No. 39 Bergman fended off a late charge from Lindsay Williams to win 6-3, 7-5, putting the Crimson up 2-1 after Anderson’s straight-set win at No. 5.
When Bergman stepped off the court, Chu led her third set 4-3, Martire was rallying in hers and Mukundan had just forced a final frame with a 6-3 second-set win.
And just when it seemed those injuries wouldn’t again doom Harvard’s chances, all three matches simultaneously unravelled.
Jackie Leskovar closed out Martire to knot the score at two apiece, transferring the pressure to the freshmen, at least one of whom would need to win for the Crimson to advance. After an uneven match of dotted by runs and swift momentum changes, Chu lost three staight games to Lindsay Bryan to close out the Buckeyes’ third point at 1-6, 6-0, 6-4.
With the entire gallery abandoning Lingman to watch Mukundan’s match at No. 4, the home court advantage dissipated. Emily DeCamilla swept the final set, sending Harvard packing.
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—Staff writer Timothy J. McGinn can be reached at mcginn@fas.harvard.edu.