NEW YORK - The Columbia women's tennis team improved to 9-7 this season, with a 7-0 win over local rival Fordham Friday. The Lions swept all three doubles matches before taking all sixsingles matches, in a dual match that lasted just under three hours.

The Lions opened the day with a dominating win in doubles from junior Natasha Makarova and first-year Chelsea Davis. The duo didn't let the Rams win a game, taking the match 8-0. The other two matches had similar scores, as first-years Nicole Bartnik and Katarina Kovacevic won 8-3, while Natalia Christenson and Eliza Matache won 8-2.

Singles went the same way for the Lions, as Columbia won all but one of the matches in straight sets. Senior co-captain Carling Donovan led the way with an early win, setting the tone for the rest of the team. Donovan dominated Jennifer Mullen in the No. 4 spot, and beat her without dropping a game, 6-0, 6-0. Kovacevic made the team score 3-0 with her win at No. 3, as she beat Bethany Boyle, 6-3, 6-3. The match was clinched just a short time later when Davis, playing at No. 1 for the first time this season, beat Sarah Tremaine, 6-1, 6-3. Columbia had the 4-0 win in the bag, but that didn't stop the three remaining players from leaving their all on the court.

First-year Caroline Constable had a big win at No. 6, as she beat Brittany Russeell, 6-2, 6-1, and first-year Diana Shapoval had a great win at No. 5, beating Taylor Holt, 6-3, 7-5. Fordham won only one set all day, ad that happened to be the first set at No. 2 singles. Martina Featherston got an early advantage over Matache, taking the first set 6-1. But Matache didn't let that become a pattern, as she slowly but surely dismantled her opponent in the second and third sets, taking the win and completing the sweep, 1-6, 6-0, 6-2.

Up next for the Lions is a huge match: the 2010 Ivy League season opener. Columbia will host rival Cornell, Wednesday, March 31st at 2 p.m.
 
Columbia 7, Fordham 0

Doubles
1. Nicole Bartnik/Kovacevic (CU) def. Featherston/Tremaine (FU),   8-3
2. Natasha Makarova/Davis (CU) def. Holt/Boyle (FU), 8-0
3. Natalia Christenson/Matache (CU) def. Elizabeth Stall/Mullen (FU), 8-2

Order of Finish: 2, 1*, 3

Singles
1. Chelsea Davis (CU) def. Sarah Tremaine (FU), 6-1, 6-3
2. Eliza Matache (CU) def. Martina Featherston (FU), 1-6, 6-0, 6-2
3. Katarina Kovacevic (CU) def. Bethany Boyle (FU), 6-3, 6-3
4. Carling Donovan (CU) def. Jennifer Mullen (FU), 6-0, 6-0
5. Diana Shapoval (CU) def. Taylor Holt (FU), 6-3, 7-5
6. Caroline Constable  (CU) def. Brittany Russell (FU), 6-2, 6-1

Order of Finish: 4, 3, 1*, 6, 2, 5