While some conferences are already half way through their schedules others are just beginning. Both the Big 12 and Pac 12 kickoff conference play on Friday while the ACC, SEC, and Big 10 are nearing or have already passed its half way point. Below are the 4 biggest matches of the day so make sure you keep an eye on these.
#14 North Carolina (14-6) at #8 Virginia (12-3) – 3pm est – North Carolina’s biggest problem this year has been fielding a healthy starting 6 and there’s a chance that its best 6 players may be on the court on Friday. UNC’s #1 Brayden Schnur has now missed the last 5 matches but the Tar Heels hope that he’ll be able to go on Friday. Virginia has battled some injuries as well but they still haven’t missed a beat in conference play with its current ACC winning streak at 129. UNC is 15-5 in doubles while Virginia is 13-2. These teams met earlier this year in Chicago, in the consolation draw, at the National Indoors with Virginia cruising to a 4-0 win. This one might be a little closer but Virginia will still win comfortably. I like UVA in doubles and see singles wins from Frank, Shane, Altamirano, Kwiatkowski, and Aragone. Prediction: Virginia 6-1
FYI, the number beside the player’s school is the player’s Universal Tennis Rating as of March 26th. For more details about UTR check out their website.
Projected Lineups:
1. #12 Brayden Schnur (UNC 14.48) vs. #29 Mitchell Frank (UVA 14.89)
2. #24 Ronnie Schneider (UNC 14.20) vs. #6 Ryan Shane (UVA 14.54)
3. #69 Brett Clark (UNC 13.74) vs. #55 Collin Altamirano (UVA 14.80)
4. Esben Hess-Olesen (UNC 13.03) vs. #10 Thai-Son Kwiatkowski (UVA 14.76)
5. Jack Murray (UNC 13.95) vs. Alexander Ritschard (UVA 13.89)
6. #99 Robert Kelly (UNC 13.59) vs. J.C. Aragone (UVA 13.94)
Others who could play: Oystein Steiro (UNC 13.43), #112 Mac Styslinger (UVA 13.93)
#17 Vanderbilt (15-5) at #5 Georgia (15-2) – 5pm est – The last time these two met came in the quarterfinals of last year’s SEC Tournament which happened to be in Nashville. Vandy pulled off the upset of the #1 seeded Bulldogs winning 4-2 but so far this year Georgia has been rolling in conference play. Georgia is 12-5 in doubles while Vanderbilt is 14-6. Both teams have really strong #1s with Georgia’s Austin Smith and Ben Wagland the new ITA #1 and Vandy’s Gonzales Austin and Rhys Johnson ranked #4 though they were #1 just 2 weeks ago.
Georgia will be a pretty heavy favorite at 2, 5, and 6 singles but the other 3 courts should all be close. Gonzales Austin and Daniel Valent have been the Dores stalwarts going 32-3 in dual match play while their opponents Wayne Montgomery and Nathan Pasha are a combined 20-5. Both teams #4 players have been up and down with Wagland currently up and Yee currently down. Wagland has won 3 straight after dropping 4 of 5 while Yee has lost 2 straight and 6 of 8. I like Georgia in doubles and see them picking up wins from Smith, Wood, and Oosterbaan. Prediction: Georgia 4-0
Projected Lineups:
1. #7 Gonzales Austin (VU 14.47) vs. #28 Wayne Montgomery (UGA 14.59)
2. Rhys Johnson (VU 13.51) vs. #31 Austin Smith (UGA 14.17)
3. Daniel Valent (VU 13.88) vs. #18 Nathan Pasha (UGA 14.36)
4. Kris Yee (VU 13.59) vs. Ben Wagland (UGA 13.25)
5. Suresh Eswaran (VU 12.86) vs. Nick Wood (UGA 13.83)
6. Baker Newman (VU 12.90) vs. Paul Oosterbaan (UGA 13.63)
Others who could play: Jeff Offerdahl (VU 12.60)
#11 Ohio State (15-6) at #19 Northwestern (12-6) – 6pm est – This matchup lost a little steam when Northwestern got upset Wednesday night by Rice which snapped the Wildcats 6 match winning streak. Ohio State has won 96 straight regular season Big 10 matches dating back to 2005 which happened to be the last time that Northwestern beat Ohio State. The Buckeyes have won 12 straight in the series but this hasn’t been the best year for Ohio State and its streaks because so far this year the Buckeyes 200-match home court winning streak and its 294-match top 10 streak have both been snapped. I think the doubles point will be a key in this one because right now I see the singles courts split. I like Torpegaard, Steinbach, and Metka at 1, 5, and 6 and Kirchheimer, Zieba, and Staggs at 2, 3, and 4.
Ohio State is a stout 17-4 in doubles though the Buckeyes have dropped the point 2 of the last 3 times out. Northwestern is 10-8 in doubles but just 4-7 against ranked opponents. I’ll take Ohio State in doubles and therefore the match. Prediction: Ohio State 4-3
Projected Lineups:
1. #32 Mikael Torpegaard (OSU 14.03) vs. #92 Sam Shropshire (NW 13.85)
2. #44 Chris Diaz (OSU 14.01) vs. #124 Strong Kirchheimer (NW 13.75)
3. Hunter Callahan (OSU 13.88) vs. Konrad Zieba (NW 13.70)
4. #116 Herkko Pollanen (OSU 13.49) vs. Logan Staggs (NW 13.26)
5. #83 Ralf Steinbach (OSU 13.84) vs. Mihir Kumar (NW 12.93)
6. Kevin Metka (OSU 13.79) vs. Fedor Baev (NW 12.97)
Others who could play: Alp Horoz (NW 12.87)
#10 TCU (14-5) at #1 Oklahoma (17-1) – 6:30pm est – TCU brings a 5-match winning streak into this one while Oklahoma has won 7 straight. Neither team has been too hot in doubles with Oklahoma 9-9 and TCU 10-7. Oklahoma’s strength has been its top 3 with Alvarez, Harris, and Webb a combined 37-5 in dual match play while TCU’s top 3 of Chappell, Norrie, and Nunez is a combined 31-8. Axel Alvarez has a team best 15-0 record for OU while Guillermo Nunez leads the way for TCU with a 14-0 record. TCU has the talent to keep this one close but Oklahoma is still stronger top to bottom. I like OU in doubles and Alvarez, Harris, and Papa in singles. Prediction: Oklahoma 4-1
Projected Lineups:
1. #36 Nick Chappell (TCU 13.82) vs. #2 Axel Alvarez (OU 14.59)
2. #37 Cameron Norrie (TCU 14.30) vs. #13 Andrew Harris (OU 14.74)
3. #76 Guillermo Nunez (TCU 13.72) vs. #23 Dane Webb (OU 14.32)
4. Arnau Dachs (TCU 13.91) vs. #65 Alex Ghilea (OU 14.15)
5. Will Stein (TCU 13.30) vs. Spencer Papa (OU 13.81)
6. Facundo Lugones (TCU 13.64) vs. Florin Bragusi (OU 13.51)
Others who could play: Trevor Johnson (TCU 13.36), Jose Salazar (OU 13.72)
Other Friday storylines:
Can #23 Louisville follow up its big win over #14 North Carolina by winning in Atlanta against an upstart #73 Georgia Tech team?
Can #13 Ole Miss rebound from its loss to #34 Mississippi State by winning in Baton Rouge or does #24 LSU make it 3 conference wins in a row?
Will #3 Illinois show any mercy on #50 Penn State or will the Illini put the hammer down to make sure Penn State can’t challenge anything this year?
#22 Oklahoma State has had some decent wins this year but they’ve yet to beat anybody in the top 25 – do they get over the hump against #7 Texas or do the Horns take it to them?
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