This Week In SCIAC: Part 2

Well, it’s Wednesday night, and I’m feeling a little wacky, so get ready for some shenanigans. We have another two matches between ranked teams this week, but this time, they’re just gonna play them on Friday, so I can enjoy my weekend. As always, we’ll start with the Top Stags and move on to the rest of the plebes.

#1 CMS vs. #20 Cal Lutheran

We know that Cal Lu can’t really hang with the Stags at the bottom of the singles or doubles lineup, but the Kingsmen have some very definitive strengths, namely 1-2 singles and 1-2 doubles (what else is new?). Unfortunately, those strengths aren’t quite as strong as they were last year, but let’s take a look at the statistics. Against ranked teams, Cal Lu is 14-10 (58%) at the top two positions in singles and doubles, which is pretty impressive considering the strength of that schedule. At the other positions, they are 8-22 (27%). Yikes.

Anyways, the real story for Cal Lu is the emergence of Cardenas, who now has wins over Konstantinov, Lipscomb, Dancu, Kranz, and Micheli. That’s a pretty impressive resume. Can he add a win over Wood? I think it’s possible, but I’m not gonna pick against Wood again until he loses (if he loses). The other big match will be at #2 singles, where Dorn is clinging to his nationals berth and will be going up against another tough player in Nichols. Again, I’m gonna take the Stag in three close sets. The only thing that remains to be decided is whether or not the Stags will get the sweep. I think they do, but Cal Lu’s best chance for a point will probably come at #2 doubles where Cardenas and Scott are on fire. They will probably be going up against Kotrappa/Butts with Marino still apparently out of the lineup. Should be a good couple of matches but ultimately another easy win for the #1.

#13 Pomona-Pitzer vs. #15 Redlands

Let me put on my Skip Bayless voice for a second here: THERE IS NO LOVE LOST BETWEEN THESE TWO TEAMS. IF YOU’RE LOOKING FOR SOME LOST LOVE, DON’T GO LOOKING ANYWHERE BETWEEN THESE TWO TEAMS BECAUSE THAT IS A NO-MAN’S LAND AS FAR AS LOVE IS CONCERNED.

Now let’s get on the analogy express. Next stop: Dillon, TX. In my head, these two teams are a lot like the West Dillon Panthers and the East Dillon Lions (if you haven’t seen FNL, then you’re dumb). On one side we’ve got Pomona/West Dillon. They’ve got excellent team chemistry, more resources, and bluer color scheme, and they might be a little too confident. They play good team ball and win all up and down the lineup, and they’re going to find a way to pick at your weaknesses. On the other side, we’ve got Redlands/East Dillon. They’ve got questionable team chemistry, a rattier looking facility, a red color scheme, they’re a little chippier, and they are incredibly reliant on their two stars. (In this analogy, I’m gonna say Lipscomb is Vince and Cummins is Luke). In the show, East Dillon wins every time they play, but that’s not how this rivalry has played out the last couple years. Even though Redlands did destroy P-P in the regular season last year, the Hens have been on the winning end more often than not the last three years, and I don’t think this match will be any different.

Despite their recent success, Pomona’s doubles is still quite suspect. They’ve been mixing it up quite a bit in doubles lately to mixed results, but the only common theme has been Weichert and Bello at #1. I think that’s going to be a big deal in this match because, while Redlands might have the edge at #2 and #3 (emphasis on might), Pomona is clearly favored at #1, and one doubles point is probably all they need to win this match. All common results point towards Pomona being the better team at this point, but this match will certainly be a doozy.

I’ll take Lipscomb in a tight one over Weichert at #1 and Cummins to bounce back with a nice win over Yasgoor at #2. After that, things are considerably less peachy for the Dawgs. Hudson is the clear choice at #3, and Maassen should be favored at #4. The Hens should also be favored at #5 and #6 with whoever they throw out between Bello/Kim/Kim/Wei. The two possible swing matches in singles is #4 where freshman Parker Wilson is just hitting his stride after recovering from injury and wherever Leahy happens to be playing in the match. Leahy has had some very mixed results this year, but when he’s on, he’s on. (Crap, I forgot to put my Bayless voice back on for that cliche). In the end, I think Redlands wins one of those singles matches (#5) but loses at #3 doubles for a… you guessed it… 5-4 Pomona-Pitzer victory.

#CluckEmUp

Josh Dancu Watch

The Oxy #1 debuted in the Spring West region rankings last week at #8. Any time a player from a non-ranked team can make the national tournament it’s a big deal, but this is about as rare as an American panda in the West region. Dancu’s resume this Spring includes wins over Cummins, Guerra (Denison), Telkedzhiev (Tufts), Arguello (Brandeis), and LaBarre (RPI), but, as you can see, his regional resume is a little bit lacking. In his chances against more prominent West region schools, he got smoked by Cardenas and lost a close one to Konstantinov. Accordingly, he’s gotta take care of business in the SCIAC if he wants to hold on to his spot. This weekend against Caltech and Chapman. He’s already beaten Cal Tech’s #1 handily, but you can never overlook any match. Thompson from Chapman is even more dangerous, and that match is currently screaming “this is the classic match that the underdog usually stumbles on” to me right now. Let’s keep our fingers crossed for the Tiger alpha male this weekend as he attempts to achieve something very rare.