ASouth’s Ridiculously Dope UAA Preview – 2016 Edition

The UAA Tournament is officially here. This tournament has long been one of my favorite tournaments to watch, cover, and analyze. This year will be no different.  The UAA Tournament this year has so many implications, so many rivalries that aren’t Wash U/Chicago (shout-out to Greek) and who knows, maybe a few blogger attendees, just like last year.  Also just like last year, I’m going about this fun preview solo style, because once again D3Central is off on vacation to the Everglades (or something like that) and D3Greek is taking a nap because he’s sick.  NE is off crying because the NESCAC is currently losing the UAA/NESCAC battle and D3Regional just left the Power Rankings chat at 9PM.  That means I get to write RIDICULOUSLY DOPE UAA PREVIEW #2, anniversary-ing my amazing article from last year.  Lots of pats on the back for ASouth today. Last year’s ASouth preview was a bit of a free-style, so let’s make this thing into a cypher (rap shoutout bruh) and straight up kill the preview game.  Don’t expect a match by match preview in here, because that’s too boring.  I bring the fun stuff, so let’s get started.

The Seeds

1. Emory
2. Chicago
3. Wash U
4. Case Western
5. CMU
6. Brandeis
7. Rochester
8. NYU

The Implications

Given my Pool C expertise (it really isn’t expertise), I figured I had to hit on what this tournament could mean for each of the teams in the tournament.  Let me give you a general overview and then some team by team aspects.

As it stands right now, the UAA probably can muster 3 Pool C spots, depending on who the teams are.  What that means is this – the Case Western/CMU bloodbath that is about to happen is the most important match of the weekend and it happens Thursday, 9AM ET.  Mark it on your calendars ladies and gentlemen.  The winner of that match is probably in the tournament, the loser of that match is probably out of the tournament.  The stakes couldn’t be higher.  So that’s already a great start to the tournament.  Other implications are this – Wash U needs a win to cement their resume, but even if they beat Brandeis and lose to the CMU/Case winner, they probably still get in.  The fact that Wash U got seeded #3 is an absolute blessing to the Bears.  They got the benefit of the doubt (once again) and now are put in a position where they could just beat the Judges and still make the tournament.  Avoiding that 4/5 match was huge and they did it, somehow.  Classic Wash U.  Chicago also has some stake in this, because they want to avoid 4^th place, but they’re probably pretty safe as well.

For the front runner Emory, they basically want to win to get the #1 overall seed in the tournament.  They also want to remind everyone that they are top dogs considering we’ve spent the last month or so talking about how Bowdoin and Middlebury are pretty damn good.  Oh, and CMS too.  That’s your NCAA Tournament update on the UAA Tournament.  I can’t even begin to explain to you how big the CMU/Case match is.  It’s massive. By the way, there is a scenario if Case Western loses the 4/5 match that they still make the tournament over Williams (last NESCAC).  If Williams loses to a team like Tufts/Wesleyan/Amherst, putting up resumes between Case and Williams becomes pretty damn tough and a great argument.  Amazing.

ASouth’s Team by Team

Emory – I already explained this a little bit but Emory basically just wants to tune up for the NCAA tournament.  They will do so by playing the winner of CMU/Case and then most likely Chicago/Wash U on the other side.  That’s two top 10 teams for them to start flexing their muscles once again.  Let’s not forget to mention they’ve beaten three of those teams already this year.  They unfortunately have not played Wash U and this might be a year where they actually don’t play them at all.  Guru, when was the last time that happened?

Chicago – This is where it all started for Chicago last year.  Going into the 4/5 match, Chicago had a lot of question marks and not a lot of answers.  They ended up nicking Case Western 5-4 and then playing tough with Emory.  In the 3^rd place match, they had a defining win over Carnegie where they took 5 out of 6 three setters in singles to win the match 8-1 in convincing fashion, sending home CMU.  Chicago then went on to get to the semifinals of the NCAA Tournament.  This year, Chicago has more question marks after being touted as a favorite early in the year.  Can this team put it together to beat an elite team like Emory?  Or are they more like their lower seeded counterparts?

Wash U – The question with Wash U simply is this.  Are they any good?  History tells us yes, recent history tells us maybe, my gut tells me “meh.”  Wash U got the draw they wanted (and probably didn’t deserve), but they still have a lot to prove.  Beat Chicago or CMU/Case in a 3^rd place match and you belong in the tournament.  Lose to both of them and questions arise about whether you should even be in the big dance.  I’ve got faith in the Bears, but this year strikes me as potentially different.

Case Western – Every single year, Case Western is put down by bloggers, readers, and commenters alike.  They are always expected to have a down year or not improve and they prove us wrong.  Case is one of the teams that almost always shines on the big stage and they have yet another opportunity to show us again.  Thursday, 9AM, ladies and gentlemen.  Can the Spartans show us all that everyone needs to stop doubting the CWRU spirit?

Carnegie Mellon – The Tartans made the UAA Tournament their prized jewel this year and they get their wish.  Win and you’re basically in.  Now it’s time for the Tartans to do what they have rarely ever done before and win a match that will put them in the tournament. They play a team that has virtually ended their season in 2012, 2013, and 2014.  Two of those times were in the UAA Tournament and one of them was in the NCAA Tournament on their home courts.  History tells us CMU loses this match.  But, a team can always surprise and rise to the occasion.  Now would be a pretty damn good time.

Brandeis – Brandeis has had a quietly solid year where they’ve taken out Bates and a few other good teams.  They did just lose to Trinity CT which is a bit terrible, but the Judges can take solace in the fact they have had a great year.  Let’s make it even greater by upsetting Wash U, or at least giving them a challenge, why don’t we?

Rochester – Rochester simply doesn’t want 8^th in this tournament.  The two bottom teams are going to have to battle it out to get a win in this one.  They want to send their seniors off into the twilight on the right note and they need to beat an NYU team that they’ve already taken out this year.

NYU – See Rochester.

Salute the Seniors of 2016

Rafe Mosetick, Emory – A blog favorite (sometimes), Rafe has etched his legend into DIII Tennis with many different moments.  The UAA Tournament features one of my all time favorites.  That of course is when he puked on court after eating mustard or something.  Great Rafe moment and it is sad to see this warrior play in his last UAA ever.

Eric Brinzenskiy, Emory – Unfortunately not much to say about this senior’s career, but my knowledge of Emory tells me that at least Eric is a fun dude to be around.

Bobby Adusumilli, Chicago – That’s a great name right there, so a salute to you Bobby.  Way to have a great smile in your team picture as well.

Gordon Zhang, Chicago – This doubles specialist has always hung around Chicago and has definitely contributed to the new, winning culture that has been growing in the Windy City.  Zhang may or may not see the court this weekend, but he will see the court in Coach Tee’s heart.

Josh Cogan, Wash U – Mr. Cogan has been another doubles specialist who will definitely see the court this weekend.  I remember when Cogan was taking recruiting trips and he was a highly touted recruit.  He’s had a great career on the doubles court and is a big reason for the Bears doubles prowess.  Expect to see Cogan go out with a bang.

Tyler Kratky, Wash U – I feel like Kratky has been around forever.  I know he has a big fan in David Lee, who is an avid blog reader (tweet me if you read this Mr. Lee!) and Tyler has certainly had his fair share of epic moments, both winning and losing.  The senior is the heart of the Wash U team other than maybe Johnny Wu.  Him and Rafe have had a great individual rivalry that has contributed to the amazing rivalry that is WashU/Emory.  Salute to you, T-Krat.

CJ Krimbill, Case Western –  I still can’t believe no one calls CJ “Goggles” or something of the sort given his propensity to wear shades on the outdoor courts.  Considered one of the best in DIII for the past two years, Krimbill is a guy that can take over a match not only with his play, but also his leadership.  I am an admirer of CJ and despite his very competitive nature on the court, he really isn’t that thorny off the court either.  Thanks for a great career, CJ.

Louis Stuerke, Case Western – Coach Todd attributes much of his success to his seniors buying into the program early in his tenure, and Louis is one of those players.  Stuerke has had a lot of naysayers in the past but he continues to grind away both on the singles and doubles court, surprising many.  Louis is one of the definitions of Case Tennis.  Overlooked as a junior (maybe), but certainly not overlooked now.

Abhishek Alla, Carnegie Mellon – First off, that’s how you spell Abhishek. That’s to whoever does the damn ASouth ITA Rankings.  You’d think after spelling it fifty times in a row you’d get it right by now.  Anyways, the one they call “Shek” has had an enigmatic career, but one to be proud of.  A former Fall ITA champion, Alla was the closest to beat Warren Wood at individuals last year.  He’s taken out two of the top players this year and I certainly will miss seeing his pure flat shots freezing opponents in their tracks.  What a wonder to watch Shek play.

Yuvraj Kumar, Carnegie Mellon – Another doubles specialist who represents the heart and soul of CMU tennis, Kumar will be on the 3^rd doubles court razzing his team up to make the tournament in his last hurrah.  While never making an impact in singles, his big serve and net play more than make up for it on the doubles court.

Danny Lubarsky, Brandeis – The former 1 star has had a tumultuous career with injuries, but that has not stopped him from sticking it out and being a key component in the Judges lineup.  The man has been a great leader on and off the court for the Judges and apparently is a future doctor.  Keep on keepin on, Danny.  I know that both your teammates and coaches love you.

Ian Baranowski, Rochester – I honestly don’t know much about Baranowski considering I don’t cover many regional teams, but what I can tell you is this really tall senior is a beast.  He’s played at the top of the lineup for most of his time at Rochester, serving as a great complement to another senior on the roster….

Ben Shapiro, Rochester – A blog favorite, Shapiro has been an avid reader of our blog since the day he picked up a racket.  He’s been entrenched at the top of the lineup with Baranowski for as long as I can remember and has never wavered in his love for tennis.  Shapiro continues to contribute to the blog well-being and I wish him nothing but the best this weekend.  Go out on a win, Ben.  You deserve it.

Ben Mermelstein, Rochester – Mermelstein has not played all that much in his career, but he’s a senior and that means something to me.  Seniors contribute in more ways than one and kudos to you Ben for sticking it out all 4 years.  You’re listed at 125 pounds, though, and that’s a bit too skinny.  Hit the gym, bro. Kidding!

Sidd Thangirala, NYU – Again, I don’t know much about the regional teams but am going to do my best here.  I do remember Sidd from my playing days and remember him being a stand-up guy.  Sidd is Coach Choy’s senior captain and will absolutely play a part in whether or not NYU can get better than 8^th.  I’m sure the dude is off to bigger and better things after his DIII tennis career.

David Zumwalt, NYU – All the way from the sunny state of New Mexico, Zumwalt has come a long way for that coveted NYU education.  While he has mostly been a doubles specialist his whole career, the dude has stuck it out and been an important part of team chemistry for the Vios.

10 Things to Watch at the UAA Tournament

Every big tournament I always like to list out 10 things to watch.  It keeps things interesting and keeps people on their toes about some intangible things to expect out of the tournament.  We’re all about the experience!

1. Rain, rain, go away – The only qualm I have about playing the UAA Tournament in Sanlando Park, Orlando is the fact that it’s freaking humid in Florida. With temperatures expected to be in the 80s with high humidity, there is a potential for rain any day of the tournament. I don’t enjoy rain delays, it gives me nothing to do at work.  As a player, the rain delays throw you off your routine and definitely affect the flow of the match.  Let’s cross our fingers for no rain this weekend.
2. The UAA Tennis Twitter Account – My friend and enemy (kidding) at the same time, @UAATennis, will undoubtedly be providing updates for us this weekend. While I upped him on the live update game last year, causing him to go into a frenzy looking for me, I am not sure if I can up him once again this year. Either way, this man runs the tournament very well and I have never experienced any issues with the way the UAA Tournament has been run.  If only they ran the NCAA Tournament like he did.  Oh and by the way, it says you still don’t follow me on twitter.  Get on that.
3. BOLD Prediction – CJ Krimbill Undefeated – I am making my first bold prediction here and saying that CJ Krimbill will go undefeated in the UAA Tournament in both singles and doubles. If they beat CMU, they will play Emory, and then either Chicago or Wash U. I don’t care what the path is, I think the senior is going to run the table.  It’s what he does.  It’s what Case does.
4. Chalk Time – I predicted last year that there would be a big upset in the tournament and we almost got it with Chicago coming close to taking out Emory. However this year, I think the tournament will go almost chalk. I expect the only match that might not go chalk is the potential Wash U/Case Western 3^rd place match that could happen.  Other than that, I’m seeing a lot of chalk in our future.
5. How many teams can we fit into Jersey Mike’s? – A fun (but also sometimes not fun) thing about the UAA Tournament is that everyone goes to eat lunch at the center across the street or so from Sanlando Park. That means a lot of eating at Jersey Mike’s, where I personally get the Philly Cheesesteak. Damn, that thing is good.  It’s pretty funny to see that teams will go there and sit across the restaurant from each other, leering away.  Adds a nice fun dimension to some already heated rivalries.  I personally always got on line before the other team even knew what hit em.
6. Case/CMU will be one of the matches of the year. I love me the CMU/Case rivalry and with so much on the line, these two teams will do battle once again. Case won this one 5-4 the last time out and now the Tartans are playing for their lives. So are the Spartans.  With Case ending CMU’s season for 3 of the past 4 years, the emotions will be out.  This one is going to come down to the wire and I believe is a 50/50 toss-up.  Man, the amount I’d love to see this match Thursday morning is off the charts.
7. The UAA Banquet – One of the weirdest things about the UAA is that they hold a player’s banquet where everyone dresses up and gets into this ballroom in the official hotel. They divvy up people at different tables, meaning Rafe Mosetick might sit next to Tyler Kratky. If only Colin Egan and Max Woods sat next to each other back in the day.  All joking aside, the banquet is a fun time to see the people of the tennis world outside of the court, because that’s what really matters.  Unless you’re Dillon Pottish.  Tennis kind of matters to him.
8. Bench Impact – Since the tournament is three days, benches will certainly have an impact in terms of depth and match-play. However, one thing I do want to see is how many bench players the teams will bring for cheering purposes only. D3Greek and I discussed this and I wouldn’t be surprised to see some seniors out in Florida cheering on their teams on their own budget.  I would have done the same if I were a senior, especially with this much on the line.
9. Volume UPUPUP – This tournament brings probably 4 of the loudest teams in the country in the same place, playing matches at the same time. Those teams are Emory, Wash U, Case, and CMU. I’ve been surprised by CMU’s volume this year.  The other three are almost a given.  All of these teams rely heavily on getting amped for matches to power them through the struggles to come.  How will that affect matchplay?  Remember, a majority of matches will begin at 9AM in order to stay away from the hot, humid sun.  Get caught sleeping and a team like Case Western can knock you out in a hot second.  Pun intended.
10. Blog Updates/Fun Facts – The BLOG will always have its usual coverage of one of the biggest weekends of the year. I will be heading up most of the conversation on twitter, so please feel free to ask me any UAA questions because I can most likely answer them. We will try out best to get out daily articles and full previews, because that is what we all deserve.  Also, if I end up making it out to the tournament, catch me at the House of Beers swigging one with Coach Lamanna and Coach Tee. And all the other coaches too.  Adult beverages are a requirement after a long day of dealing with post-adolescent college tennis players in 90 degree weather.

Well, that’s all I got for you today.  Took me about an hour and a half to write this with laser sharp focus and a bit of Strawberry-Orange-Banana Tropicana to get this done.  Seriously, you should try it.  It’s really damn good and probably good for your body.  Not to overwrite NE’s Individuals article, but the UAA is what’s up this week.  I mean, cmon.  Get with it, D3NE.  I’m here to take over.  ASouth, OUT.