Harvard Clinches Share of Ivy Title

The last time the Harvard women’s tennis team took the Ivy League title in 2006, captain Laura Peterzan and fellow senior Beier Ko were enjoying their first spring in Cambridge. Three years later, the team leaders showed their championship experience, going undefeated in singles and doubles to give the Crimson a share of its 18th Ivy crown.

Harvard (13-8, 6-1 Ivy League) dispatched Dartmouth (7-11, 2-5) in convincing fashion with a 6-1 victory yesterday afternoon in the Murr Tennis Center, sealing the contest after only four singles matches. Following a doubles win and easy victories from Ko and Peterzan in the top two singles spots, the Crimson watched as sophomore Agnes Sibilski forced her opponent into an errant forehand, clinching her three set match and the team contest with an emphatic fistpump.

“Clearly we had a goal,” Sibilski said. “We knew that if we won we would be Ivy champs so everyone was really excited.”

No one showed more enthusiasm than Ko, who was the first player to greet Sibilski after her triumph. The squad’s top player recognized the special opportunity to bookend her career with league championships, particularly in her final home match.

“To win the Ivy title on senior day makes [winning the championship] even better,” Ko said. “To end on a win our first and last year, that’s a pretty good feeling.”

Ko and Peterzan certainly contributed their share, posting wins at No. 1 and No. 3 doubles, respectively. Ko teamed with Sibilski and cruised to an 8-2 win, while Peterzan shined in her home finale, slamming a swinging backhand volley crosscourt to finish a 9-0 doubles season with freshman partner Camille Jania and give Harvard the doubles point with an 8-1 win.

“For us, doubles has been very important so far [this season],” Sibilski said. “After pulling that out we had momentum going into singles.”

Indeed the Crimson picked up right where it left off, taking the first set in five of six individual matches.

In the top spot, Ko appeared overwhelmed at first against Big Green standout Molly Scott, dropping serve early for a 0-2 deficit. However, after battling back to a 4-3 lead, Ko found her stride and ran Scott all over the court in a 6-3, 6-1 drubbing.

“I started off a little tired today,” Ko said. “But I realized I needed energy to win the match and I told myself, ‘you have to take it up another level.’ After that it carried through and I won easily.”

Following her classmate’s example, Peterzan dominated Mary Beth Winingham at No. 2, taking the first set 6-2. The two competitors traded five consecutive breaks to keep the match interesting in the second frame, but Peterzan served out at 5-3 to give her squad a 3-0 edge.

Up a set in three of the four remaining matches, the Crimson seemed primed for early victory, but the visitors were not ready to give in. Sibilski, sophomore Samantha Rosenkrans, and freshman Caroline Davis watched early leads melt into tight matches as their opponents gutted out second set wins.

But, with the match in jeopardy and Harvard’s momentum waning, Sibilski set the tone for victory at No. 4 singles by racing out to a 5-0 lead in the third. Despite a last-ditch effort from Dartmouth’s Georgiana Smyser, Sibilski served out the match for a 6-2, 4-6, 6-2 victory to vault the Crimson into a first-place tie with Princeton.

“I’m really proud of our squad for fighting so hard to bring home victory,” Harvard coach Traci Green said. “We set out to compete well today and I think we did just that.”

Even with a win in hand, the Crimson who remained on the court closed out their matches with tenacity. Rosenkrans found herself in a back-and-forth struggle at third singles, earning a crucial break at 4-3 to earn some breathing room. The sophomore proceeded to hold easily, securing a 7-5, 3-6, 6-3 decision.

Davis turned in perhaps Harvard’s gutsiest performance at No. 6, showing resilience after dropping the second set 5-7. The rookie suffered an early break, but responded with four straight games to put the match out of reach. With a 6-2, 5-7, 6-3 win, Davis capped a storybook senior day with a dominant showing from all classes, a victory made even sweeter following a February team loss to the Big Green.

“We lost to [Dartmouth] at ECAC’s 4-3,” Ko said. “And now we’ve got our revenge and we won the Ivy Title at the same time. That’s such an amazing feeling.”

—Staff writer Max N. Brondfield can be reached at mbrondf@fas.harvard.edu.