APRIL WEEKENDS IN THE NE: A Dream of Zihuatanejo Part II
What a big Saturday! Bowdoin beat Brandeis 6-3 (I believe I had that) with the last two matches coming in three sets. Amherst held off a hard fighting Colby 5-4. UVA over Auburn in a stunner, and it wasn’t even the craziest result of the day. Wesleyan upset Middlebury 6-3! Adrian Roji clinched the match deep in a 3rd set at #3 singles over Andre Xiao. It’s almost like I called that the swing match in my preview yesterday (then again I predicted Midd would win so basically why are you still reading this? I am obtuse.) Roji’s clinch video is both awesome and outrageous. Young punk, Mr. Rock & Roll. Cocky as hell. We liked him immediately. Great fight from the Cards, who won a couple close doubles matches to take a lead and never look back. I was thinking that I like Coach Hansen’s swap of Xiao and Morris, bc it gave Midd the best chance to split #3 and #4, but Coach Fried got it done nonetheless. I’d like to think that the last thing that went through Hansen’s mind, before his head hit the pillow tonight, is how the hell Fried got the best of him for the second time in three years. Remember Coach, salvation lies within. Onto Sunday’s slate!
#7 Williams @ #19 Tufts
When: Sunday, April 7th at 1:00 p.m.
Why it matters: 60 and partly sunny: this match should be played outside.
How Tufts can win: When you have the best player in the country, it’s a good start towards getting the necessary five points! Sorkin will be favored over Kam in singles, and Gorelik has been one of the hottest players on the planet over the past month. Tufts has been playing some VERY close doubles matches of late, playing three breakers in their last two matches alone. If the big Bos can bomb some serves, they have been pretty good at pulling out close doubles matches (if only the same could be said for singles). Take a doubles lead, win at #1 and #3, and you only need one other Jumbo to come up big!
Why Williams is favored: Williams is a very tough matchup for Tufts. They play good doubles at all three spots, they have a solid #1 but it’s not their strongest spot, and they appear to have more depth than they know what to do with. Now, we haven’t seen a full Williams singles lineup since the Emory match, but whether it’s Indrakanti, Taylor, Chung, Frelinghuysen, or even Reich in the bottom half of the lineup, the Ephs are extremely dangerous. Williams should certainly be favored at #1 doubles, #2 singles, and probably all three of the bottom singles spots. That’s five points right there, and we didn’t even get to toss up matches.
SWING MATCH: I want to say #3 doubles, because that’s a decently strong spot for both teams, but I think I have to go with #3 singles. I mentioned in my March review how well Isaac Gorelik had been playing recently, knocking off Roji (Wes) and Fung (Amh) in straight sets, but Ananth Raghavan will be the toughest #3 he’s faced yet this year. This is a match that Tufts probably has to win if they are going to pull off the upset, but it’s a swing match nonetheless.
Prediction: Williams takes a doubles lead, and never looks back, defeating Tufts by a not so close 6-3 score.
#4 Emory @ #3 Middlebury
When: Sunday, April 7th at 2:30 p.m.
Weather: Mid 50’s and cloudy: should be played outdoors
Why it matters: A top-5 matchup with big NCAA seeding implications…duh. Plus, after today’s defeat at the hands of the Cards, the Panthers will be looking to bounce back in a big way. Honestly, there is now a very real scenario where Middlebury doesn’t make NCAAs. I don’t think it’s likely, but it exists considering Midd’s best win is Pomona-Pitzer and they’ve lost to the two top-10 teams they’ve played so far in 2019. All it takes is one big win, and if you are doubting the Panthers after losing to a VERY good and VERY deep Wesleyan team, then it’s you who are obtuse. On the other side, this will be one of the the Eagles’ biggest outdoor tests in 2019 (EU beat Williams at CMS earlier this year). A win for either team shores up an NCAA bid.
How Midd can win: We know how strong they are at the top of their lineup. Bad news for Midd…so is Emory. That said betting against both Cuba and Farrell seems like a surefire way to lose your money. Guo has been arguably the best #5 in the entire country, and Midd’s doubles is always tough (which is what makes Wes’ performance today even more impressive). The Panther recipe for a Sunday win includes a doubles lead, big wins at the top of the lineup, and Mr Guo down at #5.
Why Emory is favored: To put it simply, they play solid doubles and they are strong at each and every singles spot. Plus, they didn’t play a very long and intense match today against a conference foe, so their legs should be fresher in 3rd sets on Sunday.
MATCH BY MATCH (with some “help” from the Headmaster!)
#1 doubles: Jemison/Bouchet (Emory) vs Cuba/Eazor (Midd)
NE: Not worried about the loss to Roji/Lilienthal today as they have been the best pair in the NE so far this spring. Midd 8-6.
AS: EU 8-6.
#2 doubles: Spaulding/Wanner (Emory) vs Farrell/Martin (Midd)
NE: Big matchup here, as both teams are pretty strong. Farrell played some great tennis today, so I’m not betting against him here. Midd 8-5.
AS: EU 8-5.
#3 doubles: Cassone/Mora (Emory) vs Samets/Xiao (Midd)
NE: The one spot that Midd did win today against Wes came in a breaker. Samets and Xiao have been pretty solid all year, but I think the pure talent on the other side of the net will be too much. EU 8-5.
AS: Midd 8-5.
#1 singles: Jonathan Jemison (Emory) vs Lubomir Cuba (Midd)
NE: These two have actually battled a few times in their career so far, with Cuba winning all of the dual matches while Jemison smoked Lubo at NCAAs last year. JJ has been playing very well this year, while Lubo has been up and down. I think the head to head means something, but not enough to move my pick. The world went and god itself in a big hurry, but I think this one goes the distance. EU 5-7, 6-3, 6-4.
AS: Midd 5-7, 6-3, 6-4.
#2 singles: Hayden Cassone (Emory) vs Noah Farrell (Midd)
NE: Man, Farrell just rolled past Anker today, but Cassone ain’t Peter Anker. Farrell won both matches last year in straight sets, so as I said in the doubles, I’m not picking against the 5th-year senior after what I saw today. He’s institutionalized. Midd 7-6, 6-4.
AS: EU 7-6, 6-4.
#3 singles: Adrien Bouchet (Emory) vs Andre Xiao (Midd)
NE: I don’t know if Xiao will stay at #3 against EU. It certainly seems like he’s playing better than Morris right now, but if I’m a Panther fan I’d much prefer to see Andre taking on a young Mora at #4 because whomever plays #3 for the Panthers should be an underdog. EU 6-3, 6-4.
AS: Midd 6-3, 6-4.
#4 singles: Antonio Mora (Emory) vs Stanley Morris (Midd)
NE: Something of a swing match here in the battle between two dynamic freshmen. Morris hasn’t had great results of late, so this would be a great time for him to bounce back…but Mora is too good. EU 6-4, 6-2.
AS: Midd 6-4, 6-2.
#5 singles: Andrew Esses (Emory) vs Adam Guo (Midd)
NE: I’ve been talking a lot about Guo of late, but the Panther sophomore deserves all of that and more. He came out of nowhere this year, but I have to remind myself that not all birds are meant to be caged. He had the audacity to beat Princeton Carter earlier today, and I like him against Esses here too. Midd 7-5, 6-1.
AS: EU 7-5, 6-1
#6 singles: James Spaulding/Sahil Raina (Emory) vs Alex Vanezis/Nate Eazor (Midd)
NE: Vanezis was up 3-0 in the first set against Lieb earlier today, and I’m pretty sure he lost the next 12 consecutive games. It appears that Eazor is being phased out of the singles lineup after some struggles, but it could also just be an injury. Either way, I wouldn’t be shocked to see Nate back in here. Similar on EU’s side, we’ve seen some of the senior in Spaulding and some of the freshman of Raina. Either way, right now the edge lies with the Eagles. EU 6-2, 6-4.
AS: Midd 6-2, 6-4.
Predictions!
NE: Emory def Midd 5-4
AS: Midd def Emory 5-4