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Stamford's Louise and Daniel Soifer won the first eight games and appeared headed to a third straight title in the Mother and Son 14-and-under division of the Pilot Pen Tennis Family Classic. Fairfield's Trish and Danny Pavoni, however, gained momentum in the second set. The Fairfield duo rallied for a 0-6, 6-4, 10-7 win Thursday at Yale University.
The third set is a tiebreaker, where the first team to reach 10 points, and has a two-point advantage, is the winner.
"We were amazed at how well we were doing,'' said Louise, whose family plays out of the Long Ridge Club. "Then I think we took our foot off the pedal a little bit. They played a lot to me, and they made some adjustments."
The Soifers blazed through the first set and led 2-0 in the second set. The Pavonis finally won their first game and evened it at 2-2, but the Soifers steadied themselves and went up 4-2 and had Daniel serving. The Fairfield duo broke and went on to win the next four games to steal the set. In the tiebreaker, the Pavonis went up 4-1 and never looked back.
"I think I started to lose a little focus,'' Daniel said. "I think we started to feel a little pressure."
Nerves and fatigue played a part, and the Pavonis showed mettle in fighting back after the early deficit. "They played really well, especially toward the end,'' Louise said. "We just lost our edge."
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