Sadly, we have reached the end of yet another season, but there is still so much to recap. In this article, I wanted to essentially roundup all of the season for all of my regional teams, and give a quick outlook on where I believe each team is headed. Also, because we will most likely reassign my regional teams over the course of the summer (though I hope ASouth conveniently forgets to do this), this might be the final article that I write for Stevens, NC Wesleyan, and even a few other schools. Noooooooooo! Ducks, I will miss you. Bishops, you too I guess. D3ASouth actually wanted to steal NC Wes from me for the purposes of his Atlantic South recap, but I stood up for the little guy and said no! On a totally different note, for each school, I have identified a “key question” that I believe will be the biggest obstacle for each school between staying where they are and continuing to improve. I have a lot of teams to cover, so let’s get this roundup going! I have been covering numerous teams throughout the season, so I’m just going to cover my teams that are currently ranked, along with Pacific, because I just love the Boxers. With that, let’s get started.
#22 Stevens:
Key wins: NC Wesleyan 5-4, RPI 7-2, Swarthmore 6-3, Brandeis 5-3, Wisconsin-Whitewater 6-3, Skidmore 7-2, NYU 7-2, TCNJ 6-3
Key losses: Mary Washington 6-3, Denison 6-3, Case Western 6-3, Skidmore 5-4 (in NCAAs)
Graduating seniors: None 🙂
Outlook: Can Stevens avoid a letdown next year?
Look how long that “Key Wins” list is and that just goes to show how great of a season Stevens had. They stacked up their schedule which was great to see, and they truly made the most of their opportunities. The win over NC Wesleyan 5-4, which did not seem like a whole lot early on, turned out to be a terrific win, as NC Wes really turned it on over the course of the season. Stevens had an extremely consistent year, beating NC Wesleyan early on, Brandeis and UW-Whitewater in the middle, and Skidmore, NYU, and TCNJ at the end. The loss to Skidmore in NCAAs certainly hurts, but I’m sure it will drive the team to improve even more over the course of the summer and fall. The biggest thing for Stevens was the emergence of the bottom of their lineup, most notably Charles Drake at #4 and Danny Polk at #5. Stevens loses ZERO seniors, but they do have several rising seniors, including Matt Heinrich and Ben Foran, so look for next year to be a big one for the Ducks. They are also getting two 3-stars according to Tennis Recruiting, so their depth should get even better! The only thing that could go wrong is for the Ducks to hit a wall with their progress. Next year, teams will be hunting them down rather than the other way around, and a letdown is possible. However, with the way the Ducks battled this year, I don’t expect it. Congrats to Coach Gachko and the whole squad on a historic season.
#23 NC Wesleyan:
Key wins: Denison 7-2, Bates 7-2, Christopher Newport 9-0, Johns Hopkins 8-1, Washington & Lee 5-3
Key losses: Stevens 5-3, Mary Washington 6-3, DePauw 5-4, Emory 6-3 and 5-1 (the second one in NCAAs)
Graduating seniors: Robert Kjellberg (#1 singles, #1 doubles)
Outlook: How will the Bishops do in the post-Kjellberg era?
NC Wesleyan was missing Kjellberg all of last season, and struggled mightily, to the point where the Bishops were not even on my radar entering this season. However, with the addition of some very solid freshmen plus the return of Kjellberg, the 
Bishops reestablished themselves as a top 30 team, getting very solid wins over Bates and Denison, and one terrific and dominating win over Johns Hopkins. Kjellberg had a terrific year on both the singles and doubles court, as he went undefeated in d3 regular season dual match play, and he and freshman Sebastian Sikh rolled all the way into the finals of the NCAA doubles tournament, falling 6-4 in the third. Speaking of freshmen, this is an extremely young team. Their #2-5 singles players were all freshmen, so despite losing Kjellberg, this is a team that should continue to improve. Who knows who Coach Amores might be bringing in next year, but regardless; look out for the Bishops as a huge dark horse in the Atlantic South next year.
#27 Brandeis:
Key wins: Chapman 6-3, Tufts 6-3, Babson 9-0, MIT 5-4, NYU 6-3, Rochester 6-3
Key losses: Cal Lutheran 5-4, Redlands 7-2, Stevens 5-3, Wesleyan 9-0, Bates 5-2, Trinity (CT) 7-2, Carnegie Mellon 7-2, Case Western 7-2
Graduating seniors: Alec Siegel (#4 singles, #3 doubles), Michael Secular (#3 doubles), Matthew Zuckerman
Outlook: Can Brandeis finally take a step forward in the UAA?
For years, Brandeis has been right around the #30 mark in the country, and this year was really no different, getting one big win (Tufts), several good but smaller wins, and missing a few opportunities over the course of the year. The one thing that Brandeis did do was establish themselves as the clear #6 team in the UAA ahead of NYU and Rochester, by beating both of
them over the course of the season. The next steps for Brandeis are twofold. First of all, they need to take advantage of their strong schedule over the course of the season by getting more than one big win. Stevens and Cal Lu, among others, were both very winnable, and winning a match like that would be huge for the psyche of the Judges. Second, the Judges should look to take a step forward in the UAA. They have finished 6th place or worse every year since the 2009-2010 season, but they are bringing in a solid recruiting class (three 3-stars, three 2-stars), and they should look to close that gap with Case. I’m not sure they are there yet, but if Brian Granoff and Michael Arguello at #1 and #2 can continue to improve, look out for Coach Lamanna’s squad.
#28 Sewanee:
Key wins: Denison 6-3, Christopher Newport 5-4, Washington & Lee 6-3, Ogelthorpe 6-3
Key losses: Wash U 8-1, Carnegie Mellon 9-0, Redlands 8-1, Trinity (CT) 8-1, Whitman 5-0 (in NCAAs)
Graduating seniors: Alex Cooper (#5 singles, #1 doubles), Rand Jackson (#3 singles, #3 doubles)
Outlook: Is Sewanee truly a top-30 team?
Sewanee had an interesting year, winning a bunch of close matches over good teams, but getting crushed against every team
ranked significantly higher than them. Not bad for the ranking, but tough on the mind. Anyway, as you can see from my question, I’m not completely sold on the Tigers. Their bottom of the lineup was suspect all year, and I think that the losses of
Cooper and Jackson will hurt more for the Tigers because of this lack of depth. That being said, they do have four 2-stars coming in, which should help this, and hopefully a couple of them will be able to be developed into solid middle of the lineup guys. Sewanee does deserve a big congratulations for winning so many close matches and for cracking the top 30, but next year, they will be the hunted rather than the hunter. More to come from these guys!
#31 Swarthmore:
Key wins: NYU 5-4, Washington & Lee 7-2, DePauw 6-3
Key losses: Stevens 6-3, Mary Washington 7-2, Kenyon 9-0, Johns Hopkins 9-0 and 5-0
Graduating seniors: Harrison Lands (#2 doubles)
Outlook: How will Swarthmore’s young guns develop?
The Garnet are an incredibly young squad. Just look at their singles lineup. They have a sophomore, John Larkin, playing #1, and then 5 freshmen from #2-6. That is good stuff, and should make the Garnet a team to watch for the next few years. Most impressively for Swat was the play of their top four players, John Larkin, Mark Fallati, Ari Cepelewicz, and Blake Oetting. All four of these guys battled ranked teams all season long, and there is no reason to doubt that they will continue to improve. #5 and #6 are question marks, but they do look to be adding a couple good recruits, so hopefully this will help. The bottom of the lineup and doubles play are the big question marks, but Swarthmore’s top four are really something to build a top 30 team around, much like Bates from a few years ago, when they had Rob Crampton, Matt Bettles, Timmy Berg, and Pierre Planche. I wouldn’t but Swat’s top four up at that level quite yet, but I think this is something they could strive for.
#32 Washington & Lee:
Key wins: Christopher Newport 6-3, DePauw 5-4
Key losses: Swarthmore 7-2, Mary Washington 9-0, Sewanee 6-3, Carnegie Mellon 6-3, Tufts 8-1, Bowdoin 6-3, Wesleyan (CT) 9-0, NC Wesleyan 5-3 (in NCAAs)
Graduating seniors: Christopher Hu (#2 singles, #1 doubles)
Outlook: Can the Generals add some consistency to their talent?
The W&L year got off to a tough start this year with the departure of Taylor Shamshiri, who lik
ely would have patrolled the top of the Generals lineup. They were really an up-and-down team all year, putting it together in some matches but not others, which I guess is really what keeps teams like this from cracking the top 30. They put it together really well against Carnegie Mellon, battling in singles but falling 6-3. They also put out a great effort in a win over DePauw. However, they fell to Sewanee, had duds against Tufts and Wesleyan, and ultimately fell in a tight match in NCAAs. The Generals are a talented team that features mostly 3-stars in their lineup, though #1 singles player Michael Holt was actually a 1-star coming out of high school. Gotta love that development! Anyway, the Generals look to be getting two 3-stars, so they can definitely improve, but the loss of Hu will hurt. Can they get some revenge on Sewanee next year? If the good W&L team comes out match after match, there is no reason to doubt it.
#36 Coe:
Key wins: Kalamazoo 9-0, Ogelthorpe 7-2, McMurry 7-2
Key losses: Texas-Tyler 8-1, Gustavus Adolphus 7-2, UW-Whitewater 7-2, Chicago 5-1 (in NCAAs)
Graduating seniors: Noah Sprinkel (#1 singles, #2 doubles)
Outlook: What impact will the loss of Sprinkel have on the Kohawks?
COE! Man, I love me some Coe. They are awesome, just the prototypical little guy, looking to take out the big central teams of the world, like Chicago, Gustavus, and Whitewater. They literally are the little guy, considering their student body is a paltry 1,300 students. 1,300?! My high school had significantly more than that. That’s okay Coe, because I love you guys. Coe really just treaded water this season, winning potentially tricky matches against Kzoo and Ogelthorpe, and getting a solid win over McMurry, who was missing their #1 singles player. They did ramp up the schedule, and had chances against UT-Tyler, but just were not up to the test. Before I get into my outlook for next year, let me give a quick shout-out to Noah Sprinkel. Sprinkel was named the ITA Central Region Senior of the Year, and this is with good reason, as he qualified for his third NCAA singles championship, and had a 13-5 mark at #1 singles. Sprinkel was just a two-star coming out of high school, and I’m sure Coach Rodgers is very pleased with the way this young man has developed. Anyway, moving onto to the serious stuff, I do really like the way that the middle of Coe’s lineup competed this year. Riley Galbraith, Brady Anderson, and Ryan Hickman will likely all move up a slot, but I think they are up to the task if they continue to improve. The Kohwaks are bringing in three recruits, two 2-stars and one fellow from Russia, so it’s possible one of them could develop into the next Sprinkel as well. I’m guessing Coe will be sporting a similar schedule next year, with a ton of easier matches and a few tough ones, so they’ll have a chance to develop over the course of the season. All right, enough of Coe. I love you guys, but I have five more teams left to cover.
#37 Christopher Newport:
Key wins: Occidental 5-0, Whittier 7-2
Key losses: Redlands 8-1, Washington & Lee 6-3, Sewanee 5-4, Johns Hopkins 5-4, NC Wesleyan 9-0, Mary Washington 7-2
Graduating seniors: None 🙂
Outlook: Can CNU make a move in the Atlantic South?
CNU is a squad that seems very similar to W&L to me. On one hand, they can leave it all out on the line and nearly beat Johns Hopkins, or they can fall 9-0 to NC Wesleyan. CNU has a bunch of guys that, on the right day, could win against most teams in the 15-40 range, as evidenced by some pretty darn close scores against Mary Washington back in late April. David Reed is a bit of a weaker #1, but Steven Boslet, Justin Cerny, Chiraag Shetty, and Arttu Fiva are four very good players from #2-5. Even Max Katcher at #6 is a talented player who should get better after an up-and-down freshman year. The fact that they are already a solid team combined with the fact that they are graduating nobody, combined again with a 3-star and a 2-star coming in, means good things for CNU. They realistically could move up as high as #6 in the Atlantic South, as they are capable of beating W&L, Sewanee, and Swarthmore, and will likely play both W&L and Sewanee next year. CNU is not talented enough to compete with Hopkins, but look for them to rebound from two big losses against W&L and Sewanee this year.
#38 Chapman:
Key wins: Occidental 8-1, Rochester 5-4, Vassar 8-1, George Fox 5-4, Whittier 8-1 and 7-2
Key losses: Brandeis 6-3, Bowdoin 7-2, Cal Lutheran 5-3 twice, Middlebury 6-3, Redlands 9-0
Graduating seniors: Justin Thompson (#1 singles, #2 doubles)
Outlook: With no recruits coming in, will the Panthers take a step back next year?
The Chapman Panthers were one of the biggest surprises for me of the 2014-15 season, right behind NC Wesleyan. Although
they lost some close matches, they won several close matches as well, and pulled ahead of both Whittier and Occidental as the clear #5 team in the SCIAC, behind CMS, PP, Redlands, and Cal Lu, and that #4 spot is very obtainable. Losing Justin Thompson is tough, but luckily, they have their second Justin Thompson, with middle initial P, waiting in the wings for his shot at #1. The issue for Chapman is not the fact that they are losing Thompson, but that they have no recruits coming in (that I know of). They should still be better than Whitier and Oxy, as they beat both these teams handily this year, but good teams get better, and I’m not sure if Chapman will. That #4 SCIAC spot is right there, with Cardenas graduating from Cal Lu, and Fergus Scott transferring to Bates, but if Chapman does not get better, they won’t get there.
#39 TCNJ:
Key wins: Vassar 9-0, Rochester 6-3, NYU 6-3
Key losses: RPI 5-4, Skidmore 6-3, Stevens 6-3, Mary Washington 5-2 (in NCAAs)
Graduating seniors: Ezra Klemow
Outlook: Can the Lions turn some of those key losses into key wins next year?
TCNJ had a nice year in the northeast, getting some revenge over Rochester from the year before. The best part of the Lions lineup has to be their top 3 singles players. Pierce Cooper, Jack August, and Billy Buchbinder were up and down all season, but really, really put it together down the stretch. Against Stevens in their final home match, Cooper defeated Matt Heinrich, Jack August defeated Michael Feldman, and Buchbinder was up a set on Ben Foran when Foran retired. Doubles and the bottom of the singles lineup really hurt TCNJ in a match that they realistically could have taken had they pulled out a couple tight doubles matches at #2 and #3. Regardless, the wins over Rochester and NYU are solid, and in NCAAs, they played Mary Washington relatively close at the top of the singles lineup. Cooper was up a set on Tyler Carey, August defeated Stratton Gilmore, and Buchbinder was in a third set. Not bad for the boys from NJ. The next step for TCNJ is to turn some of those close losses into close wins, most significantly the RPI match, which really held TCNJ out of the rankings for most of the season. TCNJ looks like they are bringing in a ton of guys next year, with a 3-star and six 2-stars. If three of these guys can develop into good #4-6 singles players, TCNJ could turn into the next Stevens. You heard it here first!!
#40 NYU:
Key wins: Vassar 8-1, Rochester 6-3 (at UAAs)
Key losses: Swarthmore 5-4, Skidmore 7-2, Rochester 5-4 (in season), TCNJ 6-3, Stevens 7-2, MIT 6-3, Brandeis 6-3, Case Western 7-2
Graduating seniors: CJ Leong (#2 singles, #3 doubles), Billy Smithline (#1 doubles, #6 singles)
Outlook: Can NYU improve their play in-season to better prepare for UAAs?
With NYU’s incredibly short schedule, there were not a ton of opportunities for big wins, though the UAA competition certainly
helps. Losing tight matches to Swarthmore, Rochester, TCNJ, MIT, and Brandeis made for a tough regular season, but they did rebound with a UAA win over Rochester to avoid an 8th place finish. CJ Leong and Billy Smithline were good leaders, but the Violets do have some pieces to build around, especially the middle of that singles lineup. Ian Combemale (#3) and Sam Khoshbin (#4) both had very nice years, and Matt DeMichiel (#5) definitely came on towards the end of the season with wins over Ryan Bunis (Brandeis), Andrew Komarov (Case), and Aaron Mevorach (Rochester). The departure of Aaron Meltzer at the beginning of the season really hurt NYU, but they still showed that they are a team that cannot be overlooked. They are bringing in a three-star, and Horace Choy always has a few tricks up his sleeve, as Tennis Recruiting often doesn’t reflect everyone that the Violets have on their roster. I never know what to make of the Violets, but better in-season play would certainly help them out when it comes time to grind down in Florida at UAAs.
Pacific:
Key wins: Lewis & Clark 5-4 and 6-3, George Fox 7-2 and 6-3, RPI 8-1
Key losses: Whitman 6-3, 6-3, and 5-1, UCSC 6-3, Redlands 8-1
Graduating seniors: Grayson Frazier (#2 singles, #1 doubles), Giancarlo Battaglia (#1 singles, #2 doubles), Brennan Faith (#3 singles, #1 doubles)??
Outlook: Can Pacific rebound from the loss of their #1-3 players?
The reason that I have the question mark after Brennan Faith is because, on the Pacific Boxers website, Faith is listed as a senior but with sophomore eligibility. Does that mean he’ll be back next year? I have no idea. Regardless, losing your top 2 or your top 3 is a big loss, especially when the next step for Pacific is to get closer to beating Whitman and try to get that NCAA birth. Pacific played Whitman three times on the year, with the first two actually being very tight. Pacific legitimately had a great chance of winning the second matchup, with three of the singles matches going three sets. Whitman turned it on in the NWC final, winning 5-1, and winning the first set in every singles match. On the whole, Pacific is in an interesting position. On one hand, they are desperately trying to catch up with Whitman, but also, teams like George Fox and Lewis & Clark are continuing to improve and want to catch Pacific as much as Pacific wants Whitman. Pacific is bringing in a couple 2-stars, and I am a huge fan of the way that Coach Jackson develops his players, so all is not lost, but I don’t see them catching Whitman next year with three tough losses.
That’s all I have! Hope you all have enjoyed the regional articles this year as much as I have enjoyed writing them. Keep checking back with the blog, as we’ll have more regional articles coming your way. Until later, D3Regional out.