Hey y’all! We’re back at it following NEW’s Midd-Herst preview with your second match-by-match look into the quarterfinals! This one features top seed and lone west region team remaining CMS against the CMU Tartans. I’m really hoping the Athenas win this one because otherwise I can’t blog again until Individuals. ASW is really pulling for her ASouth sistren at CMU though. Let’s dive in!
#2 CMS
Best wins: #3 Middlebury, #5 Pomona-Pitzer (3x), #8 Brandeis, #9 Tufts, #10 Williams, #12 Chicago (2x)
Worst losses: #1 Emory
Seniors: Jessie Cruz
Starting freshman: Sydney Lee (#4 Singles, #3 doubles), Sarah Bahsoun (#6 singles, #2 doubles)
Where they are strongest: Really everywhere, but extra strong at #1 doubles, #1 singles, and #3 singles
Where they are vulnerable: They’re tough anywhere. If I’m being super picky, it’s #2 singles because Tan seems to split sets every match
How they got here: Beat Pomona-Pitzer in SCIACs, entered the tourney as the top seed, then hosted a regional where they cruised past UT-Dallas and Pomona-Pitzer again
What would be considered a success: Repeating as national champs!
Three words to describe this team: Gritty, loud, disciplined
Don’t forget: This is a team that’s battle tested. Four of their six starters played in last year’s nationals, and played big in clutch moments. I expect the Athenas to come in with a similar mentality, determined to make it two in a row. However, the big knock on both CMS teams is their dropoff in play outside Claremont. It is a nice advantage to play 20 home matches per year, including nationals every now and then. If the Athenas can repeat away from the friendly confines of Biszantz, that stigma evaporates.
#11 CMU
Best wins: #8 Brandeis, #13 Kenyon, #15 Mary Washington
Worst losses: #5 Pomona-Pitzer, #1 Emory (x2), #6 Amherst, #4 Wesleyan
Seniors: Jamie Vizelman (#2 singles, #3 doubles)
Starting freshman: Danna Taylor (#1 singles, #1 doubles), Jannabelle Wu (#4 singles, #3 doubles), Beata Liberchuk (#6 singles), Victoria Chang (#6 singles earlier in the season, not at regionals, but you never know what Coach Girard is going to do)
Where they are strongest: #1 singles, #2/#3 doubles (both are strong but never on the same day)
Where they are vulnerable: If I HAD to pick something I’d say #3 and #6 singles
How they got here: They got in using Pool C after getting 3rd at UAAs, then cruised through their region taking 5-0 wins over Wheaton (Ill.) and a tough Kenyon team
What would be considered a success: I want CMU to believe they can win this match – it’s happening whether or not they want it to so might as well go in with the mindset that you are going to pull of the upset. However, given that CMS is a heavy favorite, I think if they pushed this to a 5-3 or 5-4 match they should be pretty happy with the way they played.
Three words to describe this team: Talented, hungry, nothing-to-lose (that’s one word, don’t @ me)
Don’t forget: The brain relies on circulating glucose for fuel so keep yourselves sugared up everyone. Tennis is a mental game. (I didn’t know what to put here)
Match-by-match rundown:
#1 doubles: Catherine Allen / Caroline Cox (CMS) vs. Danna Taylor / Melissa Strome (CMU)
WestW: Allen and Cox took their first loss of the season against PP’s #1 doubles team last weekend, and it’s hard for me to see them losing two in a row. While Taylor and Strome have won 7 of 8, I don’t think they have enough to push CMS here. CMS 8-5
ASW: Taylor and Strome are phenoms together, but this is a case where a rock meets a hard place and I honestly just think that Allen/Cox are a touch above the Tartan duo. It’ll be close until the end. CMS 8-6
#2 doubles: Nicole Tan / Sarah Bahsoun (CMS) vs. Courtney Ollis / Vinaya Rao (CMU)
WestW: Ollis and Rao have been great all season long, but Tan and Bahsoun have as well and will have a chip on their shoulders heading into NCAAs. They’re in the first alternate position for individuals, and can’t be happy about Midd getting two doubles teams in that CMS beat 8-2 and 8-1. Give me the Athenas. CMS 8-4
ASW: We’ve saw Ollis/Rao take home some big wins early in the season, going undefeated at indoors. This is a team that doesn’t like close matches – they win big or the lose big. I think Tan and Bahsoun have the experience to get the win. CMS 8-3
#3 doubles: Sydney Lee / Maddie Shea (CMS) vs. Jamie Vizelman / Janabelle Wu (CMU)
WestW: The Tartans need to win here if they have any hope at pulling off the upset. Fortunately for them, the Athenas have been tinkering with their #3 doubles team all season long. Unfortunately for them, the most recent pairing hasn’t lost yet. I think this’ll be close, but I’m sticking with my west region ladies. CMS 8-7(2)
ASW: I disagree WestW but we can still be friends. I think Vizelman and Wu are really coming into form here. They had a string of losses early in the season and split up, but since they’ve been back for their reunion tour they’ve been undefeated, including an 8-2 win over Emory. Lee and Shea will be tough but I think CMU has a chance here. CMU 8-5
#1 singles: Catherine Allen (CMS) vs. Danna Taylor (CMU)
WestW: This should be a great match. Taylor’s the ITA ASouth rookie of the year, and the freshman from Orlando has a great resume for the national honor announced next week. As good as Taylor’s been and will be, Allen’s currently a top-5 player in the nation and I’d give her the slight advantage in this one. Either way, I don’t see these two finishing. CMS leads 6-4, 2-3
ASW: I doubt this match will finish and both players probably know that. It will be a dog fight of a first set. Whoever wins it will probably just coast until the match is called. CMS leads 7-5, 2-4
#2 singles: Nicole Tan (CMS) vs. Jamie Vizelman (CMU)
WestW: Vizelman’s been pretty good this year too, but just like at #1 I’d say Tan’s got the slight advantage. Both players love to hang at the baseline so this one won’t finish either. CMS leads 6-3, 3-5
ASW: This match is the hardest for me. I consider Vizelman a very strong #2 but not a guaranteed win. So happy that she got the Most Improved Senior in the Atlantic South though. Very well deserved. Tan is also a very strong #2, not unbeatable but she still has the advantage. She’s been here before and been successful. CMS 6-4, 6-4
#3 singles: Rebecca Berger (CMS) vs. Vinaya Rao (CMU)
WestW: This is where the matchups really tilting more in the Athenas favor. Berger’s undefeated in D3 play and I’m not about to bet against her in Nationals after the way she played last year. CMS 6-1, 6-3
ASW: I’ve been hot and cold on Rao all season and I still can’t make up my mind. She’s got the goods to hang with the best 3s but Berger has just been too consistently solid. CMS 6-2, 6-1
#4 singles: Sydney Lee (CMS) vs. Janabelle Wu (CMU)
WestW: I’m tempted to say Wu because this is one of CMU’s best chances to pick up a point, but Lee’s been on a total tear and hasn’t lost since Emory at Indoors. Plus she had 3 bagels in her four sets at regionals so yea let’s stick with her. CMS leads 6-4, 3-2
ASW: I’m swinging for the fences here. Wu has been playing pretty well lately, notching two singles wins at Regionals. Let’s make it a third. I feel like mentally she’s out of whatever funk she was in early this season. CMU 6-3, 6-3
#5 singles: Caroline Cox (CMS) vs. Melissa Strome (CMU)
WestW: Cox, like seemingly everyone on the Athenas, hasn’t lost since Indoors and all I see when looking at her matches are bagels. Hard to pick Strome after that and now I’m hungry, thanks. CMS 6-0, 6-1
ASW: Mmm bagels. For the purposes of this match, Strome and I hate bagels. WestW is right, Cox is just fire at #5. Strome is one of CMU’s biggest singles mysteries this year- she’s gotten wins over Pomona-Pitzer and Wesleyan but lost 0 and 1 to W&L. Her matches tend to finish pretty quickly though. Which Melissa will show up on Monday? *sigh* CMS 6-1, 6-4
#6 singles: Sarah Bahsoun (CMS) vs. Beata Liberchuk (CMU)
WestW: You should know the drill by now. CMS has great singles depth, Bahsoun hasn’t lost since Indoors, bagels, cream cheese, maybe some chocolate for ASW. Sorry where was I? CMS 6-2, 6-2
ASW: I will take that chocolate and I will share it with CMU because I feel like they need it more than me after reading this. If anyone from CMU is reading, I only share my chocolate with people I like. Liberchuk hasn’t played all the matches this year and she’s been on par with her team by losing to Top 10 teams and beating everyone else. Bahsoun is from a top 10 team though. CMS leads 7-5, 4-4
Overall prediction:
WestW: I picked the Athenas to win it all, so obviously I have to stick with them here. CMS 5-0
ASW: CMU please get at least a point. Preferably more than one. You have my Atlantic South dreams on your shoulders. CMS 5-2