On Sunday afternoon sophomore James Blake became the first Ivy League player in history to win back-to-back national singles titles by winning the Rolex National Intercollegiate Indoor Championships at the Brookhaven Country Club in Dallas, Texas.

Blake defeated the University of Washington's Robert Kendrick in a grueling three-set match, 6-4, 5-7, 6-4, to retain the No. 1 ranking in the nation and win one of college tennis' Grand Slams.

"We were definitely looking for big things for James going into the season, but you can never predict a national title," Coach Peter Mandeau said. "His great talent and athletic ability, combined with his work ethic and determination, have paid off."

With the victory, Blake became not only the first Harvard player in history to win this event, he became the first Crimson athlete to win two national tennis titles. Last October he won the ITA Men's All-American Championships in Austin, Texas.

The history-making victory did not come easy for Blake, though, as Kendrick proved to be up to the challenge of facing the nation's No. 1 player.

This came as no surprise to Blake, however, as he and Kendrick have a history of tough matches. The final was the third time Blake and Kendrick had taken each other on. The last time they met was on the same court at Brookhaven in the finals of the USTA Boys' 18 & Under Indoor Championship two years ago, when both players were still on the junior circuit. Blake won that match in five sets.

As a result Blake knew about Kendrick's powerful game, and what to expect in the match.

"I've played Kendrick before in juniors on the same court, so I knew his game," Blake said. "He's got a big serve and big game, so going in I knew I just had to keep in control and not let him take over with his big forehand."

The first set opened with both players showcasing their service power. Each easily held his serve to knot the score at three games apiece. In the seventh game of the set, however, Blake went up 40-love on Kendrick's serve, going on to win the game, before holding on to a 6-4 set victory.

The second set began in similar fashion, as Kendrick and Blake continued to trade powerful serves and groundstrokes. At 2-3, Blake faced two break points, but managed to save them to tie the set up at three games each. However, a short time later, trailing 5-6, Blake was not so fortunate. Kendrick capitalized on a weak service game to break Blake and take the set 7-5, sending the match to a deciding third set.

Despite dropping the second set, Blake managed to stay composed and immediately broke Kendrick back to take a 1-0 lead in the set. Blake could not take advantage with his serve, though, as Kendrick returned the favor, breaking Blake to even the set at 1-1.

After both players held serve, Blake broke through once again, taking another service game from Kendrick for a 3-2 lead. This time, the nation's No. 1 player did not let up, as Blake held his serve the rest of the way to win the set 6-4 and to take home his second consecutive national title.

Although in the end he emerged victorious, the road to the championship was far from easy for Blake. In fact, Blake survived a huge scare in the quarterfinals, before advancing in the tournament.

In the quarters, Blake took on the University of Florida's Jeff Morrison. After dropping the first set in a tiebreaker, Blake found himself serving to stay alive trailing 4-5, 30-40 in the second set. Facing match point, Blake hit an incredible forehand passing shot to stay in the match. He managed to pull out the game, and eventually the set, winning in a tiebreaker, 7-5. Blake won the third set easily, 6-2

"A few year's ago I would have been tentative in that situation, but I felt like I had nothing to lose so I relaxed and went for it," Blake said. "I just wanted to play my game and not to try to change on match point, and I came up with a solid shot. Then I loosened up and played well."