Pair of Wins Propels M. Tennis into Finals

Any team with talent can win the easy matches, but it takes more than talent to win the tight ones. At this weekend’s Blue Gray Invitational, by locking up a 4-2 quarterfinal win over No. 35 Boise State and a thrilling 4-3 semifinal victory over No. 21 North Carolina, the No. 14 Harvard men’s tennis team showed grit.

“We used to lose the closer matches,” said captain David Lingman after Saturday’s gripping match against the Tar Heels, “and we’re finally winning them.”

But it was associate coach Peter Mandeau who assessed the situation best only moments after the Crimson’ second victory improved its record to 9-2.

“Unbelievable,” he said. “I almost can’t talk.”

HARVARD 4, UNC 3

“Today was a nail biter in every way,” said junior Jonathan Chu when the dust had settled at the Lagoon Park Tennis Club in Montgomery, Ala.

He wasn’t kidding.

Saturday’s was a marathon match which came down to the final set. It began with Harvard winning the doubles point on the rackets of seniors Chris Chiou and Cliff Nguyen, who had played together a grand total of once before a 9-7 point-clinching win.

Entering the match against UNC (11-2, 1-0 ACC), the Crimson had dropped two of the last four doubles points after beginning the season 5-1 in pairs play.

Harvard had never shown any hesitation in singles play, however, often breezing through opponents with little difficulty.

But Saturday proved a challenge.

Freshman Jack Li, who has been a solid singles player all season long, lost a tough 6-2, 7-6(8) battle. Li was joined by classmate Gideon Valkin, the first time the Crimson has played two freshmen in the singles lineup this season.

Playing in his first dual meet, Valkin manned the sixth slot and offered a valiant effort before falling 7-5, 7-5.

“[The overall meet was] very tense,” Fish said, “and UNC looked like it was in control. [They had] the ones they needed on their rackets.”

The Tar Heels had either won or led in four singles matches—close enough to smell a team victory.

“It’s just one of those things,” Fish said. “The [Crimson], it won’t quit. It’s what you have to be—they just refuse to go down.”

Lingman won his match 6-4, 6-1, and Chu took his 6-1, 6-2.

Nguyen’s match proved just as significant as his teammate’s victories. Though trailing 5-0 in the second set, the senior rallied to win four straight games before ultimately falling 7-5, 6-4, and though Nguyen’s was a losing effort, the energy he displayed was still constructive to his nearby teammate.

“Just getting those four games kept Mark [Riddell in it],” Fish said.

This was a good thing, for as the overall score remained knotted at 3-3, all the pressure fell on Riddell’s shoulders. Though the senior had lost the first set, he showed his team’s characteristic grit as he stormed back to take his match 5-7, 6-4, 7-5.

“Tonight was pretty exciting,” Lingman said. “It may not have been our first 4-3 [victory], but it was our first three-all decider of the season. And I would not have had anybody rather than Mark finishing that thing out.”

HARVARD 4, BOISE STATE 2

“I think we’ve got a lot of momentum, and [we’ll] just keep moving forward,” Nguyen had said before Friday’s match against the Broncos.

He was correct.

Boise State (10-5, 0-1 Western Athletic) was good—Chu was quick to point out that “at this tournament, [you have 16 teams], and they’re all good”—but Harvard was better.

The Crimson clinched the doubles point despite the 4-8 loss of the Lingman and Chu in the top match. The pair, ranked No. 26 in the country, had lost the day before and would also go on to lose the following day against UNC.

“[We], specifically, have had some trouble adjusting to outdoors,” Lingman said. “Indoors, our doubles is much cleaner, so we know where all the balls are going. Out here, the ball is moving around a little more.”

But Harvard still took the courts for singles play holding a 1-0 advantage, and that lead only grew. No. 35 Lingman defeated the Bronco’s No. 48 Guillaume Bouvier 6-4, 2-6, 6-4, and Li rolled to a 6-0 second-set victory after a 7-5 first.

“We actually were down in all six [singles] matches, at some point, against Boise,” Chu said, “and we managed to turn [some of] them around.”

Case in point was Chu’s own match, which turned out to be the clincher after the losses of both Turner and Nguyen. The junior took his match 6-7(5), 6-2, 6-3 going away.

“I just kept committed to my attacking plan” Chu said of the second and third sets, “and it played to my advantage.”

With the Crimson’s two losses this season aside, Friday night marked only the second time the team dropped has two or more points (Saturday became the third).

“Our team is getting tougher,” Lingman said, “and that’s what it takes to compete for a championship.”