Sorry for the interruption in service lately, folks! There was a bit of a lull in the schedule and then things really started ramping up, so I’m here to catch up as best I can. I’ve got a lot to cover and not much time, so let’s jump right in.
Growing up I ate many dinners at 5:00 before tennis at 6:00, so that meant I often dined with Tony Reali and the rest of the crew on Around the Horn. Why am I telling you this? Because I’m writing this article in the format of one of the classic segments: Buy or Sell? Let’s go team by team:
Skidmore BUY
Skidmore is really moving back up into D3Northeast territory with the way they’ve been playing so far this spring. The Thoroughbreds made their annual trip out to California and were pretty impressive, completely thumping Caltech 8-1 and also beating GAC and Southwestern to finish 5th at Stag Hen. Their only losses this year come against Bowdoin, Middlebury, and CMS, so things have really gone about as well as you could ask for. As I highlighted in my POTW, JT Wynne has been balling out lately at #1 singles, and some of the new faces for Skid like Noah Williamson and Suraj Mahtani have been holding their own as well. Skidmore has to be feeling pretty good as they approach this weekend’s match with RPI. No doubt the Thoroughbreds and hungry for revenge after RPI finally dethroned them last year, and Skidmore’s strong start to the spring along with RPI’s mediocre play thus far makes me figure Coach Simms’s crew is licking their chops.
Peek the matching socks and candy. pic.twitter.com/PKhny0MRKW
— Skidmore Mens Tennis (@Skidmore_Tennis) February 16, 2019
RPI SELL
Just down I-87 from Saratoga Springs we’ve got an entirely different vibe with RPI. Their spring trip to California didn’t bring any shocking results as far as wins and losses go, but an extremely close 5-4 win over unranked Cal Lu and a complete drubbing at the hands of CMS (with only half their starters) is kind of disappointing. While the Engineers made a match of it against Brandeis on their home courts back on the East Coast, taking a 2-1 lead after doubles, the Judges were able to come back in singles pretty comfortably, with RPI’s only win coming at #2, where Clay Thompson had a really nice 3&1 win over Coramutla. A 6-3 loss to a top 15 team shouldn’t be too disappointing, but I am certain that RPI went into the spring thinking that was a match for them to win, so there are no moral victories there. A day later, the Engineers trekked up to Middlebury, where they were completely drubbed by Midd (not the full A team) 9-0. I still think RPI can get it together by the end of the spring, as they are very talented, but so far it’s been a disappointing spring—and the track record of teams at engineering schools in the Northeast living up to their talent is decidedly not good.
Rochester BUY
The ‘Jackets are starting to convince me that they are actually legit, and that their early season win over RPI wasn’t a fluke. After their destruction of Oberlin a few weeks ago, Rochester headed to California, where they didn’t play the toughest D3 schedule, but they still took care of business, topping up-and-coming Wheaton (MA) 6-3 and then the always-decent Haverford 8-1. Neither win jumps off the page, but credit to the ‘Jackets for beating the teams in front of them. Though they are still unbeaten against D3 teams, that is likely to change when Case comes to Rochester this weekend. Even on their home courts, I think Case is too good, but it’ll be interesting to see if the ‘Jackets can keep it a respectable 6-3 or if the Spartans completely smother them from the get-go. The following day, Stevens comes to town for a battle of teams ranked in the 30s of the ITA rankings. If you ask me, only one of the two teams deserves to be ranked at all. Let’s see if the other can make a case for why they actually belong in the top 40.
TCNJ BUY
TCNJ is still very much in the driver’s seat for Pool B, as they have yet to lose a D3 match. Their 5-4 win over Swarthmore isn’t quite as impressive as it once seemed now that we see how Swat has been looking, but 5-4 wins over NYU, Salisbury, and the aforementioned Garnet all combine for a decent resume. Their next test comes on Wednesday against Haverford, another team in that same range that absolutely could give TCNJ their first loss. As far as Pool B goes, however, the biggest match is obviously against the team they’re competing against in UW-Whitewater, a match that goes down on Friday at Mary Washington! I’ve been pumped for this rare matchup for quite some time, as these teams don’t usually even have any common opponents, much less a head to head result. It should provide plenty of clarity, especially with UC-Santa Cruz (the other main Pool B contender) having a lackluster season thus far.
Hobart SELL
Who thought the day would come when I’d finally cool on Hobart? I’m not giving up on them, but their first two matches in California this week haven’t inspired much confidence in me. Yesterday they were, as NewD3Central put it, “disrespected” by Caltech. I expected the Beavers to win, but this was a full fledged beat down. And then just today against Chapman, though Hobart won 7-2 thanks to a doubles sweep, I was kind of unimpressed with the scores. Maybe it’s a bit nitpicky as Chapman is at least decent (wins over Haverford, Vassar, Wooster), and maybe the transition to outdoor tennis has something to do with it, but I’m not sure I see Hobart having the kind of spring I once thought was possible. It would be nice if they can take care of business against Oxy and Whittier this week and get some momentum before taking on Case next weekend back home, which will be a great test for the Statesmen, who seem to very rarely play teams of that caliber. One other note on the Statesmen—it seems that senior Jonah Salita isn’t on the roster anymore. He’s been a key contributor through the years and likely would’ve been playing #3. No other way to put it, that’s a big loss.
Carleton HOLD
Not much to say on Carleton right now as they haven’t played in a few weeks, but they are down in Hilton Head this week with their biggest match coming against Oberlin, a team that is somehow still in the national rankings but I don’t think is actually that good. We’ll see—either Carleton wins easily to prove they are a step ahead and deserve to be firmly in the national rankings, or it’s a battle (won by either team) that shows Carleton is just another team in that 40-45 range. Either way, I’m pumped to hopefully have Leo back in action. On the way back from Hilton Head, the Knights make a stop at Sewanee for a great match against a solid Tiger team. I don’t think Carleton has the depth to hang, but I’m not so certain that I won’t at least leave open the possibility of a surprise battle. Definitely favor Sewanee, but Leo could be good for at least 2 points, and from there it could get interesting.
Coe HOLD
I’ve definitely not talked much about Coe this spring, but that’s because I have nothing to say. They don’t really have anyone in the discussion for NCAA individuals, they are very likely going to win their conference easily again, and they haven’t played any interesting matches lately. A double header with Rose-Hulman and Augie this weekend could create some close matches, though I think the Kohawks have the depth to win both without too many issues. April should bring at least some intrigue as Coe faces UW-Whitewater and UC-Santa Cruz for the Kohawk-Banana Slug-Warhawk invitational at Whitewater. Matches against Carleton and Luther down the road will also give us at least some intrigue.
UW-Whitewater HOLD
Last but not least we’ve got the Warhawks, who also have been fairly quiet of late after a busy February with the front loaded central region schedules. A 7-2 win over last year’s CCIW champs Augie was quiet but impressive, and a nice lead-in to their upcoming spring trip, which has them abandoning the warmth of California or Florida for Fredricksburg, Virginia before heading further south to Hilton Head. It’s an awesome schedule and will tell us plenty about the Warhawks, with matches against TCNJ (discussed above), Bates, Mary Washington, DePauw, and Oberlin. Usually teams have at least one kind of throwaway match on their spring trip, but all five of these are legit great opportunities for UW-Whitewater! And peeking even further ahead once they get back to America’s Dairyland, Whitewater welcomes in Coe and UC-Santa Cruz for some more interesting matches!
Thanks for reading and for your patience during my relative silence. I’ll try and do some tweeting this week and weekend as these matches get going!