ITA Rankings - March 17

The ITA Rankings were released today.

Pretty much 0 complaints from me. It was good to see Gustavus back in the rankings after they crushed Whitewater recently in a result that I missed until yesterday. The box is here for those interested. I was a bit surprised not to see Swarthmore in the rankings after they beat Vassar. It's amusing that there's a big clump of Pool C teams between 14 and 19, and those teams will certainly be put in the proper order during the next few weeks. Although the rankings aren't all that relevant at this point, we do have a significant amount of information now and they are much more accurate than the rankings released 2 weeks ago.

CMS defeats Mary Wash 8-1 and ITA Rankings

CMS beat Mary Washington 8-1 with about 1/2 of their normal lineup. The Eagles will finish in California taking on Redlands Saturday in what's pretty much a must win for the Bulldogs after Mary Wash left the top 25.

New ITA rankings out today and obviously I think one thing stands out. Rankings are just about perfect in my opinion, however I don't know how Cal Lutheran managed to stay at #12 after a loss to Mary Washington, who currently stands at #27. I'd be very interested to hear the logic behind this. Also, W&L took out Salisbury 8-1 but the Gulls are still 23rd and W&L is 29. Not too much else to discuss as a few teams swapped spots, but nothing too much happened since the fall. I think a lot more will be reflected in the next rankings.

Update and a Few Previews

The ITA Rankings were released on Wednesday. Most of you are aware that I thought some mistakes were made in the last rankings, but I personally have no problems with this set of rankings. I still think Wash U and Emory are overranked, but I also didn't expect that to change from the last set of rankings. The one thing that is now confirmed that I previously suspected is that Chicago will have to get a big win at conference next weekend if they want to qualify for the NCAA tournament. It now gets to the time when rankings become important for NCAA seedings and every match is huge because your team may not get another chance.

Had a busy week and didn't get to make a post, but at the same time there hasn't been much action. The only notable match that took place this week was on Wednesday, when Kenyon d. Denison 8-1 with the one loss being Greenberg at #1 singles, which was quite a surprise. That could spell bad news for some lower ranked guys in the Central region if the Denison player now qualifies for NCAA Individuals.

Today, there will be 3 matches of note taking place. The first will be when Bowdoin travels south to take on #1 Middlebury. I don't think this will be a very competitive match because Middlebury has just been too tough this season, but Bowdoin could potentially squeeze out a win or two. I don't think an upset is a real consideration here. Secondly, we have an Atlantic South battle between Hampden-Sydney and Mary Washington. These are two teams that could both use a win heading into their conference tournament. I would think UMW will win with their depth in this one and it's possible that the Salisbury win got the Eagles back on track for this weekend. The biggest match on Saturday is the SCIAC championship between #4 CMS and #5 CLU. Of course a conference title is on the line, but more importantly than that I think hosting for NCAAs is also on the line and both of these teams love their home courts. Giuffrida lost to Spearman from Redlands yesterday which was a shocker since Spearman hasn't done much this season. I don't know if Giuffrida is suffering from some health problems or injuries, but his team needs 2 wins from him today if they want to beat the Stags. I'll stick with the same prediction as last time and say that CLU must win #1 doubles and both of the top 2 singles spots if they want to win this match.

Sunday also boasts 3 big matches with the first being another AS clash when Johns Hopkins looks to continue their mini win streak as they travel to Mary Washington for their annual match. This match is big for Hopkins not only for confidence, but they could potentially lose their regional top seed in NCAAs if they lose. The Eagles will most likely be coming off a big Saturday win and they will be hungry for an upset. My guess would be Hopkins is a little too strong at the bottom of the lineup, but I am on upset watch in this match because I don't think it will be as routine as some people think. If Mary Wash can get an edge in doubles, they can win. Confidence wise, I don't think JHU can afford to be upset heading into NCAAs. The 2nd match of note is Kalamazoo vs Gustavus at a neutral site. GAC has won this match in recent years but I have to call Kzoo the favorite tomorrow. The Hornets are another team that desperately need a win after their poor results lately. It is also to their advantage that the match is being played at a neutral site. I think Kzoo will have a little too much talent and I would expect a 6-3 victory for them. The biggest match on Sunday is between the 2 and 3 in the NESCAC and bitter rivals Amherst and Williams. Williams will be hosting and I'm sure they will have a nice crowd. This is a big match not only for bragging rights, but also NCAA seeding and hosting. Williams could make a splash in the top 10 if they win this match and if I'm Hopkins and Kenyon, I'm rooting for Amherst so they both can keep their regional top seed. Both of these teams are very deep in singles and I see the matches as pretty even. Amherst may have a slight edge due to experience but I think this will come down to doubles. Herst should be a bit too strong and I'm going to take them 5-4, but I'm not surprised if Williams wins. #12 in the country is unfamiliar territory for the Ephs so I'm sure they are looking to get back in the top 10.

ITA Rankings March 18th

Latest ITA Rankings

Rankings very accurate in my opinion. Cal Lu moving up after their wins and also Amherst down to #12 after their loss. The only thing that somewhat puzzles me is why Mary Wash is so low after a fairly convincing win against Redlands. W&L is decent, but nothing great and UMW did lose to them. W&L also lost to Salisbury but was pretty close to knocking off NC Wesleyan yesterday. I wouldn't have believed you if you told me a month ago that Redlands, Trinity (TX) and Bowdoin would be 18 through 20 and Kalamzoo would be 13. Definitely a lot in the way of surprises this season.

ITA Rankings Preview

The ITA Rankings are due this upcoming Tuesday. I was thinking about what they could look like earlier today and what I came up with surprised me. The 11-25 range has been completely turned around. This is my prediction for what they will look like given that Cal Lutheran beats Trinity (TX) later today. If Trinity wins, this could get very messy. A Bowdoin loss to Trinity (TX) on Monday wouldn't complicate things all that much, but it may throw Bowdoin out of the top 20 for the time being.

1. Santa Cruz
2. Wash U
3. Emory
4. Middlebury
5. CMS
6. Kenyon
7. Williams
8. Hopkins
9. Carnegie Mellon
10. Amherst
11. Bowdoin
12. NC Wesleyan
13. Cal Lutheran
14. Kalamazoo
15. Chicago
16. DePauw
17. Trinity (CT)
18. Pomona - Pitzer
19. Salisbury
20. Washington & Lee
21. Mary Washington
22. Redlands
23. Trinity (TX)
24. Vassar
25. Gustavus Adolphus

18-23 is in perfect order based on direct wins. Each of those teams has a win over a team below it. I don't think the top 10 will change and we can see a lot of switching of this order in the coming weeks because there's a lot of tennis coming up. Redlands and Trinity (TX) are #12 and #13 in Pool C, respectively. They've really been hurt during their past few matches and if Trinity (TX) doesn't beat Cal Lu, it's going to be a do or die for them in the conference tournament. I'll have my own power rankings released Monday night and they will look quite different from the ITA rankings, I guarantee that.

ITA Rankings and a Look Ahead

Scott Sandager, DePauw

New ITA Rankings can be found here

There's not much info so far and what we do know was properly reflected in these rankings. Cal Lu made a drastic move but it is certainly justified and I think Kalamazoo's upset win is also reflected well. The only thing I question is dropping Mary Wash out of the top 30 but even that is justified after their recent loss to Pomona-Pitzer.

There is rarely a result that I find favorable for both teams. Tuesday's match between CMU and Newport may fall into this category. CMU switched their lineup in doubles and it worked as they swept the doubles with 2 close matches. Whether this is a permanent switch, I don't know, but it certainly worked. Newport struck back and took the first two matches and they have to love the singles results. CMU was a little too deep for them and this showed, but CNU certainly won the spots they can win and I have high hopes for Widing after this win yesterday. This should be somewhat of a confidence boost for both teams going forward.

I count 9 important matches in next 4 days. Mary Wash is in 2 of them and DePauw is in 3 of them. Friday's contest between Salisbury and NCW may not be competitive because 3 Salisbury starters will be out of the lineup for disciplinary reasons dating back to the fall. Salisbury will have plenty of chances the rest of their season but this is a disappointing way to most likely lose a winnable and important match. I am interested to see how Newport responds against Vassar. Vassar apparently has lightning fast indoor courts and I'm sure CNU won't be used to this. This should be a highly competitive match. I spoke earlier in the week about UMW needing a win this weekend for their confidence. They definitely have a better shot against Redlands because I feel they match up better. I think they are going to need at least 2 of the doubles if they want to have any chance against CLU.

The busiest team this weekend is DePauw and they are taking part in the 2 biggest matches of the weekend in my eyes. They have 3 very tough matches in 36 hours and although they did the same thing at Indoors, this has an effect on your team. I don't think they can get away with playing their B team against Luther. The Chicago match is huge for Pool C standings. UChi will be hungry for a win after they got blown out by Kalamazoo and they know that every match is so important for their NCAA chances. Chicago also needs to not overlook a tough Luther team on Friday. It would be tough for their seniors to go out without having played an NCAA tournament and never having been out of the top 25. I think Chicago will come out firing so DPU needs to use their home court to their advantage. I'm also looking forward to the Kzoo-DPU match and I think I smell an upset here. DePauw will be beaten up and tired from Saturday and Kzoo will be fresh and ready to go after moving up to #16 in the ITA rankings. Every match is important for DePauw because of Pool C standings as well. This is a huge weekend for the Tigers and if they can escape 3-0, I will be very impressed with this team.

ITA Rankings March 17, 2009

Can be found here...

http://www.itatennis.com/AwardsAndRankings/Rankings/0809D3Men.htm


Team rankings are almost identical.

ITA Team Rankings March 3, 2009

Today the ITA released their first poll of the Spring. The results used in this ranking list are through last Tuesday...

1. Emory University
2. Washington University
3. Claremont-Mudd-Scripps
4. Middlebury
5. Williams
6. Amherst
7. Kenyon
8. Gustavus Adophus
9. UC Santa Cruz
10. Trinity University (TX)
11. Bowdoin
12. University of Mary Washington
13. University of Redlands
14. Trinity College
15. Johns Hopkins
16. Carnegie Mellon
17. Depauw University
18. Washington and Lee
19. Whitman College
20. The University of Texas at Tyler
21. Bates College
22. Salisbury
23. Christopher Newport University
24. Denison
25. University of Chicago
26. Skidmore
27. Cal Lutheran
28. Kalamazoo
29. College of New Jersey
30. Pomona-Pitzer Colleges
31. Le Tourneau University
32. UW-Whitewater