Levin Tops N.E. Netmen; Jeffs Tip Crimson for 1st

Playing the finest tennis of his career, John Levin captured the singles crown and pushed Harvard to a second place finish in the New England Championships at Amherst this past weekend.

Levin conquered Steve Beik, a 6-6 giant from Wesleyan College, 7-9,' 6-2, 6-0 to grab the singles title which barely eluded him last year. But the Crimson star had to hustle to win.

California Tactics

Relying upon his booming serve and overhead smash, Levin built up a quick 5-2 lead in the first set. Beik found his range, however, and began to blaze winners down the line while Levin watched helplessly from the net. Maintaining his defensive strategy. Beik overcame Levin's Californian tactics and pulled out the first set, 9-7.

In the last two sets, Levin shifted his game to the baseline and outsteadied his nervous opponent. Whenever he did reach the net, Levin baffled Beik with perfectly executed drop vollies. Clearly in command, the Crimson ace captured the last nine games in a row.

Jarvis Bumped

Levin was seeded number one in both singles and doubles. In doubles, however, he and Rocky Jarvis were rudely bumped out of the tournament 6-4, 6-3, by Rick Steketee and Jeff Warner, Amherst's top tandem. Levin and Jarvis had swamped the same Amherst team in a dual match earlier this season. Steketee and Warner eventually won the doubles championship to give Amherst a one point team victory over Harvard.

Jose Gonzales and Kent Parrot, Harvard's second doubles team, reached the quarter-finals before losing to Hughes and Mayotte of Holy Cross, the number two seed, 6-4, 6-4.

Hughes continued to menace the Crimson effort as he dropped Rocky Jarvis from the singles competition 7-5, 2-6, 7-5. Jarvis abandoned his backcourt game early and found he could not cope with Hughes' deadly passing shots.

Steketee Drops

Gonzales nearly upset Amherst's Steketee in a singles quarterfinal. The Harvard captain played brilliantly and controlled much of the match before falling 6-3, 9-7. Steketee dropped out of the tournament after meeting Levin in the next round.

The tennis team will travel to Dartmouth Wednesday for its final dual match of the season. The Crimson netmen must triumph in this crucial match to gain a share of the Eastern Intercollegiate Tennis League Crown.