DePauw has played one of the toughest schedules in DIII, but they have yet to pull off a big win. Could their undefeated Spring Break trip help them upset a Kenyon team that just shutout Hopkins? Here are the Expert’s picks:
Doubles
1. Sandager/Gates v. Brody/Greenberg- The ITA has DePauw as the favorites, but I think Kenyon pulls out the win here.
2. Batuello/Schouweiler v. Polster/Piskacek- This is a new doubles pair with Kahn out of the lineup, but it should be close.
3. Hubbard/ Rardon v. Burgin/VandenBerg- Another match that has the potential to be tough but should be a routine win for Kenyon.
Kenyon up 2-1 after doubles. It's over if Kenyon pulls off a somewhat likely doubles sweep.
Singles
Singles
1. Sandager v. Greenberg- Greenberg could lose less games in singles than doubles.
2. Piskacek v. Rardon- Piskacek has been shaky lately and was moved down to 3 for a while, but I see him winning here.
3. Schouweiler v. Polster- Schouweiler's been steady in tough matches, and he could possibly pull off the upset.
4. Swiler v. VandenBerg- This will be close and possibly a swing match.
5. Hubbard v. Bergin- Hubbard found himself in the lineup mid-season and should match up decently against Bergin.
6. Hunter v. Brody/Ye- If Brody plays, I'll give him the win. But I think the senior Hunter could beat the freshman Ye.
More than likely, this will be a routine Kenyon 7-2 win. DePauw knows that their season and an NCAA playoff birth now depends upon beating Trinity(TX) in their conference finals, so they might not be focused. However, if they bring the intensity, they do have the depth to challenge Kenyon at the bottom of the lineup. If they can get up 2-1 in doubles, it might just give them enough fire to pull out 3 of the bottom 4 singles matches. If they don't pick up a doubles point, they might want to consider just forfeiting singles and resting for Saturday....
