W. Tennis hosts Cissie Leary Invite

This weekend the Penn women's tennis team will host the second annual Cissie Leary Invitational in honor of the late women's tennis coach. Leary died of cancer in November 1996 after coaching for 20 years and earning a cumulative record of 229-119 at Penn. The invitational holds a large emotional value for the team. This year's four seniors were the last to play a full season under the Leary dynasty, and the two juniors were the last to be recruited by her. Penn coach Michael Dowd had a close personal and professional relationship with Leary, as he was the assistant coach at the time of her death. "She was an amazing women, she fought all throughout her life and she was always positive," senior tri-captain Karen Ridley said. "Cissie was very caring and a great listener. She was a great people person," Dowd said. It seems to be the consensus of the entire team that the tournament is a very fitting tribute to her and her personality. "It has a lot of class, just like her," Ridley said. Four of the eight Ivies --Yale, Princeton, Cornell and Dartmouth -- will be welcomed to the 12-team tournament with a formal banquet held at the University City Sheraton on Friday, September 25. "We want to roll out the red carpet," Dowd said. The 12 participating teams will begin a hectic schedule of tennis with first round matches at 8 a.m. Saturday. Although members of Penn's team admit that it will be a lot of hard work, they are looking forward to playing good tennis and having a lot of fun. The Quakers expect to have a lot of individual success at the the invitational. Penn will be represented by eight players, with junior Anastasia Pozdniakova holding the number two seed. "It's a lot of tennis in a short period of time, and it really prepares us for the spring," senior Corin Esterowitz said. "I like to get as much match play as I can in the fall." Team members would not predict the outcome of the tournament; however, many players stated that they felt they were playing well. Playing on home courts will provide an immeasurable advantage, and having Leary's name on the event will provide extra motivation for all Penn players. "We want to do it for Cissie, to make her proud of us," Ridley said. "I will fight for every point in every match, and hope for victory," senior Brooke Herman said. This year's seniors have extra motivation this weekend. The Cissie Leary Invitational will be the last home tournament of their college career. Esterowitz described it as special, because all of the seniors have the opportunity to play. Penn teammates are looking forward to seeing old friends and making new ones from other teams. They will also try to live up to the name "wardogs" that Leary affectionately gave them. One thing is for sure, they will play with intensity and heart to try to live up to the name of the tournament.