He has been called anything from a "wild man" to "a pain" to practice with, and often times at practice he will berate his teammates for missing shots.

"I try not to joke around in practice: I try to be fairly serious," he said, because you have to be serious in a match.

"Some players joke around in practice, and then in a match all of a student it's four all in the third set, and their muscles aren't used to it. You have to get acclimated to that kind of situation, and the best way is to practice it."

Pompan's dedication has gone a long way toward elevating his game since he came here in the fall of 19. For years one of the top 20 players in his national age group rankings. Pompan has worked with coach Dave Fish and picked up his game a notch at Harvard.

As a result, the components of his game, while not yet at the level of an All-American, are all solid. The Southern California staple a big forehand remains his most lethal weapon, but he has improved other aspects of his game to the point where he has no weaknesses.

The serve (a slice, spot-picking variety), the compact groundstrokes, the volley and the overhead are all more than adequate. His approach shots are deadly, his court movement and quickness easily the best on the team.

"He has relative weaknesses, but it's not as if you can exploit them consistently." Chaikovsky said. And, as captain Kevin Shaw put it. "Don doesn't do any one thing to overpower you, it's just that in the course of a match every shot he hits wears you down."

The annuals of tennis teem, though, with players who have solid games, all the shots even, sometimes one outstanding weapon- but fizzle in the heat of competition.

But Pompan thrives on pressure. If one tries to measure his overall talent, his court movement, approach shots and adaptability take a back seat to his confidence and competitiveness.

"As he puts it," says Chaikovsky, "when he goes on the court he tells himself, 'Hey, there are so many ways I can beat this guy. Whereas somebody else might go out and say 'Hey, this guy's a really good player,' Don says, 'Hey, I can really put this guy away.'"

But...

Unbridled confidence is the only way, for instance, to explain Pompan's belief that he has any chance today in his confrontation at number one against Princeton's Jay Lapidus, the ball-crushing seventh-ranked player in the country. The two have never played before, but Lapidus has beaten or lost narrowly to every top college player and even given a scare to some top pros.

"Basically, I think Lapidus is one step beyond anyone I've played this year." Pompan said. "But on the other hand, he can be beaten if you stay close enough to win, because very few guys stay close to him, and I don't think he's used to playing these matches where the underdog stays right with him."

"I think I can stay within striking distance, and if it comes down to a few points. I could win." Pompan continued. "I'm going to have to play the most tenacious match of my life."

Princeton coach Dave Benjamin, a '68 Harvard grad who has turned the Tigers into a perennial national power (they are ranked 12th currently), gave Pompan very little chance to win.