Big weekend coming up in the ACC. Today I will preview the Friday matches (Saturday/Sunday preview to come early on Saturday).
There is actually one Thursday match but it is Florida State at Boston College and we all know how the BC ACC matches go.
#1 Wake Forest at #39 Louisville – Louisville got a very much needed win last weekend at Duke. It kept their ranking from sinking below 40 and stopped the string of three straight ACC losses. Wake Forest did not look extremely impressive vs Clemson and Georgia Tech last weekend but they were able to get two wins despite some players missing for Davis Cup. This match will be closer than people may expect with it being at Louisville and Wake hitting a slight lull in form recently. But in the end the Deacs are just too talented to lose this match . Prediction: Wake Forest 5-2
#23 NC State at #49 Virginia – The importance of this match cannot be stressed enough. Virginia absolutely must defend home courts and win this match if they wish to make the NCAA tournament this season. Following the heartbreaking loss to Duke, Virginia has gone on to lose three more in a row after that to complete a four match losing streak. Gianni Ross did not play vs Florida State. UVA will need him in the lineup if they are to upset NC State, who is on a four match win streak of their own. With their backs against the wall, I think Virginia will come together behind their fans and find a way to defeat NC State. Prediction: Virginia 4-3
#42 Miami at #28 Notre Dame – The Miami Hurricane were one of the hottest teams in the ACC, following the tight 4-3 loss to Wake Forest they reeled off four straight wins including over Louisville, NC State and Virginia. But all of the Cane momentum came to a screeching halt on Sunday as they were blown out of the water by Virginia Tech with 5 of the 6 singles matches going to VT in straight sets and courts 3-6 all in one sided score-lines. Miami needs to rebound from that loss with a good performance vs Notre Dame to show that the prior win streak defines the team more than the poor performance against the Hokies. While Miami lost to VT 7-0, Notre Dame beat VT 7-0 a few weeks ago. However Notre Dame lost to NC State and Virginia, both of whom Miami beat. This matchup is very hard to decipher and predict based on matchups. I have to give the edge to Notre Dame, being at home and likely playing indoor. If this was in Miami I might give the nod to the Hurricanes. Prediction: Notre Dame 5-2
Clemson at #20 Duke – Duke is coming off of two relatively disappointing 5-2 losses to Notre Dame and Louisville. The Blue Devils needed at least to win one of those to keep their regional hosting hopes alive. Now they must simply avoid an upset against Clemson. The last time these two played in Durham in 2016, Clemson was able to pull off the 4-3 upset in a dramatic 2-6 7-6 7-6 court 5 clincher. Things have done downhill this year for Clemson however, as the horrible loss to UNC-Asheville started a 2-6 slide over the last 8 matches and has crashed a once decent looking season. Clemson did put up a good fight at NC State on Sunday, taking every completed singles match to 3 sets. I don’t expect Duke to come out flat in this one. They will be ready to stop their losing skid and be ready to dispatch Clemson. Prediction: Duke 6-1
Latest Comments