SPORTS BRIEF: Wednesday, February 3, 1999

Tennis ends 17-match skid against Princeton No one expected a Quakers victory when Penn's Kevin Strouse took the court Friday against Princeton senior Kevin Sweeney in the Princeton Invitational Indoor Tennis Tournament. On paper, Strouse -- a freshman competing in his first collegiate tournament -- was overmatched against the four-year Princeton starter. But he earned his new nickname, "Sweeney Slayer," by dominating on the court, winning in straight sets, 6-1, 6-2. "I came in pretty relaxed," Strouse said. "Tennis is just a game. I combined intensity with relaxation and just played a good match." Strouse's upset inspired another Quakers individual victory over a Tiger foe. After losing in three sets to Princeton's Alex Zakharia in the first round, Penn sophomore Eric Sobotka defeated another Tiger, Kevin Woo, 6-4, 6-3, in the consolation bracket. While half of the team was enjoying surprising success at Princeton, the rest of the Quakers competed in the Harvard Invitational over the weekend. At the Murr Center site, the doubles team of Joe Zupav and Dominic Rioux defeated Yale's No. 2 doubles team 8-6 before losing to the eventual tournament champions from Harvard. Senior captain Jordan Szekely also had a solid performance at Harvard, defeating Brown's top singles player 7-5, 7-6. "I had been sick the week before and didn't expect to even play," Szekely said. "But one of our guys couldn't compete, so I had to go out there." Coach Gordie Ernst was excited about the team's performance over the weekend, especially in light of a disappointing fall season. "Call it what it is -- we had a terrible fall," Ernst said. "But fall means nothing, and this meet showed we're really coming together as a cohesive unit." -- Jason Bodnar