Dark Horse Teams of 2009

Chicago- Chicago simply underperformed last year. They had close scores with Kenyon and Wash U (losing 5-3 in each) and have shown that they can compete with the best. However, this team has never really gelled. A year of college tennis should do good for both Zhang and Walsh and they form a good 1-2 punch. A lot remains to be seen from their big recruit Stefanski who bowed out in the first round at the Central regionals. They pick up a good player in Brinker and if these players perform I can easily see this team ending up ranked around 12-13.

Gustavus- Always a powerhouse team but last year marked their big decline relative to other elite teams. They lost a great player in Bryan but somehow Kauss was able to win nationals. Their one shot this season will be at Indoors where their players are all accustomed to the lightning fast courts. If they don't make damage there, I won't accept them to be in the top 10. However, if they get up in doubles early they are still a formidable team to beat. They should finish around 11-12.

Carnegie Mellon- If this team ever learns how to play doubles they could be a top ten team. However, for the past few years I'd say they've proven themselves to be the worst of the top 20 teams in doubles. What they do have though is a very deep team and a good 4,5,6. Development should be big for them and I look forward to seeing how last year's freshmen evolve. They have players with great junior backgrounds but at a school as hard as CMU I'm sure they are struggling to get in enough time on the court. If this team can find a way to play dubs they will challenge the top teams.

Rankings 6-10

6. Middlebury The return of Conrad Olson makes the Panthers a real team. Without him, they are outside the top 10. They lose a great player who made it to the finals of individuals, but they are a young team that should be much improved for this coming year. What I don't like in this team is that they really don't have a "lock" in any position. They are all quite good players but are still beatable at their positions. However, they will be battle tested in the NESCAC and have shown that they always compete.
7. Amherst They lost a significant portion of last year's team but make up for that and some by bringing in the best recruiting class. They played an impressive schedule in the fall and beat two very good teams in Carnegie Mellon and Kenyon.They have what I believe to be one of the best 1-4 players in the country led by Lerner and Chafetz. The top teams will be able to beat this team at the 5/6 position and at 2 and 3 doubles. It will be interesting to see how the young players handle the pressure of playing so many good teams in their conference.
8. Mary Washington Amazing 1-2 punch in Loden and James. They are the heart and soul of their team. They lose a solid player in Carver and only gain 1 freshman. They will need to get better in doubles in order to beat the top teams but all their players play with heart and they seem to always find a win.
9. Williams- Certainly a down year for the Ephs after losing Greenberg and Simonette. They brought in some solid players but no one that will be able to fill those voids. This team is very deep but they no longer have the ability to beat teams at the 1-3 singles positions. Their achilles heel has always been doubles and this year is no different. If they can hang with the top teams in dubs they will find themselves beating some of the top 8 teams.
10. Bowdoin- Pretty tough call here for the 10 spot but there is a clear dropoff after the top 9 teams. They lose Gates but Sullivan got to the semis of individuals and should be a fine 1. The rest of the team is solid but nothing spectacular. Like some teams they have no clear weaknesses and this will make them a tough team to beat. Their big weakness is that this team is very hot and cold. They had an awful start to the spring last year but caught fire at the NESCAC tournament and only lost to Emory 5-3. Let's see which team shows up this year.

Prelimanary 2008-2009 Top 5 Rankings

1. Emory- Emory is the hands down favorite for the title this year. They only lost on contributor in their run last year and have gained a top 10 national player in Chris Goodwin. Together the Goodwins have proven to be a great doubles team and Michael Goodwin's record in important team dual matches has been quite impressive to say the least. If they are to lose it will be a result of their 2/3 doubles teams and their 4/5/6 players. Projected lineup. 1. M. Goodwin 2. C. Goodwin 3. Boren 4. Egan 5. Caplan 6. Lopp Doubles: 1. Goodwins 2. Lopp/Caplan 3. Boren/Alexander
2. Wash U- The defending champions lost NO ONE from their title run. However, they have failed to recruit any players that will make their singles or doubles lineups. The play of Watts and Cutler in pressure matches should decide the fate of this team. They are the deepest team in the country and have the strongest 4/5/6 as well. A great 1 team in Cutler/Hoeland along with a great 2 in Woods/Stein will be essential to their success. A rematch against Emory should prove to be one of dual matches of the season. Projected lineup. 1. Watts 2. Cutler 3. Woods 4. Levy 5. Hoeland 6. Stein. Doubles. 1. Cutler Hoeland 2. Stein/Woods 3. Watts/Bowman or Chormadia
3. CMS- This team always looks amazing on paper but has had unfortunate experiences with injuries. No one has seen what a healthy Stags team can do and hopefully they'll be able to show that they can do. It will be interesting to see if Starr can get back to normal health after having an ACL tear and wrist injury the last 2 seasons. This team is arguably just as deep as Wash U but they lack a real killer at the 1 singles position. Their 2-6 will be extremely tough if they are healthy, but they can be beaten in doubles. If they can shore up their doubles they are real contenders. Projected lineup. 1. Wang 2. Lim 3. E. MacColl 4. Starr 5. Erani 6. Wu Doubles. 1. Schils/Wang 2. MacColl/Erani 3. Lim/Wu
4. UC Santa Cruz- This team has its core component back for another year and they are hungry to get out of the West by beating CMS. They are one of the most talented teams in the country but have some inconsistent players. However, they had a great fall and look to be in great form coming into the season. Projected lineup. 1. Kamel 2. Liberty-Point 3. Pybas 4. Mark-Griffin 5. Ortiz 6. Chiba Doubles lineup. Same as last year
5. Kenyon- Kenyon returns the majority of its players and gains a great player in Piskacek. Their loss to Amherst makes me question whether these high expectations have affected them. Mike Greenberg was spectacular last season but must reassert himself as the dominant force once again. They have players that have big games but only time will tell if they can mesh together to be the title contenders that many predict they can be. Projected lineup. 1. Greenberg 2. Piskacek 3. Brody 4. Becker 5. Vandenberg 6. Polster Doubles. 1. Greenberg/Piskacek 2. Brody/Becker 3. Polster/Vandenberg

6-10 coming early next week.

Introduction

This blog will be set up in similar fashion to the now defunct d3tennis blog that sprouted up one year ago. I will try to be as objective as possible in my predictions and analysis for each team and I encourage readers to be involved. I will do my best to update this as frequently as possible and look forward to what should be a great season.

In D3 tennis last year we saw a true evening of the playing field. Never before had so many top teams lost to others outside the top 10 and almost every top 10 had a legitamate shot at winning the title. This year has proven to be a little different. I would argue that the top 8 teams have put themselves in a different playing field relative to teams outside of the top 10. Teams were able to bring in some great recruits i.e. Emory, Kenyon, CMS, and Amherst and this has widened the gap. Without further ado here are my team rankings---these are based on my own opinions and have nothing to do with the national rankings.