W. Tennis Hosts Harvard Invitational

The Harvard women’s tennis team begins its season today at the Harvard Invitational, an annual tournament meant to showcase the talents of individuals from six colleges around the country.

Harvard invites Boston College, Boston University, Dartmouth, Marshall, and Rice to Cambridge in a showdown of the teams’ best players.

The Harvard Invitational is purely an individual tournament. The results have no impact on the team’s Ivy League or overall record. However, Harvard Coach Gordon Graham believes the tournament may have an indirect effect on the team’s performance in regular season matches.

“I think that it’s important for this team to prepare for the season with a strong all-around effort in this tourney,” Graham said. “It would be a big lift to win a few flights.”

The tournament is broken down into six singles draws (or “flights”) and three doubles brackets. There are eight participants in each of the singles brackets, and eight pairs in each of the doubles’ draws.

Each player competes in one singles match and one doubles match per day. Winners move on in their flights, split up by a seeding system determined by the coaches. The first matches take place today at 1 p.m. Competition continues on Saturday at 10 a.m. and concludes on Sunday, beginning at 9 a.m. It takes three consecutive victories to win one’s flight.

Harvard has much to be excited about this season, particularly for this tournament. It will be the first time that superstar freshmen Courtney Bergman, Alexis Martire, and Susanna Lingman take action in Harvard uniforms.

All have the potential to be dominant players, though the Invitational should give Coach Graham a better sense of how his newcomers stack up against the opposition.

“I’m excited to see how the brackets work out,” Graham said. “Courtney, Alexis, and Susanna are able to play up to a level of (current Harvard No. 1) Sanja Bajin, but this will be their first chance to play against someone else other than teammates.”

Bajin will play both singles and doubles and is a favorite to win both of her brackets, no matter whom she is playing. The junior is one of the top collegiate players in the Eastern region and will be a legitimate contender in the prestigious All-American Tournament, beginning Oct. 6 at Pacific Palisades, California.

“My main goal for the tournament is to get back into a competitive mentality and prepare for the All-Americans,” Bajin said. “I am looking forward to playing both singles and doubles. I haven’t really played a competitive match of any sort since the end of last season [May], so I need to regain my ‘game’ mentality.”

Seniors Fleur Broughton and Sarah McGinty are steady singles players and excellent doubles competitors. Both should contended in their draws.

Juniors Lara Naqushbandi (originally from England) and Liz Gass (from Australia) bring an international flavor to the Crimson squad. Each looks to continue her success from last season.

Seniors Andrea Magyera and Jennie Timoney will be held out of tournament action due to injuries. Interestingly, the team has no sophomores on the roster.

“We have two main goals,” Graham said. “The first is that our players give it their all in every match. The second is that we stay healthy. We can’t afford to have any more injuries.”

Also sitting out will be Croatian freshman Helis Zulijani. Though on the roster, Zulijani will spend the year rehabilitating after major surgery over the summer.

Harvard knows Boston College and Boston University will field talented teams. In last year’s team competition, Harvard lost to BC in an evenly played 4-3 match. Three of Harvard’s four losses were three-set matches that went down to the wire.

The Crimson defeated BU last season, but in another tight 4-3 encounter. The Crimson breezed past Dartmouth, 7-0, in the spring, but has little knowledge of Rice or Marshall.

“I’m just excited to start playing, especially on our home courts,” said co-captain Broughton. “I hope that we will kick off the season with solid performances and set the tone for the upcoming year.”

If Harvard’s freshmen are as good as advertised and if the team’s veterans remain healthy, the Harvard Invitational should be the first of many successes for the Crimson on the court.