We had two really good quarterfinals earlier today, as Bowdoin held off Bates and Williams upset Amherst. Both Bowdoin and Williams should have punched their tickets to NCAAs with their wins, and are now playing for NCAA seeding, as are Wesleyan and Middlebury. Wes and Midd both have real chances to be top-4 seeds overall, but a win tomorrow could be necessary (it’s certainly necessary in Wesleyan’s case.) Wesleyan beat Bowdoin 6-3 last weekend, and Middlebury beat Williams 5-4 after coming back from a doubles sweep about a month ago. I don’t know if they will determine a new order for singles tomorrow, but I’m assuming they will, so my final score predictions may vary based on who gets to play first.
#8 Bowdoin (No. 4 seed) vs #4 Wesleyan (No. 1 seed)
#1 doubles: Tercek/Urken vs Liu/Roberts. Tercek and Urken fell quickly to Rosen and Ellis today, and they’ll be playing a team in Liu and Roberts who just beat that same Bates team at Bates last weekend. Gimme the Cards here. Wes, 8-5.
#2 doubles: Jiang/Wolfe vs Eusibio/Smith. This should be a good match. Eusebio and Smith have been flying under the radar this spring, but only have a total of two losses. This match was 9-7 last time, so here’s hoping we get another good one. Wes, 9-8 (4).
#3 doubles: Roddy/Patel vs Chen/Daniels. This match was an 8-4 win for Wes last weekend, and while Roddy and Patel got a big win today, it’s tough to go against this #3 Cards team. Wes, 8-6.
#1 singles: Tercek vs Chen. These two are players going in opposite directions, and Chen beat Tercek 2&1 last weekend. No reason to pick anything all that different. Wesleyan, 6-2, 6-3.
#2 singles: Urken vs Liu. Urken was big for Bowdoin earlier today, snuffing out any hope of a Bates comeback, and he beat Liu in two close sets last time. Tough to say which matches will and wont finish, but since I’m predicting a sweep I think this one will end unfinished. Bowdoin leads, 6-4, 2-1.
#3 singles: Wolfe vs Eusebio. Tiago took a super breaker last time, and in a normal situation I’d be very surprised if this match finished before somebody clinched. Both guys are strong points for their team, and both tend to play longer matches. Wesleyan leads, 7-5, 2-4.
#4 singles: Jiang vs Samson. Jiang looked fantastic today, giving Schwartz a bagel breakfast. That is very encouraging for Bowdoin fans, as Jiang has had his struggles this spring. Samson rolled past Jiang last time, and also beat him in straight sets last year. It could be a slower match, but the Cards have the edge. Wesleyan, 6-4, 6-3.
#5 singles: Roddy vs Daniels. Cam beat Roddy 4&1 last weekend, but Roddy was up big on Ordway earlier today before the match was clinched. My guess is this one stays closer than last time. Bowdoin leads, 7-5, 0-3.
#6 singles: Carstens/Patel vs Carter. Carstens beat the Prince 10-8 in a super last time, but Carstens was pulled today, so I’m not sure if he’s good to go tomorrow. Either way, if the match comes down to it, we’ve seen Prince clinch multiple matches this year. I don’t think it gets that far. Wesleyan leads, 6-4, 2-3.
Overall Prediction: I hate predicting doubles sweeps, even when a team is favored at all three spots, but for some reason my gut says brooms. For the sake of the match, I’m hoping I’m wrong. Wesleyan def. Bowdoin, 5-0.
#9 Williams (No. 6 seed) vs #3 Middlebury (No. 2 seed)
#1 doubles: Grodecki/Taylor vs Cuba/De Quant. Big win from this Eph team earlier today, and this is a tossup match. When in a tossup match, go with the home team. Williams, 8-6.
#2 doubles: Sadowski/Shastri vs Derbani/Schlanger. This was a great doubles match last time around, with Williams taking the tiebreaker 8-6. Shastri came up HUGE for the Ephs today, but I believe Derbani and Schlanger are as good as any other #2 team out there. Midd, 8-5.
#3 doubles: Lebowitz/Raghavan vs Martin/Van der Geest. The win for Williams in the previous match was their best win of the season. Meanwhile, Martin and Van der Geest only started playing together a few weeks ago, and started strong but lost their last two matches. Another tossup match, Williams, 9-7.
#1 singles: Shastri vs Cuba. As I said above, Shastri had a massive day today, but he will need something even more if he’s going to beat the best player in the country. Midd, 6-4, 6-1.
#2 singles: Grodecki vs De Quant. De Quant won this one surprisingly easily last time, and if this were a full match I’d bet this one ended unfinished. Instead, I’ll take De Quant in a tight one, Midd, 4-6, 6-3, 6-4.
#3 singles: S. Raghavan vs Derbani. Raghavan showed off his clutch gene today when it mattered most, but he got beaten easily by Derbani the last time these two met. Another one that should be close, Williams, 6-4, 2-6, 6-4.
#4 singles: Indrakanti vs Schlanger. As a couple of my colleagues have mentioned, Schlanger’s leap from solid #6 to top notch #4 has probably been one of the most pleasant surprises this spring. Kyle beat Deepak 2&3 earlier this year, but I expect a closer match tomorrow. Midd, 7-6 (5), 6-4.
#5 singles: A. Raghavan/Taylor vs Van der Geest. Taylor was pulled from the singles lineup today, so Lil’ Raghavan moved up to 5. I’m not sure exactly who will be playing tomorrow, but either way they won’t be favored against Van der Geest. Taylor actually won the super the last time they played, which makes me think he will play if healthy. Either way, I’ll take Midd in the rematch. Midd, 7-5, 6-2.
#6 singles: Lebowitz/A Raghavan vs Jackson. Another spot where Midd will be favored. Jackson crushed Lil Raghavan last time to the tune of 2&0, and was down today against Amherst. Advantage Panthers. Midd, 6-4, 6-3.
Overall prediction: Midd takes down the hometown heroes and advances to the finals. Middlebury def Williams, 5-3.