Rapid Reaction: Day 2 Indoors and Finals Previews

Chalk up another great day for Indoor Nationals.  When I said yesterday that today would bring us even more tension and drama, I was not proven wrong.  Both consolation matches in the morning were great matches, ending in 5-4, and the semifinals were both close until one team broke away in singles to win 6-3.  There were great individual efforts and definitely some big winners and losers on the day (which I will go into in a Recap after the tournament).  Enough talking, let’s get to a recap and a rapid reaction from today’s matches.  I’ll try to make these previews a bit more in depth than yesterday given the fact that it is the finals.

(3) Emory defeats (2) Kenyon, 5-4

Like you haven’t heard already, this was a rematch of last year’s final.  Obviously a pretty surprising rematch in the first round of a consolation, but that’s what happens in DIII Tennis.  Crazy stuff.  I thought that both teams really battled well after suffering heart-breaking losses for top programs yesterday, and this made for a very well-played match.  I actually thought this one was over after doubles, but Kenyon proved once again why they are considered one of the hardest fighting teams in the nation.  There was a lot of debate prior to Indoors about the legitimacy of the Kenyon #1 doubles team and that should basically be put to rest right now.  An 8-5 win over a team like Wagner/Mosetick is impressive, especially given the lack of success of the other two Kenyon teams.  They truly look like the best team on Kenyon at this moment.  What surprised me the most about this match was that the Emory #2 team was able to take their match against Razumovsky/Heerboth.  Emory #2’s have historically been a weakness, but they came up with what was probably the win of the match with a tiebreaker win.  It was important that Emory gained a little momentum in doubles after what happened yesterday.  They were able to get that with an easy #3 win over an overmatched Kenyon team that had not played in the lineup the day before. This set the tone for at least the beginning of singles.

In singles, the match definitely did not go how I expected.  I had heavily touted the middle of the Emory lineup prior to Nationals, yet it seems like there may be holes at the general top of the lineup.  Kenyon was able to take leads and first sets at all 3 top singles spots, something that never would have happened to any Emory team.  However, Emory’s depth proved important as the bottom of the lineup cleaned up the rest.  Let it be noted that the Emory X-Factor, Nick Szczurek, went 2-0 against Kenyon and won the deciding match in three sets.  It’s good to see the kid step up twice after what was a tough performance yesterday. In a match between two rivals, this did not disappoint, even at 8AM in the morning (which I was awake for, somehow).

(8) Redlands defeats (4) Cal Lutheran, 5-4

Redlands came into this match as a presumed favorite despite the ranking difference yet they almost let this one slip right out of their hands (D3West would chuckle if they did).  However, this match probably provided us with the box score of the tournament.  I had totally forgot to preview this match prior to the day, and I apologize for that.  One thing that I did say to the fellow writers was that it seemed like people (mostly me) were not taking CLU seriously enough.  They have a very, very good top 3 and at least two solid doubles teams. They showed that today as their two doubles teams were able to make fairly quick work of the Redlands 1 and 2 teams.  However, Redlands took advantage of CLU’s lack of doubles depth for an easy 8-2 win at #3.  Once these teams split the doubles, it was clear this one was going down to the wire.  We just couldn’t guess that it would be this epic.

With some predictable mix-ups from the shoddy live stats, it looked like Redlands had things under control with first sets at 1, 4, 5, and 6.  Pretty predictable other than #1 singles, given the nature of the Redlands and CLU lineups.  Then all of a sudden, live stats switched and CLU had the win at #1 singles spot with Cardenas beating Lipscomb handily in straights.  Not to mention, the rest of the five singles matches all split sets.  This was especially worrying for Redlands because both Nichols and Treacy out of CLU are veteran players, and expected favorites in their matches.  The #4-6 spots were supposed to be fairly easy and definitely were not supposed to be this close.  This brought us to a ridiculous scene in which we were getting 0 live updates and just waiting for FIVE three set matches to finish.  Crazy stuff.  Redlands then surprised us by pulling out very easy third sets at 2 and 3, which CLU countered at #6.  Then, Redlands finished up at #5 singles, which left Redlands X-Factor Tom Suchodolski to finish the match off at 6-4 in the third.  Suchdolski went 2-0 in the match against CLU, which obviously came up big for the Dawgs (see what I’m getting at here).  This was an amazing match, clearly, and I’m disappointed that I wasn’t able to follow the full action.

Semifinals: (6) Hopkins defeats (7) Case Western, 6-3

In a semifinal that many expected to be in the first round of consolation, there was definitely a ton of debate mid-match regarding who would win.  These two teams have come out so strong at Indoors, that it was extremely hard to pin down who would win there.  While I got the ending score and the winner correct, this was anything but a sure thing.  Case proved to us that they may be the best doubles team in the nation, barring whatever CMS does with their season.  If anything, being the second best doubles team in the nation isn’t half bad either.  I was wondering whether or not Hopkins doubles was great on Day 1 or was it simply Emory being bad at doubles.  Turns out probably a little of both.  The final scores of doubles were 9-8, 9-8, and 7-9.  D3Tennis and I were talking mid-match and we both agreed – that’s what you call some quality effin’ doubles #censorship.  Case seems to love doubles tiebreakers and they came out on top 2-1, which wasn’t at all surprising.

My question before singles to everyone was “What 3 matches are Case going to win?”  Hopkins is notoriously a singles based team, they just so happen to have a very good doubles lineup now too.  The common answers seemed to have a “take advantage of freshmen” theme, as people said to me that #1 singles and #4 singles were their best bets.  Boy, were we wrong.  Drougas came out at #2 singles and absolutely crushed Tanner Brown in the first set, 6-0.  Let’s remember that Tanner Brown is a very, very good player.  Oh, and if that wasn’t enough – Derek Reinbold came out and took a first set from Erik Lim, 6-1.  At that point it was getting a bit uncomfortable for the Atlantic South.  All other matches were decently close, but something just didn’t seem right with Brown and Lim losing so quickly.  However, Hwang pulled out a close first set and the freshman Dubin took a routine first at #4.  Weissler also was able to duke out a first set at #6, and Hopkins had a ton of momentum back.  Then, Buxbaum pulled a surprising and momentum changing first set WHILE Brown and Lim both led respectively in their second sets.  It was like Hopkins turned it on and never looked back as Hwang, Dubin, and Weissler all finished off their matches.  There was a semi scare when Drougas finished off his impressive win over Brown at #2, but as always, Erik Lim came through in the clutch and ended it 6-2 in the third.  Buxbaum then finished it off with quick work of Krimbill in the third set as well.  What does this mean for tomorrow?  A lot.  Hopkins will obviously have its hands full, but it seems they have a lineup that has 0 holes at this time.  All spots have notched at least one win at Indoors.  When you have continuity like that, you’re definitely a good team.  It will be exciting tomorrow because Wash U seems to have that same continuity.  For Case Western, it was just not enough, but barely.  They’ll have another tough match with a team they are familiar with tomorrow, and it’ll be a match where they will have to pull the typical Case Western formula.

(1) Wash U defeats (5) Trinity TX, 6-3

It’s a running joke with D3Tennis and I that everyone seems to underestimate Wash U every damn year.  You’d think a team that’s made the Final 4 for the past five years would get some benefit of the doubt, but no.  People like to pick the sexy team or the up and coming team instead of picking the team that sits at the top and doesn’t budge.  This was the story of the match for me.  I had picked Wash U prior to this by a score of 5-4.  In the early stages of the match you could tell this one was going to be close.  Then, Wash U broke away at #1 doubles with a win, and Trinity at #2 doubles with a win.  That’s when the whole “Wash U Effect” came into play, in my opinion.  Wash U ended up breaking to go up 7-6 and serving, then Trinity pulled back with a break of their own (break back mountain, that’s what I call it on Twitter).  The team of Hirsh and Kratky, who I haven’t been confident in, ended up fighting off 2 match points to get to a tiebreaker.  That’s when D3Tennis and I said “This is where Wash U beats you.”  And that is exactly what happened.  Wash U played an unbelievable tiebreaker and easily took it 7-2 to take a 2-1 lead into singles.  Everyone knows that last match is pretty key when going into the singles, it almost changes the mood of the first few matches.  Not sure if it happened here, but the Bears know how to win.

What happened in singles was a bit more surprising.  Trinity has boasted a new singles lineup this year with the coming of Paxton Deuel at 1 and a ton of experienced guys up and down the lineup.  Take that versus two freshmen at 2 and 3 for Wash U as well as Kevin Chu at #6, who we haven’t seen in an important match in basically his career.  No big deal, as Carswell (X-Factor) took the first set from the highly regarded Aaron Skinner, Jeremy Bush (freshman) took down Greg Haugen (senior), Noack continued his hot streak at #4, and Chu took out Dunn in a first set tiebreaker.  With four sets in hand, this match was basically over.  All four of the above players took their second sets without much pressure and all the TU bandwagoners were sent back to square one.  I think the underestimation of the effects of coaching is an absolute sin when people talk about DIII Tennis.  You look at the best teams and you are seeing that coaching is serving a bigger and bigger part of the equation.  With the talent pool leveling out, every team needs that extra step.  Not to say Coach McMindes of Trinity is a bad coach at all.  He’s clearly a great coach with what he’s done with the TU program.  However, Coach Follmer of Wash U is someone that a lot of people can admire.  It seems like his teams are always match-ready.  They are always willing to go the extra mile.  I’ve heard funny stories about the “No Fun” side of Follmer, but the players always seem to love him and he gets them to where they want to be.  You really can’t get any better than that.

Finals and 3^rd Place Preview

Prediction: Wash U defeats Hopkins, 5-4

Just like that we are at the Finals of Indoors.  It’s been a fun weekend already and I can’t wait to see the guys go out there at 8AM for their last match.  In fact, I’m 100% sure that Wash U is already sleeping.  The reason why I’m picking the Bears is the same reason I always pick the Bears.  No matter how we perceive their talent, there seems to be an off-the-charts “it” factor with Wash U teams.  That’s the overarching theme of this preview.  However, let’s not discredit Hopkins.  Hopkins has already taken out a team that has that it factor in Emory, and a team that is slowly building a great reputation in Case Western.  This is a team that can definitely take down Wash U, no doubt about it.  They have talent up and down the lineup and this will make it very interesting.  They also have almost 4 hours of extra rest that may or may not come into play given the 8AM match time.  Let’s get to the lineups:

At one doubles will be a marquee matchup of Putterman/Bush versus Walsh/Buxbaum.  Both these teams have proven themselves this tournament already.  However, Putterman has shown me through the past two years that he simply knows how to play doubles.  I think that the Wash U team will pull this one out in a very, very close pro-set.  I absolutely would not be surprised if it goes down to a tiebreaker.  At #2 doubles, we’ll see Franklin/Carswell versus Brown/Lim.  I’ve always been a big fan of the Brown/Lim combo and I think they’ll be a bit on edge after losing today.  They normally take care of business at #2 and it doesn’t seem like this Wash U team is all that formidable, so I’ll take JHU there.  Of course, this makes #3 a true swing match, and it couldn’t be better teams.  Hirsh/Kratky and Joachim/Garcia have gone from potential weaknesses to absolute strengths in the span of one weekend.  They both have very good wins, and my gut wants me to go with Hopkins but I just think the Wash U duo wills their way to a win and a 2-1 lead.

In singles, it’s all about counting matchups.  Wash U’s top 3 all of a sudden looks incredible, with Carswell and Bush both coming off bigtime wins against TU.  Not to mention wins against the Redlands duo as well.  However, Brown/Hwang are a tough combo.  Hwang has had trouble closing out matches recently and this might be the time where that catches up to him.  I’m taking the talented freshman Bush over Hwang in a close one, but taking Tanner Brown over Carswell in the other one.  At #1 singles we’ll have a matchup of unknowns in Ross Putterman and Buxbaum.  Both had super tough matches today, and will be playing doubles prior to this match as well.  I think this may come down to stamina and in a battle of desire, I’m taking the veteran Putterman from the Bears over an untested freshman.  However, Hopkins may have the advantage at both the #5 and #6 singles spots.  Lim, as you can tell, is one of my favorites in dual matches.  I think he takes care of the struggling Kratky in straights.  The #6 match will be absolutely huge.  Weissler has come up big against both Emory and Case.  I think he continues a strong weekend and finishes undefeated at his spot.  This leaves it up to #4 singles where Noack has been playing lights out.  Thing is, Dubin has also been playing lights out.  In a battle that goes three sets, I’m taking the Bear Noack to take a close one and bring home the title for the Bears.

Third Place Match

Case Western defeats Trinity TX, 5-4

In a surprise pick, I have to go with the rolling Spartans right now.  When I talked about coaches earlier in the article, I failed to mention Coach Todd of Case Western.  He has taken this program from literally the bottom of the totem pole five years ago to a team that has signature wins in the past three years.  They are currently competing for f*cking third place in Indoor Nationals.  They have developed 2 stars and 3-stars left and right to become great players.  It’s amazing what Coach Todd has done over there and he deserves kudos.  Anyways, on to the matches.

Doubles is where I think this thing gets won.  Again, don’t discount the amount of rest and preparation that Case will have going into this match.  Let’s not forget they are playing at home and at 8AM.  I’m going to go out on a limb here, but I think Case sweeps the doubles against Trinity.  This is almost unheard of in past years with a feisty Tigers team.  But I think that the Case lineup is that good at doubles, especially on their home courts.  If a team has a shot at losing, it may be the #3 team of Fojtasek and Reinbold, as they suffered a loss today.  The Trinity #3 team of Curtis and Mayer was my X-Factor team and they certainly have the experience to pull this one off.  They know each other well and work a great doubles strategy, so this could turn out to be one of those matches that is decided on a point or two.  I believe in the Case strategy and I’m sticking with the guns, a 3-0 lead going into singles.

From there on out, it’s all about getting first sets for the Spartans.  It looks like both Paxton Deuel and Krimbill are playing at extremely high levels right now.  Both are coming off tough three setters as well.  I think Deuel is the more talented player and has the better resume.  He beats Krimbill in a close 4 and 4.  At #2, Drougas surprised everyone today by cruising through Tanner Brown in the first set before finishing him in the 3^rd.  Drougas will be playing a great ground stroker in Aaron Skinner and I just don’t think that the matchup bodes well for him.  I’ll take Skinner despite his struggles at #2.  At #3 is where I think Case can start stretching their lead.  Klawitter has been playing with the best of the best at #3 and has an opportunity against Haugen of TU.  Klawitter has been shutout so far in Indoor singles play, but I think this is where he pulls through in a two setter.  The other Case win looks like it will come from the #5 singles spot.  Nothing is stopping Derek Reinbold right now other than a motivated Erik Lim.  Despite playing two three setters in two days, I expect the conditioning of Reinbold and the fire to take Case to their first ever Indoor Nationals trophy.  At #4 and 6 will be an afterthought at this point, but I do think Trinity has the advantage at both, especially at #6 singles.  Either way, I’m looking at a Case 5-4 win and a third place finish in their first ever indoors tournament.  Not a bad way to start off the season.

Please note I will be recapping the whole tournament, which includes the 5^th and 7^th place matches at the end of the tournament.  See you at 8 AM tomorrow. Rise and shine.