Clemson Tiger tennis

[Clemson_tennis]

Yeah I don’t know why Liu wasn’t in there. They finally plugged in Vialmin. I wasn’t able to attend that match. Definitely a bad loss since Charlotte is not as good of a team this year after losing Keist and has already lost to BC.

Princeton and Georgia State coming in this weekend. I will go to those matches. It would actually be a surprise to win one of those matches.

 

[chic]

They've turned this Princeton game into an exciting match. Some questionable calls and Princeton is getting maddddd (although they're cutting both ways, this is the first time they're helping Clemson more than hurting)

 

[Clemson_tennis]

They've turned this Princeton game into an exciting match. Some questionable calls and Princeton is getting maddddd (although they're cutting both ways, this is the first time they're helping Clemson more than hurting)

Yeah I will admit that Clemson has definitely squeezed the line on a few calls and the umps haven’t overruled accept on 1 occasion

 

[Clemson_tennis]

Two wild matches this weekend. 4-3 wins over Princeton and Georgia State.

In both mathes, Dodens and Kelaidis came through in the clutch. Dodens rallied from 0-4 down in the 3rd set today vs Georgia State to win 7-5 vs Bailey Showers. Showers had a very powerful two handed lefty forehand that was so hot and cold. He destroyed a 2nd serve for a clean winner at 3-0 40-40 to go up 4-0 and it looked like he was going to clinch it for the Panthers. But then he started to miss and Dodens maneuvered him around the court to assist in the unraveling.

Some general comments from both matches:

Yizhou Liu sat out in both matches for Clemson, an important player at 2 or 3. He was in the building on Friday but did not see him on Sunday. Matteo Vialmin filled in his position and 2 and did not look good at all in either match. Hopefully Liu comes back fast because there was not much to like about Vialmin's play this weekend on doubles or singles.

Ryan Seggerman #1 for Princeton has one of the more bizarre styles of play that I have seen. He has probably the best kick serve I have seen in college tennis, as he can get it up really high and put a type of screwball spin on it. He has a ton of spin and work on his forehand, a lot like Jack Sock. But Seggerman often mishit it, which created a lot of framed balls, many of which missed the court by a mile. And for how big he could hit the ball at times, he played a lot of cat and mouse points, going to drop shots and squash slice forehands, sometimes it worked perfectly and sometimes it was a disaster. A topsy-turvy experience.

Quentin Coulaud of Georgia State, who played #1 singles is one of those players that goes out of his way to seek confrontation, one of the most extreme I have seen in that regard. Some players enjoy being the "annoying player", most teams have at least one, some teams have many and Coulaud certainly fills that role. He got a point penalty in the first set for mimicking gestures on his racket handle and antagonizing the crowd. He had several arguments with the chair umpire, a couple of them lasting several minutes. And that was all during a 6-4 6-4 victory, I can't imagine the drama during a close three-setter for him.

 

[Nastase]

Two surprising wins congrats. I'm very surprised they beat Ga State, that's a good team. No dog in this hunt but I must say in fairness my observations have been - The GSU player you spoke about is very emotional and a bit loud and in your face for my tastes (the whole GS team is a too loud and amped for my tastes), but I've personally never seen him go out of his way to create probs or be unfair. Also, the #1 for Clemson came to campus with a reputation for creative calls and I've seen first hand his chicanery. Sometimes when you play a guy with that reputation you are on alert a bit to the possibility of issues and therefore this kind of bs happens. I did not see this match but am well familiar with both teams and think my comments are fair.

 

[Clemson_tennis]

Diaz-Freire was overruled on the third point of the match. I did not see the ball clearly enough but that is rare that you see an official overrule that early in the match so it I'll assume it was a ball call by Diaz-Freire and that got Coulaud going early. Diaz-Freire was then overruled again a few games later and flirted with a third overrule late in the set, (which is actually what the big minute long discussion was about, that require 3 officials to come over).

There were many bad calls between both teams. I noticed players calling balls out on deuce points because what do they have to lose? Maybe the official wasn't looking or something. Bailey Showers at 5 for GSU made perhaps THE most egregious call I have seen in the 3rd set on a deuce point when the call was not even close to the baseline and was quickly overruled. Both GSU coaches even gestured in. Something has to be done because players realize there is nothing to lose by calling these balls out on big points.

I will say that Princeton was pretty fair on calls for the most part. But Clemson and G-State were not, both teams were squeezing the lines.

 

[chic]

It's frustrating to watch.

Can we switch to clay.

Or install some 240fps cameras on both ends and have some sorta live review system goin on using frame by frame.

 

[chic]

Yizhou Liu Undergoes Season-Ending Surgery

Clemson, S.C. -- Clemson has announced that junior Yizhou Liu has undergone season ending surgery. quote Native to Nanjing, China, Liu played in ... matches for the Tigers this season and was on a ... win-streak prior Clemson (7-2) returns to action on ... at ... p.m. ET.

clemsontigers.com

Liu out for the season :'(

 

[Clemson_tennis]

Yeah bad news on Liu. Vialmin has to step up now.

Tigers come in at 45th in the first computer rankings. According to the team twitter it’s the first time Clemson has been in the top 50 since 2015... ouch.

45 sets up ok for now though. Big big match at home vs #33 Miami on Friday.

 

[MikeG]

That is tough about Liu, he seemed to be playing really well. Is Vialmin a true #2?

 

[Clemson_tennis]

That is tough about Liu, he seemed to be playing really well. Is Vialmin a true #2?

No I don’t think so. I haven’t been impressed with him in the matches I’ve seen of him but he still has time to get his legs under him. But the farthest you would drop him is 3 behind Giusca. I don’t think anyone in the Kelaidis/Dodens/Jahn is strong enough to play higher than 4. So the lowest Vialmin should go is 3.

 

[jerryjones1960]

No I don’t think so. I haven’t been impressed with him in the matches I’ve seen of him but he still has time to get his legs under him. But the farthest you would drop him is 3 behind Giusca. I don’t think anyone in the Kelaidis/Dodens/Jahn is strong enough to play higher than 4. So the lowest Vialmin should go is 3.

Is Vialmin really Clemson's 7th best UTR guy playing 2? How long can they actually keep that?

 

[Clemson_tennis]

7-0 loss to Miami at home

 

[Clemson_tennis]

I think they need to get Vialmin out of the lineup now. He’s a dead weight in the middle. I thought putting him in was ok at first to slide everyone else down but I think Jahn at 5 and -Agee at 6 have better chances to win then Vialmin does. Plus at least Jahn and Agee show fight on the court.

 

[Clemson_tennis]

Just utterly beat down by ETSU today in the first outdoor match of the year. Clemson won doubles but got rocked in three singles matches. Vialmin (again), Agee and Kelaidis failed to show up and got blasted off the court winning 10 games total combined between the three of them.

Giusca dropped a close match to Rengifo of ETSU, while Jahn and Diaz-Freire were in tight battles. Giusca and Jahn were leading vs FSU on Thursday when the match was stopped, while Diaz-Freire was battling to push his match to three (while Agee, Vialmin and Kelaidis got destroyed again).

Dodens being out in singles hurt because it forced Agee to play. Kelaidis was forced up to 3 which is too high for him (he was double bageled by Pourroy of FSU). I would be surprised if Vialmin wins a match all year.

Thing's aren't looking very good for another win this year. Even BC is in question. Best thing to hope for is for Giusca and Jahn to continue to play relatvely well and grab a few wins to build for next year. Diaz-Freire will fight at 1 but he is a senior.

 

[MikeG]

Diaz-Freire is set to transfer to Alabama.

 

[Clemson_tennis]

Diaz-Freire is set to transfer to Alabama.

he was set to leave anyway after this year. So he had one year academically ineligible and then just a short year as a “senior” at Clemson. Very minimal impact on the program. Hopefully he can work on his line calls during his graduate season in Bama.

Wonder what Weiss thinks about the move to his old team.

I’m looking forward to next year already. Four pretty well rated interesting new players will finally shake up the program a bit.

 

[The Dawgs]

Any idea's on who the next Head Womens Tennis Coach at Clemson might be?

 

[Clemson_tennis]

Clemson with the 2nd ranked recruiting class

Top Men's Classes - 2020 Rankings

As we move into summer and towards reopening, the Class of 2020 has been moving forward. As of today, over 1,600 seniors have reported commitments to college tennis programs, and more are making verbal commitments each and every week. The decision-making will continue, but now is a good time to...

www.tennisrecruiting.net

 

[MikeG]

Anyone have an idea of what the projected lineup will be this year?

 

[Clemson_tennis]

It will likely be something like

1. Liu/Giusca
2. --
3. Kelaidis/Azuma
4. --
5. Plans Gonzalez
6. Jahn

with pushes from Whitaker for 6. Azuma should solidify himself at 3 by the year's end.

Wonder what happened to Nini Dica from Romania who was supposed to join the team along with Plans in January. He would've been in the 3-5 range in the lineup as well.

 

[Clemson_tennis]

Big match at home vs USF tomorrow

 

[chic]

Big match at home vs USF tomorrow

Do you know of they livestream the games/ where I would find links? I don't live down there anymore.

 

[stickM]

It was my understanding that fans won't be allowed to attend Clemson matches this year unless you're an official guest of the team. Is that correct, or am I mistaken?

 

[Clemson_tennis]

It was my understanding that fans won't be allowed to attend Clemson matches this year unless you're an official guest of the team. Is that correct, or am I mistaken?

Yeah that is correct. I am not sure exactly how big the official guest list can be. I imagine it is more strict indoor than it will be outdoor.
There should be live streaming available on the official Clemson athletics website like last year.

 

[Clemson_tennis]

Tight 4-3 loss to USF on Saturday and a nice 6-1 win over Old Dominion today. Good to see Giusca and Liu both get 3rd set tiebreaker wins.

Positive start from the freshmen Azuma and Whitaker who both went 2-0 on the weekend. Plans rebounded from his Saturday loss with a dominant win today.

 

[MikeG]

Do you know of they livestream the games/ where I would find links? I don't live down there anymore.

Follow Clemson Tigers Tennis on Twitter, they always post a link with the live streams of each court. Doesn't help you for this past weekend but maybe it will help moving forward

 

[Clemson_tennis]

Tigers take the doubles point vs South Carolina!

 

[andfor]

@Clemson_tennis Fun match up for us both. Tigers vs. Tigers tomorrow at 5 PM! Should be a good match.

 

[stickM]

My wife and I look forward to attending our first match of the season. GO TIGERS!!

 

[andfor]

I realize the wrong Tigers won in this thread. Any fans who watched up for a quick review of the match?

 

[Clemson_tennis]

No wasn’t able to follow it live but I’m a bit disappointed in the lack of competitiveness in the score lines

 

[andfor]

No wasn’t able to follow it live but I’m a bit disappointed in the lack of competitiveness in the score lines

I was expecting a closer match. At a glance I've noticed a number of odd line ups and results across the board.

 

[Clemson_tennis]

at Florida State today. Need to get this win as FSU hasn't looked great so far.

 

[andfor]

at Florida State today. Need to get this win as FSU hasn't looked great so far.

Looking as if it's going to come down to court 5 or 6. Go Tigers!

 

[jerryjones1960]

Good win by the Tigers yesterday, FSU looks a bit down but Tigers have definitely improved with the new coaches

 

[Clemson_tennis]

Good win by the Tigers yesterday, FSU looks a bit down but Tigers have definitely improved with the new coaches

yeah. Hopeful to get some results soon. Constantly being in “building” phase is pretty frustrating to follow.

 

[Clemson_tennis]

A winnable and important match vs GT yesterday ruined by Giusca and Liu not playing. Did anyone go or see the reason? Are both injured?

 

[Clemson_tennis]

Beatdown loss to VT

 

[Clemson_tennis]

Kinda crazy how every season now seems to be a new candidate for "worst Clemson men's tennis season ever". Beatdown ACC loss after beatdown ACC loss with hardly any positives.

 

[Nostradamus]

Kinda crazy how every season now seems to be a new candidate for "worst Clemson men's tennis season ever". Beatdown ACC loss after beatdown ACC loss with hardly any positives.

how is this possible with 2nd ranked Recruiting class ?

 

[ClarkC]

how is this possible with 2nd ranked Recruiting class ?

Several reasons:

1. The TRN recruiting rankings come from a poll, and the poll voters always put too much weight on quantity instead of quality. Clemson signed three internationals and three five-star recruits. The latter will fight to contribute at the bottom two positions on a good Power 5 roster, at best.

2. One of the internationals is not listed on the roster, so I guess he never made it here. One of the five star domestic recruits has not played this year but is listed on the roster. Injury?

3. UTR is not a reliable ranking method, and that was the basis for ranking the international recruits so highly.

 

[jerryjones1960]

Big win by Clemson today over Boston College........curiosity has me wondering will they have the same locker room celebration as they did when they beat Liberty?

 

[Dawgie Dawg]

The worst program in America!

 

[Clemson_tennis]

Lost a close match to Virginia Tech 4-2 in the first round of the ACC tournament to end the year.

Overall a pretty poor year with not much progress as was the hope. All losses to ranked teams, but at some point you have to start getting wins.

Senior Yizhou Liu had his worst year, going 5-12 overall in singles, 0-8 in the ACC. Yet another example of a player at Clemson who once showed promise but actually regressed as his career went on rather than improved.

Junior Teodor Giusca had a better year albeit lower in the linuep. Next year as a senior he will be expected to be an anchor of the team.

Senior Carlos Kelaidis had arguably his best season because he played higher in the lineup, yet still only went 3-7 overall in the ACC. He took a lot of losses in his years at Clemson over his 5 years, often forced to play higher in the lineup than suitable. I do not have the stats but I would imagine he would be near the top of all time singles losses in a career at Clemson.

Freshman Ryuhei Azuma started the year well but sputtered out at the end as the schedule got tougher. Still, he seems to be a solid player for the future.

Freshmen Spencer Whitaker and Jorge Plans Gonzalez were the bright spots at the end of the year. Often winning at the bottom of the lineup, locking down 5 and 6. Of course now the issue is that they will likely have to play higher in the lineup next year, as we are losing our top 2 players.


Nobody else on the team is of note as they did not have much impact on the season. Which is disappointing for a couple of them who were supposed to be contributors.

Best win of the season: 4-3 over Florida State. Broke the multi-year losing skid to FSU, even though FSU was way down this year, still nice to get the W over them.

Worst loss of the season: 6-1 to Memphis. Every loss was to a ranked team so there was no stand out bad loss, but the lack of competitiveness vs Memphis makes it the worst one.

 

[jcgatennismom]

@Clemson_tennis Did any of the Clemson players play opens in the fall? Some of the p5 players of other teams traveled together to play fall opens-even Memphis players did that. Of course, next year hopefully there will be ITA fall invites. Clemson probably wont qualify for 60 teams in ITA kickoff but it would help Clemson if team would hold an early hidden dual exhibition with 8 lines inviting 3 other teams in round robin team format, e.g. how GT hosts MLK invite. There is no reason why Clemson could not be in at least the middle of the pack of the ACC. I watched Clemson lose to GA State a few years ago. Clemson as a P5 should be able to recruit and/or develop that level of talent. Some of the GA State players in that lineup were 4 star US players. Of course one of those was Giles Hussey who is now a countable win for top #5 Tenn as a grad transfer. Clemson is not a far drive from ATL as far as getting students to take some courses over the summer and playing ATL opens. The coaches need to sell the vision to players about being impact players who can turn around a program vs sitting on a bench at a higher ranked P5. There are domestic and international diamonds in the rough. Of course Auburn and Alabama have a similar problem but Clemson should do better in domestic recruiting than AL as AL has hardly any in-state talent while SC and GA do, Clemson is closer to ATL than AL, and both schools have good football teams.

I dont remember Clemson coaches making much of an effort with southern juniors 6-7 years ago as compared with other P5s. I know the coaches have changed since then, but again if GA State can beat Clemson (19?) then Clemson has to do a better job of recruiting and development. Do the Clemson coaches even attend the grade 4 ITFs in ATL and SC in the fall? Didnt hear they were at the ATL one a few years back but Goffi was. Now a coach wont find a top of the lineup at a grade 4, but may find an improving late blooming future solid #3-6. Now I know Clemson once had an ATL player who played a ton of grade 4 and 5 jr ITFs (but in Central America) who didnt do much for Clemson, but that kid couldnt win MD matches at the grade 4s in SC and GA. Before he started playing in Central America, he was losing to 4 star players who went on to play MM D1 and top D3. Jr world ITF rankings can be a joke unless matches are played in North American or Europe.

 

[Clemson_tennis]

I honestly don't know the answers to those questions as I am not around the program very much anymore. I do know that when I was there, there was not a recruiting pipeline. It seemed to be efforts to just get whoever they could without much of a plan. There were talks of trying to start a UK pipeline with Luke Johnson's recruitment, kinda like what Memphis has, but that never materialized. Never capitalized on the German connections with the Madens as we haven't had a German player since. And like you point out, very little effort on the top players from the Carolinas and Georgia.

It's a snowball effect as more unsuccessful years go by, the further Clemson drops in prestige amongst recruits. Especially domestically.

 

[Clemson_tennis]

I feel obliged to point out that despite the big gaps between the programs right now, Clemson men’s tennis still has a more recent elite 8 appearance than South Carolina men’s tennis. (2004 vs 1989)

 

[Court_Gamecocks]

Robbie Weiss will not turn it around. Trust me on this one. Clemson will be looking for a new coach in no longer than 2 years.

 

[Nostradamus]

i am wondering why Clemson fails to get better every year. LSU tigers are certainly getting better every year, the other tigers