Netwomen Shake and Bake Quakers; Drago Sparks 7-2 Crimson Cremation

"Ooh, you're so good," Penn's Monica Goldberg bellowed out of frustration in her 6-2, 6-1 drubbing at the hands of Co-Captain Jamie Henikoff of the Harvard women's tennis team.

The Crimson forced many such exclamations from the Quakers (4-4 overall, 1-2 Ivy), as the Crimson pulverized Penn by a 7-2 count yesterday at the Palmer-Dixon Courts.

Harvard's Ivy-opening win flashed the colors of the dominance of the Crimson's seven-year Ivy championship streak.

It Takes Two

Harvard raced to a 3-0 advantage, as all three Crimson doubles pairs prevailed while only surrendering nine games.

In the cruelest blow of all, the terminating tandem of Amy deLone and Henikoff devoured Quakers opponents Chris Gardner and Candace Worth in a straight-set shut-out. The duo disposed of their Penn opponents in under 40 minutes while allowing fewer than 15 points in the easy match.

"Beating anyone 6-0, 6-0, in Division I play is amazing," Harvard Coach Ed Krass said. "It's so easy to let up when you're ahead by so much in a match. If [deLone and Henikoff] can continue to keep it up, they'll be worthy of consideration for an NCAA berth."

Following a struggle to capture the first set, Cristina Dragomirescu and Jen Minkus blanked Quakers Genevieve Hacinthe and Monica Goldberg in the second stanza. After the match, the Penn players searched for solutions behind the onslaught.

"We had defensive problems, because [Dragomirescu and Minkus] were so domineering in their approach to the net," Hacinthe said. "Monica and I really would have liked to play singles first. And the lighting made me feel as though I were in a daze."

The dazed-and-fazed impression became a familiar theme for the quelled Quaker squad. Harvard's Erika Elmuts and Nicole Rival annihilated Lisa Adelman and Andrea Askowitz in straight sets to give Harvard the doubles sweep.

"Erika showed today the Erika of old," Krass said in reference to Elmuts' redemption from a spring time relegation to the B-team. "She executed powerful returns and aggressive volleys in a consistent manner."

"What impressed me most was how our doubles play gelled," Krass said. "Obviously, Penn's a bit weaker than average, but we were making the plays we would have made against a better team in a tough match. We'll always get three to four singles wins, so it always comes down to playing quality doubles. Today it was good to see that."

Harvard proceeded to dominate in singles play. Dragomirescu axed Askowitz in first-singles in a straight-set win, surrendering only two games in the entire match.

DeLone and Henikoff then prevailed in second and third singles.

Quaker Meredith Stiehm upset Jen Minkus at fourth singles, capitalizing on Minkus' unforced errors in a straight-set triumph.

"I think our team is more balanced from one to six," Penn Coach Cissie Leary said. "I think we're a little tougher from four to six [than most teams]."

Minkus filled in for freshman standout Rachel Pollock-who earlier defeated 9th-ranked Pepperdine's Anna Lefebvre 6-0, 6-0--who is out for the season with a shoulder injury.

"[Minkus] has all the shots. It's a matter of solidifying the package," said Krass, referring to his sophomore who has suffered through a 3-15 season since the fall.

The Crimson's Rival defeated Hyacinthe in fifth singles to provide the final margin of victory.

THE NOTEBOOK: The Crimson hosts Columbia today at noon at the Beren Tennis Center... "We're playing a lot better since Ed got his haircut," said Andrea Krass, wife of the Crimson's coach. Crimson, 7-2 at Palmer Dixon Tennis Center

Singles Matches

1. Cristina Dragomirescu (H) d. Andrea Askowitz (P), 6-2, 6-0; 2. Amy deLone (H) d. Alana Rishberg (P), 6-1, 7-6; 3. Jamie Henikoff (H) d. Monica Goldberg (P), 6-2, 6-1; 4. Meredith Strehn (P) d. Jen Minkus (H), 7-6, 7-5; 5. Nikki Rival (H) d. Genevieve Hacinthe (P), 6-4, 6-1; 6. Chris Gardner (P) d. Melinda Wang (H), 7-6, 4-6, 6-3.

Doubles Matches

1. deLone/Henikoff (H) d. Gardner/Candace Worth (P), 6-0, 6-0; 2. Minkus/Dragomirescu (H) d. Hacinthe/Goldbert (P), 6-4, 6-0; 3. Erica Elmuts/Rival (H) d. Lisa Adelman/Askowitz (P), 6-3, 6-2.