Over the course of the three-day tournament, the Big Green collected over 100 pounds of donated items from six of the other seven competing teams for Dartmouth's Haiti earthquake relief efforts. Among the donated items were shoes, clothing, food, water bottles, tents and other necessities.
Shortly after the team arrived back in Hanover, the supplies were flown down to Haiti along with a group of Dartmouth doctors and health workers.
Co-captains Jesse Adler '10 and Julia Zak '10 the organizers of the drive were inspired by the College's overwhelming response to the tragic earthquake that struck Haiti on Jan. 12. As of Feb. 22, the Dartmouth community had donated $190,937 to Partners In Health.
"As soon as the tragedy happened, the response for Haiti was so strong from everyone here," Adler said. "Instead of asking for donations at Dartmouth, we tried to get other schools involved in the relief effort."
On the morning of the championship final, which pitted the Big Green against Yale University, the two teams were leaving the hotel to go to the arena at the same time. As the Dartmouth squad was waiting to board its bus, the captain of the Bulldogs ran toward the Big Green with a box of shoes and gave it to Adler and Zak. For the next few minutes, players from both teams helped transfer shoes from bus to bus.
"I grew up with a lot of these girls," Adler said. "We are competitors, but we all have the same goals and they were willing to help."
Later that day, the two teams met again inside the Murr Indoor Tennis Center for the championship match. The Bulldogs came away with a 4-0 victory and the conference trophy.
This is not the first time the Dartmouth women's tennis team has engaged in community service. The team is a long-time partner of the Upper Valley Haven an organization that provides shelter, food and other services to homeless families in the Upper Valley.
"As a team, we try to do one to two community service projects a term," Zak said. "We have a close relationship with the Haven, and we have also worked with Habitat for Humanity and breast cancer fundraisers."
Adler and Zak plan to expand their project by setting up a competition among conferences. The team representing each conference at the NCAA Championship in the Spring would be responsible for collecting donations from other schools in that respective league.
"For all tragedies like this one, it fades after a while," Adler said. "We are trying to make sure that people still remember the devastation and make continuous contributions."
The lone representative from the Ivy League at tennis Nationals in late Spring could be the Big Green. After the ECAC tournament, the team improved to 7-1 on the season, with three wins over nationally-ranked opponents on its resume.
Entering this week, the Big Green is ranked No. 57 in the nation, with the doubles pair of Molly Scott '11 and Mary Beth Winingham '10 ranked No. 30.
Strong team chemistry and contributions across the board contribute to the team's success, Adler said, much like the team's approach to charity.
"When everyone gives a little, you end up with a lot," Zak said.
