W. Tennis Finishes Fourth In ECACs

The Harvard women's tennis team made an impressive bid for top honors at the 2000 Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) Division I Women's Tennis Invitational Championship at Princeton University last weekend, but fell short of the top prize.

After trouncing an unseeded Rutgers, 6-1, in the opening round of the three-day tournament, and defeating No. 5 Boston University, 5-2, in the quarterfinals, the No. 3 Crimson bowed out to the second-seeded University of Virginia, 6-1, in the semifinals.

Touting a squad that finally boasts a majority of upperclassmen, Harvard proved that Friday the 13th was anything but unlucky. The Crimson effortlessly coasted to wins in five of the six singles matches, and swept the doubles.

"We are all pretty happy with our performance and improvements," freshman Lola Ajilore said. "We have some new doubles teams, and we are working very hard."

Captain Sanaz Ghazal, once again the squad's only senior, made quick work of the Scarlet Knights' Jennifer Hellier in the top slot, polishing her off in straight sets, 6-2, 6-1.

Sophomore Lara Naqushbandi quickly followed suit, defeating Carissa Sommerlad in straight sets, 6-1, 6-1, and junior Fleur Broughton coasted past Kristen Shaughnessy, 6-0, 6-2 in the No. 3 match. Ajilore and junior Sarah McGinty overpowered their respective opponents to seal the Crimson's win.

Ajilore asserted herself early as a force to reckon with, defeating Andrea Weckstein 6-1, 6-1 in straight sets. McGinty pulled out a 6-2, 6-3 win over Kaitlin Link.

"I think we did pretty well overall and I'm improving as well," Ajilore said. "There's a big difference between junior, high school, and college tennis, and everyone has been so much help."

Junior Jennie Timoney suffered the only loss of the morning with a gutsy effort against Rutgers' Amanda Travlos. Timoney pushed the match to three sets, narrowly falling 6-4, 6-5 (7-0).

The Crimson added insurance points in the doubles competition. Ghazal teamed with sophomore Sanja Bajin in No. 1 doubles to defeat Hellier and Sommerlad 8-2. McGinty and Naqushbandi left Shaughnessy and Link goose-egged, 8-0, in the second spot.

Timoney avenged her singles loss at No. 3 doubles. Ajilore and Timoney stole the tiebreaker from the Scarlet Knights' Amanda Travlos and Weckstein, winning 6-5 (7-3).

After its superb morning performance, the Crimson showed no signs of fatigue in the afternoon quarterfinals. Harvard emerged victorious against cross-town rival Boston University, 5-2.

Ghazal continued to be dominant in No. 1 singles, handing the Terriers' Christina Causway a 6-4, 6-2 loss.

B.U. rebounded to steal the next two matches from the Crimson. Naqushbandi pushed her contest to three sets, but lost a close tiebreaker to Carrie Rose, 6-2, 6-5, (7-5). Lindsey Dynof defeated Broughton 6-0, 6-1 at the No. 3 slot.

However, the Crimson swept the next three matches to put themselves ahead. Timoney had an easy time of it in a 6-1, 6-0 victory over Elena de Mendoza, and McGinty made short work of Hannah Bartell, 6-1, 6-2.

Ajilore fumbled the first set against Alana Marcu at the No. 4 spot 3-6, but rebounded to tie it 6-4. Ajilore blanked Marcu 6-0 in the tiebreaker to seal the victory.

Once again, doubles cushioned Harvard's victory, as the Crimson swept all three matches. Ghazal and Bajin snagged a win over Causway and Dynof 8-6, and Timoney and Ajilore handily defeated Hsiao Ning Ham and Marcu, 8-1.

Naqushbandi sought revenge against Rose, as she teamed with McGinty to clinch a nail-biter over Rose and Mendoza, 8-7 (7-4).

But even a well-rested Harvard squad could not overcome the dominant Cavaliers.

"Even though it was a 6-1 loss to Virginia, I think we had a good chance of beating them," Ajilore said. "Many of the matches were very close, and if we had played a few points differently, it could have made the difference."

Broughton was the only star in singles play, defeating Virginia captain Kelly Weaver, 6-2, 6-1in the fifth spot.

Bajin's first singles bid in the tournament did not succeed against Henriette Williams, as she lost in straight sets, 6-1, 6-0. Jennifer Tuchband followed suit by topping Magyera, 6-2, 6-1.

At No. 2, Cavaliers' captain Christie Schweer snapped Ghazal's winning streak. Ghazal dropped the first set 3-6, but evened the field with a 6-3 win in the second. A prolonged 2-1 (7-3) decision decided the match in Schweer's favor.

Laura James pushed Naqushbandi to the limit in three sets, 3-6, 6-2, 1-0 (7-1), but emerged victorious. No. 6 singles also went to Virginia, as Christine Kim dropped Ajilore, 6-2, 6-1.

Harvard refused to be swept in doubles play, as Broughton and Magyera pulled out a gutsy win over Kim and James 8-4. Ghazal and Bajin fell to Williams and Schweer, 8-6, while McGinty and Naqushbandi came within inches of an upset, as Weaver and Tuchband claimed victory, 8-5.

The Cavaliers went on to defeat Penn, 4-3, for first place in the championship match. Perennial foe and defending Ivy League champion Princeton claimed third place, while the Crimson snagged a respectable fourth place finish.

Harvard plays against next weekend when it competes in the Dartmouth Invitational.