With wins in both the singles and the doubles finals, Williams secured its first-ever NESCAC Championship. The Ephs, who entered the tournament ranked fourth in the nation, led the 10-team field with 43 points. The Jeffs finished a distant second with 29 points. Rounding up the field was Trinity College in third place, followed by Wesleyan University, Middlebury College, Tufts University, Bowdoin College, Colby College, Bates College and Hamilton College.
Williams was led by the strong play of junior Selma Kickic, who defeated defending national champion Jamie Cohen '01 in the semifinals by a score of 6-1, 6-3, before squaring off against Stephanie Fong '02 in the "A" championship match. The championship was a hard fought battle, but in the end, Kickic proved to be too much for Fong, who fell 6-1, 6-3.
"We were worn down a little this weekend," said Fong. "We can beat them next time."
In the "A" doubles championship match, Kickic teamed with fellow Eph Tracy Cheung to take on Cohen and Roopali Agarwal '03. Cohen and Agarwal both played well, but the match went Williams' way, with the Ephs prevailing by a score of 8-4. Williams continued its sound play with wins in the "B," "C" and "D" singles championships. With victories in the "B" and "C" doubles championships, Williams completed the sweep of the first-ranked Amherst squad, winning all seven championships.
While disappointed in the outcome of the tournament, Amherst did compete well, placing team members in five of the seven final matches. Fong and Co-captain Carolyn Pastel '01 both made it to the singles finals, while the doubles teams of Agarwal and Cohen and Susanna Burke '03 and Pastel both reached the doubles finals.
"This weekend was disappointing for us, but winning Nationals is our real goal," said Fong. "We just need to focus and practice hard for the next few weeks and we can achieve that goal."
Amherst will look to rebound this Saturday, when they will have a two-match day, hosting Wellesley College at 10:00 a.m. and MIT at 4 p.m.