W. tennis captures third place in Ivies

It is easy to start strong right out of the gate but harder to keep up the pace and finish strong. The women's tennis team refuted that notion, however, as it took on Columbia and Cornell this weekend.

The Tigers finished third among the Ancient Eight after a relatively tough beginning to the Ivy season.

On Friday, in the women's final home match of the season, they dominated Columbia in a 5-2 victory.

"We lost to Columbia last year, so we knew they were a tough team," junior Kavitha Krish-namurthy said. "But at the same time, we had confidence because we had beaten Yale and Columbia."

In doubles, the team had easy wins across the board. At No. 1, sophomore Vanti Barghava and Krishnamurthy took an 8-0 win, completely dominating the overmatched Lions.

At No. 2, it was much of the same, as senior co-captains Priya Bhupathi and Kristy Watson won 8-2. At No. 3, sophomore Alex Kobishyn and freshman Stephanie Berg won 8-3.

With the doubles point secured, Princeton gained confidence that they would maintain throughout the day.

In the No. 1 spot, Krish-namurthy, who is ranked 51st in the nation, won her match with a clean 6-4, 6-3 score.

At No. 2, Watson finished her final home match of the season with a 6-4, 6-0 win, as did Bhupathi at the No. 3 spot, 7-6, 6-4.

"Priya's match was the one we were all watching, and as a senior, it was nice having her end out the match," Krishnamurthy said.

The Tigers were unable to win at the No. 4 and 5 spots, but Princeton was able to secure the victory when sophomore Mateya McCoy pulled out a 6-1, 6-0 win over the Lions at the No. 6 spot.

Saturday, Princeton finished the match in impressive fashion, dominating the Big Red 6-1. The match served as a great finish to the season for the women's team.

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In doubles, Bhupathi and Watson ended their tennis careers at Princeton with a strong 8-2 win over Cornell, which seemed only fitting for the co-captains' final match together.

At No. 3, the doubles match was cut-throat, as Kobishyn and Berg finished in a 9-8 tie-breaker.

In singles, Princeton continued the momentum it had begun in doubles, leaving little room for the Big Red to score. At No. 1, Krishnamurthy easily beat her opponent 6-2, 6-1.

At No. 2, Watson began her match taking the first set 6-4. In the second match, Watson had no mercy for her opponent, handing her a 6-0 trouncing.

At No. 3, Bhupathi took the first set 7-5, before routing her opponent 6-0 in the second. Both co-captains ended their Princeton tennis careers with straight set wins.

At No. 4, Berg took a 6-2, 6-3 win. Unfortunately, at No. 5, sophomore Jackie Arcario was unable to finish out the win for the team. McCoy maintained the team's positive momentum, however, by posting a 6-2, 6-3 win over Cornell at the No. 6 spot.

With that ending, Princeton finished the Ivy season in third place, with a record of 4-3.

"The only disappointing match was Brown so I think finishing third was good. We should be really proud of the team," Krishnamurthy said.

After a win against Penn State to open the season, Princeton went on a five-game non-conference skid before beating Rutgers in the pre-Ivy League finale.

This momentum disappeared quickly, however, as the Tigers dropped the conference opener to Penn 7-0 then lost a week later to Brown in Providence, 4-3.

But Princeton did not throw the season away. The team rebounded to win four of their last five, losing only to Harvard while toppling Yale, Dartmouth, and, most recently, Columbia and Cornell.

The women's tennis NCAA regionals are May 11.