[martyup]

Man these girls have nerves of steel.  Choy comes through out of nowhere.  Shin and Gordon come back from a first set drubbing.  Too bad Lampl couldn't have finished it about an hour ago in the second set, but they beat a very good team today 5-2.  I think that was UNC's second loss of the year IIRC.

[martyup]

Man these girls have nerves of steel.  Choy comes through out of nowhere.  Shin and Gordon come back from a first set drubbing.  Too bad Lampl couldn't have finished it about an hour ago in the second set, but they beat a very good team today 5-2.  I think that was UNC's second loss of the year IIRC.

[PVTree]

So, technically, who clinched the win by a few seconds over the other?

[PVTree]

So, technically, who clinched the win by a few seconds over the other?

[martyup]

We win 4-2.

Major props to choy for coming through at #6, in a match where even with Maduware or Higuchi we had pencilled in a loss.  That was clutch!

BC

Choy was nails, but it's nice to know that we could have lost #6 and still won.

[martyup]

We win 4-2.

Major props to choy for coming through at #6, in a match where even with Maduware or Higuchi we had pencilled in a loss.  That was clutch!

BC

Choy was nails, but it's nice to know that we could have lost #6 and still won.

[ColoradoTree]

Technically a 5-2 win (our Twitter account is saying 4-2, but Carolina’s rightly calls it 5-2), as the wins happened simultaneously. You get to finish the point you’re on, but you don’t start a new point.

---

So, technically, who clinched the win by a few seconds over the other?

I don’t know yet! Both wins count, but it’s not yet clear which happened first.

---

The USTA’s site is calling it a 5-2 win, too.

[ColoradoTree]

Technically a 5-2 win (our Twitter account is saying 4-2, but Carolina’s rightly calls it 5-2), as the wins happened simultaneously. You get to finish the point you’re on, but you don’t start a new point.

---

So, technically, who clinched the win by a few seconds over the other?

I don’t know yet! Both wins count, but it’s not yet clear which happened first.

---

The USTA’s site is calling it a 5-2 win, too.

[BostonCard]

So, uh... go duke?


BC

[BostonCard]

So, uh... go duke?


BC

[martyup]

Gordon came back from a 3-6 loss in the 1st set to beat the #5 ranked player in the country.  Stupendous.

Fear the Tree!

[martyup]

Gordon came back from a 3-6 loss in the 1st set to beat the #5 ranked player in the country.  Stupendous.

Fear the Tree!

[Spiny_Norman]

Notable development on the men's side. Texas has made the finals playing with an interim coach. Their head coach Michael Center was fired in March for taking a bribe to help an applicant get admitted to UT.

[Spiny_Norman]

Notable development on the men's side. Texas has made the finals playing with an interim coach. Their head coach Michael Center was fired in March for taking a bribe to help an applicant get admitted to UT.

[BostonCard]

We win 4-2.

Major props to choy for coming through at #6, in a match where even with Maduware or Higuchi we had pencilled in a loss.  That was clutch!

BC

Choy was nails, but it's nice to know that we could have lost #6 and still won.

True, but it was nice to go into the third sets needing only one.

BC

[BostonCard]

We win 4-2.

Major props to choy for coming through at #6, in a match where even with Maduware or Higuchi we had pencilled in a loss.  That was clutch!

BC

Choy was nails, but it's nice to know that we could have lost #6 and still won.

True, but it was nice to go into the third sets needing only one.

BC

[terry]

So, uh... go duke?


BC

Roster notes on Georgia vs. Duke --

- The six players in Duke's line-up all graduated from the same two high schools -- four graduated from Laurel Springs Online School and two graduated from Florida Virtual High School. 

- The six players in Georgia's line-up are from six different countries -- Bosnia, Spain, Argentina, Germany, Greece, USA (in order from #1 to #6).

[terry]

So, uh... go duke?


BC

Roster notes on Georgia vs. Duke --

- The six players in Duke's line-up all graduated from the same two high schools -- four graduated from Laurel Springs Online School and two graduated from Florida Virtual High School. 

- The six players in Georgia's line-up are from six different countries -- Bosnia, Spain, Argentina, Germany, Greece, USA (in order from #1 to #6).

[qwerty49]

So, uh... go duke?


BC

Roster notes on Georgia vs. Duke --

- The six players in Duke's line-up all graduated from the same two high schools -- four graduated from Laurel Springs Online School and two graduated from Florida Virtual High School. 

- The six players in Georgia's line-up are from six different countries -- Bosnia, Spain, Argentina, Germany, Greece, USA (in order from #1 to #6).

Good grief.  Both the high schools the Duke players attended are online schools.  Laurel, in Ojai, counts Kylie Jenner as an alumnus.  Their pitch is for students "considering careers in entertainment or sports."  

Meanwhile, Georgia continues the farce of recruiting foreign players to be "student-athletes."

[qwerty49]

So, uh... go duke?


BC

Roster notes on Georgia vs. Duke --

- The six players in Duke's line-up all graduated from the same two high schools -- four graduated from Laurel Springs Online School and two graduated from Florida Virtual High School. 

- The six players in Georgia's line-up are from six different countries -- Bosnia, Spain, Argentina, Germany, Greece, USA (in order from #1 to #6).

Good grief.  Both the high schools the Duke players attended are online schools.  Laurel, in Ojai, counts Kylie Jenner as an alumnus.  Their pitch is for students "considering careers in entertainment or sports."  

Meanwhile, Georgia continues the farce of recruiting foreign players to be "student-athletes."

[Spiny_Norman]

Now I can state with full confidence that I won't be jinxing them - as Melissa Lord and Caroline Lampl prepare for their final team match at Stanford, I am really going to miss them. They have been fantastic for 4 years and it's been a joy watching them play and compete. I don't think it is a coincidence at all that Stanford is in the finals for the 4th year in a row. Best of luck to Lord, Lampl and the rest of the team tomorrow! Go Cardinal!!

[Spiny_Norman]

Now I can state with full confidence that I won't be jinxing them - as Melissa Lord and Caroline Lampl prepare for their final team match at Stanford, I am really going to miss them. They have been fantastic for 4 years and it's been a joy watching them play and compete. I don't think it is a coincidence at all that Stanford is in the finals for the 4th year in a row. Best of luck to Lord, Lampl and the rest of the team tomorrow! Go Cardinal!!

[ColoradoTree]

In fairness to Duke, I believe both Gordon and Higuchi graduated from Laurel Springs. Junior tennis is a weird animal with lots of travel, and it’s hard to do it fully while doing high school normally.

[ColoradoTree]

In fairness to Duke, I believe both Gordon and Higuchi graduated from Laurel Springs. Junior tennis is a weird animal with lots of travel, and it’s hard to do it fully while doing high school normally.

[Phogge]

“Normally.” What a joke. Helicopter parents and dreams of big money at Wimbledon. Harkins back to the Karoli Gym outside Houston. Spent many days there on Olympic projects. Young girls just having a miserable time and getting yelled at by Mrs. What a way to waste youth.

Online high school? BS.

[Phogge]

“Normally.” What a joke. Helicopter parents and dreams of big money at Wimbledon. Harkins back to the Karoli Gym outside Houston. Spent many days there on Olympic projects. Young girls just having a miserable time and getting yelled at by Mrs. What a way to waste youth.

Online high school? BS.

[ColoradoTree]

FYI, per the official GoStanford write-up, Shin’s match ended 11 seconds before Gordon’s did, but both count. 

Given how Shin’s match ended, though, I bet Gordon’s ended before they were done *arguing* about the end of Shin’s match.

[ColoradoTree]

FYI, per the official GoStanford write-up, Shin’s match ended 11 seconds before Gordon’s did, but both count. 

Given how Shin’s match ended, though, I bet Gordon’s ended before they were done *arguing* about the end of Shin’s match.

[Spiny_Norman]

Georgia outlasts Duke 4-2 in a match that ended well after 10 pm local time. Stanford vs. Georgia tomorrow for the NC. On the Tennis Channel no sooner than 2 pm pacific.

As RJ Abeytia said on Twitter, "death, taxes and Stanford women's tennis."

[Spiny_Norman]

Georgia outlasts Duke 4-2 in a match that ended well after 10 pm local time. Stanford vs. Georgia tomorrow for the NC. On the Tennis Channel no sooner than 2 pm pacific.

As RJ Abeytia said on Twitter, "death, taxes and Stanford women's tennis."

[Canalejas]

Georgia will be playing for their program's 3rd NCAA championship.  

Stanford will be playing for the program's 3rd NCAA championship in the last 4 years, and 20th overall.  

Go Stanford!

[Canalejas]

Georgia will be playing for their program's 3rd NCAA championship.  

Stanford will be playing for the program's 3rd NCAA championship in the last 4 years, and 20th overall.  

Go Stanford!

[ColoradoTree]

There isn’t a player on this roster who has ever not played in the NCAA final.

2016: beat Oklahoma State in the final, 4-3
2017: lost to Florida in the final, 4-1
2018: beat Vanderbilt in the final, 4-3
2019: TBD

To do this in an era of women’s tennis that has never had more parity, and where international players raise the level of play across college tennis? Insane. 

They should rename Taube after Lele when she retires.

---

Notable development on the men's side. Texas has made the finals playing with an interim coach. Their head coach Michael Center was fired in March for taking a bribe to help an applicant get admitted to UT.

It's a heck of a roster as it is, but my hat is off to those kids for how hard they've pushed down the stretch without their coach. You can't blame those kids for what their coach did, and to see them pull together like this is pretty impressive.

[ColoradoTree]

There isn’t a player on this roster who has ever not played in the NCAA final.

2016: beat Oklahoma State in the final, 4-3
2017: lost to Florida in the final, 4-1
2018: beat Vanderbilt in the final, 4-3
2019: TBD

To do this in an era of women’s tennis that has never had more parity, and where international players raise the level of play across college tennis? Insane. 

They should rename Taube after Lele when she retires.

---

Notable development on the men's side. Texas has made the finals playing with an interim coach. Their head coach Michael Center was fired in March for taking a bribe to help an applicant get admitted to UT.

It's a heck of a roster as it is, but my hat is off to those kids for how hard they've pushed down the stretch without their coach. You can't blame those kids for what their coach did, and to see them pull together like this is pretty impressive.

[oldalum]

Georgia outlasts Duke 4-2 in a match that ended well after 10 pm local time. 

not enough 3-setters IMO. Hope they get to sleep really late.

We're going to need to win the doubles point, which is entirely doable. Georgia has switched its doubles lineup since we beat them in doubles last time, though, moving Jokic up to #1 and Wolff down to #2
In singles last time, Higuchi and Arbuthnott got blasted, and Lord lost in 2 sets. We need NCAA clutch Lord tomorrow. Gordon is capable of beating Jokic although she'll be a slight underdog. I'm expecting Choy instead of Higuchi again. And we'll need Lampl and Shin to do their things again.

[oldalum]

Georgia outlasts Duke 4-2 in a match that ended well after 10 pm local time. 

not enough 3-setters IMO. Hope they get to sleep really late.

We're going to need to win the doubles point, which is entirely doable. Georgia has switched its doubles lineup since we beat them in doubles last time, though, moving Jokic up to #1 and Wolff down to #2
In singles last time, Higuchi and Arbuthnott got blasted, and Lord lost in 2 sets. We need NCAA clutch Lord tomorrow. Gordon is capable of beating Jokic although she'll be a slight underdog. I'm expecting Choy instead of Higuchi again. And we'll need Lampl and Shin to do their things again.

[ColoradoTree]

Final thoughts:

1. Welcome to the postseason indeed, Sara Choy. After a couple of spot starts in the dual season that didn't engender a ton of confidence, she comes in against a great player in Sanford (who played #2 singles last year for the #1 team in the country, let's not forget), wins a tough first set before steamrolling her in the second set. I can't say enough about her performance, given the stakes.

2. Depth matters, ladies and gentlemen. Sure, only six play singles on a given night, but there's a reason you have eight scholarships. And we needed every last one today.

3. Winning doubles against that team? Sure, we ended up getting four singles wins anyway, but this was a great example of how important that doubles point is. How would we all have felt if we were down 0-1 and we lost three first sets? 

4. That was a big time win from Lord to put pressure on UNC and give a boost to the rest of our team, and Choy delivering a surprise win on #6 only heightened that pressure (and that boost). 

5. A really frustrating loss from Lampl for her first dual match loss of the year. She had it, but her ever-inconsistent serve failed her in the end, and she dropped that second set that would have given Stanford a 4-0 win. But an undefeated dual season record doesn't matter. Only the title matters, and maybe this stokes the fire for tomorrow. (Though Lampl doesn't need help finding sufficient passion to play, obviously.) 

6. I'm glad Shin has bounced back from some inconsistent play and seems to be hitting her stride at the best possible time. 

7. MICHAELA GORDON, folks. I am pumped about that win. Your ace beating their ace is always the best feeling, and for her to come back from a set down against a Top 5 player on this stage? That's a level we haven't seen from Michaela yet. She's beaten top players, yes. But we didn't win last year's title on the strength of a lot of wins at the #1 singles position. She delivered in a big, big moment today, and that makes me excited for her playing Jokic tomorrow. 

8. Last year, we won the title 4-3 against a team we'd lost to by a 7-0 score in the regular season. Tomorrow, we play a team that beat us 4-3 in the regular season. So, why not us?

---

In doubles, Georgia is a decent team, but not great. Much like we are, they're used to dropping the doubles point in big matches but coming back and getting 4 from singles. But I like our chances in doubles tomorrow.

In singles (with UTR differential in parentheses):

1. #24 Gordon vs. #2 Katarina Jokic (Jokic by 0.16)
2. #29 Lord vs. #19 Marta Gonzalez (Lord by 0.10)
3. #66 Lampl vs. #69 Lourdes Carle (Lampl by 0.07)
4. #44 Arbuthnott vs. #72 Vivian Wolff (Wolff by 0.23)
5. #108 Shin vs. Eleni Christofi (Christofi by 0.2)
6. #107 Higuchi or #119 Choy vs. #122 Meg Kowalski (Kowalski by 0.63 over Higuchi and 0.87 over Choy)

At Indoor Nationals, like oldalum noted, we won doubles, but singles didn't go our way. At #1, Gordon lost 4-6, 6-1, 6-3. At #2, Lord was competitive but then just got bulldozed in the second set and seemed very much out of sorts, 7-5, 6-2. At #3, Lampl started slow but turned on the gas, winning 3-6, 6-3, 6-0. At #4, Wolff absolutely crushed Arbuthnott, 6-2, 6-2. At #5, Shin had little trouble with Christofi, 6-3, 6-2. And at #6, Higuchi had no answers for Kowalski, falling 6-1, 6-1. 

So, if we win doubles again, which match or matches do we turn around? My bet is that Lord finds that NCAA level she's reached before, and she doesn't lose again. I like the odds of Lampl turning her disappointment today into fuel for tomorrow, and she takes care of Carle again. I hope Arbuthnott gets some sleep, because we need her in classic fighting-for-every-point form tomorrow. I hope we see a similarly dominant performance from Shin against Christofi, but I'm nervous about that. And if it's Higuchi tomorrow, she needs an entirely different game plan against Kowalski, so maybe it's for the best if we get Choy in there against her to see if she can throw Kowalski for a loop. 

I will never pick this team to lose, so I'll say 4-2 Stanford. We take doubles and we get singles wins from #2, #3, and #5. Gordon is locked in a tight match when we clinch, but we drop #4 and #6. Lord got her heroic clinch last year, so it would be kind for fate to allow Lampl that glory tomorrow. Goodness knows she deserves it.

---

FWIW, Slam.tennis says Georgia is 63% to win tomorrow.

[ColoradoTree]

Final thoughts:

1. Welcome to the postseason indeed, Sara Choy. After a couple of spot starts in the dual season that didn't engender a ton of confidence, she comes in against a great player in Sanford (who played #2 singles last year for the #1 team in the country, let's not forget), wins a tough first set before steamrolling her in the second set. I can't say enough about her performance, given the stakes.

2. Depth matters, ladies and gentlemen. Sure, only six play singles on a given night, but there's a reason you have eight scholarships. And we needed every last one today.

3. Winning doubles against that team? Sure, we ended up getting four singles wins anyway, but this was a great example of how important that doubles point is. How would we all have felt if we were down 0-1 and we lost three first sets? 

4. That was a big time win from Lord to put pressure on UNC and give a boost to the rest of our team, and Choy delivering a surprise win on #6 only heightened that pressure (and that boost). 

5. A really frustrating loss from Lampl for her first dual match loss of the year. She had it, but her ever-inconsistent serve failed her in the end, and she dropped that second set that would have given Stanford a 4-0 win. But an undefeated dual season record doesn't matter. Only the title matters, and maybe this stokes the fire for tomorrow. (Though Lampl doesn't need help finding sufficient passion to play, obviously.) 

6. I'm glad Shin has bounced back from some inconsistent play and seems to be hitting her stride at the best possible time. 

7. MICHAELA GORDON, folks. I am pumped about that win. Your ace beating their ace is always the best feeling, and for her to come back from a set down against a Top 5 player on this stage? That's a level we haven't seen from Michaela yet. She's beaten top players, yes. But we didn't win last year's title on the strength of a lot of wins at the #1 singles position. She delivered in a big, big moment today, and that makes me excited for her playing Jokic tomorrow. 

8. Last year, we won the title 4-3 against a team we'd lost to by a 7-0 score in the regular season. Tomorrow, we play a team that beat us 4-3 in the regular season. So, why not us?

---

In doubles, Georgia is a decent team, but not great. Much like we are, they're used to dropping the doubles point in big matches but coming back and getting 4 from singles. But I like our chances in doubles tomorrow.

In singles (with UTR differential in parentheses):

1. #24 Gordon vs. #2 Katarina Jokic (Jokic by 0.16)
2. #29 Lord vs. #19 Marta Gonzalez (Lord by 0.10)
3. #66 Lampl vs. #69 Lourdes Carle (Lampl by 0.07)
4. #44 Arbuthnott vs. #72 Vivian Wolff (Wolff by 0.23)
5. #108 Shin vs. Eleni Christofi (Christofi by 0.2)
6. #107 Higuchi or #119 Choy vs. #122 Meg Kowalski (Kowalski by 0.63 over Higuchi and 0.87 over Choy)

At Indoor Nationals, like oldalum noted, we won doubles, but singles didn't go our way. At #1, Gordon lost 4-6, 6-1, 6-3. At #2, Lord was competitive but then just got bulldozed in the second set and seemed very much out of sorts, 7-5, 6-2. At #3, Lampl started slow but turned on the gas, winning 3-6, 6-3, 6-0. At #4, Wolff absolutely crushed Arbuthnott, 6-2, 6-2. At #5, Shin had little trouble with Christofi, 6-3, 6-2. And at #6, Higuchi had no answers for Kowalski, falling 6-1, 6-1. 

So, if we win doubles again, which match or matches do we turn around? My bet is that Lord finds that NCAA level she's reached before, and she doesn't lose again. I like the odds of Lampl turning her disappointment today into fuel for tomorrow, and she takes care of Carle again. I hope Arbuthnott gets some sleep, because we need her in classic fighting-for-every-point form tomorrow. I hope we see a similarly dominant performance from Shin against Christofi, but I'm nervous about that. And if it's Higuchi tomorrow, she needs an entirely different game plan against Kowalski, so maybe it's for the best if we get Choy in there against her to see if she can throw Kowalski for a loop. 

I will never pick this team to lose, so I'll say 4-2 Stanford. We take doubles and we get singles wins from #2, #3, and #5. Gordon is locked in a tight match when we clinch, but we drop #4 and #6. Lord got her heroic clinch last year, so it would be kind for fate to allow Lampl that glory tomorrow. Goodness knows she deserves it.

---

FWIW, Slam.tennis says Georgia is 63% to win tomorrow.

[Spiny_Norman]

Georgia will be playing for their program's 3rd NCAA championship.  

Stanford will be playing for the program's 3rd NCAA championship in the last 4 years, and 20th overall.  

Go Stanford!

Georgia beat Stanford in the finals the 2 times it won, 1994 and 2000. But Stanford has an overall 12-3 record vs. the Bulldogs in NCAA play.

This is the 38th NCAA Women's Tennis Championship. Incredibly, Stanford has played in the finals 26 times including this year. That's over 2/3 of the time.

[Spiny_Norman]

Georgia will be playing for their program's 3rd NCAA championship.  

Stanford will be playing for the program's 3rd NCAA championship in the last 4 years, and 20th overall.  

Go Stanford!

Georgia beat Stanford in the finals the 2 times it won, 1994 and 2000. But Stanford has an overall 12-3 record vs. the Bulldogs in NCAA play.

This is the 38th NCAA Women's Tennis Championship. Incredibly, Stanford has played in the finals 26 times including this year. That's over 2/3 of the time.