[ColoradoTree]

26 of the 64 spots in the NCAA singles field have been clinched so far, and here are those qualifiers by preseason rankings:

1. Mary Stoiana (Texas A&M)
2. Dasha Vidmanova (UGA)
4. Connie Ma
5. Ange Oby Kajuru (Okla State)
8. Savannah Broadus (Pepperdine)
11. Anasasiya Komar (Okla State)
12. Julia Fliegner (Michigan)
23. Luciana Perry (Ohio State)
32. D.J. Bennett (Auburn)
34. Bridget Stammel (Vanderbilt)
43. Theadora Rabman (UNC)
44. Maria Sholokova (Wisconsin)
62. Elza Tomase (Tennessee)
63. Esha Velaga (Penn)
64. Alexis Blokhina
69. Valerie Glozman
70. Sabine Rutlauka (Penn)
82. Angella Okutoyi (Auburn)
104. Ashton Bowers (Texas)
NR. Tatum Evans (UNC)
NR. Xin Tong Wang (Wichita State)
NR. Ariana Anazagasty-Pursoo (Texas)
NR. Serafima Shastova (Syracuse)
NR. Olivia Benton (BC)
NR. Carmen Gallardo Guevara (Purdue)
NR. Merna Refaat (Auburn)

That's kind of wild--seven unranked players! This is the kind of chaos that the NCAA was perhaps hoping for when they did away with a whole-season ranking picking the most qualified players and went to performance in a handful of fall tournaments. Some of the top players will have their regional tournaments this weekend, so we'll see some more ranked names get added, but the sheer presence of so many names that wouldn't have made it under the old system tells you that there are going to be plenty of folks in the top 30 that don't make it in the end.

This is also partly a feature of how unbalanced the regions are. The Carolina Region is a murderer's row. The Mountain Region has nobody. The Central Region is dominated by some top players at Oklahoma State, but is otherwise weak, so one upset and you see someone from Wichita State make it through. Vanderbilt and Tennessee dominate the Ohio Valley, but aside from them? The Northeast is weak, with its top seed ranked #63. New England is weaker, with its top seed ranked #105 and its #2 seed not ranked at all. The Southwest is loaded. The Northwest is top-heavy, with Stanford traditionally dominating over players from Cal, UW, etc. And so on, and so on. 

Anyway, all that to say that to win the NCAA singles tournament, your path will be easier on paper this year than in past years.

[ColoradoTree]

26 of the 64 spots in the NCAA singles field have been clinched so far, and here are those qualifiers by preseason rankings:

1. Mary Stoiana (Texas A&M)
2. Dasha Vidmanova (UGA)
4. Connie Ma
5. Ange Oby Kajuru (Okla State)
8. Savannah Broadus (Pepperdine)
11. Anasasiya Komar (Okla State)
12. Julia Fliegner (Michigan)
23. Luciana Perry (Ohio State)
32. D.J. Bennett (Auburn)
34. Bridget Stammel (Vanderbilt)
43. Theadora Rabman (UNC)
44. Maria Sholokova (Wisconsin)
62. Elza Tomase (Tennessee)
63. Esha Velaga (Penn)
64. Alexis Blokhina
69. Valerie Glozman
70. Sabine Rutlauka (Penn)
82. Angella Okutoyi (Auburn)
104. Ashton Bowers (Texas)
NR. Tatum Evans (UNC)
NR. Xin Tong Wang (Wichita State)
NR. Ariana Anazagasty-Pursoo (Texas)
NR. Serafima Shastova (Syracuse)
NR. Olivia Benton (BC)
NR. Carmen Gallardo Guevara (Purdue)
NR. Merna Refaat (Auburn)

That's kind of wild--seven unranked players! This is the kind of chaos that the NCAA was perhaps hoping for when they did away with a whole-season ranking picking the most qualified players and went to performance in a handful of fall tournaments. Some of the top players will have their regional tournaments this weekend, so we'll see some more ranked names get added, but the sheer presence of so many names that wouldn't have made it under the old system tells you that there are going to be plenty of folks in the top 30 that don't make it in the end.

This is also partly a feature of how unbalanced the regions are. The Carolina Region is a murderer's row. The Mountain Region has nobody. The Central Region is dominated by some top players at Oklahoma State, but is otherwise weak, so one upset and you see someone from Wichita State make it through. Vanderbilt and Tennessee dominate the Ohio Valley, but aside from them? The Northeast is weak, with its top seed ranked #63. New England is weaker, with its top seed ranked #105 and its #2 seed not ranked at all. The Southwest is loaded. The Northwest is top-heavy, with Stanford traditionally dominating over players from Cal, UW, etc. And so on, and so on. 

Anyway, all that to say that to win the NCAA singles tournament, your path will be easier on paper this year than in past years.