The women's tennis team closed out an undefeated Fall season with a third place finish at this past weekend's New England Championship. The meet, which featured 25 teams from around the region, was played at Amherst College.
"We fought really hard," freshman Heidi Kashani said. "We came out with a victory because we got third. I thought we fought for every single point and never gave up."
Tufts finished behind two NESCAC opponents, Amherst and Williams, neither of which the Jumbos played this fall.
"Both Williams and Amherst are really tough teams," Kashani said. "I still believe we are better than them. Whether it's that they have the mental edge above us, we really believe that we'll beat them in the Spring."
The highlight of the tournament for Tufts was the doubles play of freshman Jenn Lejb and junior Katie Nordstrom. The pair, playing at #1 doubles, won five matches en route to a championship. Lejb and Nordstrom, who were a perfect pair this season, defeated third-ranked Stephanie Fong and Heather Cole of Amherst 7-6 (7-4), 6-4.
Junior Iffy Saeed was the high individual finisher for Tufts, placing second in the #5 singles bracket. Saeed lost in the finals to Williams' top-seeded Jasmine Bradley.
The other five singles players fell in their respective semi-final matches. Lejb played #1, followed by senior co-captain Erika Lee at #2, Nordstrom at #3, freshman Heidi Kashani in the #4 bracket, and freshman Neda Pisheva at #6.
The third place finish is pleasing for the Jumbos, though they will not be able to use any momentum gained from the weekend. Due to the split schedule, the team now has a five-month wait until resuming play at Wesleyan on March 30 of next year.
Five players ended their fall season undefeated in dual-meet play: Nordstrom and Saeed were 8-0, Kashani was 7-0, Lejb was 6-0, and Pisheva was 5-0. Aside from talent, the Jumbos are also blessed with youth - Lejb, Pisheva, and Kashani are all freshmen. Lee, and co-captain Heather Rich, who was used for doubles this season, are the only seniors on the team.
"We had three freshmen on the team, which is kind of hard," Kashani said. "But everyone managed to pull through. The upper classmen were very supportive."
The Spring season is significant because it includes the NESCAC Championship - where Tufts finished sixth of ten last year - and the NCAA Championships - where Tufts lost to Williams in the Northeast Regional Finals.
