NEW YORK - The Columbia women's tennis team dropped a tough match to nationally ranked Ivy League rival Brown Friday in the Dick Savitt Tennis Center, losing 5-2. With the loss, the Lions are 0-4 in Ivy League play, and 9-11 overall.

Columbia took an early lead in the match as the Lions took wins at Nos. 1 and 3 doubles to clinch the point. First-year Nicole Bartnik and senior co-captain Carling Donovan had a win in the top spot for Columbia, as they beat the Brown No. 1 pair, 8-5. Junior Natasha Makarova and first-year Katarina Kovacevic had the other win for the Lions, as they took their match at No. 3 doubles, 8-5. And Eliza Matache and Chelsea Davis had a hard fought match in the No. 2 spot, but fell to their Brown opponents, 8-6.

In singles, however, No. 66 Brown was able to retake momentum, and notched wins in the Nos. 1 through 5 spots to take the match from the Lions, 5-2. Makarova, Kovacevic and Matache had straight set losses in the loss for Columbia, but the Lions didn't go down without a fight, as three of the six matches went to third sets or super tiebreakers.

In the No. 1 spot, Bartnik lost in the first set, 6-4, but rallied back in the second set to sweep Bianca Aboubakare 6-0. But the first year was unable to maintain momentum, and fell in the third set, 6-2. First-year Chelsea Davis also had quite a fight, as she rallied back from a first-set deficit. After going down 6-4, Davis won the second set 6-2 to force a third. There, the two went to 5-5, before a tiebreak was decided upon. Even that was close, as Davis lost, 8-6, allowing Misia Kraswaski to take the three set win.

Senior Carling Donovan had the lone win of the day in singles for Columbia. The co-captain took on Catherine Stewart, and won in a super tiebreaker. After winning the first set with ease, 6-3, Donvan slipped in the second, and Stewart took the set 7-6. But Donovan managed to rally back in the end, and take the tiebreak set, 7-3, giving her the 6-3, 6-7, 1-1 (7-3) win.

Up next for the Lions is Ivy foe Yale, who come to the Dick Savitt Tennis Center, Saturday, April 10 at 12 p.m.

No. 66 Brown 5, Columbia 2

Doubles
1. Bartnik/Donovan (COL) def. Aboubakare/Schonfeld (B), 8-5
2. Herzberg/Ellis (B) def.  Matache/Davis (COL), 8-6
3. Makarova/Kovacevic (COL) def. Flanzer/Krasawski (B), 8-5

Singles
1. Bianca Aboubakare (B) def. Nicole Bartnik (COL), 6-4, 0-6, 6-2
2. Cassandra Herzberg (B) def. Natasha Makarova (COL), 6-0, 6-0
3. Misia Kraswaski (B) def. Chelsea Davis (COL), 6-4, 2-6, 6-5 (8-6)
4. Julie Flanzer (B) def.  Katarina Kovacevic (COL), 7-6, 6-4
5. Marisa Schonfeld (B) def. Eliza Matache (COL), 6-0, 6-2
6. Carling Donovan (COL) def. Catherine Stewart (B), 6-3, 6-7, 1-1 (7-3)