends there. What they gave in effort, they lacked in execution in their other two matches. If I’m Case, the biggest negative for me coming out of this weekend has to be doubt that I’m good enough to be in the top half of my conference. I know Coach Todd has convinced his team that they can beat anyone on any day, but losing to a shorthanded CMU in that scenario and then running out of gas against Pool C competitor Pomona cannot be good for the Spartans confidence. I don’t think they wake up Monday morning with a good feeling about making NCAAs this year.
Midwest: I was pretty pleased with Case’s depth. Between Sam Concannon at 5 and Kevin Dong at 6, the Spartans have two players that can make big things happen against teams ranked 15-20 nationally. On the other hand, we knew that Case would struggle at the top of the singles lineup this year and that showed throughout the weekend. At the 1 through 3 spots, Case went a combined 1-8. The lone win came from James Fojtasek at 1 against Trinity’s Wilson Lambeth.
6) Can Pomona-Pitzer make NCAAs?
West: Absolutely. As the rest of the bloggers will tell you, I was very high on the Hens and their senior-heavy roster going into the season. Their early season struggles had me questioning my faith a little bit, but then they came out and swept Case in singles in a performance that hopefully reminded everyone of how dangerous they can be. It’s still February, and they have wins over GAC, Bates, Kenyon, and Case. All of this is while playing wildly substandard doubles (deficits against Case, Chicago, Bates, and Whitman). Two years ago, they were the best doubles team in the country, and if they can get some MOJO back on their home courts, the rest of Pool C should look out. Their upcoming home match against Redlands (Mar. 4th) will be absolutely crucial.
AS: Yes! Pomona was able to slot themselves into the “5th UAA Spot” by beating Case on their home courts and indoors. That’s nothing to scoff at. With the additional Pool C spot this year, that would mean that Pomona will probably be able to sneak in if they beat a team like Williams. Chicago, Wash U, CMU, Middlebury, Amherst/Wesleyan/Pomona/Case for the last two spots seems reasonable.
5) Will CMU make the NCAA Quarterfinals this year?
AS: I think it’s not a good precedent to make claims like this based off an indoors tournament that features only your conference rivals. CMU should be semi-happy with their tournament, but I think if they are too happy, that will show why they haven’t been able to make the NCAA QF in the past 7 years. I talked a little bit about the Tartans clutch play prior to the tournament and it just so happens again that they got a 3 setter win from Zheng to oust Case, but lost to Emory and Wash U basically in three setters at #5 singles. CMU should make the quarterfinals this year. Whether they do or not really depends on them, as it always does. If it were me, I’d still say they falter, but I’m jaded from the past few years.
4) Do you consider Wash U a serious Final Four contender this year?
Guru: Wash U is always a serious Final Four contender and the third place match shows me that they still have that edge against teams that aren’t as established. You have to remember that Chicago beat Wash U 8-1 during the regular season last year in a beatdown equal to or greater than the semis this past weekend. Wash U then came back and beat the Maroons in the more important match in the UAA semifinal. Despite Chicago’s drubbing of the Bears, I have very little doubt that Wash U will make the NCAA quarterfinals and have at least some people picking them to win that match.
AVZ: As Guru said, it’s hard to count out the Bears in May. I don’t know how they do it, but Coach Follmer has the guys ready to go come tourney time. With the increased competition out east, they need to be very conscious of Pool C implication matches. I do think Chicago qualifies, but a weaker top half of the lineup concerns me. They did put a good showing in doubles and that might carry Wash U this season.
Midwest: What the very top teams in the country have is a stellar singles lineup. I think Wash U’s doubles can get there, but at this point I don’t see them competing with some of the other top teams in singles. A combined 3 wins and 9 losses in singles against Chicago/CMU is a telling stat. Let me be clear though, what they did in the third place match showed a lot of toughness, and as I said, it makes me very happy. This is a group of very good dudes, good parents, and a good coaching staff that can make amazing things happen.
3) Chicago cruised through their first two matches while Emory had some hiccups. What happened to the Maroons in the final?
Midwest: It’s always tough to go down 3-0 after doubles, and I think a combination of things happened. Most importantly, after going down 2-1 against both Trinity and Carnegie, Emory stepped up its level. More credit should be given to the Eagles rather than criticism to the Maroons. I was impressed with the fight Chicago showed in singles, though. Nick Chua defeated the “best #2 in the history of D3,” Luke Tsai was up a break in the third set when the match was decided, Ninan Kumar didn’t get to play his match against Josh Goodman, and I believe Alec Josepher and Erik Kerrigan were on serve in the 2nd, so while we will never know what the final score would have been if the match was played to completion, it could have easily still been 5-4. Interesting to note that it was the first time this year Chicago has faced a doubles deficit. I think they are still a strong NCAA title contender. To say anything other than that would be typical reactionary sports talk. We have to consider the entirety of the tournament, and Chicago was more than impressive against Pomona and Wash U.
AVZ: I am going to temper my negativity a bit on the Maroons after the beat down they received. I think getting swept in doubles took any idea they had to take out Emory and put it out of reach. They are a solid doubles team, just got beat out on the day. I think that Coach Tee has a few tweaks to make in the lineup (both singles and doubles) that will make this team stronger the rest of the season.
AS: Everyone needs to cool their jets on this one. I think Chicago had a bad day and they chose the wrong day to do it. They would have cruised against their other opponents had things been switched around. Did we all forget that Emory went down 2-1 to Trinity (and almost got swept)? Trinity was the 7th place finisher in the tournament. Chicago had a bad day and that happens to some teams. Luckily for them it happened in Indoors and not at NCAAs. Chicago definitely has work to do, but they are still in the conversation in my mind.
Guru: Look at the quote from Jay Tee in Chicago’s press release for the Finals recap. That’s all you need to know.
2) Emory has won this tournament two years in a row. What do these recent Eagles teams have or do that separates them from the field?
AVZ: According to their post match interview, they have “dank” shots so that must be it.
AS: AVZ is salty that he doesn’t use the most up to date slang, but it’s funny because I think that interview kind of represents why Emory is very good. They are an extremely confident team, almost to a fault, but that wins them a lot of matches. I’m a big believer in how team chemistry and team dynamic effect matches. Emory has been doing this for years and they are the type of team to look across the net and believe they will beat you whether or not you’ve worked harder than them (and honestly, they’ve probably worked harder than the team across the net). They obviously have just as much talent as any team in the country, but it’s the attitude that makes them Emory. We’ll see how that translates when some equally confident teams like Bowdoin and Middlebury and CMS come to town.
West: Considering the fact that Emory hasn’t won the actual national championship in a couple years, I think it’s entirely possible that Emory hasn’t gotten better so much as the field has gotten weaker. Indoors has basically been a de facto UAA championship without the other major contenders (the NESCAC and CMS) competing. I wish there was some way they could move this tournament back a little, and this baby could be a UAA/NESCAC showdown.
1) What was the most important thing you learned from the matches this weekend?
AVZ: Back to being the glass half empty guy that I am, the biggest takeaway I learned from this tournament is the Northeast teams are licking their chops to get matches underway. While the Emory win over Chicago was impressive, they showed some weakness in their semi final match to CMU. I called this tournament the weakest field in my recent memory and I stand by that claim. Kenyon, Pomona, Case, and Trinity are down and I feel the same way about Wash U. The Northeast region is going to do some damage to these teams in May.
Guru: I’m going to take the opposite opinion of AVZ and praise the UAA. Yes, this is a UAA dominated tournament, but after what I saw, I think it is very possible the UAA ends up with four teams in the Top 7 in the country for the second year in a row. I’m not as high on Case this year and I think they struggle to finish Top 10, but CMU looks like they can have another big regular season. Emory, Chicago and Wash U all have an excellent chance to be Top 5 in the country. So the most important thing I learned this weekend are that the top UAA powers are very good this year and ready to play spoiler to recent NESCAC dominance late in the season.
AS: I wasn’t going to chime in on this one, but now that AVZ went total hater mode on the UAA, I have to. What I learned from this weekend was that history and program continues to matter. Emory won the tournament after looking somewhat vulnerable the whole time. Wash U beat CMU because they came more prepared to play in doubles and took it to the sleeping Tartans before they woke up. What I also learned was that freshmen aren’t saviors. Chicago’s Kerrigan, Meyer, and Kumar were solid, but to those people thinking they would make Chicago a front-runner were proven wrong immediately. CMU’s freshmen (Rozenvasser, Prettyman) lost big third sets and didn’t contribute in doubles all weekend. Quick shoutout to the Wash U freshmen, however, who powered their team to a win over CMU at #5 and #6 singles (Neves, Engel). What does this mean for freshman heavy teams go forward? Does this mean Amherst has to worry? I’d say so.
Conclusion
I don’t know why I always call out that the conclusion is a conclusion because we were taught in the 4th grade that a good conclusion should let the readers know that the story is ending. Shoutout to you, Mr. Gazzola. Look at me now. Anyways, I just want to point out that AVZ is looking for DIII Alumni who are making an impact in their community, as per this tweet.
@middtennis alum Teddy Fitzgibbons '14, who founded @HeartyStart, on @RachaelRayShow https://t.co/PV6Or7wo50 @NESCAC @ITA_Tennis @middalumni
— Middlebury Athletics (@MiddAthletics) February 25, 2017
We would love to get these guys/gals extra publicity with their efforts post-college. We’ll give you the best we have to offer – 3,000 views a day for free. Please feel free to email one of the bloggers if you know someone or do something similar to the honorable Teddy Fitzgibbons. ASouth, OUT.