M. Tennis Beats Kansas

The No. 25 Harvard men's tennis team (6-0) overcame experimental rules and a pesky Kansas team to win 6-2 on Friday at the Murr Center.

Senior John Doran held off Rodrigo Echagaray in a tiebreaker at No. 1 singles after splitting sets. His cousin, senior Joe Green, won 6-4, 6-3 at No. 3 singles.

Also victorious in singles were sophomore William Lee at No. 4 and junior Mike Rich at No. 6. Lee won 10-6 in a tiebreaker that served as a deciding set against Pete Stroer, and Rich won 7-6, 6-4 over Sebastian Libertino.

Harvard swept the doubles matches, earning two points under the experimental rules.

Green and freshman Dave Lingman took an 8-6 win at No. 1 doubles. Doran and sophomore Cillie Swart won 8-5 at No. 2, and junior Anthony Barker and Rich won 8-6 at No. 3.

The new rules changes, which are not permanent, stipulated that the doubles matches be played immediately after the player introductions and before the teams have a chance to warm up against each other on the court. A team that sweeps the three doubles matches earns two points instead of one.

Just five minutes after the last doubles match, singles play begins, again without a warm-up. In addition, if the singles players split the first two sets, they play a 10-point tiebreaker to determine the winner.

The new system could end the team match in a tie, in which case the doubles teams would take to the court again for 10-point tiebreakers.

"It seemed that everyone involved found the new ITA format interesting," said Harvard Coach Dave Fish '72. "Playing match tiebreakers for the third sets and the increased prominence of doubles are exciting changes for collegiate tennis."

The Crimson will travel to Louisville, Ky., this weekend for the Intercollegiate Tennis Association/United States Tennis Association National Collegiate Indoor Team Championship. Harvard will face top-seeded UCLA at the 16-team tournament.