The NESCAC Awakens from Hibernation

There is a scene in SpongeBob SquarePants when the titular character and his starfish sidekick discover and eventually awaken their rodent pal from her annual winter slumber. At some point along the way, Patrick utters the line, “hibernation must mean the opposite of beauty sleep.” In this example, and in many other cases, the philosophy of Patrick Star can be applied to the world of Division III tennis. The top teams in the NE have been in hibernation since October, and they are just beginning to yawn and stretch their furry legs. Like hibernation according to Patrick, the offseason is pretty much the opposite of beauty sleep. You try to play and workout daily, you go to captains practices or however your squad gets around the no practice until February 15th NESCAC rule, but it’s nearly impossible to keep the same drive around finals time or over the holidays. This brings us back again to our dear friend Professor Star, PhD. “Is mayonnaise an instrument?” It might as well be during the winter months in the NE, when your only escape from the cold is through choice recreational activities (hopefully not too much mayonnaise). Luckily, now is the time for the NE teams to begin to migrate to warmer weather. Although according to our all-knowing friend, that might be the wrong direction.

#5 Midd vs #20 Bates – 3/11, 9 a.m. EST

Setting the scene: Midd is the exception to the warm weather rule, as it’s spring break to Texas won’t take place for a few weeks, but they are the only one of the debuting NE teams playing a top-30 caliber team (sorry Stevens), so they get top-billing. Midd is coming off back to back 2nd place finishes at NCAAs, and with a strong team they will likely be in the title hunt again come May. However, they do not have three All Americans in their lineup who were there last year, so let’s not all get carried away and give them the kitchen sink just yet.

Will #TheDictator have his day?

What I’m excited to see from the doubles: The top. Midd always plays good doubles. Coach Hansen DEFINITELY knows his doubles. But, Midd could be lacking the chemistry necessary at the top spot (at least to start the year). Midd had some solid results from Cuba/De Quant and Derbani/Schlanger, but it looks like Bates’s strongest two spots are their #1 and #2 doubles teams. If Midd comes out with the brooms or is facing a deficit going into singles, I’ll try not to overreact, but a strong doubles performance on opening day might quell some fears as well.

What I’m excited to see from the singles: The depth. Bates has played some close singles matches throughout the lineup, but without getting the results they’d like. We know Cuba and de Quant and likely Derbani are going to be strong, but the real question mark for Midd this year is their depth. I’m excited to see how guys like Van der Geest or Schlanger can perform up at #4, and also very interested as to who gets the opening nod at #6.

Prediction: Midd def. Bates 7-2 (one of Bates’ wins from the doubles and one super breaker win as well).

What comes next: Midd hosts Brandeis on 3/18 and then plays both RPI and Skidmore on the following day. Midd is deep, but both Skid and RPI are talented enough to give the Panthers a scare if they somehow take a doubles lead.

#10 Williams @ Hamilton – 3/11, 2 p.m. EST

Setting the scene: For what seems like the 4th straight year since they won the NCAA title, Williams is a top-10 team in our Power Rankings without playing a match. The Ephs get one East Coast match before going westward-ho, and while the lineup used may not be final, it should shed at least some light on the Eph’s talented and likely balanced lineup for 2017.

What I’m excited to see from the doubles: The depth. Grodecki and Taylor are the favorites for the top spot after a successful fall, but even if the other teams have already been decided, I’m not sure we know exactly which team will be playing where. It will most likely be some combination of Indrakanti, the elder Raghavan, Shastri, and Jordan Sadowsky, with a chance of Christian O’Connor, a sophomore who didn’t play much last year, or Ben Lebowitz, one the Ephs’ three freshmen.

Might this be the Eph’s top 4?

What I’m excited to see from the singles: I don’t want to say everything, so I’ll say “the where.” I don’t think there is a single spot in this lineup that I feel confident I can peg down. No matter who plays where, they will be talented from top to bottom and have a shot at every spot on every day (even if they will certainly be underdogs sometimes). Odds are Grodecki starts at the top, and some combination of Indrakanti, Taylor, and Shastri make up the next few spots. After that all bets are off. Sachin Raghavan could also break into the top 4, but there are plenty of options for Coach Greenberg down at the bottom of his lineup. I wouldn’t be surprised if the lineup that debuts on Saturday did not remain the same for Point Loma in their first spring break match, or even against PP on the 22nd.

Prediction: Williams def. Hamilton 9-0

What comes next: Williams heads to Cali where they get a couple warm up matches and their first big match is at the Pizzeria on 3/22.

#2 Bowdoin @ Chapman – 3/12, 4 p.m. EST

Setting the scene: Our 1st look at the defending champs! Bowdoin is embarking on its annual two-week trip to California, and the Polar Bears start their season at Chapman on Sunday. We’ll be getting our first look at Tercek since his fall away, and this should be a nice tune-up match as the Polar Bears ready themselves for the Stag Hen.

Where exactly will Urken fit into both lineups?

What I’m excited to see from the doubles: The depth. After Jiang and Wolfe won the ITA and won 4/6 sets at Small College Nationals, I expect them to be locked and loaded as Bowdoin’s #1 team. That leaves guys like Tercek, Roddy, Urken, Carstens and Rozovsky as the front runners for the remaining two doubles spots. You have to figure Tercek and Roddy are locks. My guess is they each anchor a separate spot. Tercek and a partner at #2 dubs and Roddy and a partner at #3 dubs, but they could also make a pretty intimidating #2 team. Though Urken didn’t start in dubs last year, I think Grant will likely team up with one of them. He played well when needed at NCAAs last year, and played a lot of dubs with different partners this fall. Rozovsky and Carstens are the most likely candidates for the final dubs spot, but my guess is that’s far more open to a guy like Patel, or McGrory then the singles lineup is for now.

What I’m excited to see from the singles: The top and bottom of the lineup. LT JR is back, Urken had an incredible fall, Wolfe had his struggles, and I really don’t know what the order of the top-3 will be for this trip. I think any of the three in any of the spots is totally plausible. With Jiang and Roddy at 4/5 Bowdoin will be as solid as anybody, leaving the question of who anchors the Polar Bears at #6. Just like in the doubles, the most likely candidates are the freshman Rozovsky, and the sophomore Carstens, neither of whom have played in any crucial dual matches. The match against Chapman does not qualify, but if they struggle on Sunday we may see a different guy for the Stag Hen on Tuesday.

Prediction: Bowdoin def. Chapman 8-1.

What comes next: Two days after their bout with Chapman, Bowdoin enters the Stag Hen where they will take on a newly minted ITA top-10 team, Whitman, in their quarterfinal matchup.

#7 Amherst vs #39 Stevens and Roger Williams (in Florida) – 3/12, 10 a.m. & 7 p.m.

Setting the scene: I cannot wait for Amherst to start the season because at least then we can focus on their results instead of their recruiting class (at least until June). Now the team formerly known as the Lord Jeffs (and hopefully soon to be known as the Hamsters), looks ready to prove to the DIII tennis world that they’re back and on the road to being just as strong as their national title runs from 2011 and 2014.

Can Zykov anchor a team of diaper dandies?

What I’m excited to see from the doubles: One of the hallmarks of the NCAA champion Amherst teams was its doubles. Fritz and Reindel, Solimano and Revzin, Chafitz and Rattenhuber, Waterman and Koenig, were (i believe) the top teams during each national championship run (though Solimano also played #3 with Dale during that season). The question for this young Amherst squad is who will take over the mantle as a top doubles team? We all know that one of the toughest transitions between high school and college tennis is the jump in doubles, so it’s often tough to rely on freshmen at top doubles spots. My guess is Zykov is near the top of this section of the lineup, but even that I wouldn’t bet my house on. If you think doubles is up in the air, wait till we get to the singles lineup…

What I’m excited to see from the singles: If Williams was the where, then what I’m most excited to see from Amherst is “the who.” Other than Pinball Wizard Anton Zykov, technically I’m not sure that ANYBODY ELSE will be in the starting lineup. This lineup is definitely the hardest in the NE to predict (with the other contenders being Williams and Tufts), and we could realistically see one of 10 or 11 guys play against Stevens on Sunday morning. Unlike Williams and Bowdoin, where I’m more interested in what position certain guys are playing, with Amherst it’s the matter of WHO is playing. Zykov, Arnaboldi, Bessette, Heidenberg, Levitin, Burney, Marchalik, Fung, Owens, Kaplan, and I’m not even including 1/2 of the seniors on the squad! Plus, I have extra on Marchalik and Owens, as they could be key contributors to my fantasy team!

Prediction: Amherst def Stevens and Roger Williams by a combined score of 17-1.

What comes next: 10 more matches in five days comprise an outrageous split-squad schedule. On each of the six consecutive match days it seems like one of the opponents is better than the other, so my guess is there will be some sort of A and B team, like the Amherst teams of yesteryear, but the top matches for Herst each day will be Kenyon, UT-Tyler, Trinity Tx, RPI, and Emory. That’s a lot of good teams, even if it’s likely only one title contender. If the young guns can get out of Florida with just one loss, they’ll be exactly where they need to be.

3 thoughts on “The NESCAC Awakens from Hibernation

  1. D3Fan

    It appears that Rozovsky is no longer listed on the Bowdoin roster.

    1. D3 Northeast

      You’re absolutely right. Don’t know what happened. Think Eliot’s ceiling this year was #6 singles, but I guess we’ll see how Carstens/Patel handles the spot

  2. D3 Northeast

    And of course within hours of my post Bowdoin adds Skidmore to its Sunday schedule. Bowdoin shouldn’t be in danger of losing to the T-Breds, but they do present a significantly stronger test than Chapman. It will be a good barometer for both teams moving into Tuesday’s Stag Hen. I’ll take Bowdoin 7-2, with Leung getting at leah one point for Skid at #1 singles

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