There’s no atmosphere like it in tennis. James Blake — an NCAA singles finalist in ’99 — likened it to a “battlefield.” Said the onetime Harvardian, “You’ve got 4,000 fans barking at you, yelling, screaming. Anything goes. You can yell in the middle of points. It’s really intense. It’s something you can never really duplicate. It’s dynamic.” Now all the excitement of the NCAA Division I Tennis Championships (a veritable tennis carnival with multiple courts in action at once) will return to the Stanford campus as the very best collegiate men’s and women’s teams shoot for the title of national champion. The team competition runs May 19-24, followed by the individual tournament May 25-30.
5 Teams to Watch
THE WOMEN
FLORIDA: Led by Allie Will, Lauren Embree and Joanna Mather, SEC regular season champ Florida (21-1) sat stop the ITA rankings following victories over Georgia and Tennessee. Embree, a sophomore who missed the entire fall campaign due to a pair of surgeries, has come back with a vengeance and at presstime was riding a remarkable 17-match winning streak that includes a win over reigning NCAA singles titlist Chelsey Gullickson of Georgia.
STANFORD: Despite being the nation’s only undefeated team, Stanford (21-0) finds itself in a curious spot — at No. 2 behind Florida in the latest ITA rankings. What makes it even more odd is that Stanford handed the Gators their only loss of the year in February. Regardless of any strength-of-schedule snub, Lele Forood‘s Cardinal is poised for a deep May Madness run having won 40 consecutive contests dating back to February ’10. With Hilary Barte, Nicole Gibbs, Mallory Burdette and Kristie Ahn at the helm, Stanford has extended its NCAA-record home winning streak to 178 consecutive matches, spanning a dozen seasons. That’s the longest streak of its kind in all of D1 sports.
DUKE: Duke (20-2) extended a 12-match win streak with wins over UNC, Clemson and Georgia Tech, propelling the Blue Devils to No. 3 in the nation. Reka Zsilinszka, Nadine Fahoum and NorCal product Elizabeth Plotkin (San Francisco) are Jamie Ashworth‘s go-to big guns. Plotkin, an All-ACC pick, had a 14-match win streak snapped against the Yellow Jackets, but has 26 wins on the year.
UNC: Yet another NorCal native is ripping it up on the national level. Sophomore Zoe De Bruycker (Saratoga, Calif.) scored three straight wins over top-50 opponents, including No. 10 Josipa Bek (Clemson), No. 45 Nadine Fahoum (Duke) and No. 46 Jillian O’Neill (GA Tech). UNC (20-4) has advanced to the NCAAs in each of Brian Kalbas‘ seven years as head coach.
CAL: On-the-rise sophomores Tayler Davis (San Jose) and Annie Goransson have each eclipsed the 30-win mark for the Golden Bears (16-5), back-to-back NCAA runners-up in ’08 and ’09; Slovak Fed Cupper and ’10 NCAA singles finalist Jana Juricova is unbeaten (18-0) in dual-match play atop the lineup; and Swede Mari Andersson is 25-9 on the year. Can Amanda Augustus‘ crew fight its way back to the title tilt?
THE MEN
UVA: With Virginia alum and two-time NCAA singles titlist Somdev Devvarman making a splash on the ATP Tour (he has wins over Marcos Baghdatis, Milos Raonic, Xavier Malisse and Janko Tipsarevic this year), the unbeaten Cavs (24-0) are making a charge of their own into the post-season. UVA recently extended its ACC-record win streak to 72 consecutive victories over conference competition. National No. 2 Alex Domijan and five-time ACC Player of the Week Michael Shabaz provide Brian Boland with a lethal combo at Nos. 1-2.
OHIO STATE: Blaz Rola and Chase Buchanan are two reasons why the Buckeyes (22-2) find themselves in the thick of the hunt for a national title. Buchanan plays with veteran composure (and why not — he faced Frenchman Jo-Wilfried Tsonga at the ’09 U.S. Open after winning the 18s Nationals) and has thrice been recognized as the Big Ten Athlete of the Week this year. The Scarlet and Gray have won 123 consecutive home matches, and the five-time defending Big Ten champs have claimed 71 straight conference clashes.
USC: Back-to-back NCAA team crowns apparently won’t suffice for the Trojans (19-2), who roll toward a title defense having won 12 matches in a row. A win away from securing the Pac-10 trophy, USC will count on the leadership of ITA No. 1 Steve Johnson, who has 28 wins on the season, is undefeated in dual-match play, and has taken down five top-10 opponents.
TENNESSEE: The all-senior trio of Boris Conkic, Matteo Fago and SEC Player of the Year/Tennessee Sports Hall of Fame Amateur Athlete of the Year John-Patrick Smith has collectively accounted for nearly 350 wins, anchoring Tennessee’s four-year rise to the top of the collegiate game. The No. 4-ranked Vols (17-3) recently edged Mississippi — their first win on the Rebels’ home courts in more than a decade. ITA National Indoor Champ Rhyne Williams has practiced with Roger Federer and briefly rose to No. 1 in the nation earlier in the year.
STANFORD: Stanford (14-5) won’t come in as the favorite, but the home-court advantage can do wondrous things come May. Losses have come against power programs (Florida, Georgia, USC and Baylor), but John Whitlinger‘s Cardinal has some power of its own. Defending NCAA singles champ Bradley Klahn (a team-best 21-9 overall) has helped Stanford to a six-match winning streak, and the top-dog duo of Klahn/Ryan Thacher has won 13 consecutive doubles matches and is 32-4 overall on the year.
NCAA Championships Match Schedule
May 19: Men’s Team Round of 16 (9 a.m., Noon, 3 p.m., 6 p.m.)
May 20: Women’s Team Round of 16 (9 a.m., Noon, 3 p.m., 6 p.m.)
May 21: Men’s Team Quarters (Noon, 4 p.m.)
May 22: Women’s Team Quarters (Noon, 4 p.m.)
May 23: Team Semis – Men (Noon); Women (4 p.m.)
May 24: Team Finals – Men (Noon); Women (4 p.m.)
May 25: Men’s/Women’s Singles 1st Round (10 a.m.)
May 26: Men’s/Women’s Singles 2nd Round (10 a.m.), Doubles 1st Round
May 27: Men’s/Women’s Singles/Doubles Round of 16 (10 a.m.)
May 28: Men’s/Women’s Singles/Doubles Quarters (Noon)
May 29: Men’s/Women’s Singles/Doubles Semis (Noon)
May 30: Men’s/Women’s Doubles Finals (Noon), Singles Finals (2 p.m.)
For ticket info, visit gostanford.com or call (800) STANFORD
