Saturday Recap

P-P's upset is the story of a busy day in D3 tennis

Ok, a lot happened today, and I don’t have a lot of time, so I’m just gonna write a few sentences about each match, and you guys can fill in the rest

#21 Swarthmore def. Vassar 5-4 

Vassar won two out of three of the doubles, and actually won 4 out of 6 first sets, but only the Guzicks were able to close the deal in singles for Vassar, as Swarthmore came back for the 5-4 victory. This was huge for Swat, as now they can ride on the coattails of their CMS win to a year-end national ranking. I don’t think they’re about to beat Hopkins, but the national ranking could give them a nice recruiting boost.

#15 Bates def. Brandeis 9-0

The Bobcats continue to play impressive tennis. Brandeis is definitely having a down year, but sweeping them is something that’s hard to do. Maybe Bates does have a chance against the NESCAC elite.

#8 CMS def. #20 Whittier 8-1

This match went as expected. CMS was able to sweep the doubles, and eased their way to victory. There were a couple close singles matches, but nothing to write home about. Whittier really needs to win 1 doubles and 1 and 2 singles if they want a chance against any good team, but most good teams have better 1 and 2 singles players. Sorry, Poets, that was a little harsh, but it’s kinda true.

#23 Skidmore def. TCNJ 6-3

I know absolutely nothing about The College of New Jersey, and I don’t know why this match was on the calendar. But TCNJ did play Skidmore pretty tight, so maybe they’re a team we’ll be seeing in the rankings soon.

#13 Carnegie Mellon def. #19 Washington & Lee 6-3

Someone said in a comment that I severely underestimated CMU, but I don’t understand how that’s possible because I picked CMU to win. The same person said this match wasn’t close, which is just a lie, as the Tartans needed a third-set win to close this thing out. Regardless, it was a good match that CMU needed to have and they got it. I still don’t like their chances against Kenyon, though. Probably 6-3 for the Lords.

#10 Bowdoin def. #24 Trinity (CT) 6-1

Obviously, this match wasn’t played to completion, but the Polar Bears won pretty comfortably. If the Bantams wanted to pull off the upset, they needed to win at least two of the doubles matches, and they got zero. Bowdoin continues to play well this year, and I’m very curious to see how they do against Bates and Middlebury.

#12 Pomona-Pitzer def. #5 UC Santa Cruz 5-4

This match is obviously the story of the day, as the Hens finally got the signature win they needed to lay claim to a Pool C spot. Someone mentioned that they still need to beat Redlands to make it, which might be true because it would be hard to leave Redlands out if they have direct wins over both Bates and Pomona-Pitzer. On the other hand, it will be difficult to leave Pomona-Pitzer out win or lose as long as they have wins over Cruz and CMU (and an indirect win over Bates). We’ll have that argument if we need to, but a P-P win over Redlands would certainly settle the discussion. Cruz continues to show that they have a hard time beating anyone if they lose two out of three doubles matches. The Slugs’ singles lineup is solid but not great enough to blow anyone out. Looks like Larsen is still shaking off some rust.

6 thoughts on “Saturday Recap

  1. anonymous

    pretty intense battle between CMU and Kenyon today, with Kenyon coming out of it 5-4. Two third setters for the Lords, one for the Tartans, and a comeback from 5-3 down at #4 singles from Heerboth in the first set to get the W for Kenyon.

  2. Pritz

    All fair points which is why this site is so much fun..I like Wood because he had to step up in critical matches as a freshman without the experienced Lane in the lineup and also win in doubles with a new partner but Cahill and Marino are also terrific choices.

  3. anonymous

    Its not player of the week performance when the guys he’s beating aren’t expected to be better than him. I’d give it to someone who stepped up in a match that could’ve gone either way. Like the CMS clincher against Midd? Was it Cahill or Kotrappa? Marino would’ve been my call but he did lost that breaker. Just my opinion but I don’t think player of the week should just be handed out for a guy winning it should be either wins above his level or more than just 2. Meyer beat both Midd and Whittier but I wouldn’t be clamoring for him to be player of the week by a long shot.

  4. Pritz

    CMS appears to be more than back. Wood had a player of the week kind of performances against Midd and Whittier and Marino played very well…If Lane returns in solid form, they can be a final four team.

    1. Anonymous

      what the matter with Lane?

    2. Anonymous

      The anticipation and anxiousness about CMS returning to form (elite, dominant status) is interesting if not a little premature. I challenge anyone to look at their doubles teams in matches played this year and tell us which will be the final, starting pairings? In singles, CMS has been equally unsettled. Players have moved up and down and in and out of the line-up as veterans find their past-proven forms and newcomers with limited DIII experience are discussed mostly in the context of their numbers of stars as junior tennis recruits. But now, it’s crunch-time (SCIAC conference and tournament play), and it doesn’t matter if CMS is ranked 8th, 18th, or 28th in the nation or that players were one-star or five-star recruits. A coach like Settles at CMS knows more than most about tennis, team management and his players; he’ll run the best available horses in the appropriate positions. And, even though no one has seen exactly what that looks like yet, no worries.

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