Feb. 17, 2007
DALLAS (SMU) - The No. 40 SMU women's tennis team downed No. 44 Harvard, 4-3, this afternoon in a six-hour grueling match indoors. The Mustangs remain undefeated on the season as they have strung together four wins.
"This was a really good win for us," head coach Lauren Longbotham said. "I was excited about the fight and intensity that I saw from this young team and am excited for the rest of the season."
The Mustangs started off a little slow, losing the doubles point. Jennifer Chay and Pavi Francis paired for the only win in doubles at No. 3 as they took a, 8-3, win over Julia Forgie and Vilsa Curto. Natalia Bubien and Claire Rietsch fell to Beirer Ko and Lena Litvak, 8-3, at No. 1 and Kristen Reid and Monica Neveklovska were defeated by Preethi Mukundan and Elizabeth Brook at No. 2, 8-5.
"I was very disappointed in the way our doubles played," Longbotham said. "I don't think we got off to the right start and they didn't play to their full potential. That is something that we are going to have to work on. I was proud of Chay and Francis at No. 3 though, coming out and taking care of business."
Although the Mustangs started the singles down one point, they fought through it. Chay and Bubien faced a tough deal at No. 1 and No. 2 singles as they battled nationally ranked opponents. Chay was not able to overturn #80 Litvak at No. 2, 6-2, 6-4, and Bubien held close at No. 1 singles with #16 Ko but was not able to topple her as she fell, 7-5, 6-1.
"Harvard's No. 1 and No. 2 singles were some of the toughest top two that I have seen in college," noted Longbotham. "I think Jen (Chay) and Natalia (Bubien) did a really good job of battling with them and staying in the match."
Francis notched the first win for the Mustangs at No. 4 singles with a commanding, 6-1, 6-0, win over Forgie and Rietsch followed at No. 3 with a 6-3, 6-4, win over Mukundan.
"Claire (Rietsch) did a great job and played to her potential," said Longbotham. "I think she is beginning to figure out her game and potential and is starting to put that together. Pavi (Francis) has worked really hard in practice and earned her position at No. 4. She really stepped it up and rose to the occasion."
Reid tied the score at 3-3 when she took a, 6-3, 6-2, win from Curto at No. 6. The match came down to Georgiana Marta at No. 5 singles against Brook. Marta fell in the first set but came from behind in the second set to win and force a third set. Marta battled it out and clinched the match for the Mustangs with a, 3-6, 7-5, 6-3, win. Neveklovska played solid at No. 7 singles as she defeated Alejandra Duarte, 6-2, 6-0.
"Reid and Neveklovska came out and played well. They did a good job getting on the court, taking care of business and getting off. Marta is a fighter and I think she showed that today. She let her senior mentality figure out that she would stay on the court as long as she had to win the match. I was proud of how she fought back from behind in the second set."
The Mustangs will return to the courts tomorrow at noon against No. 43 North Carolina State.
Tennis Match ResultsHarvard vs Southern Methodist2/17/2007 at Dallas, Texas
#40 Southern Methodist 4, #44 Harvard 3
Singles competition1. #16 Beirer Ko (HARVARD) def. Bubien, Natalia (SMU) 7-5, 6-12. #80 Lena Litvak (HARVARD) def. Chay, Jennifer (SMU) 6-2, 6-43. Rietsch, Claire (SMU) def. Preethi Mukundan (HARVARD) 6-3, 6-44. Francis, Pavi (SMU) def. Julia Forgie (HARVARD) 6-1, 6-05. Marta, Georgiana (SMU) def. Elizabeth Brook (HARVARD) 3-6, 7-5, 6-36. Reid, Kristen (SMU) def. Vilsa Curto (HARVARD) 6-3, 6-27. Neveklovska, Monica (SMU) def. Alejandra Duarte (HARVARD), 6-2, 6-0
Doubles competition1. Beirer Ko/Lena Litvak (HARVARD) def. Bubien, Natalia/Rietsch, Claire (SMU) 8-32. Preethi Mukundan/Elizabeth Brook (HARVARD) def. Reid, Kristen/Neveklovska, Monica (SMU) 8-53. Chay, Jennifer/Francis, Pavi (SMU) def. Julia Forgie/Vilsa Curto (HARVARD) 8-3
Match Notes:Harvard 0-3; National ranking #44Southern Methodist 4-0; National ranking #40Order of finish: Doubles (1,3,2); Singles (2,1,4,3,6,5)
