I literally manufactured 1 hour at work so I could write this article, so guess what. This article is going to be no bullshit, straight stream of consciousness, but with a specific topic in mind. And that topic is my neglected ASouth teams, because my work this year has left a lot to be desired. If you’re looking forward to Bracketology coming out today or tomorrow, keep looking forward to it, because that has an hour on my schedule later as well. Power Rankings will be at some point this week dependent on how much I want to earn my paycheck. (Spoiler Alert: it’s not much). The great region of the ASouth deserves it’s own State of the Region Address and I am here to deliver it to you. I’ll grade the teams on their season, give an expectation as to where they are going, and maybe just add a general thought about them. Not sure how long this article will be as I want to get it done and also impress RegionalNEC with my microwave blogging skills. Let’s get started.
Emory Eagles, Power Rank #4
What They’ve Done: Honestly, Emory hasn’t done a whole lot this year that is super eye-opening, at least from an Eagles comparison. They didn’t win Indoor Nationals in a loss to Chicago – disappointing but not the end of the world. They’ve run through Williams (not without it’s drama) and took out Middlebury this past weekend. With two big NESCAC wins under their belt and just general Emoryness, they will go into the UAA Tournament with likely the #2 seed unless that UAA call goes into a frenzy. Emory is right where it needs to be when it comes to NCAA placement. The win over Midd this past weekend was big, even if the Eagles got steamrolled in the top 3 spots.
What’s To Come: As I mentioned above, the UAA Tournament is the only looming task on their schedule. They will likely have a date with either Wash U or Case Western in the semifinal, which will be a tough match either way. With the way the top 12 has been playing, I would expect good matches throughout the UAA Tournament. The Emory/Chicago aura is gone – everyone thinks they can get a slice of the pie now. And they aren’t wrong.
Strengths: Depth and Talent Everywhere
Looking back at Emory’s matches this year, they don’t have a true “strength,” as in a single spot that they always count on to win. Contributions have really come from everywhere, whether it be the bottom of hte lineup and doubles against Midd, or the top of the lineup against Chicago. It was a mish mosh against Williams and that’s pretty much it. Emory can beat you in multiple different ways. They have guys at every spot in the lineup that will give them a fighter’s chance at it.
Weakness: No Guarantees
This goes with the strength that they have – I have not seen one spot where Emory knows they are going to win. This is a difference between national champions of years past. Emory championship teams had certain spots where you were basically dead to rights (think GOodwin, Pottish, Jemison at #2, #3 doubles). Take a look at Emory’s season so far this year and tell me that spot exists. You probably can’t. And that’s what makes Emory beatable, because they will always be one Hayden Cassone DQ away from losing.
2019 Season Grade: B
Satisfactory as of right now. Getting 2nd at Indoors makes sure that this grade could not be any higher than a B. With Middlebury’s loss to Wesleyan, that win doesn’t look as great. Williams is out there struggling a bit too. We’ll see what Emory’s got for the UAA Tournament.
CMU Tartans, Power Rank #14
What They’ve Done: Not enough. CMU came into the year with high hopes and those dreams have taken a big hit so far this year. With seniors at the top two spots, one would have expected that CMU would have made their mark this year. They have not. Losses to Wash U twice, Case Western, Wesleyan, and Amherst have put a stain on a once promising season. CMU has been mostly quiet the past couple of weeks and came back this past weekend to the tune of a UMW doubles sweep. While they came back against the Eagles, this does not bode well for the rest of the year. I was looking for a comprehensive win over UMW to show me that the Tartans turned over a new leaf. I can hope that they show a better effort against Kenyon coming up, which should prove to be a much tougher match.
What’s to Come: Well, if you currently try and access the CMU Men’s Tennis website right now, this is what you get:
And is there anything that exemplifies CMU’s season so far more than that page? I doubt it. Luckily, I know the schedules of all of my teams. I know that CMU has two big meetings upcoming – one vs. Kenyon and of course, the UAA Tournament. With CMU currently on the outside looking in for Pool C, the Tartans need as many wins as possible. A win against Kenyon would give them another indirect over Case which would be nice, but honestly wouldn’t matter all that much. A loss would end their season. In the UAA Tournament, it’s looking like that they’ll need to make the finals to even have a shot at Pool C. Judging by how this year has gone, the likelihood of that is not very high.
Strengths: Depth
Somehow, CMU has flipped the script from last year. Their depth has kept them in matches, with Clark Safran making his mark as one of the best #5 players in the country. Robert Levin has stepped up, allowing Coach Belmonte to put Ray Boppana down at the #4 spot where it looks like he’s more comfortable. Other than that, we can’t point to anything else on the season as a true strength. The Tartans will often play roulette in ranked matches and just hope they win 5 of those spins. So far, they have lost a lot to the Vegas casinos.
Weaknesses: Top of the Lineup
Another script flip here. Last year the top 3 of Levine/Downing/Boppana made waves as one of hte best three-headed monsters in the nation. This year is the exact opposite, which is on my short list for surprises of the season. The top of the lineup has failed them time and time again, specifically against Wash U both times out.
2019 Season Grade: D+
A rough grade for a rough season so far. They can turn this around to be a B+ with a finals appearance at UAAs, and nothing else.
Mary Washington Eagles, Power Rank #15
What They’ve Done: No big deal, but they ended their years long losing streak to both Redlands and Pomona this year and have been rewarded for it. Looking at their schedule they really haven’t done all that much else, with close losses to Kenyon, Sewanee, and CMU. But, when you play in the CAC, that’s really all you need. A drubbing of Christopher Newport tells me that this team will be a #2 seed in NCAAs when we get down to it. UMW should be proud that they’ve finally broken back into the top 15 after a few seasons hovering in the 20 range. This team has been getting it done with less than others and that deserves kudos.
What’s to Come: Nothing really other than the CAC Championship, which UMW will undoubtedly win. They do have another match against Johns Hopkins which they could presumably lose, but does anyone really care if they do? They can use that as a warmup for champ season.
Strengths: Middle of the Lineup and Doubles
UMW does what UMW does best. And that is to develop key contributors that do the dirty work, particularly in doubles and at the 4/5/6 positions. Cole Tecce will continue to be a favorite in my book, but UMW has gotten surprising contributions in the middle of the lineup from unheralded guys like Moses Hutchison. Both the Redlands and PP wins featured 2-1 leads going into singles and finished with 5-4 wins. Mary Washington has a formula for how they do things and that isn’t going to change this season. Any wins from the top 2 are a bonus against a top 20 team.
Weaknesses: Lack of TOP Talent
Nothing against the top of the UMW lineup, but unfortunately for UMW, they are at a disadvantage when it comes to top tier talent. Matt Miles does have a big win over Niko Parodi this year, but he has definitely struggled otherwise, with losses to Downing, Zalenski, and Kronenberg on the year. THese aren’t bad losses, but if UMW were to dream of the top 12, they’d need to win those. Patrick Hughes and Mike Fleming have shuttled in between the 2 and 3 spots with some success, but success always at #3. Hughes notched his big win against Bellet of PP for the clinch. UMW is close, but they are one key top player away from true scary status.
2019 Season Grade: A-
Ending the losing streak is all we really need to talk about. They are top 15 in the country with a couple of marquee wins. So far, so good for UMW and I expect that to continue.
Johns Hopkins, Power Rank #26
What They’ve Done: Literally nothing. I mean, this team has a loss to NCW on the season and a win against RPI and Bates. They simply don’t play anyone that is around their level all year and that leads to some very uninspiring results. The only true result that we can look at and take some knowledge from is that 7-2 beatdown by NC Wesleyan. Hopkins clearly wasn’t ready to play that match and got surprised by a Bishops team that hasn’t performed well after that match. Yikes.
What’s to Come: A whole lot of nothing. Hopkins doesn’t even have the UMW match on their schedule so it’s hard to tell if they are even playing that. Hopkins is lucky that Swarthmore is on an off year this year, so the Jays should be able to make the NCAA tournament as a #3 seed somewhere. This team used to be a perennial power – now they have basically devolved into a giant pit of nothingness.
Strengths: TBD
Weaknesses: Schedule
2019 Season Grade: Incomplete
Final Thoughts
I was able to microwave out my thoughts on the ASouth and I realize this is not as in depth as I normally am. I am working on Bracketology for you so we can get a more national look at things, but will re-visit the ASouth at some point later these next two weeks. Until then, enjoy the writing that is happening on the blog, particularly what is going on on the women’s side. They have made an amazing effort this year to give you the content that you’ve been clamoring for and I hope you are all enjoying it. ASouth, OUT.