Stag Hen QF Previews: No. 3 GAC vs No. 6 Sewanee

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Stag Hen QF #3: No. 3 GAC vs No. 6 Sewanee

Match time: Friday, 10 a.m. PST

Match location: CMS

It was night again. Staghen lay in silence, and it was a silence of many parts. The most obvious part was a hollow, echoing quiet, made by things that were lacking. If there had been a wind it would have sighed through the trees, set Staghen’s fences creaking on its hooks, and brushed the silence down the road like trailing pool C teams. If there had been a crowd, even a handful of students with free tacos, they would have filled the silence with conversation and laughter, the c’mons and cheers one expected from a tennis match during all hours of the day. If there had been music…but no, of course there was no music, it’s a tennis match for bruh. In fact there were none of these things, and so the silence remained…as we wait for Staghen.

newCentral is a huge nerd

RegASouth and I hop on an article together for the first time this year to give some background and predictions for our third match at Staghen: GAC vs. Sewanee. GAC and Sewanee both qualify through Pool A, so their postseason endeavors aren’t really related to their regular season success. That being said, you’d be stupid to disregard the team benefits of playing tough matches or even getting smacked. The winner of this match will have an opportunity to play two matches that they’ll be the underdog in, more or less. If the idea of waking up a little dangerous for the semis and beyond doesn’t get the blood pumping, I can’t really help you there. Thankfully, I think that both of the teams will be itching to start their Staghens off right with a W irregardless of how the match will impact their season. So what do we have in this match between the North and the South?

GAC Facts – newCentral

National Ranking: 12

Blog Power Ranking: 14

2019 so far: GAC has played three important matches this year: Pomona-Pitzer, Whitman, and Case (all at Indoors). They lost a heartbreaker to start Indoors against Pomona after leading 2-1 after doubles. They thoroughly defeated Whitman. And they mollywhopped Case in Case’s house (why are they ranked behind them…). GAC’s year really begins with the postseason because they’re more or less a lock for Pool A. With no Pool C clouds hanging overhead, GAC can just play tennis and get better as a team – continuing here with Staghen. Curiously, GAC has another CAlifornia trip to play CMS and Trinity later in the year, so this experience should prove invaluable for the GAC youth. GAC continues to bully its bannermen in the North and seemingly bored now, they head down King’s Road to Staghen.

Biggest strength: 1 and 2 Doubles, Derbani at 3 singles and Aney at 5 singles.

Biggest weakness: 1 and 2 Singles, 3 Doubles.

Why this match matters to GAC: It doesn’t really matter for the overall arc of their season, but wins in California and the increasingly tough opponents will translate to success later in the year. GAC wants to make noise outside of the North, so this match matters because it’ll help make one of my regional teams a national contender.

Key to the match: GAC will likely get a doubles lead, so their start to singles will be important as Sewanee will try to start a rally right from the beginning. Outdoor Tennis. This is GAC’s first foray into sunny outdoor tennis this season, and that adjustment isn’t always the easiest transition.

Why GAC will win this match: GAC will get a 2-1 lead (or better), Nick Aney and Yassine Derbani will continue their stellar seasons, and GAC will get one of the top 2 singles spots.

Sewanee Facts – RegAS

National Ranking: 18

Blog Power Ranking: 17

2019 so far: The Tigers are 8-1 on the season with the most notable matches being against Kenyon and Mary Washington, which they split 1-1. They have also dismantled a plethora of unranked teams with the exception of Wittenberg where they pulled most of their starters and almost paid for it. Former NCAA singles qualifier Jack Gray is now playing #3 and I would normally say this is troublesome, but Andres Carro has proven himself to be a very solid #1 and Jordan Brewer has been sufficient at the #2 spot. I would not be surprised to see Gray get switched up to #2 at some point if he continues to roll at #3 and Brewer struggles. The bottom of their lineup has been strong all season long and will continue to be one of their strengths moving forward this season.

Biggest strength: Depth and doubles

Biggest weakness: The top of the lineup

Why this match matters to Sewanee: This match doesn’t have a ton of implications for the Tigers other than an opportunity to improve upon their national ranking. Over the past few years this team has been looking for  a “signature win” and this could definitely be the match that puts them on everyone’s radar.

Key to the match: Depth and doubles is Sewanee’s strength, but will also be a key to this top 20 matchup. We know that GAC plays good doubles, but Sewanee will need to take an early lead in order to win this match. GAC is also a very deep team and whoever plays #5 for Sewanee will struggle, so #3, #4 and #6 will need to step up their game and bring in at least 2 out of 3 points in order to secure the W.

Why Sewanee will win this match: GAC is an indoor that tends to struggle a little more away from their home courts. While GAC is definitely battle tested this season, it has all been in a familiar indoor setting. I have to go with the boys from the south in an outdoor battle.

FINAL SCORE PREDICTION

newCentral: GAC def. Sewanee 6-3 – Derbani clinch.

RegAS: Sewanee def. GAC 5-4

NE: GAC def Sewanee 5-4

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