A Central Weekend Preview

Well, D3Central is taking care of his grandchildren this week, so I’m stepping up to provide you loyal readers with a preview of the big matches in the central region. Let’s get to it.

#16 UW-Whitewater vs. #19 Gustavus Adolphus

If there is one match to pay close attention to, it’s this one. The Warhawks already have an impressive upset victory this season over Kenyon; meanwhile, the Gusties have thrashed all their DIII opponents thus far. However, Gustavus has yet to be tested while Whitewater has played against two nationally ranked teams. In my season preview of the team from Minnesota, I predicted a Warhawk win, but Central gave the edge to the Gusties. Something that makes this match hard to preview is Gustavus’ inexperience. If you look back at my season preview, you’ll recall that almost everyone aside from Mohanad Alhouni lost to basically every opponent in the top 20 last year. But, this match is Gustavus’ first against a ranked opponent, so it’s to say how good the Gusties really are. I don’t see this being a clear cut W for Whitewater. Despite their impressive victory over Kenyon, the Warhawks barely edged unranked Kalamazoo. But, because of Gustavus’ inexperience, especially in singles, I’m cautiously predicting a 5-4 win for the cheese heads. For Gustavus to win, they need to take a lead after doubles. Whitewater’s singles lineup seems a bit stronger than the Gusties’. Below is my match-by-match analysis. Please keep in mind that because this is Gustavus’ first test of 2016, analyzing their starters is more difficult than it is for Whitewater.

#1 Doubles: Jake Humphreys/Michael Treis vs. Mohanad Alhouni/Andres Saenz – The rematch of the ITA Regional final should be a good one. In the fall, the Whitewater pair took out the Gusties in a 7-5, 3-6, 12-10 thriller. In 2016, Humphreys and Treis lost to an underperforming Kenyon No. 1 tandem, but along with Scott Butler, Humphreys defeated the No. 1 Chicago pair later that same day. Last year, Alhouni wasn’t paired with Saenz, but because Gustavus is well-respected and well-coached when it comes to doubles, I’m giving them the edge. Gustavus 9-8 (5)

#2 Doubles: Scott Butler/R. Rajshekhar Raman vs. Tommy Entwistle/Zach Ekstein – Anytime Butler has stepped up to the top doubles spot this year, he’s been impressive. Thus far, he’s taken out DI NIU, Kenyon at No. 2, and the top Chicago pair. However, he and Raman suffered a tough loss to Grinnell’s top team a couple weeks ago. Since it is doubles, and anything can happen, I’m not going to make much of that result. Meanwhile Entwistle and Ekstein are 10-1 this season, with their only loss coming to Humphreys and Treis in the ITA regional semifinals.  Gustavus 8-6

#3 Doubles: Grant Thompson/Michael Schnarr vs. Mitch Elofson/David Hagberg – I’ll go with experience on this one. With a senior captain on their side in Schnarr, I expect the Whitewater pair to come out swinging. Whitewater 8-4

#1 Singles: Jake Humphreys vs. Mohanad Alhouni – If I was to attend tomorrow’s dual, this is the singles match I would have my eyes glued on. Humphreys and Alhouni know each other all too well. Unfortunately, Humphreys is riding a 6-match losing streak (4 of those coming to DIII opponents) and was injured a few weeks ago (though he is back now). His worst loss thus far has been a three-setter to Branden Metzler from Kalamazoo (who is no slouch himself). Humphreys relies a lot on his quickness and getting balls back onto the court; he doesn’t have a distinct weapon. This workhorse mentality could hurt him if he burns out in a third set. The bigger (in stature) Mohanad hasn’t been tested in 2016. Honestly, I see this being a back and forth affair, much like last year’s NCAA Regional match, and I’ll have to go with Alhouni, given Humphreys’ results thus far. Gustavus 6-3, 4-6, 6-2

#2 Singles: Michael Treis vs. Andres Saenz – I think Saenz is playing a spot or two higher than he is capable of having success in. As a No. 3 last year, he went 0-4 against top 20 teams. Meanwhile, Treis is playing like a senior should be. Fighting off cramps, he clinched Whitewater’s win over Kenyon and beat a solid Justin Ancona from Wheaton at No. 1. Whitewater 6-4, 6-3

#3 Singles: R. Rajshekhar Raman vs. Zach Ekstein – Raman’s best result so far has been a three-set loss to Chicago’s Charlie Pei. Otherwise, his notable results have been losses to Robert Turlington and players from Ohio Wesleyan and Wheaton. Gustavus’ Entwistle took Raman to three sets in the fall as well. Ekstein has beaten every opponent in 2016 but had a tough time against ranked teams last year. I expect that he’s made a leap. With that, I’ll give the edge to the Ekstein. Gustavus 7-5, 7-5

#4 Singles: Grant Thompson vs. Mitch Elofson – Thompson is a streaky, unpredictable player. His is a big hitter, so when he is playing well, opponents don’t have much of a chance. That said, his straight set loss to Kalamazoo’s No. 4 raises some questions. Last year, Elofson was 9-7 at No. 5, with all seven losses coming at the hands of top 20 teams. Elofson is going to be hoping for a bunch of unforced errors from Thompson. Whitewater 7-5, 6-4

#5 Singles: Zane Navratil vs. Tommy Entwistle – I’m pretty high on the Warhawks’ Zane Navratil, and he’s taken care of business this season when the Warhawks have needed him to. However, the Gustavus sophomore doesn’t have the big match experience in college. Whitewater 6-3, 6-3

#6 Singles: Matt Bisbee vs. David Hagberg – Bisbee is one of those guys that, if you only see a point or two of his, you’d think he would lose often. However, while he’s probably not going to hit many winners, he does enough to force errors from his opponents. I really respect his grit on the court. Hagberg hasn’t seen much court time until this year, and I can’t really take anything away from his results so far. Whitewater 7-5, 4-6, 7-5

#35 Denison vs. Kalamazoo

Much like the previous match I previewed, Denison versus Kalamazoo is going to be a fun one. Both teams are (well, should be) in the 30-40 range, but there actually aren’t too many implications regardless of the outcome. Denison won’t be able to get a Pool C bid, and Kalamazoo has its conference in the bag. Denison’s most impressive result has been a 7-2 win over Pacific, while Kalamazoo took Whitewater to the wire, losing 5-4. I’m predicting a 5-4 win in favor of Denison.

Other match predictions

Chicago def. DePauw 8-1

Gustavus Adolphus def. DePauw 6-3

Ok, I actually have a real job that I should get back to. Looking forward to seeing what happens this weekend!