The Harvard tennis team was blown off the courts on Friday by a powerful Princeton squad, 9-0, but came back to easily defeat Navy on Saturday, 8-1.

The Crimson netmen went to Princeton with memories of last year's match with the Tigers, when Harvard came within an eyelash of winning. This year, however, Princeton had no trouble at all in claiming the top spot in Eastern tennis.

"Princeton proved what the statistics showed." Harvard tennis coach Jack Barnaby said yesterday. "No one in the Ivies is able to challenge them. We hoped to do better, but we didn't."

Gary Reiner played well at one even though he lost in straight sets to Princeton's top man, Fisher. Number two Todd Lundy forced his Tiger counterpart, Dutton, to three sets. Dutton won the FCAC singles title last fall on a clay surface.

The Crimson fared much better on Saturday as Harvard had little trouble dispatching the Middies. Only the first doubles team of Chip Baird and Reiner dropped their match that afternoon.

Follow the Bouncing Ball

"When you saw that Columbia lost 5-4 to Navy (after having lost 9-0 to Princeton the day before)." Barnaby said, "you realize it was a morale thing. I told our guys they had to bounce like a rubber ball."

If the Crimson can beat Dartmouth on Wednesday, it will tie for second place, which as Barnaby points out is "the best anyone could really expect to do this year."