Though they were wearing crimson instead of green, the luck of the Irish was with the members of the Harvard women's tennis team on St. Patrick's Day.

In an East Coast, non-league showdown against Boston University, the Crimson won the first four points of the match to clinch victory and improve to .500 on the spring. Although B.U. won the final three singles matches on the afternoon, Harvard's 3-0 triumph in doubles and three opening straight set singles victories were enough to edge out the Terriers.

It is difficult to predict whether or not the outcomes of the last three singles matches would have turned out differently had Harvard (5-5) not already clinched the match, but Harvard's doubles point was clearly important in both gaining momentum and the 'W.'

Sophomores Bomy Hong and Lara Naqushbandi, who had never before played together, won their inaugural match, 8-4, at No. 3 doubles. Hong and Naqushbandi showed great compatibility and might be used together in future matches this season.

"Bomy and Lara particularly stood out today," Coach Gordan Graham said. "They played very well together, especially on their first time out with each other."

Though Harvard's first win at third doubles came rather easily, the hard fought struggles at the No. 1 and No. 2 spots set the tone for the rest of the match. Both matches were deadlocked at 8-8 before the Crimson emerged victorious with a pair of 9-8 victories in tiebreakers.

Junior Fleur Broughton and freshman Lola Ajilore clinched the doubles point for Harvard, squeezing out a 7-3 victory in the eight-game pro-set tiebreaker. Broughton and Ajilore were down 4-6 before storming back to tie the match at 7-7. The teams then split games to knot the match at 8-8. Ajilore and Broughton nailed big first serves throughout the tiebreaker to clinch the point.

Minutes later, senior Sanaz Ghazel and sophomore Sanja Bajin finished the Harvard sweep with a thrilling 7-5 tiebreaker win. Ghazel and Bajin led 7-4 in the match and seemed to be in control until Christina Causway and Carrie Rose captured the momentum, knotting the match at 7-7. Ghazel and Bajin regained their composure in time to win Harvard's second 9-8 doubles match.