Northeast Women’s 2020 Season Preview

Hello hello hello! I’ve finally awoken from my winter hibernation, and thanks to the groundhog, I know that spring is just around the corner!!! And you know what that means – tennis is finally back ladies and gents! My fellow women’s writers have already put out some fire content and huge shoutout to our new Women’s Central writer for dropping some serious knowledge and posting her first article without any mishaps whatsoever – I aspire to be her one day. We’ve also had our resident smart / tech guru Analyst help give the Blog a face lift in the off season and I hope y’all are as excited as I am about how dope the site looks. Anyways, it’s Valentine’s day weekend, and after consuming three tubs of Ben and Jerry’s on Friday night, what better thing for me to do than write about my one true love – D3 tennis. The NE has historically been stacked with talent, and this year is no different. We’ve got the reigning natty champs (Wesleyan, in case ya missed it), 4 teams in the top 10 and some fire freshmen in the mix. I always expect big things from NE and I know they’ll deliver this year. So, without further adieu, here’s your sneak peek at our NE teams in the top 20. 

Wesleyan

Preseason ITA National Ranking: 1

2019 Season Record: 20-2, National Champions

Rookies: Caitlyn Ferrante, Katie Fleischman, Sasha Gaeth, Caitlin Goldberg, Serim Jin, Sophie Henderson (transfer from Georgetown)

Key Departures: Victoria Yu

Coming off an unbelievable season last year, the Cards are on fire. Plus, having only graduated one player and brought on a slew of fiery young guns, they are well positioned to continue the building of their empire in 2020. The Cards already had a stacked lineup, and I’m very impressed with the play I saw from this team in the fall – they crushed, even with all their juniors abroad, I think this team is well poised to be a force to be reckoned with this year. We get right to the action with a rematch of last year’s national title match as the Cards square off against Emory in their fourth match of the season over spring break. The Cards then go on to have a pretty standard schedule filled with NESCAC foes, and even have a back-to-back match day with Amherst and Williams in early April. Unless their NESCAC opponents have really stepped up their game, I have a feeling the Cards will dominate this season. But here’s to hoping I’m wrong and we get some fun action in the NE this season!

Big matches: Emory (3/12), Middlebury (4/4), Amherst (4/12)

Middlebury

Preseason ITA National Ranking: 4

2019 Season Record: 19-3, NCAA National Semifinalists

Rookies: Amanda Frank, Brinlea La Barge, Caitlin Neal

Key Departures: Christina Puccinelli

I have a feeling this is Midd’s year. I know I just raved about Wesleyan above, and I said this about Midd last year, but come on, I’ve gotta be right one of these days!!! Midd’s powerhouse class are seniors now, and I’m sure they’re hungry to make their mark on the program and avenge some disappointing post-season losses. The only thing is Midd can be streaky. When they’re on, they’re on fire, but sometimes they’re not. If the Panthers can light a fire and keep it burning all season, they might prove to be a dark horse this season (it’s crazy that I’m even considering calling a #4 team a “dark horse”). 

Big matches: Chicago (3/25), Pomona-Pitzer (3/27), CMS (3/28), Wesleyan (4/4), Amherst (4/25)

Amherst

Preseason ITA National Ranking: 6

2019 Season Record: 14-6, NCAA National Quarterfinalists

Rookies: Sarah Park, Calista Sha

Key Departures: Kelsey Chen, Jane Fraley, Ashley Park, Camilla Trapness, Kelly Yang

Similar to Midd, Amherst has a powerhouse class leading them this year as seniors. Smuckler, Ivenitsky, DeWire and Chen have all been big contributors to the Mammoths over the past three years, and with very few lineup spots graduated last year (1 – 2 depending on how you count it), and some strong additions, the Mammoths are well-positioned to have a stellar year. Do I think this Amherst team is at the level of a Clark/Brewer/Devlin Amherst (wow I’m really aging myself here)? No. But do I think this team has a strong and highly talented group of women? Absolutely. And with the right mix of luck and skill, this Amherst team absolutely has what it takes to climb the ranks and be a real challenger on the national stage this year. They’ve got a big spring break out in California where we’ll get our first look on how they stack up against some of the best teams in the country, and, of course, they’ve got a ton of competition back home in the Northeast. I’m excited for the Mammoths this year. I think they’ve got a lot in store for us and could very well have a hell of a season.

Big matches: Ponoma-Pitzer (3/17), CMS (3/19), Wesleyan (4/12), Middlebury (4/25)

MIT 

Preseason ITA National Ranking: 9

2019 Season Record: 18-4, NCAA National Quaterfinalist

Rookies: Seraphin Castelino, Pamela Duke, Sara Fernandez, Yuka Perera, Sarah, Persemlidis

Key Departures: NONE

This is cheating since I got this article out too late – but MIT absolutely steamrolled Brandeis 9-0 in their season opener yesterday with freshmen holding the top two spots for the Engineers (Beavers?) – a sign of great things to come from this young team! MIT had a phenomenal season last year – winning their conference tournament, upsetting Bowdoin to earn a spot in the Elite Eight and giving Wes a bit of a fight before falling to the eventual champs. MIT has always been a reliably dangerous opponent for most teams out there, and I think this year will be no different. They graduated zero players from last year’s superstar team, and they’ve added FIVE freshmen to the mix. They’ve got a large, but young roster that is capable of doing some big things. Plus, under the leadership of Coach Carol, we know this team is in great hands. I’m really excited to see how this team performs this year – I think they’re one to watch! And can someone please finally clear up for me whether their mascot is a Beaver or an Engineer?!?!

Big matches: Brandeis (2/15 – update MIT won 9-0), Pomona-Pitzer (2/28), Wesleyan (3/19), Amherst (4/3), Bowdoin (4/10)

Brandeis

Preseason ITA National Ranking: 10

2019 Season Record: 12-7

Rookies: Lucy Gottfried, Grace Wang

Key Departures: Keren Khromchenko, Sophia He, Olivia Leavitt, Michele Lehat

Ok so I’m obviously the worst because Brandeis has already started their season last week with a loss to Bryant, but better late than never! The Judges square off against MIT tomorrow in a big D3 opener before heading down south for some big spring break matches. I’m interested to see how Brandeis will fare this year. They come off of a phenomenal season, but they also lost some key players in Khromchenko and Lehat, and of course the departure of head coach Ben Lamana to NE foe, Bowdoin, will take a toll. So for me, this team has a lot of question marks around them. Though I’m sure those will be answered within the first few weeks of the season, as we see what this team has to offer. They did bring in Pauri Pandian (a Wesleyan grad), so maybe he can bring some of that Wesleyan special sauce to this team. I’m not going to make too many predictions here, but I’m hoping this team can build on the successes of last year and continue their rise in the rankings throughout the season. They’ve got some big names on their schedule this year – can they stack up to the competition? We’ll find out!

Big matches: MIT (2/15 – update Lost 0-9), Emory (2/28), Pomona-Pitzer (2/29), Midd (3/15), Wesleyan (3/22), Skidmore (4/4)

Bowdoin

Preseason ITA National Ranking: 11

2019 Season Record: 15-6

Rookies: Kennedi Carter, Morgan Hall

Key Departures: Sarah Shadowens, Devon Wolfe

New decade, new coach. Bowdoin snagged Coach Lamana from Brandeis this year, and after many, many years of Hobie, I’m curious to see how this team changes under new leadership. Hobie isn’t the only notable departure for the Polar Bears, though, as Devon Wolfe transferred to D3 foe, CMS this year, which is definitely a big loss for this team. However, they really impressed me late in the season, and with a lot of talent, this young team could be well-positioned to make some big moves this year. They do have a lean roster, so as long as they steer clear of injuries, the Bowdoin squad should be good to go and bring some real challenges to the other top teams this spring.

Big matches: Wash U (3/10), CMS (3/14), Pomona-Pitzer (3/18), Wesleyan (3/28), Amherst (4/4), MIT (4/10), Middlebury (4/18)

Tufts

Preseason ITA National Ranking: 12

2019 Season Record: 9-10

Rookies: Casey Cummings, Kennedy May, Tilly Rigby, Michelle Shub, Maddie Suk

Key Departures: Tomo Iwasaki, Otilia Popa

Tufts had a very solid season last year, making a run to the finals of the NCAA regional before falling to a formidable Midd. They only lost two players to graduation, and brought on a whole boatload of talent in one of the bigger rosters I’ve seen in the NE in a while. With that, I’m looking for some big things from the Jumbos this year. I think they’ve got a lot of talent and momentum coming off last year, and I think they could really start to threaten some of the top teams in the region. They’ve got quite a few battles ahead of them, but I think they might come out and surprise a few teams this spring.

Big matches: W&L (3/14), Emory (3/18), Bowdoin (3/27), Middlebury (4/11), Amherst (4/15), Williams (4/19), Wesleyan (4/25)

Williams

Preseason ITA National Ranking: 13

2019 Season Record: 6-10

Rookies: Zoe Bennett, Maya Jamroz, Katherine Orgielewicz

Key Departures: Korina Neveux, Leah Bush

Frankly, I’m surprised to see the Ephs ranked this high. After a pretty disappointing season (by Ephs standards, at least), this squad has a lot of building to do to get back to their former glory. But the Ephs brought in a very talented group of freshmen and while this season may be tough for them, they’ve got a lot of grit and drive to help them get back into the hunt. Williams has always been known for working hard, and this year’s team is no exception. If they can find the drive and motivation to really push themselves, I think this team has a shot at really threatening some of the top teams in the country. Whether they’ll be able to come away with the win is another thing, but don’t count this team out.

Big matches: Pomona-Pitzer (3/26), CMS (3/28), Emory (3/31), Wesleyan (4/11), Middlebury (4/12), Amherst (4/18), Tufts (4/19), Bowdoin (4/25)

Skidmore

Preseason ITA National Ranking: 17

2019 Season Record: 14-7

Rookies: Ayda Arslan, Maya Lal, Chanhtel Thongphok

Key Departures: Laura Swenson

The T-Breds kick off their season next weekend after a successful fall campaign and a very successful 2018-2019 season. They only lost one player to graduation and have brought in some good talent to complement their already strong lineup. The T-Breds can definitely hang with teams ranked around the top 10, and I think can give teams like Williams and Tufts a hard time. Skidmore has always been a pretty solid team, but they’ll really need a little extra special sauce if they want to take themselves to the next level – can they do it this year? Only time will tell.

Big matches: Williams (3/7), UMW (3/13), Johns Hopkins (3/14), Amherst (3/28), Brandeis (4/4), Vassar (4/18), Middlebury (4/19), Bowdoin (4/26)

NYU

Preseason ITA National Ranking: 19

2019 Season Record: 10-2

Rookies: Lucy Avant, Anastasiia Balyk, Claire Huang, Karina Jansrud, Macarena Kruger

Key Departures: Ayesha Das, Alice McGinty, Vanessa Scott

NYU had a phenomenal fall season that saw freshman Karina Jansrud win her ITA regional and earn a spot at the Oracle Cup in Georgia. We also saw an NYU dubs pair of Maria Buraya and Anastasiia Balyk with an incredibly strong showing at the Oracle Cup with all three Violets earning All-American status. If this is any indication of what is to come for NYU this year, I’m exceptionally excited to see them excel and really make a splash on the national stage. They finished out last season strong with some wins over big teams like Wash U and Rochester, so I’m sure they’re looking to keep the momentum going. They’re a young team, but clearly with a lot of talent and fight. I’m really looking forward to seeing a lot more of the Violets this spring!

Big matches: Swarthmore (2/21), Williams (3/14), Wellesley (4/4), Brandeis (4/18), Babson (4/19)

 

That’s all for today, folks! Thanks for your patience as I finally dusted off the rust and got back to writing. Look forward to some more content from the women’s side in the coming weeks as the season picks up. And as always, any questions, comments or feedback, feel free to reach out via comments, Twitter or email – we’re always happy to hear from ya! And if anyone has any interest in joining the women’s blog squad, don’t hesitate to reach out! We’re a super fun group (we don’t bite, I promise) and just want to bring D3 tennis to the people!