ORANGE, CA (March 15, 2009) – In its fifth match in six days, the No. 23 nationally ranked Vassar College women's tennis team showed its stamina and determination, gritting out a 5-4 win over Chapman University in a match that lasted just over five hours on Saturday. Sophomore Elizabeth Anderson (San Francisco, CA/Lick-Wilmerding) notched the decisive win at No. 5 singles to give the Brewers a win in the final match of their spring break trip to California.

The Brewers improve to 5-2 in the spring, 8-3 overall and will have a rest from competition before hosting the Seven Sisters Championship on March 28-29.

"This entire Vassar team played inspired and hard-fought tennis,” said head coach Kathy Campbell. “We were fully prepared for a tight match knowing that Chapman was an excellent team."

With the team match score even at 4-4, Anderson clinched the deciding match, staying tough in the long three-setter. After dropping the first set 4-6, she rallied to win the second set 6-2 and prevailed in the final set winning it in a tiebreak, 7-6(3).

“She played composed and confident tennis and covered the court so well,” said Campbell. “ Being the last match on court and playing for the deciding point in front of all the fans and team members is a challenging situation, and I'm so proud of the way she handled the circumstances. She just played a great match and deserves a tremendous amount of credit."

Chapman took the early lead by winning two of the three doubles matches with Vassar's No. 3 team of Jennifer Beckerman (Santa Barbara, CA/Santa Barbara) and Alexis Jacobson (New Canaan, CT/New Canaan) earning a convincing 8-2 win for the Brewers. Vassar came charging back in the singles determined to win at least four of the six singles.

The Brewers did just that as Nicole Pontee (Homewood, IL/Homewood-Flossmoor), Jacobson, and Jamison Steele (Newport Beach, CA/Corona del Mar) picked up a dominant wins at No. 1, 4, and 6 singles, respectively, setting the tables for Anderson's match-clinching victory.

Pontee's win, over Chapman's Liz Lewis who is ranked No. 2 in the West region and finished third in the ITA Division III National Championship in December, represented one of Pontee's “best matches of the week and one of her very best matches this year,” according to Campbell. After losing to Lewis last year, Pontee won a decisive 6-2, 6-3 match.

"Nicole took the ball so early and hit with such authority dictating the entire match,” said Campbell. “Her movement and placement were excellent and she made very few errors. Nicole executed many of the things she's been working on this season with precision."

Doubles
1. Lewis/Fox, Chapman d. Pontee/Steele, Vassar 8-2
2. Pochet/Sirois, Chapman d. Backer/Krista Romita, Vassar 9-7
3. Beckerman/Jacobson, Vassar d. Kaiden/Trippel, Chapman 8-2
4. Block/Dunn-Rankin, Vassar d. Kelly Perryman/Katie Perryman 8-4 (exhibition)

Singles
1. Nicole Pontee, Vassar d. Liz Lewis, Chapman 6-2, 6-3
2. Kelley Fox, Champman d. Jennifer Beckerman, Vassar 6-4, 5-7, 7-6 (7)
3. Marion Pochet, Chapman d. Joy Backer, 6-4, 6-4
4. Alexis Jacobson, Vassar d. Roxanne Kaiden, Chapman 6-0, 6-1
5. Elizabeth Anderson, Vassar d. Sheehan Trippel, Chapman, 4-6, 6-2, 7-6(3)
6. Jamie Steele, Vassar d. Cassidy Sirois, Chapman, 6-2, 6-1
7. Nicole Block, Vassar d. , Chapman, 6-1, 6-1 (exhibition)