This Week In West: The Ojai

I’m feeling pretty terrible today – as in, I’ve been reduced to laying in bed in a Gryffindor onesie. This is bad for me because I am incapable of doing my actual work, but it’s good for Blog fans because these articles don’t usually require my full mental capacity. (Though I might make better picks if I thought more about them. Who am I kidding? My picks are pretty much spot-on). Before we get to the nitty gritty of the Ojai, I’ll touch on three conference tournaments that are happening this week: the ASC, the SCAC, and the NWC

The ASC – The American Southwest Conference

The American Southwest Conference will probably get more competitive in the very near future with Concordia and potentially McMurry on the rise, but this year should be all Tyler. The subplot for the weekend will be whether or not Wootton/Fischer will be able to calm their nerves and complete an undefeated West region slate.

The SCAC – Southern Collegiate Athletics Conference

As always, Trinity doesn’t have a legitimate challenger in their conference this season, but it does feature a couple up-and-coming teams in Texas Lutheran and Southwestern. New coach Billy Porter, in particular, has revitalized the Southwestern program, but they’re still a far cry from the Tigers.

The NWC – The Northwest Conference

This will undoubtedly be the juiciest of the conference tournaments this weekend. Whitman has already played three close conference matches against Pacific and George Fox, and Lewis and Clark is not a team to scoff at. With Malesovas and potentially Friedman ailing, things could get spicy. Look for @D3Regional to cover this in more detail.

The Ojai

Enough with the appetizer; time for the main course. The Ojai is a tournament that is very near and dear to my heart. I’m saddened that I won’t be able to make it this year, but I’ll be there in spirit. The unique aspect of this tournament is that it pits high singles players from lesser-known teams like Whittier and Chapman against the depth guys of CMS. As Alex Brenner just said on the stream, this is really the lower Stags’ players one time to shine during the spring season. It will be Marino’s last chance to pick up some resume wins and move ahead of Yasgoor for the last West region nationals spot, and it will be Hull’s and Brenner’s last chance to prove that they belong in the starting lineup. Another great part of the Ojai is that you never know who is gonna make a deep run. Redlands’ #2 doubles team won the whole tournament in 2011, and who can forget Halabi’s unforgettable run to the finals when he mowed down Lipscomb, Wood, and Nuremberg in succession?

I’m going to start this preview by highlighting some of the intriguing early-round matches before making my picks.

Singles – First Round

Alex Brenner (CMS) vs. Jake Ly (Redlands) – Ly has been a lineup stalwart for the Dawgs; whereas, Brenner is a new name on the draw. Brenner’s appearance in this draw is particularly interesting because it means he’s playing ahead of better-known players like Yeh and Mehall. Knowing the players he’s playing ahead of, I’m going to pick the Stag to shake of some first-match jitters and win in 3 sets.

Kevin Wei (P-P) vs. Taylor Hunt (Redlands) – Here’s a battle of two seniors who haven’t seen their careers finish off quite the way they wanted them to. Hunt was among the best #4’s in the country his freshman season, while Wei had a great stint at the bottom of the lineup for the Hens the last two years. Hunt is more experienced this year, so I’ll take him in three.

Charlie Werman (Chapman) vs. Ruthwick Pathireddy (Caltech) – I’m throwing this one in there for you regional fans out there. Pathireddy is one of Caltech’s top players, and Werman has had an excellent season for Chapman at #4. Both guys got a really fortunate draw, and somebody is gonna make it to the second round. I’m leaning towards Werman.

Singles- Second Round

Nick Cummins (Redlands) vs. Max Macey (CMS) – This is a classic Ojai matchup. Macey made a deep run to the semis of the Ojai last year, which served as a harbinger for his eventual appearance in the Stags lineup this year. This is a great match between a couple guys who can grind. Ultimately, I think Cummins’ bye will hurt him, as it’s difficult to adjust to the Ojai courts, and Macey will take him out in two close sets.

Chad Stone (UCSC) vs. Spencer Simonides (P-P) – The Slug freshman got himself a seed here on the heels of a great first year, but Simonides is really coming into his own on the singles court, and he has to be so match tough at this point. The Slugs have been looking forward to this tournament for a while, however, so I’m gonna take the Cruz freshman in three.

Justin P. Thompson (Chapman) vs. Graham Maassen (P-P) – the junior member of the law firm of Thompson and Thompson picked up the last seed here, which has historically been a terrible seed to have. Maassen, I think, will continue that trend and grind out a straight set victory over the Panther freshman.

Sam Farmer (Whittier) vs. Hunt/Wei – Farmer has had a deceptively good season at the top spot, coming close against the likes of Wood and Lipscomb, but he hasn’t picked up a big win. He’ll have a tough go in his first match of the tournament, but I think his serve will ultimately see him through in two close sets.

Glenn Hull (CMS) vs. Parker Wilson (Redlands) – With the way Hull has been winning and Macey has been struggling a bit, I would frankly be pretty surprised not to see the Stag freshman back in the starting singles lineup at the end of the year. He will, however, have to earn it in this tournament, so the pressure will be on both players in this match. Wilson has had a bit of a sophomore slump this season after an injury-plagued freshman year, and I think Hull will win in 3.

Marko Mandic (P-P) vs. Justin Thompson (Chapman) – The senior member of the law firm of Thompson and Thompson has made the quarters here before, but he’s going to have a hard time repeating the feat this year. Mandic has some great wins on his resume at the bottom of the Revolving Door and he will make this close, but I like Thompson in three sets.

Antony Bello (P-P) vs. Daniel Morkovine (CMS) – We’ll see if Bello can reverse the Ojai script on Morkovine here. Bello is a lower-lineup player from a competitor who is playing a seed, but that seed happens to be from CMS. We shan’t forget Bello’s three-setter against Dorn, and Morkovine almost loses a lot. Unfortunately, almost-losses are still wins, and I’ll take Mork in three.

There are a number of other intriguing matches, but this post is getting long, so I’ll just make my predicitons

Quarterfinalists

Wood (CMS), Macey (CMS), Cardenas (Cal Lu), Marino (CMS), Hull (CMS), Butts (CMS), Littlejohn (Cruz), Lipscomb (Redlands)

As you can see, I’ve got 5 Stags including two non-lineup players in the quarters here. Last year is a pretty good example of how this can happen. Cardenas’ draw is no cakewalk, but it is certainly nicer than some others’, and I think he’ll make it through. I hate saying this, but Littlejohn is due! And I don’t want to see an Ojai where a Slug doesn’t make the quarters. The likely 3rd round match between Lipscomb and Dorn should be a doozy, but Dorn is still dealing with some back pain, and I think Lipscomb will be able to win in three sets.

Semifinalists

Wood (CMS), Marino (CMS), Butts (CMS), Lipscomb (Redlands)

If CMS can get three players into the semis of singles nationals, and I see no reason to think they won’t be able to do it again here. Marino is playing for his individual tournament life, and I think he’ll come up big in this tournament. Lipscomb is coming off his big win over Chuddy. He’s been far from consistent in his career, but I think he’ll string together three big wins here.

Finalists

Wood (CMS), Butts (CMS)

Look familiar? These two guys met in this tournament last year with Wood coming away with a three-set victory if my memory serves me well. Both guys have been forces in DIII this year, and both guys know how to get it done in tournament. I see this match going three sets… again… with Wood coming away with the title… again.

I know. I’m boring. On to doubles

Doubles

I’m not even going to try. As I mentioned before, a Redlands #2 doubles team won this tournament before. Erani and Lane also came from CMS’ #3 doubles slot to win here one year as well. This is obviously very unpredictable, and the subplots aren’t nearly as juicy this year. If Tyler can get through their conference tournament, they’re locked into the top 4. CMS’ #1 doubles team obviously has a lock on a spot. P-P’s #1 team isn’t playing, and with all the big wins they’ve had this year, they’re likely to get a spot, pending some sort of disaster against Whittier in the conference tournament. That leaves Redlands. The Dawgs’ #1 team is definitely a little vulnerable in the nationals picture, but there isn’t really a worthy challenger. I hate to see Trinity’s #1 team that won Fall Nationals miss out on a bid, but they haven’t exactly picked up many regional wins this year.

Quarterfinalists

Dorn/Wood (CMS), Bello/Simonides (P-P), Hull/Marino (CMS), Burchett/Leahy (Redlands), Littlejohn/Richter (Cruz), Butts/Mork (CMS), Kim/Maassen (P-P), Cummins/Lipscomb (Redlands)

The Darkhorses in this tournament are absolute Bello/Simonides and Hull/Marino. The two #3 doubles teams don’t lose a lot, and they are every bit as good as the #1 teams on their respective squads. Also, big serves in a tournament where nerves can play an especially big part can go a long way. Mehall and Yeh are also a dangerous combo, but I don’t see them beating the Redlands seniors.

Semifinalists

Dorn/Wood (CMS), Hull/Marino (CMS), Littlejohn/Richter (Cruz), Cummins/Lipscomb (Redlands)

I’ll admit that I’m a little biased towards Littlejohn and Richter ever since they finished last season with the flurry. Richter is finally healthy, and I think they pick up a big win here against Mork/Butts, who are undoubtedly one of the best teams in the field. I’m sticking with Cummins/Lipscomb to avoid a bad loss for their nationals hopes. I really, really, really wanted to take Bello/Simonides as my upset special, but I just couldn’t do it.

Finalists

Dorn/Wood (CMS), Littlejohn/Richter (Cruz)

Something crazy happens at every Ojai. This is my crazy thing this year. I’m not that crazy, though, and I’m taking Wood/Dorn to win the championship.

There we have it! That’s my Ojai preview. Before I let you go…

This Week In West Region History

April 28, 2013: UT-Dallas def. UT-Tyler 5-2

In basketball, they talk about “Bubble Busters.” When an underdog beats a favorite in a small conference, they take the automatic bid into the NCAA tournament, but the favorite is good enough to garner an at-large bid. That means there’s one less at-large bid left for the teams in the big conferences. That make sense?

I never thought I would see it happen in DIII tennis because the teams from smaller conferences that were good enough to earn a Pool C berth would never, ever, ever, in a million years lose their conference tournament. Well, this week in 2013, that’s exactly what happened. The Ybarra/Brown Pats got swept by the Comets with Ybarra injured, and proceeded to lose a couple singles matches in straight sets. At the time, I didn’t think there was any way Tyler would make the tournament, but earlier in the year, they had come back from a doubles sweep to beat CMU, who was next in line in Pool C. Let me repeat that CMU swept Tyler in doubles, and Tyler actually won 5 singles matches against the Tartans. What made it worse for CMU was the fact that they actually won three first sets in singles and were up a break in the first at #1.

At the same time, Tyler had an easy win over a Pomona-Pitzer team who was seriously injured at the time, who then went on to beat Whitter and Redlands in the SCIAC tournament, taking out a couple other Pool C hopefuls. It was one of the weirder Pool C discussions I’ve ever seen. I still don’t know if Tyler deserved to get in, but they made it to the Sweet Sixteen, so it’s hard to complain.

This year, there are two conferences that have the sliver of a chance of producing this kind of result: Hopkins could lose to Swarthmore on a really weird day, and Kenyon could lose to Depauw/Denison on a really weird day (remember how Kenyon got swept in doubles in the conference finals last year). It’s not gonna happen, and it would take an injury/some really weird juju, but it would throw the whole Pool C picture into utter chaos.

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