New home, same old home winning streak.

Yesterday afternoon Harvard officially dedicated the Robert M. Beren Tennis Center, the new 18-court outdoor tennis facility, in a fit of pomp and circumstance. The Harvard men's tennis team thrived on the atmosphere, defeating Penn 6-1 to continue its 39-match home winning streak. The last time the Crimson (12-10, 3-1 Ivy) lost a regular season home match was in April of 1990.

Since then the program has undergone a number of location changes. Harvard used to play its matches at the old Beren center. It then moved to the cavernous Palmer-Dixon courts before moving to the Murr Center, where it has played all its home matches this season. But now Harvard has a world-class tennis center that will serve the teams, students and staff for many decades to come.

The dedication ceremony took place on center court a few minutes before the start of the match. There were remarks from Director of Athletics William J. Cleary '56, Harvard Coach David R. Fish '72 and the benefactor himself, Robert M. Beren '47. An honor guard and the Harvard band brightened what was otherwise a cloudy, dark day.

"A year ago, there was ten feet of dirt here," said Cleary, referring to the relatively quick construction process. "This is our answer to the Big Dig."

As Harvard took the court, Beren reflected on the successful project.

"It was what we dreamed of," Beren said. "In 1996, I pledged a minimum of 3 million dollars. Well, it's cost a lot more money than that."

The money went to, among other things, seats for 500 spectators, wind screens, a two-story clubhouse and two lawns.