NCAA WOMEN’S TENNIS CHAMPIONSHIP : Stanford No. 3 Graham Is No. 1 in Nation

Stanford’s Debbie Graham wasn’t second-fiddle in a season in which the Cardinal was 29-0 and national team champion.

She was third-fiddle, behind No. 1 Meredith McGrath and reigning national singles champion Sandra Birch.

But on Thursday, Graham, a graduate of Los Amigos High in Fountain Valley, finished the year No. 1 in the nation, defeating Nicole Arendt of Florida, 6-3, 6-3, to win the NCAA Women’s Tennis Championships at Gainesville, Fla.

McGrath lost in the tournament’s second round, and Graham upset Birch in Wednesday’s semifinals.

Graham said her being overlooked was a motivating factor.

“Whenever anyone ever thinks about Stanford tennis, it’s always Sandra and Meredith and I’m sitting at No. 3,” Graham said. “I’m the No. 3 player in the middle and no one ever cares. I wanted to prove to everyone that Stanford is not just its one and two players.”

Graham did not lose a set during the tournament, but Arendt had a far more difficult route to the finals. She was extended to three sets in both Tuesday’s quarterfinals and Wednesday’s semifinals.

“I was tired, but tried not to think about it,” Arendt said. “I would say something carried over (from the semifinals).”

Both players remained on serve until the eighth game, when Graham recorded the only service break of the first set.

“The first set was so important for me to win,” Graham said, “because I started off the match, and I don’t remember a time where I’ve ever been so nervous. I was thinking about so many different things. I felt that she was really nervous in the beginning too.”

Graham, seeded sixth, broke Arendt in the first and third games of the second set taking a 4-0 lead.