Evening star., 1941-06-07
BeIin Herbert Title Match Holds Net SpotIiqht
Fair FinaIists in Star
Tournament Rated
Close 10 Even
Men Sturt Competition;
Breese q Post-Entry
In Case of DefuuIt
BY BILL DISMER, Jr.

ny
Ending the women's and starting
OF the mems divisions forced q
sharing of ii terest in The Stars
tennis tournament today, but there
was no denying that the spotlight
was squarely on the Mary Belin-
Willie Herbert match for the singles
championship at Army Navy Coun-
try Club.
While 80 matches were slated at
Edgemoor to cut the large mems
field exactly in half, Mrs. Herbert
was to make the first of her two
title bids for the day at 2:30 o'clock
against Mrs. Belin. Immediately
afterward Mrs. Herbert was to team
with Charlotte Decker against
Eleanor Fishburne and Sara Moore
for the doubles championship.
Despite the fact that second
seeded Mrs Herbert was rated a
notch ahead of the 1887 and '39
champion, Mrs. Belin was given a
slight edge in the pre-match dis
cussions, largely as result of her
uphill three-Set victory over De-
Tending Champion Margo Lee yes
terday.
Mrs. Belin Fights Uphill.
Beaten in the first set at love and
trailing, "a, in the second, Mrs.
Belin began a rally behind increas-
ingly deep drives to square the
match with a IS victory in the
second set. Then, her confidence
restored, she waltzed away with the
deciding set, 60, coasting in after
running up a 40 lead. From the
time she began her squirt, Mrs.
Belin captured II of IA games.
Most astonishing to a surprisingly
large week day crowd was the fact
that Mrs. Belin. whose stamina had
been questioned, appeared to grow
stronger as the match progressed
while her younger opponent seemed
to weaken.
Despite her straight-set victory
in the other semifinal match by
scores of 60, So, Mrs. Herbert
was given rousing battle by plucky
Charlotte Decker who forced four
games in the first set to deuce and
engaged her doubles partner in
many long rallies before finally
succumbing.
Had not Mrs. Herbert and Miss
Decker later been game enough to
stave off four match points in the
second set of their semifinal dou-
bles clash with Frances Sturtevant
and Jane Wilmerding today's final
for the team championship would
have been between two unseeded
teams.
Decker and Herbert Game.
Mrs. Belin and Frances Rowan,
the No, ranking team, had been
eliminated in straight sets by
Eleanor Fishburne and Sara Moore,
6-3, 6-1, when the Decker Herbert
duo found themselves down, 4-6.
3-5 and love-40 against Mrs
Sturtevant and Mrs. Wilmerding.
But rally they did to take the sec
ond set at Is and then the third
at 60
incidentally, today's doubles match
Is between two teams which are
playing together for the first time.
Possibility that Big Bill BreeSe,
the Districts siXth-ranking netman,
may break into the mems draw as
late post-entry arose early today with
the word that the broad-accenting
Harvard grad eagerly desired to play.
Breese. out of town this week. has
been promised place in the COM
petition in the event of a first
round default
Otherwise, the tournament was all
set for a big start, with four seeded
players expected to have warm going
at the very outset. Falling into this
group were Hugh Lynch, who was
to meet Billy ContreraS; Frank
Shore, who drew Hy Ritzenberg;
Charley Charming, who must play
Eddie Becker and Dick Murphy, who
faced Phil Burkom of the University
Of Marylands crack squad.
AS usual, tournament officials are
planning all-day competition tomor-
row, starting at 10 o'clock, and the
round may be reached
by nightfall. Doubles also will start
tomorrow, the draw to be made at
6 o'clock tonight.