Freshmen Help Harvard Past New York Foes

The Harvard women’s tennis team played its best tennis of the season over the weekend. The Crimson (9-7, 2-0 Ivy) emphatically defeated Columbia (4-11, 0-3) 6-1 on Friday and blanked Cornell (6-10, 2-1) 7-0 on Saturday to boost its record in the past month to 7-2.

“I think we are playing the best at this moment,” sophomore Samantha Rosekrans said. “Our goal has been to be the most improved Ivy League team, and thus far I think we’ve accomplished that goal.”

Harvard had a complete performance, with strong play coming from up and down the doubles and singles lineups. Freshmen Louise Laciny and Camille Jania impressed by going undefeated in the two contests. Captain Laura Peterzan also excelled in the top singles position, going 4-0 on the weekend.

“I’m really proud of our team right now,” Crimson coach Traci Green said. “We’ve been fighting extra hard, and [we’re looking to] continue with our energy.”

HARVARD 7, CORNELL 0

After easily defeating Columbia the day before, Harvard ran the risk of overlooking a less talented Cornell team. But the Crimson buckled down and took care of business by sweeping all six singles matches and taking the doubles point.

“Obviously our goal is to secure the Ivy League title, but we’re doing a good job of staying in the moment,” Rosekrans said. “We’re trying to focus on one Ivy League match at a time.”

In doubles, Harvard won at No. 1 and No. 3. Unable to play singles due to injury, senior Beier Ko teamed with sophomore Agnes Sibilski to take down Big Red opponents 8-4 in the No. 1 position. At No. 3, Jania and Peterzan triumphed 8-2.

The Crimson zoomed through the singles portion, dropping just one of thirteen sets. At No. 1, Peterzan earned a 6-4, 6-2 victory, and at No. 2, Rosekrans squeaked out a three-set win. Though Cornell challenged both Sibilski and Laciny in the first set in the No. 3 and No. 6 slots, respectively, the Harvard players stepped up their games and cruised in the second sets. Sibilski won 7-6, 6-1, and Laciny defeated her opponent 7-5, 6-1. At No. 5, Jania prevailed easily 6-0, 6-2, and at No. 4, freshman Holly Cao earned a 6-4, 6-3 victory.

Over the weekend, the freshmen played particularly well in the No. 4 through No. 6 positions. Both Jania and Laciny have won more than 50 percent of their singles contests in the dual match season. Since returning from injury, Cao is undefeated in singles, compiling a 4-0 record.

“All the freshman coming in have been a breath of fresh air,” Rosekrans said. “That solidarity has really brought us closer together, and we’ve really improved a lot because of it.”

HARVARD 6, COLUMBiA 1

Harvard opened its Ancient Eight season on a positive note, taking it to the Lions on the road. The Crimson opened the match with a swagger, winning all three doubles matches with ease. At No. 1, Rosekrans and Cao dominated 8-0. At No. 2, Jania and Peterzan defeated Columbia 8-2, and at No. 3, Sibilski and Laciny won 8-3.

In singles, the Crimson continued its momentum. In the No. 1 slot, Peterzan shut out her opponent in the first set on the way to a 6-0, 7-5 win. Rosekrans, at No. 2, and Cao, at No. 4, easily did away with their opponents in straight sets. At the bottom of the lineup, Jania and Laciny tamed their Lion counterparts with 6-4, 6-2 and 7-5, 6-2 wins, respectively.

Harvard’s depth has been a major asset this season, as the team is getting production from all spots of its lineup. According to Green, the team is becoming more dangerous because all players are improving and different players have stepped up every week.

Next weekend, the Crimson will host Penn and a nationally-ranked Princeton team. The Tigers should prove to be formidable opponents, though Harvard is confident it can compete with Princeton.

“I think we brought a lot of energy and the result followed [this weekend],” Rosekrans said. “Even though we were expecting to beat Cornell and Columbia, we have a lot of momentum maybe to stage a big upset [next week against Princeton].”

—Staff writer Jake I. Fisher can be reached at jifisher@fas.harvard.edu.