The Dartmouth women's tennis team traveled to Cambridge on Wednesday to take on the Harvard Crimson in the last match of the season for the Big Green. The match marked the end of the careers of Carolyn Roth '01 and Captain Courtney Smalley '01.
Unfortunately, Dartmouth couldn't send its seniors off in style, as the Crimson swept Dartmouth 7-0. The Big Green's season wraps up with a 2-5 Ivy mark, 7-12 overall.
"Most people anticipated a very rough transition [this year] following [Rebecca '00] Dirksen's and [Allison '00]Taff's graduation, and to combat this we embrace and celebrate their legacies by competing with determination, heart and spirit. I feel very confidently that next year's team will remember Courtney and I and fight through pain and injury, laugh at ridiculous tape-jobs and braces and continue our traditions," said Roth.
In doubles play, Carly Bashleben '02 and Sarita Yardi '02 won again, this time in a prolonged struggle with Sanja Bajin and Sanaz Ghazal. Neither side could gain a clear advantage and the match went to a tiebreaker at 8-8.
The Big Green pulled out the tight tiebreaker 7-5 to record Dartmouth's only win of the day.
Smalley and Catherine Crandall '04 couldn't grab any momentum against Fleur Broughton and Andrea Magyera at second doubles, falling 8-3. Roth and Kelsey Surbaugh '04 had little more success at third doubles against the tandem of Sarah McGinty and Lara Naqushbandi who took out the Big Green 8-3 as well.
Down 1-0, Dartmouth needed their singles to come up huge against the experienced and deep Crimson squad. Though effort wasn't lacking, none of the Big Green players could string together enough consistent play to take a set from Harvard, and the Crimson swept singles.
Bajin took out Yardi 6-4, 6-2 at first singles, while Broughton hammered Bashleben 6-1 in the first set and pulled out a tough 6-4 set in the second to win.
Smalley had the most success of any Dartmouth player, coming a single service break short in both sets against Ghazal, falling 6-4, 6-3. Crandall struggled against Naqushbandi's powerful game and lost at fourth singles 6-3, 6-1.
Surbaugh fared no better against Jennie Timoney at fifth singles, succumbing 6-2, 6-2. Lola Ajilore completed the Harvard victory with a 6-1, 6-0 win over Arden Fredeking '04 at sixth singles.
Though the final match didn't show it, Dartmouth made great strides throughout the season. The young group of players improved their games and got a taste of the difficulties they will face in the always-tough Ivy League.
The loss of Roth and Smalley will be hard to overcome at first, both with the loss of their abilities and their leadership. However, Yardi and Bashleben are willing to take up the mantles left by their teammates, and players like Christine Miller '04, Katie Lopez '04, Lisa Francazio '03 and Michael Rozas '02 will be set to take the place of the seniors.
"We will miss [the seniors] tremendously, as they have been excellent role models as both teammates and friends," said Bashleben.
