Regional Roundup – Week Ending 3/20

Good morning tennis world and happy Friday!  With another weekend comes another fantastic set of regional matches, and this weekend’s matches are honestly the best yet, as RPI and Pacific both head to southern Cal.  I have a lot to recap, and even more to preview, so I won’t waste precious space with a babbling intro.  Let’s get right into it!

The Week That Was (using last week’s power rankings):

Friday:

#9 Carnegie Mellon def. #36 Sewanee 9-0: Coming off the big win over Trinity (TX), the Tartans did not fall into the classic trap match against Sewanee.  They absolutely dominated this match from start to finish, losing 6 total games in a doubles sweep and not losing a set in singles.  The one noteworthy thing for Sewanee in this match is that junior Connor Winkler returned!  He had not yet played in a match yet so it was great to see him back at #4 singles, as he was the only Sewanee player to take a set to a tiebreaker against Will Duncan (CMU).  I’ll get more into Sewanee later as I have four more Tigers matches to recap!

#20 Mary Washington def. #35 Swarthmore 7-2: This match really just confirms what I already thought about the Garnet, that they are darn good at #2-#4 singles, with their three freshman Mark Fallati, Ari Cepelewicz, and Blake Oetting.  Fallati lost in a superbreaker, but Cepelewicz and Oetting each won in straight sets.  However, the Garnet got swept in doubles by Mary Wash, and lost badly at #1 and #6 singles.  Doubles is the main area where Swarthmore needs to improve, as they have big matches coming up against DePauw and Kenyon coming up this weekend.

#37 Pacific (OR) def. George Fox 7-2: This was a very interesting match between likely the #2 and #3 teams in the NWC.  GF came in and took two out of three doubles, although Brennan Faith/Grayson Frazier (Pacific) continued their fine season at #1 with another victory.  In singles, Pacific flexed their depth by taking all six matches, although three of them (#1, 3, and 5) went to three sets.  Shout out to George Fox on their doubles play, as they have not lost more than one doubles match in their previous nine matches (every match this season except for their opener against Hawaii Hilo).  Pacific is just a little more talented on the singles side, although George Fox battled really well to force three third sets.  Pacific is now clearly the second best team in the NWC, and I’m really looking forward to their upcoming trip to southern Cal next week.  They will take on Midd, Cal Tech, RPI, Redlands, and UCSC, and it will be great to see how their NWC prowess translates to the rest of the country.

Saturday:

#7 Middlebury def. #31 Stevens 8-1: Yes, this was an 8-1 victory for the Midd Kids, but Stevens battled well in this match.  Midd swept doubles, winning #2 and #3 easily, but #1 was a close 8-6 victory for Palmer Campbell/Peter Heidrich (Midd).  In singles, there were two superbreakers at #1 and #4, because Midd won at #2, #3, and #6 quickly.  A big shout out to Danny Polk (Stevens), who took out Jackson Frons in straights for Stevens’ lone point at #5.  Midd is a strong team, and Stevens battled hard in this match, and this match will help them in their upcoming matches against Wisconsin-Whitewater and Case Western.

#15 Bates def. MIT 6-3: The Engineers played well in this match, showing us that they are still capable of big things even after the departure of their #1, Edwin Zhang.  Bates predictably took 2 out of 3 doubles matches, but singles was tight.  Kevin Wang (MIT) took out Pierre Planche (Bates) at #1 in three sets, but Bates took #2-4 in straight sets.  #5 and #6 both went to superbreakers, with MIT taking #5 (Jeffrey Sperling of MIT def. Henry Lee) and Bates taking #6 (Patrick Ordway of Bates def. Bryan Lilley).  MIT basically is the opposite of Swarthmore, as they are weak at #2-4 but strong at the top and bottom of the lineup.  Eugene Oh and Kenny Gea at #2 and #3 both hit a huge ball, and are really capable of taking out some great players, but they can get out-grinded by some teams, like they did against Bates in this match.  However, MIT has made a statement that they are going to be a dangerous team.  They don’t play the strongest schedule, but Brandeis and Babson are two great matches that should be tighter than they were last year.

#38 Colby def. Hamilton 6-3: This was not a great performance from the Mules, and honestly a match that they very easily could have lost.  Colby took two of three doubles matches, but all three were tight and they took #3 9-8.  They did take four of six singles matches, so I give them credit for that, but Vlad Murad (Colby) barely took out James Oliver, winning 7-6 in the third.  Cameron Hillier (Colby) won easily at #3, but Mark HoSang (Colby) and Jeremy Mendoza (Colby) each lost in straights at #4 and #5.  Douglas Mo (Colby) grinded out a superbreaker win at #6 to cap off the 6-3 win.  Sure, a win is a win and I’ll take a win all day long, but this was a shaky performance by the Mules and they’ll have to improve greatly if they want to have any shot at making the NESCAC tournament.

#18 Redlands def. #36 Sewanee 8-1: Sure, this was an easy win for the ‘Dawgs, but Sewanee actually played really hard in this match.  They got swept in doubles, but four of the six singles matches (#3-6) went three sets.  Avery Schober (Sewanee) and Eric Roddy (Sewanee) each lost in straights at #1 and #2, but I know they are both capable of playing at a higher level.  This match was a big improvement for the Tigers from their first match against CMU, and this was great to see.

#7 Middlebury def. #27 Brandeis 7-2: While Midd def. Stevens in a 8-1 match that I really think was more of a 7-2 match, Midd beat Deis in in a 7-2 match that I think was more of a 8-1 match.  The Panthers dominated the doubles, winning 8-2, 8-2 and 8-3.  Michael Arguello had the best win for the Judges, beating Noah Farrell in two tight sets at #2.  Arguello has been on a roll all season so it was great to see him moved up to #2 and get a big win in the process.  Down a couple spots, Alec Siegel squeaked out a superbreaker victory over Courtney Moutifield.  Except for these two players, who are playing great, everybody else has struggled, and they’ll need to figure it out as the Judges move through their difficult season.

#20 Mary Washington def. #35 Washington & Lee 9-0: I’m still not positive what to make of the Generals, as they were defeated pretty badly in this one.  There was one superbreaker at #2, where Stratton Gilmore (UMW) took out Michael Holt (W&L) but none of the other matches were close.  With teams like Christopher Newport and Sewanee doing good things in the Atlantic South, W&L is going to have to play well to retain their regional ranking.  Right now, they are ranked #5 in the region, although that is going to go down with the 7-2 loss to #6 Swat.  Sewanee is #7 and CNU is #10, and both these teams are playing W&L in the coming weeks, so fun regional matches are coming!

Sunday:

#31 Stevens def. #27 Brandeis 5-3: Wow Ducks, wow!  I expected this match to be tight, and that’s exactly what we got from two very evenly matched teams.  Brandeis won at #1 and #2 doubles, but Stevens surprisingly was just deeper in singles.  Michael Arguello (Deis) had a great win at #2 over Ben Foran as he continues to roll, but that’s the only positive for Brandeis in the singles.  Brian Granoff (Deis) needs to find his form at #1, where he is 2-4 this year, if he hopes to make NCAA’s again.  Also, sophomore Ryan Bunis (Deis) is 1-5 this season (1-4 at #2, 0-1 at #3), and must regain the consistency that helped him win just about every three set match he played last year.  Brandeis is reeling at the moment after this, but their schedule is extremely strong the rest of the way.  They travel to Connecticut this Sunday to play Wesleyan, and have Bates, Tufts, Bowdoin, and Babson coming up soon.  As for the Ducks, they are currently living it up in Florida, and will have four more great ranked matches over the course of the season.

Monday:

#24 Trinity (CT) def. #36 Sewanee 8-1: This was a fantastic start to the season for Trinity, with the exception of Moose Mbithi having to withdraw from his match at #2 singles.  He played in the next match against Pomona, so I will assume all is well in Bantam camp.  As for the Tigers, this was a disappointing result after their good effort against Redlands.  However, they rebounded well against Denison, which you will read in a couple of minutes, if of course you continue to read, which I hope you do!

Tuesday:

#15 Bates def. #38 Colby 6-3: After Colby’s performance against Hamilton, I expected the Bobcats to absolutely roll in this match.  Carl Reid had a great day, as he and Vlad Murad teamed to defeat Pierre Planche/Chris Ellis 8-4 at #1, and he also took out Planche in straights at #1 singles.  Cameron Hiller (Colby) also had a nice win, taking out Adam Schwartz in his Bates return, 7-6 in the third set.  Besides these matches, the Bobcats rolled.  Colby is lacking depth at #4-6, as Bates took them all in straights, and Murad also lost quickly at #2 to Chris Ellis (Bates).  Colby is really missing the loss of their #2, #4, #5, and #6 players from last year, and will need  Mark HoSang, Jeremy Mendoza, Douglas Mo, and Shaw Speer to step it up at those lower spots.

#36 Sewanee def. #28 Denison 6-3: Sewanee put it all together in this match for their first nationally ranked win of the year.  The Tigers swept doubles, and actually dominated them, against a Denison team who is known for good doubles.  They split the singles, and although they lost quickly at #5 and #6, this didn’t matter as they won at #1, #2, and #4, and lost 6-4 in the third at #3.  This was a terrific performance from the Tigers, and should make for a happy flight back to Tennessee.  Sewanee has another big weekend trip coming up, where they will play Christopher Newport and Washington and Lee, two teams regionally ranked right around the level of Sewanee.

Wednesday:

Vassar def. Whittier 7-2: I won’t recap this one too much, as I don’t yet have a box score, but the Poets are really reeling right now after this loss to the Brewers.  This was a good win for Vassar, however, and they’ll have another good match this Saturday versus George Fox.

Thursday:

#31 NC Wesleyan def. #16 Bates 7-2: This was a late addition to the regional roundup, but I could not leave this match without a recap.  NC Wes surprisingly came out and took 2 of 3 doubles matches, with the big one being the 8-2 win at #1.  Despite this, I had all the faith in the world that Bates’ newfound depth would reign supreme, despite Bates missing their #3, freshman Adam Schwartz.  However, the Bishops just took it to the Bobcats, winning at #1-5 singles, with two of the matches being three-setters.  The biggest surprise to me was Fernando Nardelli’s three-set win at 5 over Ben Rosen, who has been a lock at #5 this year.  We all knew NC Wesleyan was back with their win over Denison, but at this point, with the struggles of schools like Denison and Brandeis, I think NC Wesleyan is now a top 30 squad.

State of the Regional Teams:

I’m not going to go too much into each team, but I wanted to quickly highlight what I consider my top ten regional teams thus far.  I have given each team a letter grade based on how well they’ve done in my regional eyes.

Stevens: A-

Terrific start for the Ducks, who really only have an early season loss to Denison that is keeping them from being ranked even higher than they already are at #29.  Their next huge opportunity is Saturday against Wisconsin-Whitewater down in Florida, and Stevens is definitely capable of winning another one.

Brandeis: C-

This has been a disappointing start to the year for the Judges, who avoided complete disaster by beating Chapman in their opening match.  The loss vs. Stevens really hurts from a ranking standpoint, but the Judges have more opportunities, starting Sunday versus Wesleyan.  The Judges really do not have any clear strengths in their lineup, and I’m struggling to see what their identity is.

Swarthmore: C+

The Garnet have had a decent start to the year.  The wins over NYU and W&L were good, but they also lost to Stevens and Mary Washington.  Because of their struggles in doubles, and their strength in the middle of the singles lineup, Swarthmore is a fairly predictable team.  However, they’ll have a huge chance to bump their C+ up to a solid B if they can take out DePauw this Saturday!

Coe: B-

The Kohawks have already played 15 matches this year, earning a 12-3 record with losses to Chicago, Valparaiso, and UT-Tyler.  The highlights of the Coe season include the 7-2 win over McMurry, and the 9-0 triumph over Kalamazoo.  After the McMurry match, I expected Coe to compete a little better with UT-Tyler.  Coe travels to Minnesota this weekend to play Gustavus, and although I expect Gustavus to win, this match could be close if Coe’s top 4 singles players compete well.

NC Wesleyan: B+

NC Wes has stormed back on to the national stage with their results this year.  They are 2-2 so far against ranked squads after really falling off last year without Robert Kjellberg.  After falling to Mary Washington at the end of February, the Bishops rolled through four matches before taking out Bates last night.  This 7-2 win was a team effort from the Bishops, who now have a good shot to move into the top 30.  The Bishops continue their battle next Wednesday with another test against DePauw, another match that the Bishops should have a great shot to win.

Pacific: B

The Boxers have been solid so far this year, solidifying their #2 spot in the NWC, with wins over Lewis & Clark, George Fox, and Whitworth, along with a close loss to Whitman.  I like the way the Boxers are playing as they move into their spring break next week.

Sewanee: B-

Although I did not think they would win any of these matches, Sewanee lost very badly to Wash U, Carnegie Mellon, Redlands, and Trinity (CT) to start their season.  However, they ended their Cali trip on a high note with a 6-3 victory over Denison.  Sewanee is inconsistent, but they are playing well right now as they move into a big weekend with matches versus Christopher Newport and Washington & Lee.

MIT: C+

The C+ for the Engineers is more of an incomplete at this point, as MIT really only has had two tough matches so far, as they defeated Vassar and lost to Bates, both by 6-3 scores.  They made a statement in the match against Bates that they are still going to battle, despite the loss of Edwin Zhang at #1 and Curtis Wu at #4/5.  I wish MIT had some more NESCAC schools on their schedule, but as it stands, their toughest matches this season will be against Babson (4/1), Amherst (4/9), and Brandeis (4/15).  With the way Babson and Brandeis are both playing at the moment, I expect both of these matches to be tight.

Chapman: B-

Similar to Sewanee, Chapman is one streaky team, and similar to Sewanee, I’m also giving them a B-.  Chapman has had some good moments (def. Oxy 8-1, def. Rochester 5-4, def. Vassar 8-1) and some bad moments (L to Brandeis 6-3) but there are clearly more positives than negatives for the Panthers so far.  I like the way Chapman is competing, especially at the top 4 spots in the lineup, and I think they have a really good shot to defeat Cal Lutheran this afternoon!

Babson: B

Go Babo!  With #2 Isaac Thylen back in the lineup, the Beavers have looked like a new team.  Roberto Perez, Thylen, and Victor Vu are a solid #1-3, and they will compete well in singles against most teams in the #25-40 range.  I must admit, I have overlooked Babo this year, but I like the way they are playing.  They have a break before they play MIT on 4/1, and although I would still pick the Engineers at this point, the Beavers are primed for an upset.

What to Watch For (with updated power rankings):

Friday:

#42 Christopher Newport @ #35 Washington & Lee:  This is a tough matchup for Washington & Lee, a team that badly needs a win here to retain their national ranking.  CNU has made the most of their opportunities so far this year, getting good wins over Whittier and Occidental.  The Generals have lost their #1, Christopher Hu, and this will play a big role in this match.  Both teams have been consistently okay in doubles, beating the bad teams but losing decisively to the good.  CNU has actually been a very deep team this year, with sophomore Arttu Fiva (CNU) playing terrific in the #5 spot this year, going 8-2 with a great win over Joey Duelle of Redlands.  In the Generals’ defense, they have had less matches against teams in that #35-50 range in the country, but they recently loss pretty routinely to Swarthmore, and badly to Mary Washington.  With Hu out for W&L, this match ought to be much closer than it was last year, when the Generals won 7-2 and had Hu as well as Taylor Shamshiri in the lineup.

Prediction: 5-4 CNU (wins at #2 doubles, #1 singles, #4-6 singles)

#40 Chapman @ #26 Cal Lutheran:  Before I begin, congratulations to Chapman for cracking the most recent ITA rankings at #40, as well as our power rankings!  I think this match is actually going to be very close, and it is a great opportunity for Chapman to finally make their mark on the SCIAC.  The JT bros (Justin Thompson and Justin P. Thompson of Chap) have had a great year at #1 and #2, with both guys recently taking out Luke Trinka and Noah Bragg, the #1 and #2 at Bowdoin.  Brett Buford and Charlie Werman are tricky players at #3 and #4, and although they have had no big upsets, they have played everyone close and can certainly play with a team ranked in the 20s.  Chap does drop off afterwards with Hunter Morris and Sam Mitteldorf, although not by a whole lot.  Both teams have been up and down in doubles, and I don’t see either team sweeping.  It will come down to those #3 and #4 singles spots, where I see the matches being very even.

Prediction: 6-3 Cal Lu (wins at #1 and #3 doubles, #1, #3, #5, #6 singles)

Saturday:

#38 Sewanee @ #42 Christopher Newport:  Back to the Tigers, who I honestly lost a bit of faith in until their big win over Denison last Tuesday.  Sewanee has been playing better doubles as of late, and this will be big against CNU, which is a surprisingly deep squad, although it isn’t that surprising if you read my earlier preview.  Having Connor Winkler (Sewanee) back in the Tigers’ lineup has been a huge addition, pushing Scott Gallimore and Alex Cooper down a couple of spots and really helping out the Tigers depth.  I like Sewanee in the middle of the lineup and CNU down at the bottom, so #1 and #2 will be big matches.  Avery Schober (Sewanee) vs. David Reed (CNU) is a marquee matchup, as Reed has been playing very well lately, beating Sam Farmer (Whittier) and Josh Dancu (Oxy).  Schober has been a little inconsistent lately, losing to Dan Carpenter (Trin CT), Abhishek Alla (CMU) and Patrick Lipscomb (Redlands), obviously all great players, but so is Schober!  Should be a battle in Virginia, between two improving teams!

Prediction: 6-3 Sewanee (wins at #1 and #3 doubles, #1-4 singles)

#32 Swarthmore @ #33 DePauw:  Wowzers, another even regional matchup!  This one ought to be great, as Swat heads west for a little central trip to play DePauw and Kenyon.  I’ve talked a lot about Swat so far this year, and they have three really good freshman at #2-4, but have struggled a little at the other spots.  DePauw has not had as many close matches, with the one big loss coming to Wisconsin-Whitewater 6-3, on the same day they played Wash U.  The Tigers play better doubles than the Garnet, and this should be a big advantage for them.  One matchup to keep your eye on is #2 singles, where Mark Fallati (Swat) will most likely play Alec Kaczkowski, who has recently been moved up to #2.  I’ve talked a lot about Fallati, but Alec (not gonna try to spell that last name more than once) has had a good year, winning against Whitewater at #4, and taking Deepak Sabada (Chicago) to a superbreaker.  As for the bottom of the lineup, sure, Swat has struggled, but so has DePauw, not winning a set at #5 and #6 against Whitewater.

Prediction: 5-4 Swarthmore (wins at #2 doubles, and #2-5 singles)

George Fox @ Vassar:  Another close regional match!  This is like Christmas for me.  Anyway…this is another nice matchup between two schools likely around #3 in each of their conferences, with George Fox #3 in the NWC behind Whitman and Pacific, and Vassar at #3 in the Liberty League, likely behind RPI and Skidmore.  Both schools are close to that #2 spot, with #1 a little further off in the distance.  Vassar has been really inconsistent this year, and I have ripped them for losses to TCNJ, Babson, and Chapman.  They have been playing better recently, losing 6-3 to Cal Lu and then beating Whittier, so they are trending upwards into their match against the Bruins.  George Fox plays very good doubles, and Vassar does not, but these singles matches will all be very close.  I like Nick Litsky and Dan Cooper (both of Vassar) at the top, but all the other matches should be a mix.

Prediction: 5-4 George Fox (doubles sweep, wins at #4 and #6 singles)

#8 Middlebury @ #40 Chapman:  Ehhh, unfortunately I don’t think the Panthers have much of a shot to pull the upset in this one, as they have lost badly to teams of Midd’s character (Bowdoin, Pomona, Amherst).  Chapman is best at #1 and #2, so maybe they’ll grab one of those two spots, but they are overmatched at all of the others.

Prediction: 9-0 Midd (closest match at #2 singles)

#34 Coe @ #19 Gustavus Adolphus:  Gustavus has been battling well this year with teams of all rankings, and on their indoor courts, they have to be favored pretty heavily against the Kohawks.  However, Coe can make this close in a couple of ways.  At #1 doubles, Noah Sprinkel/Riley Galbraith (Coe) are a really good team, and Motasem Al-Houni/Andres Saenz (GAC) are coming off an 8-4 loss to Whitewater, so I could definitely see Coe stealing that match.  Also, in singles, Coe has a strong #1-4, and should make all of these matches fairly close.  Starting at the bottom, Ryan Hickman (Coe) has been on fire this year, recently defeating Frankie Fischer (UTT) 6-1, 6-2.  Moving up the lineup, Brady Anderson, Riley Galbraith, and Noah Sprinkel (Coe) have all been up and down this year, but recently competed well against UT-Tyler, and I like this to continue.  Ultimately, I do think Gustavus has too much depth down below, but this match will be tighter than some might think.

Prediction: 6-3 Gustavus (wins at #2 and #3 doubles, #2, #3, #5, #6 singles).

#27 Stevens vs. #25 Wisconsin-Whitewater in Florida:  Who needs spring break Cali when you have a couple of top 30 teams battling it out in Florida!  I love the way Stevens has been playing, as they seemed to have found some depth throughout their singles lineup.  Doubles has been a little streaky, but that’s kind of just how doubles works, so not a huge concern for me.  Whitewater is coming off a 7-2 loss to Gustavus that had 3 three-set matches, so it was a close 7-2.  They defeated DePauw earlier this year, so Whitewater is playing well.  Ben Shklyar (UWW #5) has not been playing lately, and he is a big loss given how well Danny Polk has been at #5 for Stevens.  However, Matt Bisbee (UWW) has stepped in and done a great job at #6, with only one loss so far, a 3 set loss to Gustavus.  I think this match will be very up-and-down, and it should be fun to follow.

Prediction: 5-4 Wisconsin-Whitewater (wins at #1 and #2 doubles, #2, #4, #6 singles)

Sunday:

#38 Sewanee @ #35 Washington & Lee:  Christmas weekend for me continues with another top 40 battle of the Tigers and the Generals.  I have already talked about W&L and their missing #1, Christopher Hu, as well as Sewanee and the strong top of their lineup.  The Generals also are strong at #2 and #3, with Michael Holt and Brian Krouskos, so this match will be won or lost down at the bottom.  Both teams have been inconsistent at best, as Joe Siami (W&L) has only played in a couple matches at #6 due to the Chris Hu injury, and Ethan Markman has struggled at #6 and #5.  It has not been much better for Sewanee, as the Tigers have won one match at #5/6 against five ranked opponents.  Ultimately, I think Sewanee has just a little more firepower up top, and will come through with the big Atlantic South win.

Prediction: 5-4 Sewanee (wins at #1 and #3 doubles, #1, #2, and #4 singles).

#28 Brandeis @ #15 Wesleyan:  This is a tough matchup of one team that just had a very tough loss to Stevens, and another team that recently had one of its biggest wins in program history against Kenyon.  The only shot that Brandeis has is to pull out a couple doubles matches and get the pressure on Wes.  #1 and #2 doubles have been pretty good for Deis, but I don’t think #3 has won a single match yet this year.  Wesleyan can switch guys out at #4-6 as they please, so they can mix and match the bottom of the lineup to suit the Judges, not that they will necessarily need to.  The Judges can compete at a lot of spots in the lineup, especially #1 (Brian Granoff), #2 (Michael Arguello), and #4 (Alec Siegel), but they are a lock nowhere.

Prediction: 7-2 Wesleyan (wins at #1 and #3 doubles, #1, #3-6 singles).

RPI @ Occidental:  Although RPI is definitely a little down this year in terms of talent, I still really love the way they compete in every match they play.  In this match against Oxy, I think it will really come down to which team wants it more.  RPI plays much better doubles than Oxy, as RPI took two out of three against both Stevens and Skidmore, and Oxy was recently swept in doubles by Salisbury on their way to an 8-1 loss.  This is RPI’s first match out in Cali, so nerves, timing, and sun could all play a factor.  I like Oxy at the top in singles, but RPI just about everywhere else.

Prediction: 7-2 RPI (doubles sweep, #2, #4-6 singles)

#8 Middlebury @ #36 Pacific (OR) @ Whittier:  This match could get close if Pacific comes out firing in doubles, but Midd should be much too deep.  Pacific can definitely play up to highly ranked teams, as they did in their 6-3 loss against Whitman, where they were swept in doubles, but won at #1-3 singles, and had close matches at #4-6.  Midd is better than Whitman, though, and although they play Whittier the same day, it should not make a difference.  At #1 singles, I will love to see how Giancarlo Battaglia (Pacific) fairs against Ari Smolyer, and Brennan Faith and Grayson Frazier at #2 and #3 will have great tests as well.  Midd should win decisively, but the matches themselves will be closer than the overall score indicates.

Prediciton: 7-2 Midd (wins at #2-3 doubles, #1, #3-6 singles).

Monday:

Carthage @ #37 Colby (in Florida):  This is a great opportunity for a Carthage team that I know is itching for that big win.  Although I ultimately don’t think they get it here, this should be a close match against a Colby team that has some real weak spots at #4-6 in the lineup.  If Carthage can take 2 doubles matches, things get real tricky real fast, but I see this match going almost identical to how the Colby vs. Hamilton match went from last week.

Prediction: 6-3 Colby (wins at #1 and #3 doubles, #1-3, #6 singles).

#36 Pacific (OR) @ Cal Tech:  I had high hopes for Cal Tech this season after their win over Oxy to close out last year, but the Beavers have really struggled this year, losing to Oxy and Whittier in SCIAC play.  Cal Tech can run into some good doubles at times, and the Pathireddy brothers can be tricky at #1 and #2 for Cal Tech (Ruthwick at #1, Sathwick at #2), but Pacific is better at just about every other position in the lineup.

Prediction: 7-2 Pacific (wins at #1 and #2 doubles, #1, #3-6 singles)

RPI vs. #36 Pacific (OR) @ Biola:  The grand finale to the long weekend finishes with RPI and Pacific dueling it out in Southern Cal, and I think this match could very likely be the closest of the bunch.  Both teams play good doubles, and I don’t think either team is good enough to pull the sweep.  In singles, I like Giancarlo Battaglia (Pac) at #1 the way he is playing, but #2 should be fantastic, with Brennan Faith (Pac) likely playing Brandon Mazzara (RPI).  Grayson Frazier (Pac) vs. Tristan Wise (RPI) will be a very well-played match at #3, but I love the way Wise has played his whole freshman year, and I’m going with the Engineer.  Down at the bottom, I definitely lean towards the Boxers, although not by a lot.  Both teams have played well against ranked squads, and this one should come right down to the wire.

Prediction: 5-4 Pacific (wins at #1 and #2 doubles, #1-2, #5 singles).

Enjoy all the matches this weekend!  D3Reg, out.