After his team began the year 1-7, Jason Pinsky was tired of hearing about how Penn couldn't win.
"Everyone has been doubting us this whole year saying, 'you guys are losing every match,'" he said. "But we played eight top-20 teams in the country. As of now, it's really paying off. All those people that were down on us, we're showing them we're taking care of business in our league."
And in dramatic fashion at that.
After last beating Harvard in 1974, Penn needed a generation to finally do it again, edging the Crimson 4-3 Friday to kick off a winning weekend at home. Penn moved to 5-0 in Ivy competition with a 6-1 win against Dartmouth on Saturday.
Just one year after Harvard dealt Penn its only regular-season loss, ultimately costing the Quakers an outright Ivy League title and the accompanying NCAA Tournament bid, the defending Ivy League co-champions earned sweet revenge in monumental fashion.
Entering the match, the two schools were the only undefeated teams left in the conference. History looked destined to repeat itself when the Crimson took the doubles point for the early lead, but Penn remained unfazed.
The top four singles - Jason Pinsky, Jonathan Boym, Mikhail Bekker, and Joseph Lok, respectively - came up huge, deciding the match before the lower singles could finish play.
Lok and Boym quickly repacked their racquets, winning their matches in straight sets. Pinsky followed soon after, as Penn's stud junior emerged the victor, 6-2, 7-5 over Harvard's Chris Clayton.
Just a minute later, Bekker clinched the match with his 7-5, 6-1 win over Dan Nguyen, putting Penn in a position to take the Ivy crown by itself.
"We had a great team last year, came up a little short and we grew from that experience last year," Pinsky said.
On Saturday, Penn moved within a win of at least a share of the Ivy title by toppling Dartmouth. The Quakers quickly took care of the doubles point with some strong net play, then proceeded to take five of the six singles matches. The top four singles players took care of business again, winning each match easily in straight sets.
Meanwhile, freshmen Adam Schwartz and Alex Vasin assumed the five- and six-singles spots, respectively, with only Vasin winning, 6-2, 6-2.
"This was one of the weaker teams in the league," Pinsky said. "With the harder part of the season over, the hardest part for us now is maintaining focus.
"We can see the light at the end of the tunnel, but we just have to take care of business - few more matches, another Ivy League ring, fulfill the legacy."
The Daily Pennsylvanian is an independent, student-run newspaper. Please consider making a donation to support the coverage that shapes the University. Your generosity ensures a future of strong journalism at Penn.
DonatePlease note All comments are eligible for publication in The Daily Pennsylvanian.