W. Tennis Beats Yale, Brown; But Penn Wins the Ivies

The Harvard women’s tennis team closed out its home season in style yesterday, crushing Brown 7-0. The Crimson also won 6-1 at Yale on Friday.

Yesterday marked the last home matches of the Harvard seniors’ careers. All four of the seniors who played, co-captain Fleur Broughton, Sarah McGinty, Jennie Timoney and advanced standing senior Lara Naqushbandi, were victorious.

Senior Andrea Magyera did not play due to injury.

“It was a storybook way to end it,” Harvard Coach Gordon Graham said. “Especially with all of them moving up two spots.”

All the Harvard seniors moved up two spots as freshman Courtney Bergman and junior Sanja Bajin did not play singles due to injury.

Freshmen Susanna Lingman and Alexis Martire were also singles winners.

In doubles, the top team of Lingman and Bergman was upset by Brown’s Alex Arlak and Victoria Beck, 8-6.

“It was a rough day, very windy,” Bergman said. “We couldn’t get our rhythm going.”

Bergman, the Crimson’s top player, is suffering from shin splints and did not play singles.

With Bajin out, freshman Ashley Hyotte joined Martire on the No. 2 doubles team. The new partners struggled early, dropping the first game, but won three games in a row at 4-4, and then closed it out, 8-5.

“They were steady at the beginning but then we overpowered them,” Martire said. “We started focusing more, hitting a lot of low balls to their feet and then closing in.”

The third doubles match was even more decisive. McGinty and Broughton steamrolled over Brown’s Kerry Meath and Caroline Casey, 8-0.

In singles play, the freshman Crimson showed little trouble with their opposition. Lingman, playing at No. 1 singles and ranked 68th in the nation, beat Beck 6-0, 6-1.

Martire, now at No. 2, was equally dominant but even more dramatic. Of Italian, Greek and Lebanese origin, Martire played like a spicy Mediterranean stew, hitting heavy, consistent shots to overpower Brown freshman Adriana Marianella.

Martire showed some of that spice late in the match. Up 6-1, 3-0, Martire exploded when Marianella simply raised up her hand to call a let.

“Since when is putting your hand up a signal that I’m supposed to know means ‘play it over?’” Martire said. “I can show you in the rulebook where it says, ‘you have to call it a let.’”

Infuriated after the incident, Martire won the next three games to close out the match.

In the number three match, Broughton won the first set over Arlak 6-0 before her shin splints began to set in. The Crimson captain struggled through the second set, trailing 5-4, before buckling down to win it 7-5.

In the other senior matches, Naqushbandi defeated Meath, McGinty defeated Wong and Timoney defeated Casey.

In Brown junior Olivia Wong, McGinty was facing an opponent whom she had never defeated in high school but never played in college.

“It was definitely revenge. Sweet revenge,” McGinty said.

Between the doubles and singles matches, a brief ceremony was held honoring the five graduating seniors.

Calling them the “super seniors,” Gordon noted that four of the seniors came in together as freshman and stuck with the team all four years (Naqushbandi came in the following year and is graduating early).

The senior’s leadership role was especially crucial this season, as the team consisted of five seniors, five freshmen, two juniors and no sophomores.

“I’ve been impressed with the fight that the freshmen have,” McGinty said. “This spring has been my best season here. I’ve learned a lot from them.”

The team will finish the season at Darmouth on Wednesday. Bergman and perhaps Lingman will play singles at the NCAA individual championships on May 20-25. For the seniors, however, it will be goodbye.

“The ceremony was very emotional,” Broughton said, hobbling after the match. “Right now, it feels like any other day. We still have another match on Wednesday . After that, it might be different.”

Thus far, the freshmen have contributed greatly to the team. Bergman, Lingman and Martire are all in the top 80 in the country and the top 15 among freshmen.

In addition, the team dynamic has been fun for both veterans and rookies.

To Graham, the only questions that remains is whether the freshmen can sustain this sense of team for four years, as the seniors have.

“I hope that the freshmen class will show the same kind of bond, because if they do, watch out,” he said.

W. TENNIS 7, YALE 0

at Connecticut Tennis Center

DOUBLES: 1) Bergman-Lingman (H) d.. Kaufman-Goldberg 8-6 2) Karlyn&Ashley Martin (Y) d. Martire-Hyotte (Y) 9-8 3) McGinty-Broughton (H) d. Hiniker-Oosterhuis (Y) 8-6 SINGLES: 1) Lingman (H) d. Purcell (Y) 6-1, 6-1 2) Martire (H) d. Kaufman (Y) 6-1, 6-0 3) Broughton (H) d. Goldberg (Y) 6-2, 6-4 4) Naqushbandi (H) d. Hiniker (Y) 7-6 (3), 6-3 5) McGinty (H) d. Oosterhuis (Y) 6-4,6-4 6) Hyotte (H) d. Martin (Y) 3-6, 6-2, 7-5

W. TENNIS 7, BROWN 0

at Beren Tennis Center

DOUBLES: 1. Arlak-Beck (B) def. Bergman-Lingman (H) 8-6. 2. Martire-Hyotte (H) def. Wong-Zeff (B) 8-4. 3. Broughton-McGinty (H) def. Meath-Casey (B) 8-0. SINGLES: 1. Lingman (H) def. Beck (B) 6-0, 6-1. 2. Martire (H) def. Marianella (B) 6-1, 6-1. 3. Broughton (H) def. Arlak (B) 6-0, 7-5. 4. Naqushbandi (H) def. Meath (B) 6-3, 6-1. 5. McGinty (H) def. Wong (B) 6-2, 6-1. 6. Timoney (H) def. Casey (B) 6-3, 7-6.