Youth Be Served

PAM BANHOLZER doesn't weigh much more than the Ivy League football trophy and is only 31 inches taller than the stump of the Old Pine near Bartlett Tower. She is, however, one of the youngest team captains in the history of Dartmouth sports.

The 5-foot 1-inch, 95-pound freshman from Milwaukee defeated eight of nine opponents during the women's tennis team's unbeaten fall campaign and, in a 47-team competition, paced the Green to the New England Women's Intercollegiate Tennis tournament championship by winning five matches en route to the singles title. "It was one of the most exciting experiences in tennis I've ever had," says the 18-year-old who was named captain in April. "It was very much a team victory and that is why it was so special."

Banholzer bedazzles opponents with a powerful topspin backhand, which she hits with two hands. She has used the twohanded backhand since beginning competitive tennis at the age of nine. "I was pretty small so it helped me - it gave me more strength," she explains. "I usually hit it as hard as I can. It can be tiring. In fact, I don't think I hit my forehand as hard. I guess I don't have as much confidence in it." She counts on consistency rather than frequent rushes to the net for points on the court.

Banholzer won her first tennis tournament when she was about ten years old, helped along by her father and older brother and sister, who were competitive players. She is currently ranked number one in Wisconsin in the 18-year-old and under division. How did she end up at Dartmouth? "I visited a few schools in the East almost haphazardly, and when I came to Dartmouth 1 loved the people here. It had a good atmosphere," she says. "No, I didn't expect I'd be playing in the number one position for the team. I didn't know how I would do in the East since I hadn't played anyone here before."

The freshman-dominated team played six matches in Florida during March and opened the northern season on a sour note, losing, 7 to 2, to perennial power Yale. Allison Hibbert won the lone singles match and then teamed with Banholzer for Dartmouth's only doubles victory. Coach Chris Clark noted it was the Green's best showing against Yale since 1973 and predicted the team would win the rest of its spring matches. "We played well enough to stay in contention for a bid to the Eastern Intercollegiate Championships," Clark says.

Tennis is a year-round sport for Banholzer. "The team practices for two hours a day, and most of us try to play once or twice on weekends," she notes. "This past winter we used tennis as a gym requirement and played at least three hours a week. I'll probably play in a few tournaments and teach tennis at a camp in Wisconsin during the summer. I enjoy all sports, actually - and I used to play basketball but am too short to play at the college level. I tried to pick skiing up last winter but I only got to the slopes once."

John Steel is another teenager who Wasted no time demonstrating his prowess on the tennis court. From LaJolla, California, he started as the number two player on the men's team as a freshman last spring and worked his way up to the top spot halfway through the season.

"He's got a good serve, is an excellent volleyer, is good at the net, and has a good all-around game. He is the most complete player on the team," says coach John Kenfield, whose teams have compiled a record of 127-92 during his 12 seasons at Dartmouth. Kenfield notes that Steel, whose father John is a member of the Class of 1954, is capable of beating just about anyone in the Eastern Intercollegiate Tennis Association. "But there are a lot of good players in the league. If he wins more than he loses in the league, he will have had a good season. Overall, he will probably do better than that."

This spring, for the first time, the men's tennis team went to California rather than North Carolina and Virginia. The netmen posted a 3-5 record on the trip, which, according to Kenfield, included "a lot of fun, a lot of good weather, and a lot of good tennis."

The team got off to a good start on its return by defeating Navy, 6-3, in Leverone Field House. "'That's the first time we've beaten Navy since 1970. It was a good way to start the home season. The Navy win was one of the things we had to do to have a good season. I said before the season if we could beat Navy and Penn we could finish in the upper division," points out Kenfield, whose teams are perennially one of the top three in New England despite his low-key recruiting. "I don't believe in going overboard in recruiting," says the coach. "We have no illusions about winning national titles here. We just want the players to be better men for playing tennis at Dartmouth. I think we have a good time and the few wins we come by give a sense of accomplishment, which is great for the guys."

Youthful prodigies Banholzer (a freshman) and Steel (a sophomore) lead their teams.