PHILADELPHIA, Pa. – The Columbia women's tennis team will play for a second straight ECAC title on Sunday after defeating Harvard, 4-1 on Saturday afternoon.
 
Columbia will meet Yale on Sunday at 2 p.m. as the Lions play for their second straight ECAC Championship. Columbia defeated Yale, 4-3 last season to claim the 2024 ECAC title in Cambridge, Massachusetts.
 
The Lions used a strong doubles performance to hold an early advantage over Harvard on Saturday. The Crimson duo of Natalie Block and Maxi Duncan defeated Emily Baek and Sophia Wang, 6-1 in the No. 3 doubles to get the match started.
 
Gayathri Krishnan and Sophia Strugnell responded with a 6-2 win over Kavya Karra and Stephanie Yakoff in the No. 2 doubles. Malak El Allami and Fatima Keita locked up the doubles point for the Lions with a 6-3 victory against Charlotte Owensby and Holly Fischer in the top doubles match.
 
Harvard leveled the team score at 1-1 to start singles play as Fischer defeated El Allami, 7-6, 7-6 (5) in the top singles spot.
 
Columbia then posted three straight singles victories to finish off the 4-1 team victory. Krishnan earned a 6-4, 6-4 win against Yakoff in the No. 3 spot. Winta Tewolde worked a 6-4, 6-4 victory over Block in the No. 6 singles. Keita clinched the Columbia victory with a 6-3, 1-6, 6-4 win against Owensby in the No. 2 singles.
 
RESULTS
Columbia 4, Harvard 1
Singles
1. Holly Fischer (Harvard) def. Malak El Allami (Columbia), 7-6, 7-6 (5)
2. Fatima Keita (Columbia) def. Charlotte Owensby (Harvard), 6-3, 1-6, 6-4
3. Gayathri Krishnan (Columbia) def. Stephanie Yakoff (Harvard), 6-4, 6-4
4. Amber Yin (Columbia) vs. Maxi Duncan (Harvard) 5-7, 6-1, 2-4 (unfinished)
5. Emily Baek (Columbia) vs. Kavya Karra (Harvard) 1-6, 6-3, 1-2 (unfinished)
6. Winta Tewolde (Columbia) def. Natalie Block (Harvard), 6-4, 6-4
 
Doubles
1. Malak El Allami/Fatima Keita (COL) def. Charlotte Owensby/Holly Fischer (HAR), 6-3
2. Gayathri Krishnan/Sophia Strugnell (COL) def. Kavya Karra/Stephanie Yakoff (HAR), 6-2
3. Natalie Block/Maxi Duncan (HAR) def. Emily Baek/Sophia Wang (COL), 6-1
 
Order of finish: Doubles (3,2,1); Singles (1,3,6,2)
 
UP NEXT
Columbia faces Yale on Sunday at 2 p.m. in the ECAC Championship match.
 
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