Smith College Athletics

The 1987-88 Tennis team posted the best team performance in the history of the sport at Smith. The Pioneers finished with a combined record of 27-10 (fall and spring) and won the New England Women’s Intercollegiate Tennis Tournament (NEWITT), finishing 1st out of 22 schools. Their NEWITT title set the tone for fall postseason play as the Pioneers dominated NEW8 play, beating both Babson (9-0) and Wellesley (6-3) to earn the NEW8 title. Following their success in the fall, the Pioneers began the spring season with a second place finish at the 1988 Seven Sisters Championship. Smith’s season continued as the Pioneers received a bid to the NCAA Tournament for the first time in school history. Their historic campaign ended with losses to UC-San Diego (2-5) and Pomona Pitzer (3-5) after beating Emory (5-4) in the first round. Under the coaching of Chris Davis, the Pioneers ended their spring season at 13-6, claiming the No. 7 spot in the final Division III National Ranking Polls. That year, rookie standout, Jennifer Beindorf ’9,1 won an individual championship at NEWITT and the doubles pair of Nancy Chan ’88 and Sally McNamara ’89 ranked 22nd in the final ITA National DIII Rankings.