Unlike two years ago when the Super Regionals were played at campus sites, this year due to COVID we will see them contested at the USTA National Campus in Orlando. Five of the eight Super Regional matches in 2019 were regular season rematches but this year there are zero. The reason for this is several conferences limited travel plus there were a handful of teams (Georgia, Florida State, Cal) that either opted out or wouldn’t have qualified for the reduced size Kickoff Weekend and subsequent National Team Indoors back in February.
For a full recap of how each team earned its spot in the Sweet 16 you can read my opening round recap at this link.
[3] Georgia vs. [14] #13 Virginia (10:00 am ET)
Road to the Super Regionals
#3 Georgia def. Austin Peay 4-0 in R1; def. #32 Wake Forest 4-1 in R2
#14 Virginia def. LIU 4-0 in R1; def. #15 Tennessee 4-2 in R2
All-Time Series: Georgia 4-1
Most Recent Meeting: 2020: UGA 4-2 (National Team Indoors)
NCAA H2H: First Meeting
Match Notes:
- Doubles edge to UGA: Dawgs have only dropped the point twice all-year while the Cavs were just above .500
- Showdown at No. 1 singles: Jokic is undefeated in dual-match play and Navarro has only lost once (1-6, 6-4, 6-3 to Miami’s Estela Perez-Somarriba) plus they have the second and third highest UTRs of the players whose teams are still playing.
- Look at those UGA winning streaks: Jokic 18, Coppoc 16, Christofi 11, Ma 8 (UVA’s longest is 5 by Navarro)
- Where are your results Marta? Despite only having a result in 4 matches, UGA’s Marta Gonzalez has started 19 dual-matches. 15 of those 19 went unfinished due to how dominant Georgia was throughout the lineup and how quickly they got 4 points on the board. Gonzalez had a lead in 12 of the unfinished matches and was just 1 game away from closing out 4 of them.
- Hoo will we see at No. 6 singles for UVA? Vivian Glozman is listed at No. 6 in the master lineup however Sofia Munera started, and lost, in that spot against Tennessee in the second round. Glozman started 12 dual-matches this year with 7 of those coming at No. 5 while Munera started 16 times with them pretty evening split between No. 4, No. 5, and No. 6.
Prediction: Virginia’s strength is the upper half of its lineup but a sweep of those top three spots is going to be a tall order. If UVA drops the doubles point they’d not only need to sweep the top three but also find a win down low somewhere. There’s a reason Georgia dominated the SEC this year (16-0 with 13 shutouts) and only lost once all season (4-3 to #1 UNC) and I don’t see loss No. 2 coming in this one – Georgia 4-1.
[6] NC State vs. #35 USC (10:00 am ET)
Road to the Super Regionals
#6 NC State def. VCU 4-0 in R1; def. #36 Iowa State 4-2 in R2
#35 USC def. #22 Oklahoma 4-3 in R1; def. [11] #12 Floridai 4-1 in R2
All-Time Series: USC 1-0
Most Recent Meeting: 2011: USC 4-3
NCAA H2H: First Meeting
Match Notes
- NC State is appearing in the Round of 16 for the second time in school history (first came in 2019)
- USC last advanced past the Round of 16 in 2015 when they made the semifinals
- Doubles edge to NCST – Pack have won the doubles point 19 times in 23 matches while USC has won it 13 times in 23 matches
- Will USC have a full strength lineup in singles? Angela Kulikov and Naomi Cheong are listed at No. 3 and No. 4 in the master lineup however neither played singles in the first two rounds which made their wins over Oklahoma and Florida that much more impressive. Kulikov has only made one singles appearance in dual-match play (lost 6-1, 6-2 to Pepperdine’s Jessica Failla at No. 1 singles) though she’s been a regular in the doubles lineup. Cheong played up until early April, split between No. 1, No. 2, and No. 3, until she retired with an injury in a match against Cal on April 9. She was back in the lineup on April 24 against Arizona State but retired again with an injury after dropping the first set.
- Can Anna Rogers get out of her recent slump against highly ranked opponents? Rogers has lost 3 straight and 5 of her last 7 including a 6-3, 6-1 loss against an unranked Thasaporn Nakio of Iowa State.
Prediction: NC State should be able to win the doubles point and they have to like the projected matchup at No. 5 singles (assuming USC plays the same lineup that it did versus Florida) so the question is can USC win 4 of the other 5 singles matches? I think it’s going to be really close and will probably come down to a third set at No. 3 or No. 4 – NC State 4-3
[2] Texas vs. [15] #16 Ohio State (1:00 pm ET)
Road to the Super Regionals
#2 Texas def. Denver 4-0 in R1; def. #31 Arizona State 4-0 in R2
#16 Ohio State def. UIC 4-0 in R1; def. #28 Vanderbilt 4-3 in R2
All-Time Series: Texas 3-1
Most Recent Meeting: 2020: Texas 4-3 (National Team Indoors Consolation)
NCAA H2H: First Meeting
Match Notes
- This is the fourth year in a row that these teams have played (Texas has won the last 3 meetings)
- Ohio State is in the Round of 16 for the third time in program history
- Texas last made it past the Round of 16 in 2005 (lost in final)
- Some major win streaks
- Texas: Team (20), Rapolu (16), Chavatipon (15), Labrana (13), Sun (13), Collins (12), Chavatipon/Stearns dubs (12)
- Ohio State: Team (15), Dormet (12), Marzal (8), Allen/Boulais dubs (5)
- Texas’s only loss this season was 4-3 to UNC in the National Indoors Final
- Ohio State’s only losses were 4-3 to Michigan, 4-3 to Northwestern, and 4-0 to UNC
Prediction: Texas is just too strong top to bottom and while Ohio State will keep it close in a few spots they just don’t have the firepower to pull off the upset – Texas 4-0
[7] Florida State vs. [10] Texas A&M (1:00 pm ET)
Road to the Super Regionals
#7 Florida State def. Alabama State 4-0 in R1; def. #19 Auburn 4-1 in R2
#10 Texas A&M def. Drake 4-0 in R1; def. #21 Northwestern 4-2 in R2
All-Time Series: Florida State 3-0
Most Recent Meeting: 2020: FSU 4-0 in Tallahassee (Jan)
NCAA H2H: First Meeting
Match Notes
- This is FSU’s third trip to the Round of 16 – 2018 was the only time they made it to the quarters
- Texas A&M is in the Round of 16 for the sixth time in the last eight seasons (2013 was only time they advanced further)
- Andrea Garcia is listed at No. 7 in FSU’s master lineup but played at No. 6 in both Round 1 and Round 2.
- FSU’s Hule and Allen have won their last 8 matches
- FSU’s Salas has dropped 6 straight while A&M’s Faa-Hviding has lost 5 straight.
Prediction: These teams are fairly evenly matched up but I think Florida State pulls through in the end – Florida State 4-2
[4] UCLA vs. [13] #11 Georgia Tech (4:00 pm ET)
Road to the Super Regionals
#4 UCLA def. Grand Canyon 4-0 in R1; def. #30 Texas Tech 4-0 in R2
#11 Georgia Tech def. Georgia Southern 5-0 in R1; def. #63 North Florida 4-0 in R2
All-Time Series: Georgia Tech 4-3
Most Recent Meeting: 2018 NCAA QF: Georgia Tech 4-3
NCAA H2H: 2-2
Match Notes
- Doubles edge to UCLA – Bruins have won the doubles point in 22 of 25 matches including 11 straight
- Both No. 2 singles players are riding solid winning streaks – UCLA’s Jada Hart has won 7 straight and GT’s Victoria Flores has won 5 straight
- Who will we see at the bottom two spots in UCLA’s singles lineup? Sasha Vagramov and Vanessa Ong are listed at No. 5 and No. 6 in the master lineups but Vagramov didn’t play in either match last weekend while Ong played against Grand Canyon but not Texas Tech. It’d be hard not to see Annette Goulak in the lineup after going 16-3 in dual-match play.
Prediction: UCLA will take the doubles point and then I’d look for them to grab wins at 3, 5, and 6 to close out the shutout – UCLA 4-0
[5] Pepperdine vs. #20 Michigan (4:00 pm ET)
Road to the Super Regionals
#5 Pepperdine def. Northern Arizona 4-0 in R1; def. #27 Stanford 4-2 in R2
#20 Michigan def. Rice 4-1 in R1; def. #14 LSU 4-3 in R2
All-Time Series: Pepperdine 4-2
Most Recent Meeting: 2020: Pepperdine 4-1 @ home
NCAA H2H: First Meeting
Match Notes
- Pepperdine is into the Round of 16 for the fifth straight season and has advanced to the quarterfinals in 3 of the last 4 seasons
- Michigan is into the Round of 16 for the ninth time since 2010 – last advanced to the quarterfinals in 2016
- Pepperdine’s Taisiya Pachkaleva is riding a 21-match winning streak while Lisa Zaar has won her last 19.
- Both teams switched up their doubles pairings prior to the NCAAs and went 1-1 with each losing in the second round
Prediction: This is one of the best teams that Pepperdine has ever had and I can’t see them being denied another crack at UCLA in the quarterfinals – Pepperdine 4-1
[9] UCF vs. #18 Duke (7:00 pm ET)
Road to the Super Regionals
#9 UCF def. Charleston Southern 4-0 in R1; def. #23 Miami 4-1 in R2
#18 Duke def. Alabama 4-0 in R1; def. #8 Baylor 4-3 in R2
All-Time Series: Duke 2-0
Most Recent Meeting: 2012: Duke 7-0
NCAA H2H: First Meeting
Match Notes
- UCF is making its second straight appearance in the Round of 16 (first-ever NCAA win was in 2018)
- Duke is making its fourth straight appearance in the Round of 16 (advanced to semis in 2018 and 2019)
- Both teams have played doubles well with each winning the point in 18 of 23 matches
- UCF’s Valeriya Zeleva is riding a 12-match winning streak
- Duke’s Meible Chi has won her last 9, Georgia Drummy has won her last 7, and Chloe Beck has won 4 straight
- UCF has Marie Mattel and Nadja Bay listed at No. 5 and No. 6 in the master lineups however Jaleesa Leslie played at 5 in both the first and second round while Nandini Sharma played at 6 in both matches
Prediction: UCF has had success against ACC schools this season with wins over Miami and Florida State and I think they’ve got a good chance against Duke but Duke will find a way to get the W – Duke 4-3
[1] North Carolina vs. [16] #17 California (7:00 pm ET)
Road to the Super Regionals
#1 UNC def. South Carolina State 4-0 in R1; def. #29 Old Dominion 4-0 in R2
#17 Cal def. San Jose State 4-0 in R1; def. #26 Kentucky 4-2 in R2
All-Time Series: Cal 4-2
Most Recent Meeting: 2017 National Team Indoors: UNC 4-2
NCAA H2H: Cal 2-0 (2003/2001)
Match Notes
- UNC has advanced to the Round of 16 in each of the last 11 seasons
- Cal is back in the Round of 16 for the first time since 2017
- The undefeated Tar Heels have 8 singles players ranked in the ITA Top 125.
- UNC posted shutouts in 16 of their 28 wins – only gave up more than 1 point in 3 matches (UGA 4-3, Texas 4-3, Virginia 5-2)
- Cal played 6 matches against top 5 teams this season going 2-4 (2-2 vs. UCLA; 0-2 vs. Pepperdine)
Prediction: UNC is definitely the heavy favorite in this match but Cal is playing with a lot of confidence after winning its last 5 – I think UNC wins but Cal won’t be embarrassed – North Carolina 4-1
Overall I think it’d be very surprising if any of the top 5 seeds fall on Sunday however the other 3 matches are all toss-ups and there really isn’t a result in those 3 matches that would surprise me. For more discussion on Sunday’s matches listen to the Cracked Racquets Mini-Break Podcast where Alex Gruskin talks with Colette Lewis. You can follow all the matches with live scoring and streaming video is available on the TennisOne app.
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