Women's Tennis: Spring 2025 - Printable Version

Women's Tennis: Spring 2025 - Printable Version

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RE: Women's Tennis: Spring 2025 - ColoradoTree - 01-27-2025

That Ole Miss result suggests that doubles isn't going to be any more of a strength this season than it has been over the last several years (which is to say, a relative weakness compared to other top teams).

We are a top-heavy team, for sure. Ma and Glozman are as good a top 2 as exists anywhere in the country, and they might be the best. But the dropoff after that is considerable. Hui at 3 is respectable, but she'd be better at 4. Xu shouldn't be playing as high as she is, but we don't have other options.

Driscoll has been a bit of a nice surprise, though. Maybe not someone who will be a dominant force at 6, but she's figured out ways to get wins when players like Xu and Okpara have struggled.

RE: Women's Tennis: Spring 2025 - TheFarm07 - 01-27-2025

It sounds like with all of the unexpected roster changes over the last few months, while this is not a lost season, our expectations will have to be tempered down.

In the medium-term (the next couple years), ColoradoTree, could you refresh us, on whether we are going to be okay or if we need a big recruiting victory or two coming up to reinforce our lineup?

RE: Women's Tennis: Spring 2025 - ColoradoTree - 01-27-2025

(01-27-2025, 01:44 PM)TheFarm07 Wrote: It sounds like with all of the unexpected roster changes over the last few months, while this is not a lost season, our expectations will have to be tempered down.

In the medium-term (the next couple years), ColoradoTree, could you refresh us, on whether we are going to be okay or if we need a big recruiting victory or two coming up to reinforce our lineup?

Assuming this next big class of Ahn/Ekstrand/Wang comes in, we're doing juuuuuust fine, though it would mean a very young roster next year, and still one that isn't as deep as usual. That said, it's hard to do better than three of the top 5 in the class, you know? Especially when the #1 recruit has already gone pro.

That would put next year's roster like this:

Seniors: Driscoll (and Sun)
Juniors: Hui
Sophomores: Glozman (and Shaffer)
Freshmen: Ahn, Ekstrand, Wang

Not sure precisely how those freshmen line up, but presumably it would be Glozman at 1, Hui at 2, then the three freshmen, then Driscoll at 6. That's a pretty good lineup, albeit a young one. And if Yepifanova ends up redshirting this year and comes back for next spring (probably unlikely if a pro career is beckoning at that point, but hope springs eternal), we could really have something going.

As for the class of 2026, I'm not sure how that class looks, but #2 junior Aspen Schuman is from just down the road in Menlo Park, so you'd have to think we're in on her as well as several others.

RE: Women's Tennis: Spring 2025 - BobK - 02-04-2025

The recruiting class Colorado Tree wrote about just above announced

https://gostanford.com/news/2025/02/3/top-class-to-the-farm

RE: Women's Tennis: Spring 2025 - ColoradoTree - 02-06-2025

Indoor Nationals is coming up, and while I normally view this event as an opportunity to test ourselves against the best and see whether we're really potentially national championship-caliber, this year feels different due to our sheer lack of depth.

We open as the 4 seed (which is bewildering given our injuries and departures) against 5th-seeded/10th-ranked Auburn, tomorrow at 1:30pm PT. And while we're favored on paper, in reality to beat Auburn here would be a tremendous upset. In doubles, we've only got #49 Ma/Glozman as a ranked duo, while Auburn has #12 Bennett/Hrastar and #51 Okutoyi/Refaat. We've got just two ranked singles players in #8 Glozman and #18 Ma, while Auburn has #2 D.J. Bennett, #22 Merna Refaat, #58 Angella Okutoyi, and #116 Ava Hrastar. Here's how we'd line up in singles, most likely:

1. #8 Glozman vs. #2 Bennett
2. #18 Ma vs. #116 Hrastar
3. Hui vs. #58 Okutoyi
4. Xu vs. #22 Refaat
5. Okpara vs. Ava Esposito
6. Driscoll vs. Alice Battesti

We'll likely lose doubles, so getting four singles wins out of this looks pretty daunting.

Here is the link to live scoring/streaming and other event info: https://wearecollegetennis.com/ita-division-i-womens-national-team-indoor-championship/

RE: Women's Tennis: Spring 2025 - M T - 02-06-2025

Are the rankings so imprecise that it is reasonable that their lineup of #2,#3,#4 players is in a dramatically inverse order to their ranking? Or is this gamesmanship?

RE: Women's Tennis: Spring 2025 - ColoradoTree - 02-07-2025

(02-06-2025, 04:43 PM)M T Wrote: Are the rankings so imprecise that it is reasonable that their lineup of #2,#3,#4 players is in a dramatically inverse order to their ranking? Or is this gamesmanship?

The rankings are based on very limited data--i.e., the fall season. Some players played more than others, and the rankings show who had the best fall seasons. But lots of players took off the fall to play pro tournaments, or only played a little, or were rehabbing injuries, so you can get a situation where the clear internal pecking order within a program might be one way, but the #3 or #4 went on a tear at the right time at the right tournament and they picked up a lot of quality ranked wins. So, nothing untoward happening here, I don't think.

We've actually got a shot in doubles! Ma/Glozman won 6-2 on Court 1 while Hui/Driscoll lost 6-4 on Court 3. On 2, we looked cooked when Okpara/Xu went down 5-1, but then they won four straight to tie it up at 5-5. Then on our serve, we went up 40-15 before Auburn took it to a deciding point, but we took it to go up 6-5! One game away from the doubles point! With such a depleted lineup right now, looking for three wins in singles versus four is a much more manageable task, so fingers crossed!

Auburn ties it up at 6-6 and it'll be a tiebreaker for the doubles point....

Auburn was up 3-1 and 4-2 in the breaker but now it's 4-4....

Now 6-4 Auburn. Then 6-5! But Auburn takes the breaker 6-5 and they're up 1-0. Stupid me for getting all excited and optimistic.

RE: Women's Tennis: Spring 2025 - Lorcan - 02-07-2025

There were definitely moments when I thought that we could sneak away with the doubles points - it felt like we lost almost every deciding point on court #2 - and that was the difference today.

Driscoll showing signs of life on #6 so far -- whether that holds up remains to be seen.

Xu off to the races, Ma with work to do.

Auburn 1, Stanford 0.

1. Glozman 5-7
2. Ma 5-4*
3 Hui 6-6 (she had a set/break point, but squandered the chance and now to a breaker.)
4. Xu 6-3 1-0
5. Okpara 3-6 2-1 - she broke in the second, so we'll see if she mounts a comeback.
6. Driscoll 4-4

It's really hard to see where we're going to get four. You absolutely need Hui to win that breaker, and then look for two of Driscoll, Ma, and Glozman.

Auburn 1, Stanford 0.

1. Glozman 5-7
2. Ma 6-4
3 Hui 6-7
4. Xu 6-3 2-0
5. Okpara 3-6 2-1 - she broke in the second, so we'll see if she mounts a comeback.
6. Driscoll 5-4

So, we've only won the first set on two courts, with 6 still battling slowly. There's going to need to be some three setters.

Auburn 1, Stanford 0.

1. Glozman 5-7
2. Ma 6-4
3 Hui 6-7
4. Xu 6-3 2-0
5. Okpara 3-6 2-1 - she broke in the second, so we'll see if she mounts a comeback.
6. Driscoll 6-4

In a bit of good news, Driscoll breaks to take the set on 6! What a start to her Stanford career if she can keep this up.

RE: Women's Tennis: Spring 2025 - Lorcan - 02-07-2025

It's looking grim - as Glozman is getting blown off the court.

1. Glozman 5-7 1-5
2. Ma 6-4 1-3
3 Hui 6-7 2-4
4. Xu 6-3 5-1
5. Okpara 3-6 6-6 - Okpara saved a match point to push it to a breaker.
6. Driscoll 6-4 1-2

Auburn 2, Stanford 1

1. Glozman 5-7 1-6
2. Ma 6-4 1-3
3 Hui 6-7 3-4 (Hui breaks!)
4. Xu 6-3 6-1
5. Okpara 3-6 6-6(1-1)
6. Driscoll 6-4 1-2

Auburn 3, Stanford 1.

Okpara falls. That doubles point really ended up being crucial. Wins from everywhere alive needed.

1. Glozman 5-7 1-6
2. Ma 6-4 4-3
3 Hui 6-7 4-5
4. Xu 6-3 6-1
5. Okpara 3-6 6-7(5)
6. Driscoll 6-4 2-4

Auburn 4, Stanford 1. Hui falls, and that'll do it. They really had some chances to make a match of it - but Auburn taking the tiebreakers in the doubles, on court 3 and court 5 sealed the fate. Oh well.

RE: Women's Tennis: Spring 2025 - BostonCard - 02-09-2025

Stanford bounced back with a 4-2 win over host Northwestern in the consolation.

https://gostanford.com/news/2025/02/8/katherine-clinches-for-the-cardinal

BC

RE: Women's Tennis: Spring 2025 - Spiny_Norman - 02-09-2025

(02-09-2025, 08:46 PM)BostonCard Wrote: Stanford bounced back with a 4-2 win over host Northwestern in the consolation.

https://gostanford.com/news/2025/02/8/katherine-clinches-for-the-cardinal

BC

Stanford lost today to Tennessee 4-2.

The Cardinal lost the doubles point for the 4th consecutive match.

RE: Women's Tennis: Spring 2025 - ColoradoTree - 02-11-2025

So, a rough weekend, but here are some bright spots:
* Ma/Glozman were terrific in doubles, and they were named the ACC Doubles Team of the Week.
* Xu was 2-1, Glozman was 2-1, and Driscoll was 2-0! Driscoll has been a great surprise on Court 6.

And for balance, the roughest spots:
* Okpara was 0-3 in doubles and 0-3 in singles.
* Hui isn't 100%, so it's really hard to judge her. But she was 1-2.

Neutral spot:
* Ma was 0-0--she looked set to win vs. NW and Auburn and was about to get into a third set vs. Tennessee. Would've been nice for a win from her to spark something, but when you don't lose a match, it's also hard to assign too much blame.

Counterfactual spot:
* Eleana Yu is ranked #23 in the country. Wouldn't it be nice to have her in the lineup? The decision to play Xu over her looks worse with every passing week....

RE: Women's Tennis: Spring 2025 - Spiny_Norman - 02-28-2025

Stanford down to #38 ranking which places them 10th in the ACC. Going to need to beat a lot of the teams ahead of them to move up into NCAA tournament consideration. It's tough when you are playing without half of the projected starting lineup at the start of the year. Blokhina turned pro. Hui and Yepifanova appear to be injured.

They won today vs. #46 UCSB.

RE: Women's Tennis: Spring 2025 - ColoradoTree - 03-10-2025

Yeah, I've been pretty checked out on this team because there is no reasonable prospect of a postseason run, and when that's the standard set by the program, it's hard to invest the emotional energy in a team that is going to fall far short of preseason expectations.

So, I've already started to think about what next year looks like. We lose Ma and Xu, but whether Yepifanova returns for a redshirt senior year is an open question. She has the year available, it's just not clear whether she'll use it. So, here's what it could be:

1. Glozman
2. Yepifanova
3. Hui
4. Ahn
5. Ekstrand
6. Wang

That's a legit lineup, and it has Caroline Driscoll as your #7 (or your #6 without Yepifanova), and she's proven she's capable at the bottom of the lineup. I'm sad that Connie Ma will leave this campus without a national title, but while next year's roster is going to be the youngest we've seen in a while, it's got high-end talent.

RE: Women's Tennis: Spring 2025 - ColoradoTree - 03-31-2025

It's been a few weeks, so here's a quick update:

* Stanford is ranked #28 with an 11-4 record. Two of those losses were to #8 Auburn and #7 Tennessee at National Indoors, and the other two were to #17 Cal and #5 UVA
* We have as good a top two as anyone, with Glozman ranked #6 and Ma ranked #17, but our only other ranked singles player is #79 Xu. (For reference, Eleana Yu is ranked #41 right now.)
* Unsurprisingly, Glozman and Ma have led the way in singles, going 12-3 and 12-0 in dual matches, respectively.
* Caroline Driscoll has been terrific for us, going 10-2 in duals.
* The previously- and again-injured Katherine Hui went 2-2 in duals at #3 before seemingly being done for the season again. We'll see.
* The rest of our singles lineup has been middling, with Xu going 9-6, Okpara at 7-6, Sun at 3-1, and Shaffer at 2-6.
* In doubles, Glozman/Ma has been very good at #1, going 12-4, but it falls off after that, with Driscoll/Xu going 7-3 at #2 and what appears to be the settled third pair of Okpara/Shaffer going 3-2.

All in all, we're a top-heavy team that has nowhere near the depth we usually do. With a healthy Yepifanova and Hui pushing Xu and Driscoll to 5 and 6, we've potentially got something, but right now, this is not a team that has the goods to go on a postseason run. Xu is playing way too high in the lineup and it shows. Shaffer has been pressed into service far more than a walk-on ever should, and she's leapfrogged Emma Sun as well.

Eleana Yu would be playing #3 on this team if last year's roster management had gone better. We still wouldn't have the depth to be a top team with Hui and Yepifanova out, but we'd be much more formidable. (I continue to assert, without any real knowledge, that if Yu had reliably played #6 last season over Xu, she would've stuck around, but then again, she could've looked up the lineup and realized she'd probably be stuck at #6 again with Glozman swapping in for Blake and everyone else coming back. I assume she didn't know then that Blokhina was likely to leave for the pros.)

RE: Women's Tennis: Spring 2025 - bbm233 - 03-31-2025

I just looked up how Blokhina is doing in her pro career. She is playing in "W15" events, which is the lowest level of professional tennis, with draws of 32 players. Her results have been decent in two of the three events she has entered in 2025: she was a finalist (lost to #461), a semi-finalist (lost to #446) and a first round loser (lost to an unranked player). Overall 9-3 W/L. Her current ranking is 734, up from 858 at the start of the year. Total prize money earned: $2645, which I would guess is less than whatever NIL is in place for the women's tennis team.

RE: Women's Tennis: Spring 2025 - Spiny_Norman - 03-31-2025

Xu played injured on the last road trip. She had to default her singles matches vs. Virginia Tech, Virginia and Miami. Somehow she gutted out doubles, winning 3 of 4 with Driscoll.

RE: Women's Tennis: Spring 2025 - Lorcan - 04-11-2025

A familiar name is back in the lineup for the Cardinal today! Alexandra Yepifanova! Slotting in at #5, she makes what I think is her debut this season!

Stanford takes the doubles point, and they're off to the races against Wake! Xu sliding down to #4, as she's serving underhanded - and Driscoll stays at #3 after her tremendous win against Duke last week.

RE: Women's Tennis: Spring 2025 - Jamesy - 04-11-2025

(04-11-2025, 02:05 PM)Lorcan Wrote: A familiar name is back in the lineup for the Cardinal today! Alexandra Yepifanova! Slotting in at #5, she makes what I think is her debut this season!

Stanford takes the doubles point, and they're off to the races against Wake! Xu sliding down to #4, as she's serving underhanded - and Driscoll stays at #3 after her tremendous win against Duke last week.

Wow, I had heard she was out for the year so I am shocked that Yepifanova is back. That's a brobdingnagian boost to the singles lineup and if Xu can get back healthy and playing at #5, that would give us a chance to actually win a postseason match or two.

ETA: I would think Yepifanova will play #3 or 4 ahead of Xu when healthy

RE: Women's Tennis: Spring 2025 - Lorcan - 04-11-2025

It's been a lovely return for Yepifanova so far as she battles back from 5-2, to win the first set 7-6. Her serve is definitely weaker than it used to be, but showing some flashes of her old self on the ground game.

Stanford takes the first on all six courts - with some squeakers, but comfortably ahead. A nice change from other matches recently against #34 Wake.