stanford

All posts tagged stanford

College Tennis Review: Is your Team Speeding Forward or Off the Rails?

Posted by Admin on April 7, 2016

Posted in: College Tennis, Jeff McMillan. Tagged: 2016, Alabama, Analysis, arizona, Baylor, college tennis, Drake, Duke, georgia, Harvard, Iowa, Loyola Marymount, NCAA, Nebraska, Northwestern, Notre Dame, Oklahoma State, San Diego State, SMU, Southern Cal, stanford, TCU, Tennessee, USF, Utah State, UTSA, Wake Forest, washington. Leave a comment

College Tennis Review: Is Your Time Speeding Forward or Off the Rails?
Jeff McMillan, Tennis Atlantic

April is crunch time in college tennis and this season has been a wild one thus far which will undoubtedly set up for a wild finish to the regular season. Here is my look at how certain teams are doing heading down the final tracks of the season.

(the real fun gets started in the off the rails segment at the end.)

Speeding Forward

These teams that are hitting their stride just at the right time and show no signs of slowing.

Wake Forest: The Deacs are on an absolute tear right now and are looking ominous to any team in the country. Even before the massive win in Chapel Hill they were looking great by plowing through several ranked teams. Sunday’s win in Chapel Hill was a culmination of great fight and showed exactly what Wake Forest is capable of moving forward. A huge matchup with Virginia looms.

Georgia: For the early half of the season UGA was not looking all that imposing, certainly not compared to their lofty standards. Ranked as low as 19, the Dawgs were starting to become somewhat overlooked nationally. All that has changed in a hurry in the last few weeks. Georgia revved up their speed on the tracks with a huge home win over Ohio State on March 20^th and have turned the speed to maximum following the dominating performance in College Station this past Friday. Many people expected A&M to win that match and believed that if Georgia was to win it would be in the fashion of sneaking out a 4-3 thriller. Instead the Bulldogs punched the Aggies in the mouth and stole a 4-1 win. They are now 8-0 in the SEC and it looks like once again the SEC title will be heading to Athens.

SMU: Even before the last couple of week this was already a great season for the Mustangs of SMU. Then they decided to turn things up yet another notch by knocking off top 10 Oklahoma State and conference rival USF within the span of little over a week. Now the talk has shifted from will the Mustangs make the NCAA tournament to can they actually host a regional? Regardless of if they host one or not, nobody will want to see the red hot Ponies as their opponent as the season comes to a head.

TCU: This is a team that has not lost since February and one that has not lost at all this year on an open air court. They have not been without their tests but it seems like it’s becoming a college tennis regularity to see a TCU twitter video of Head Coach Roditi celebrating a big win as the Frogs yet again get the victory. The most recent example of this was their heart stopping victory over Texas A&M in front of a hostile crowd. TCU was definitely considered to be a title contender before the year began and they have not shown any signs of disappointing that expectation.

Southern Cal: The whispers of a USC down year had turned to full volume statements following the stunning loss to Washington. But in college tennis things can change in one weekend. The past weekend the Trojans dominated their NorCal conference rivals to make a huge statement. In both matches, the Trojans dropped the doubles point to Cal and Stanford respectively and in both they stormed back in singles to end up with convincing wins. It goes without saying that no matter what the season is, nobody should ever look past the USC Trojans in May.

Northwestern: The Wildcats have been a pleasant surprise this year. People expected them to have a good team but I don’t think anyone anticipated them being this good. The guys from Evanston have only 2 losses on their resume (one of which has since been avenged) thus far and have shown no signs of slowing down. They look set to host a regional as they continue to impress week after week.

Gaining Traction

These teams might are starting to find the track just at the right time

Duke: This extremely young team has had a pretty disappointing year for Duke standards. The Blue Devils fell out of the rankings for a couple weeks in March and the season looked to be shot. But thanks to a good win over NC State on Friday, suddenly things are starting to look up for the Blue Devils. Even more encouraging than the win over NC State was the fight they gave Virginia in match largely expected to be a rout. If they can bring that level of play for the ACC tournament then they can be surprisingly dangerous. (I say ACC tournament because the rest of their regular season schedule is unfortunate with very tough matches vs Wake and UNC and a match vs Clemson which will give them no benefit to winning)

Washington: The NCAA tournament drought for the Huskies looks to be coming to an end this year. The team has shown a lot in recent weeks with solid wins, punctuated with the cornerstone win over Southern Cal. Some tough Pac 12 matches remain vs Stanford, Cal and Oregon but the Huskies look to be playing their best tennis at the right time.

Nebraska: The Cornhusker improvement has not necessarily been shown in wins so far but in how they have played in recent matches. They are starting to really compete vs every team in the Big 10. Only a matter of time before they pull off the desired upset win.

Alabama: Things did not look great for Alabama early in the year and it took a while for things to turn around but now the Crimson Tide look to be finding their game. They are in battles with every SEC team now and most recently pulled out an important win at Ole Miss. They have played themselves into a good position to make the NCAA tournament.

Loyola Marymount: The Lions have been one of the best unranked teams for the past couple of seasons, being right there and threatening ranked teams, so close to the top 75 promised land. Finally they have gotten there this year and are looking like a legitimate contender in the West Coast Conference thanks to 3 consecutive wins over ranked teams.

Utah State: Utah State has quietly built a very solid program out in Logan, one that been a consistent force in the Mountain West. The Aggies have been playing good tennis in recent weeks. They look to be emerging as the favorite to win the Mountain West which is the most evenly matched conference top to bottom in the country.

Losing Steam

These teams are started to slow down when it matters most

Oklahoma State: Not that long ago Oklahoma State was looking very dangerous and like a national title contender. Now they are looking very vulnerable to an early NCAA tournament upset. The Cowboys were badly hurt when their solid #2 player Temur Ismailov pulled a KU Singh (apologies to UGA fans) and abandoned the team midstream to go play in the pros. Suddenly the Pokes lineup is looking mighty thin and just at the wrong time as they are about to start the brutal Big 12 conference schedule.

Stanford: Just how many chances does this team need before people give up on them as a serious contender? All year people parrot how talented Stanford is and how they are going to start gelling at any moment now. I was one of these, I thought this year’s Stanford’s team was finally a legitimate one. But what do they do when they are presented with opportunity? Get blown away in singles by the LA Pac 12 power firm. They do not have a single signature win this year and are running out of opportunities once again.

USF: Similar to Oklahoma State, the Bulls were looking great in the early parts of the year but have since fallen off the pace. And it’s now looking possible that they are the 4^th best team in the AAC (behind Tulane, Tulsa and SMU). The loss to SMU on Saturday was a real eye opener to just how much this team is starting to skid on the tracks. They do not have a real solid option in the lower parts of the lineup and Roberto Cid is having to do too much on his own at the moment.

Notre Dame: The Fighting Irish are 2-6 in their last 8 ACC games and things are not looking good for their hopes of an NCAA tournament berth. Missing the NCAA tournament would be a pretty big disappointment for this veteran heavy team and it will be very hard for them to do so now.

Harvard: A heartbreaking loss for Harvard on Sunday vs Columbia was the cap on what has been a disappointing few weeks for the Crimson. They have lost to a number of teams that are considered to be around their level. They are just losing too many 50/50 matches. They need to find a way to get the killer instinct back.

Drake: After a hot middle part of the year, Drake has hit rough sledding recently. They would not be under the skidding category if it was not for the horrendous loss to William & Mary that they suffered in their most recent match. This match alone is the one that is putting Drake’s tournament chances in jeopardy (still a high chance to win their almost nonexistent conference though).

Off The Rails

These teams have lost the map, way off the tracks and have no way back on

Tennessee: Hey what are the Vols doing on this list?? They are on a 5 match tear! Well as impressive as it is to beat Murray State 4 times in a row when they do not field a full lineup in any of the matches, unfortunately the Vols still end up way off the rails. 0-8 in the SEC and not close to sniffing the top 75. The days of JP Smith, Rhyne Williams and Tennys Sandgren seem like eons ago now. Even the days of Reese and Libietis seem like fairytales now. One thing Tennessee can feel good about is that some teams still consider beating them warrants an excuse to have a mosh pit locker room celebration (see the South Carolina Gamecocks). Any more seasons like this though and teams will treat wins over Tennessee how they treat wins over Boston College. Oh wait some teams consider that win to be cause for rapturous celebration as well (see Clemson Tigers).

Iowa: At one point things were actually looking good for Iowa. They were in the top 35 in the rankings and it looked like they were going to have a rare good season for Iowa tennis. But then Big 10 play started. Well actually two of their worst losses came to non Big 10 teams (Lamar and Cal Poly got em). And they are no longer being competitive, many of the recent losses being routs. Good news for Iowa fans? They can still enjoy watching a 125 pound guy roll around with another 125 pound guy for a chance at an NCAA individual title on youtube replay (spoiler alert… The Hawkeye loses)

Arizona: This selection could be very controversial because it’s debatable whether the Arizona train was ever on the rails in the first place. Naoki Takeda does his best to try and drive the team forward but he alone can’t save a program that seems content to be completely irrelevant (several years now that Arizona has been a non-factor). I’m not sure you’ll believe me… but there’s a legend out there that Arizona once beat UCLA in tennis. In 2010 according to legend. Can’t possibly be true. Let’s stick to the true stories of how the Wildcats took down mighty UC Riverside.

San Diego State: San Diego is a very beautiful city. However it is probably a little less beautiful when you are stuck playing 2^nd fiddle to a cross-town school that is 1/6^th your enrollment size. This was actually supposed to be a good season for SDSU (the heart-eaters, not the fluffy tails from South Dakota) but they have never got on track all season. While they are supposed to be challenging San Diego they are falling behind even teams like UCSB and Santa Clara. Now they have played a tough schedule and the Mountain West is so evenly matched that anything is possible still for the Aztecs.

Baylor: It was always going to be crushing news for Baylor that the Baylor tennis training camps in Budapest and Dortmund would taking a year off this year but even still Baylor was expected to be a good team once again. Compared to the rest of the teams in this section, they are very good but for Baylor standards it is not good. Missing the NCAA tournament is a real possibility as the remaining parts of their schedule are brutal and they just failed to cash in on their best chance for a big win (at home vs Texas Tech. This is about as off the rails as Baylor tennis ever gets.

UTSA: I understand the concept of a down season after you lose several of your top players but how does a team go from a breakout year in 2015 to a 2-17 year in 2016? 2-17. (The Roadrunners actually have 3 wins but they never entered in the win over UIW on ITA so we can’t quite count that one can we?) When you fall behind Texas Rio Grand Valley in tennis after losing to them, a university that has existed for less than a year, you know things are bad. This tennis team does not do a very good job of distracting UTSA fans (they exist? Well I lived in San Antonio for 2 years and I met about 8 in a city of 1.3 million in that time so yes they exist) from their 3-9 football or their 5-27 men’s basketball team.

Angelique Kerber Shines in Stanford

Posted by Admin on August 10, 2015

Posted in: Niall Clarke, WTA. Tagged: 2015, angelique kerber, Bank of the West, germany, Karolina Pliskova, stanford, us open, wta. Leave a comment

Angelique Kerber Shines in Stanford
Niall Clarke, Tennis Atlantic

Embed from Getty Images

Angelique Kerber fought off a strong test from Karolina Pliskova to claim the Bank of the West classic title in Stanford.

The German needed over two hours to dispatch her young opponent 6-3, 5-7, 6-4 in a gripping final on centre court. This was Kerber’s fourth title of the year, which ties her with world number one Serena Williams for the most titles won in 2015.

Pliskova aimed to use her big serve and effortless power to hit through her opponent’s defence and managed to rack up 52 winners during the match. Unfortunately for the Czech, she hit just as many unforced errors which would ultimately prove telling. Kerber, on the other hand, was more positive with her ratio hitting 27 winners to 14 unforced errors. The efficiency paid off.

The fifth seed started the better of the two and broke to take the first set 6-3. But Plsikova kept fighting and in a long break-fest of a second set, the Czech managed to pull through 7-5. The trend continued in the third with neither player being able to effectively hold serve. Kerber upped the pressure at 5-4 with Pliskova serving to stay in the match, but it proved too much for the 22-year-old who double faulted twice before hitting an error on match point.

Angelique Kerber, New Haven

“I would first of all like to congratulate Angie,” Pliskova told the crowd in her on-court speech.

“She’s a really great player. I actually just told her that I don’t want to play her anymore in finals – she’s 2-0 against me in finals now, so hopefully the next time I can play against somebody else”.

The pair had met in the Birmingham final back in June where Kerber prevailed in another tight three set match.

“I want to say well done to Karolina for a great week,” Kerber said. “We always have tough battles when we play each other – you’re a great tennis player and a great person, and I wish you all the best in Toronto next week. And actually I think we’ll have more finals against each other in the future.”

Kerber now has four titles this year, all at Premier level. Can she go a step further and add a first grand slam title in New York?

As for Pliskova, she will break in to the world’s top 10 when the new rankings are announced. The Czech will now push for a top eight seeding at the US Open.

The doubles title went to Chinese pair Xu Yi-Fan and Zheng Saisai, who defeated second seeded Spanish duo Anabel Medina Garrigues and Arantxa Parra Santonja in straight sets, 6-1, 6-3.

2015 WTA @BOTWClassic Stanford Preview, Predictions

Posted by Admin on August 3, 2015

Posted in: Niall Clarke, WTA. Tagged: agnieszka radwanska, angelique kerber, Bank of the West Classic, california, caroline wozniacki, stanford, us open, wta. Leave a comment

2015 @BOTWClassic Stanford Preview, Predictions
Niall Clarke, Tennis Atlantic

The US hard court season officially begins with a Premier event in Stanford, often a popular destination for the best players in the world.

The event was originally launched in San Francisco in 1971, making it the longest running women’s only event on the calendar. Eight years later it moved to Oakland before finding its current home the Taube Family Tennis Center in 1997.

Martina Navratilova holds the tournament record with five titles. Other winners include four time champion Kim Clijsters, and three-time champions Lindsay Davenport, Chris Evert, Billie Jean King and Serena Williams, who won the event last year.

Bank Of The West Classic
Tier: Premier
Location: Stanford, USA
Surface: Hard
Prize Money: $665,900
Date: August 3^rd-9^th 2015

Top four seeds who receive a first round BYE (Ranking)
1. (W/C) Caroline Wozniacki (5)
2. (W/C) Agnieszka Radwanska (7)
3. Carla Suarez Navarro (10)
4. Karolina Pliskova (12)

World number one Serena Williams, and Wimbledon finalist Garbine Muguruza were forced to withdraw from the tournament. The last seed is Elina Svitolina, making this a strong field but not in comparison to recent years.

First round matches to watch:

(5) Angelique Kerber vs Daria Gavrilova

Youngster Daria Gavrilova could provide a stern test for fifth seed and potential champion Angelique Kerber in this intriguing round one clash.

The German is making her return to action after a disappointing loss to Garbine Muguruza at Wimbledon. Kerber would have felt she had a huge chance of making the final herself in that section of the draw. Now with that behind her, the fifth seed will turn her attention to the US hard court swing, starting with Stanford.

Gavrilova looked to be showing signs of promise when she was gradually climbing up the rankings, but recently she has been in a slump, losing her last three matches. After a first round loss in Istanbul, can the Russian bounce back in a big way and upset Kerber in Stanford?

The world number thirteen defeated Gavrilova twice at the beginning of the season with victories in Brisbane and Sydney. Their last meeting was a close 6-7,7-6,6-3 win for the German. The quickness of the courts should suit Kerber’s counter punching game, especially with her flat shots. Gavrilova could provide an interesting test, but it is likely to be the fifth seed advancing.

(6) Andrea Petkovic vs Carina Witthoeft

Witthoeft? Really?

Speaking of youngsters, Carina Witthoeft will look to spring an upset by defeating compatriot and sixth seed Andrea Petkovic.

The 20 year old will be looking to put a bad few months on the main tour behind her after not registering a win since the French Open. The German is just outside the top 50, so a win here could see Witthoeft re-join that club.

Petkovic is making her return to tour action after losing in the third round of Wimbledon to Zarina Diyas. The German had a good grass court season by her standards on a surface she has previously struggled on. Hard courts suit her game more, so the world number 16 will look to use this stretch of the season to potentially re-join the top 10.

Petkovic will be the favourite, but with this being the start of a new part of the season there is potential for an upset.

Draw Analysis:

Top seed Caroline Wozniacki will receive a first round bye, but could face Mirjana Lucic-Baroni in round two if she can get by Varvara Lepchenko. The Croatian’s power game could be effective on this surface, and if Wozniacki is not careful she could be heading for an early exit. Mona Barthel will likely await the winner of Petkovic vs Witthoeft which would set up another all German clash for a quarter final place. Petkovic will once against be the favourite, but Barthel is capable of playing great tennis. The top seed does not have it easy in her quarter with potential for an upset.

Karolina Pliskova will look to put a disappointing Wimbledon behind her by making a title run at Stanford. The surface should suit the big serving Czech, who will receive a first round BYE courtesy of her seeding. The fourth seed could face Sabine Lisicki in the second round in what will be billed as a battle of the servers. The German is also coming off the back of a poor Wimbledon (for a change), but overall she has had a fairly consistent season. It will likely come down to who serves the better of the two, making this an even contest on paper. Speaking of big serves, seventh seed Madison Keys also finds herself in this tough quarter. The American will face Aleksandra Krunic in round one, then the winner of Ajla Tomljanovic vs Vitalia Diatchenko in round two. Three decent and potentially tricky opponents, but players you will expect Keys to beat. A quarter final against Pliskova or Lisicki will provide us with another big serving contest.

Second seed Agnieszka Radwanska took a wildcard in to the tournament and looks to build off a strong Wimbledon performance that saw the Pole re-enter the top 10. Her draw to the quarter finals looks kid with Catherine Bellis or a qualifier awaiting the world number seven in round two. From there it could be tricky, with Kerber possibly awaiting her in the quarter finals. The German could possibly go through a duo of youngsters in Gavrilova and Ana Konjuh before reaching the last eight. A clash with Radwanska will be interesting given their respective defensive game styles. The fast courts suit both, but I feel it benefits Kerber slightly more.

Third seed Carla Suarez Navarro lost in the first round of Wimbledon, so is also looking to recover from a disappointing result at SW19. There are some potentially dangerous players in her section of the draw, with Alison Riske or Tatjana Maria being the Spaniard’s second round opponent. Elina Svitolina is the projected quarter final opponent, but she can be troubled by Caroline Garcia in round two. It will be a battle of two of the tour’s rising players, but form is on the side of the Ukrainian. With Suarez’s form unknown, the 20 year old will fancy her chances of a deep run here.

Predictions:

Quarter finals:
Wozniacki def. Petkovic
Keys def. Pliskova
Svitolina def. Suarez Navarro
Kerber def. Radwanska

Semifinals:
Wozniacki def. Keys
Kerber def. Svitolina

Final:
Kerber def. Wozniacki

These are the events Kerber seems to win often, and with the surface likely suiting the German’s game, I predict that she will prevail in Stanford.

Pre-Tournament Men’s College Tennis Grades: Big 12 and Pac 12

Posted by Admin on April 24, 2015

Posted in: College Tennis, Jeff McMillan, NCAA. Tagged: 2015, Arizona State, Baylor, Big 12, Cal, college, NCAA, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pac 12, Southern Cal, stanford, State, TCU, tennis, texas, Texas Tech, UCLA, Utah, washington. Leave a comment

Pre-Tournament Men’s College Tennis Grades: Big 12 and Pac 12
Jeff McMillan, Tennis Atlantic

BIG 12

Oklahoma

Best Win: 4-3 at Baylor – The frenzy that was this titanic match between #1 and #2 ended in favor of the Sooners on enemy turf. In a season full of impressive wins and fending off challengers, this win stands alone as the most impressive of the season for John Roddick’s boys.

Worst Loss: 4-3 loss at Texas Tech- Following the massive win in Waco, the Sooners fell in Lubbock to the upstart Red Raiders who had been playing better and better as the season progressed. This loss was disappointing but overall did not affect the Sooner’s ranking and therefore is not a detrimental loss.

Team MVP: Axel Alvarez – Andrew Harris and Dane Webb also strong contenders for this award, especially considering the clutch nature of Webb all season. But it is hard to argue against undefeated in dual play. Alvarez’s amazing season has anchored the Sooners all spring and he has been the key to their rise to #1.

Grade: A

A great season all around for Oklahoma, with huge wins all over the place. They have defied the doubters time and time again. The true value of their season will be determined in the NCAA tournament. If they can take home the title it will be one of the best seasons of any team in recent memory.

Baylor

Best Win: 4-3 vs. Virginia – The first win over Virginia indoors in Chicago gets the nod as the Bears best win of the season because it set the tone. By beating the prohibitive indoor favorites, the Bears showed that they meant business in 2015 and were one of the teams to be reckoned with nationally

Worst Loss: 4-3 vs. Oklahoma – The Bears have lost to the Sooners 3 times this year and it is the 3^rd loss that is the worst of the bunch. Yes it was very close but it was the most disheartening because of the raucous crowd and how very nearly Baylor came to winning. This loss could be a confidence bruiser if the Bears are to face Oklahoma again in the Big 12 tournament or the NCAA tournament.

Team MVP: Julian Lenz – Lenz is the #1 ranked individual player in the nation right now and his results back that ranking up. He has been amazing all season. Maxime Tchoutakian’s insertion into the team in January has been critical as well but he does not get this award based on his poor record vs. the elite teams this season.

Grade: A

The season that Baylor was hoping for as they entered 2015. They have exceeded expectations to a degree and been even better than people were expecting thanks to the overall strength of the lineup where no weak spots can be found. Losing 3 times vs. a conference rival is not ideal, however they still have chances to remedy that as postseason begins.

TCU

Best Win: 4-0 vs. Texas A&M – The sheer domination of this win was impressive and gets the nod as the best win for the Horned Frogs in 2015. A 4-0 blanking with the 3 finished singles courts ending in lopsided scores. A&M has since gone on to win the SEC title which makes this dominating win ever more impressive.

Worst Loss: 4-1 vs. UCLA – At the time this loss did not seem to be that bad, but now that the Bruins have shown that they are a shadow at best of previous UCLA teams, this loss stands out as the lone bad blemish on TCU’s resume.

Team MVP: Guillermo Nunez – Going from starting the season at #6 and rising to winning matches vs. highly ranked opponents at #2 is just about the most impressive advancement any player can show in one season. The freshman from Chile lost 1 dual match all season and has been TCU’s rock all year long.

Grade: A+

After a heartbreaking 2014 season where the Horned Frogs found any and every way possible to lose 4-3 matches vs. highly ranked teams, 2015 was cathartic is so many ways. All the talent came together for a special season that will likely not end until deep into NCAA tournament play.

Texas

Best Win: 4-1 vs. Ohio State – A straightforward defense of their home city (even if it is not their true home courts at Caswell) earns the title of best win for the Longhorns. Ohio State never truly threatened in this match, which is what made this win so impressive.

Worst Loss: 4-1 at TCU – This loss was disappointing for the Longhorns because of how one-sided it was. TCU won 3 straight set matches in singles play to get the win. This convincing loss plus two other one-sided losses vs. Baylor and Oklahoma showed that there is a gap between the top 3 of the Big 12 and Texas.

Team MVP: Soren Hess-Olesen – Was the best player in the country for much of the dual season. And while he picked up a couple of losses late in the year, Soren still remained an almost sure point for Texas all year and because of that gave Texas a chance in each match they competed in.

Grade: B-

The regular season started out stronger than it ended. They are still a top 10 team nationally, but the lopsided losses to the 3 teams above them in the Big 12 shows that there is a gap there. It is a bit disappointing for the Horns that TCU has been able to surpass them in one season, especially with it being the senior year for the top 3 of Soren Hess Olesen, Lloyd Glasspool and Adrien Berkowicz.

Texas Tech

Best Win: 4-3 vs. Oklahoma – Without this win the season was very good, but nothing special. But with this win the Red Raiders turned their season into something potentially special. This huge upset over the previously bulletproof Sooners gives Texas Tech a chance to host a regional and make a run in the NCAA tournament.

Worst Loss: 4-3 vs. Clemson – A loss to a team that is just barely hanging on in the top 75 is dragging down Texas Tech like an anchor. Without this loss they would be pretty safely assured of a regional host slot, but with this loss it will be a very close call.

Team MVP: Alex Sendegeya – The freshman has posted pivotal wins in many of Texas Tech’s most critical wins. He (along with Jolan Cailleau) has been a key cog at #3 and bridges the teams strong top 2 with their not quite as strong 5 and 6 position players. His dominant 6-2 6-3 win over Dane Webb over Oklahoma set the tone for the massive upset.

Grade: A

The season has turned into a lot more than what anyone was expecting as March rolled into April. This team appears to be peaking at just the right time, getting all of their hiccups (Clemson, New Mexico) out of the way early and now they can focus on tournament play looking dangerous.

Oklahoma State

Best Win: 4-3 vs. Tulsa – Tulsa is the highest ranked team that Oklahoma State defeated all season and they did so in dramatic 3^rd set breaker fashion courtesy of Arjun Kadhe over Alejandro Espejo. Tulsa would go on to prove that they were a pretty formidable team, so this win stands alone for the Cowboys.

Worst Loss: 4-3 at Notre Dame – Another match that came down to the absolute wire, but this time on the wrong end for Oklahoma State. This was a big chance to get a huge early season win on the road, but the loss was a heartbreaker and ended up being damaging the whole season.

Team MVP: Lucas Gerch – Only lost 1 dual match prior to the start of Big 12 play and had a signature win over Lloyd Glasspool of Texas in the Big 12 opener. His strong play at the #3 and then the #2 position was critical for Oklahoma State staying in the NCAAA tournament range all season.

Grade: B

A decent season for Oklahoma State in 2015 and it was one that mirrored the previous season of 2014 perfectly. Maybe a little bit more improvement was expected from the Cowboys considering the returning players and the renaissance that was the 2014 season. Still, the Cowboys will be in the NCAA tournament again and will have a chance to do more.

PAC 12

Stanford

Best Win: 4-3 vs. Southern Cal – This win was the one announcing Stanford’s ambition to return to the top of the college tennis world. All season there were signs of improvement but this win showed that the improvement was real and that the Cardinal may be headed back to the elite soon.

Worst Loss: 4-3 vs. Cal – All momentum gained from the USC win was lost after losing this match at home on senior day vs. rival Cal. The win over USC should have propelled Stanford to a new level, one above the level of Cal but instead they allowed their bay area rivals to drag them back down again.

Team MVP: Tom Fawcett – Playing all season at #1, the freshman was a stalwart for the Cardinals, immune to some of the ups and downs that the other Stanford players faced throughout the year.

Grade: B

By traditional Stanford standards this season was another poor one but based on very recent seasons 2015 was a year of growth and a positive one overall. A lack of ambition in scheduling prevented Stanford from climbing higher in the rankings. The team is talented and we will see how well they can do in the NCAA tournament coming up and if they can pull anymore big upsets.

Southern Cal

Best Win: 4-0 at Georgia – The first of two wins over UGA this year for the Trojans. This one is the more impressive considering it was in Athens and it was a 4-0 sweep. This win showed that the Trojans weren’t going anywhere this year.

Worst Loss: 4-3 vs. Tulsa – An absolute stunner at the time. Tulsa was ranked out of the top 50 and Southern Cal was looking just as dominant as they look every year, so this match was not even on anyone’s radar as interesting let alone as a potential upset. This shocking loss started the downward trend for USC’s season.

Team MVP: Eric Johnson – Was racking up the wins even when Yannick Hanfmann and Roberto Quiroz hit rough patches and it is important to note that he was not in the line-up on the day the Trojans lost to Tulsa at home.

Grade: B-

Being in the top 10 is an outstanding season for most programs but when you have won 5 out of the last 6 national titles, simply being in the top 10 is not considered an achievement. The Trojans had a couple of head scratching losses this year (Tulsa, Stanford) and looked less than elite in losses vs. Baylor and Oklahoma. However, there is still time for them to capture that postseason magic that they seem to always have.

UCLA

Best Win: 4-1 vs. TCU – The Bruins only win against a top 10 team this year and it stands out as the most impressive win on the season by far.

Worst Loss: 4-3 vs. Florida – Losing to a Gator team that is outside the top 20 currently was a bad way to start the season for UCLA. After dropping a tough match vs. UGA, the Bruins were hoping to gain some redemption against another SEC foe but instead the road trip out east turned into an 0-2 letdown.

Team MVP: Mackenzie McDonald – Has elevated his play this season and taken Macros Giron’s void fairly nicely at the #1 spot. One of the top players in the college game.

Grade: C

A pretty poor season overall by UCLA Bruin standards. Their NCAA quarterfinal streak is in serious jeopardy with their current ranking barely even being in the hosting range. It was always going to be tough to replace Giron and Thompson but UCLA tennis is used to reloading every year with new talent and this year it just has not happened to the same degree.

Cal

Best Win: 4-3 at Stanford – Sweet revenge for the Cal bears to end the regular season. Having suffered a crushing 4-3 loss to Stanford earlier in the year, they delivered a defeat on the Cardinal themselves as Nolan Paige of Stanford was unable to do what Maciek Romanowicz was able to do in the first meeting (rally to win in the 3^rd set in the clinching match).

Worst Loss: 4-2 at San Diego State – This loss set the Bears back quite a bit. It set the Aztecs season in motion but it was nearly just as damaging for Cal. It showed that this year’s team had taken a step back from last year.

Team MVP: Gregory Bayane – Squeaks past Andre Gorannson for this award based on his solid record at #3 singles all year. Even during Cal’s struggles you could count on Bayane to deliver a win and give the team a chance to get the W.

Grade: B-

It is hard to grade Cal’s season. They had some ups and some downs following the departure of Ben McLachlan from a season ago. They had a good returning roster however and some good new talent, a little bit more was expected of the Bears this season.

Oregon

Best Win: 4-1 vs. Washington – Oregon’s season resume is really lacking of quality wins so this one stands alone as the premier win. Convincing score lines on 3 singles courts plus doubles gave the Ducks a fairly straight forward win over their rivals from the state up north.

Worst Loss: 4-3 at Pepperdine – The Waves are a bubble team and Oregon is currently on the outside of the bubble thanks in large part to this match. Had the result been reversed to a 4-3 Ducks win the two teams may be swapped in the rankings and it would be Oregon who would slip into the tournament. Amazing the difference a couple of 3^rd sets can make.

Team MVP: Daan Maasland – Following the departure of Robin Cambier after the 2014 season, Oregon appeared to have a real issue on their hands at the #1 position. But Maasland stepped into the role admirably and even got a few big scalps along the way. His signature win being over Tom Fawcett of Stanford.

Grade: C+

The Ducks will likely miss the NCAA tournament in 2015 barring an upset of Cal in the Pac 12 quarterfinals. The season was about the same as the last few years for Oregon, no real progress was made but at least there were no steps back either.

Washington

Best Win: 4-3 vs. Tulsa – This win is single-handedly keeping Washington in the top 75 as their only other ranked win is over #74 Portland. This win made it appear early that the Huskies may have been ready to do big things in 2015.

Worst Loss: 4-1 at Oregon – This loss was a letdown for Washington. They never really threatened the Ducks and it made the gap between the two teams apparent.

Team MVP: Jake Douglas – The freshman had a hot start to the dual season and was winning matches left and right, he may have tapered off to end the year but was still a big part of any Husky win.

Grade: C-

A 2^nd straight year of disappointment for Washington. While last year could be chalked up as a rebuilding year, 2015 was supposed to be more of a step forward year but instead it turned into another year of struggle for UW. With the fresh talent 2016 will have to be a much better year or Husky tennis is in trouble.

Utah

Best Win: 4-1 vs. New Mexico – The only quality win for Utah all season. This was the only time all year where the Utah team came together and put forth a good effort across the board to get a big win at home.

Worst Loss: 5-2 at Boise State – Boise State was not a good team this year, they had lost a lot of pieces from 2014 and were certainly in a rebuilding phase but that didn’t stop Utah from being beaten by them. This loss was fairly early in the season as well, which put a big damper on the outlook for the rest of the year.

Team MVP: Slim Hamza – Barely played in 2015 and his absence showed big time. With Hamza at #1 Utah is a much better team. There was a time when he had the potential to be a nationally top 40 player, but injury sidetracked this ambition. Without him Utah was a very tepid team.

Grade: D

Very poor season. Utah tennis is not adapting to life in the Pac 12 very well at all despite the conference being relatively down in the last two seasons. In 2015 Utah had no answers and without Hamza any chance of winning competitive matches was lost.

Arizona

Best Win: 4-1 vs. New Mexico – Like Utah, Arizona was able to beat the Lobos. Something about the crew from the ABQ brought out the best in the Pac 12 bottom feeders.

Worst Loss: 4-2 vs. Southern Miss – Arizona has several bad losses but this one takes the cake as being the one truly ghastly loss on the resume. Southern Miss was a middle of the pack CUSA team who did not threaten anybody worth anything all year but were still able to beat this sorry Pac 12 team.

Team MVP: Naoki Takeda – The only Wildcat who played good tennis is 2015. He had a signature 6-2 6-0 dominating win over #10 Dominik Koepfer of Tulane which vaulted him into the rankings. Unfortunately it looks like Takeda will just miss out on the individual tournament barring a plethora of withdrawals.

Grade: F

Nothing good came from the 2015 season. Truly a program in shambles right now. Tucson should be able to host a pretty good college tennis program especially with Arizona State dumping tennis a few years ago, but instead Arizona is struggling (and failing) to remain even remotely relevant in the Pac 12.

SEC

Being the only major conference to have completed their conference tournament already, SEC grades will be coming out later.

Ekaterina Makarova (@KateMakarova1) Top Seed Standing After Funky First Round @CitiOpen
Stephan Fogleman, Tennis East Coast

At 1:45 p.m., top seed Lucie Safarova kicked off Tuesday play on Stadium Court. Magdalena Rybarikova was a two-time defending champion warming up on Grandstand court, about to begin her title defense.

So much can happen in two hours.

Quoteth the Morrissey, “The Queen is Dead, Boys’.

The Queen of the Citi, Magdalena Rybarikova, went down in ignominious fashion today, 6-1, 6-1 to Ekaterina Makarova, a 53-minute drubbing not befitting the most dominant player in this WTA event’s short history.

But that wasn’t enough.

Top seed Lucie Safarova was also sent packing at the hands of KiKi Mladenovic 2-6, 6-3, 6-3.

That leaves Ekaterina Makarova as new the King of the Court, er, Queen of the Citi. She took down the defending champ, she’s the top seed standing and she is now the favorite to take the title.

Makarova and Me (Photo: @NickMcCarvel)

Makarova made the quarterfinals at Wimbledon last month, and guess who beat her there? Safarova. She won’t have Lucie to worry about in Washington. BONUS: Ekaterina told me she chose Washington over Stanford because she likes Washington so much. Even though she’s never been to Stanford. Smart woman.

The whole pecking order has reshuffled and this could really benefit Sloane Stephens, who is the second highest seed remaining in the Women’s draw. Um, except that Stephens lost tonight in her match against Christina McHale, 4-6, 6-4, 0-6(!!).

The 1, 3, 4 and 7 seeds are gone (and the twice defending champ) and it’s only Tuesday.

Stay tuned. Even by WTA standards, this is whack. Oh yeah. The winner of this event is clear…as mud.

It’s @Gibbsyyyy over Oudin @USTAProCircuit Carson CA

Posted by Admin on July 20, 2014

Posted in: USTA, WTA. Tagged: 2014, atlanta, CA, california, carson, georgia, melanie oudin, nicole gibbs, open, stanford, us, usa, usta, wild card, wta.

NICOLE GIBBS DEFEATS MELANIE OUDIN TO CAPTURE USTA PLAYER DEVELOPMENT WOMEN’S $50,000 CLASSIC IN CARSON

CARSON, July 20, 2014 – Nicole Gibbs moved another step closer to playing in her third consecutive US Open main draw, capturing the USTA Player Development Women’s $50,000 Classic with a 6-4, 6-4 win over Melanie Oudin on Sunday at the USTA Training Center – West at StubHub Center.

Gibbs, 21, is a two-time NCAA singles winner at Stanford and earned wild-card entry into the season’s final Grand Slam the past two years by way of those wins.

With one event remaining in the US Open Wild Card Challenge, Gibbs now leads in the standings with 88 points. She is followed by Julia Boserup (63 points), Oudin (48), Louisa Chirico (44) and Sanaz Marand (30).
The final of the three-event US Open Wild Card Challenge is the Lexington, Ky., $50,000 Challenger to be played this week.

It was a tight battle throughout in the final on Sunday with Gibbs holding a 4-2 lead in the second set, before the sole of her shoe came partially off. Admitting she started to “panic,” Gibbs fell down 4-all, 40-love with Oudin serving. Gibbs then played a solid point, was aided by an untimely Oudin double fault and ultimately broke back to serve for the match.

“Tennis is like that sometimes,” said Gibbs, who won this event last year when it was held in Yakima, Wash. Without a spare pair of tennis shoes, Gibbs contemplated wearing running shoes, but opted for a tape job instead, which seemed to do the trick.

Oudin’s first-round loss in US Open qualifying last year to Elena Baltacha ended a streak of five consecutive main draw appearances at the US Open, which of course included her quarterfinal run there in 2009.
“It’s one tournament,” said Oudin, who did not play in Sacramento last week but will play Lexington, of the US Open. “I’m not worrying about this wild card. It’s the last thing on my mind. If I play well I can qualify on my own. But if I do win this wild card that’s just an added bonus.”

Gibbs, a nearby Marina Del Rey resident, said she loved playing so close to home. “Just the title of the tournament, ‘Carson $50,000,’ ” she said. “It’s so exciting to be at the place I train and have my community supporting me.”

USTA Player Development Women’s $50,000 Classic
A USTA Pro Circuit Event
Sunday, July 20
USTA Training Center – West at StubHub Center
Carson, Calif.
Purse: $50,000
Surface: Hard-Outdoor

Sunday, July 20 – RESULT
Singles – Final
(2) Nicole Gibbs (USA) def. (4) Melanie Oudin (USA), 6-4, 6-4

—S. Pratt, USTA

2013 @CitiOpen Feature Interview: Sorana Cirstea (@Sorana_Cirstea)

Posted by Admin on July 31, 2013

Posted in: Citi Open, Washington, WTA. Tagged: Citi Open, dc, Exclusive, Happy, Interview, Romania, Sky Diving, Sorana Cirstea, stanford, Top 20, video, washington, wta. Leave a comment

@Citi Open Feature Interview: @Sorana_Cirstea
Steve Fogleman for Tennis Panorama

Sometimes words alone cannot capture the emotions of a human being as adequately as seeing and hearing the subject.

This is one of those times.

Sorana Cirstea is one happy tennis player.

I caught up with her yesterday after a 7-5, 1-1 over Lesia Tsurenko by retirement. She’ll face Alison Riske in the second round of the Citi Open in Washington, D.C. tomorrow for a spot in the quarters.

“I hope you don’t make me sing! I cannot sing!” she jokingly protested, as I handed her a microphone for the interview.

Sorana Cristea is so happy with her year so far and so excited to be in Washington for the first time that she comes across as one of the most genuine and well-balanced players I’ve ever met.

This is one of those times when I’m glad I’m about the only person who regularly shoots video interviews in the early rounds of the tournaments I attend. I know it’s more convenient to read a blog than watch a video on your Iphone or laptop. I mean, you might be at work or on a bus or watching a tennis match right now.

But please take time to hear Sorana’s infectious jubilance by watching the video at some point.

If you like Cirstea, you’ll like her even more. And if you don’t know anything about her, you’ll like her for the first time.

The 23-year-old Romanian is just off her new career high of #23 in the world. She has been in the late rounds of every other tournament I follow.

She’s only won one WTA singles title, and that was five year ago in Tashkent, but this year alone, she has made the semis at Pattaya and Stanford, the quarterfinals at Birmingham, and the Round of 16 in Charleston and Miami. She also made the third round at Roland Garros before falling to eventual champion Serena Williams.

And yet, it seems, no one in the English-speaking world can pronounce her name.

She even changed the pronunciation of Cirstea because non-Romanian speakers simply cannot pronounce it.

“However people can say it, as long as they get Sorana fine, that’s all good. I find it funny.
The funniest thing of all is when I go to grab a coffee. That’s always the worst place they spell my name. So for now on, I will be something like Bob or Michael.

She’s definitely pleased with the results of her hard work on the circuit this year.

“It’s been a solid year. I’ve been quite consistent from tournament to tournament. I feel I am playing better and better from week to week. It’s nice knowing that when you put all that hard work in, you can see the results. I think that motivates. I’m just very excited and looking forward to what’s coming next.

I feel I’m ready. When I have a good day, I can beat anyone. I always say that the rankings show the truth. If I’m 28 right now, it means this is where I should be.”

This is her first time in Washington in any capacity. She’s thrilled with the beauty of the city and the friendliness of Citi Open staff.

“I’m very excited to be here for my first time in Washington. I’ve always wanted to come. It’s this thing about “The Capital”. I’ve been waiting 23 years to get here. As soon as I got in on Sunday night, we dropped our bags at the hotel and went to the White House.

There’s just so much history here. Hopefully, I’ll have some time to explore and be a tourist.”

I asked her if she might be a lawyer after her pro career concludes. She acknowledged that it might be too late to start schooling for such a job, and that she has some many interesting options after tennis.

“Once I have something in my mind, I try to put 100% in to make it.”

Of course, the reason I asked about a legal career was due to her brilliant closing arguments against bad calls in Stanford recently in a match with Dominkia Cibulkova. It was an argument she won, and won, and won, as the judges went her way six times in a single set.

“I think that’s more stubbornness!”, she joked. “Once I think I’m right, I usually go all the way. I knew I was right at that point. So I was really confident and I went for it. I have respect for the chair umpire and all the linesmen. The only reason why I argued is because I wanted that point. It was mine. I earned it. I’m one of those people where if something is mine, I won’t give it away.”

I don’t know if about her stubbornness, but I am impressed with her fearlessness. She took a maiden sky-diving jump last year and loved it so much she had to do it again recently.

“I loved it. I always wanted to do it and never had the opportunity.The second time around was ten times better, because I actually knew what to expect. Everyone should jump at least once in their life. It’s an experience worth living. Don’t be surprised if you see me jumping again.”

And don’t be surprised if you see her hoisting a trophy and winning another WTA title or two before the year is out.

Cronin Picking Stanford’s Gibbs and Burdette to Win First Round US Open Matches Today

Posted by Admin on August 27, 2012

Posted in: New Haven Open, US Open, WTA. Tagged: mallory burdette, nicole gibbs, stanford, tennis, us open, wta. Leave a comment

No pressure for NCAA Champions Nicole Gibbs and Mallory Burdette this morning. Just don’t look at the US Open website, where Matt Cronin has picked them to win today as they play back to back on Court 6.

“Stanford teammates Mallory Burdette and Nicole Gibbs both have winnable matches, and I see Burdette taking out Timea Bacsinszky and Gibbs upending Alize Cornet.”, Cronin crowed on USOpen.org. According to Cronin’s picks, the Stanford Cardinal duo will go deeper in the Open than fellow Americans Jamie Hampton, Sam Crawford, Denis Kudla, Michael Russell or Jack Sock.

Burdette and Gibbs both stand a decent chance to advance. I’d love to see them both triumph in the first round but it would be good to have at least one advance. I’m picking that one will be Nicole Gibbs.

Gibbs confidence level is sky-high compared to watching a year ago. Notching her first WTA main draw win coupled with a prime-time match against World #2 Petra Kvitova in New Haven last week gives her a finishing crash-course few players of her ranking are offered. She faces Alize Cornet. Though Burdette didn’t have the same dream warm-up opportunity as Gibbs, she does have a weaker opponent in Timea Bacsinszky, who is most remembered by me for being twice carted away in tears.

Here’s my interview with Gibbs last week in New Haven after her first WTA win.