NORTHAMPTON, Mass. – The 32nd-ranked Haverford College women's squash team opened up the 2012 Pioneer Valley Invitational on Friday night with a strong effort against No. 25 Smith College, falling to the Pioneers 8-1 in a match closer than indicated by the final score.

Alisa Strayer at No. 7 picked up the lone victory for Haverford (2-7), taking down Smith's Elena Piesco, 3-1. Strayer dropped the first game then won three straight kicked off by a 14-12 game two marathon.

The Fords battled for five games in two other matches. Haverford's Caroline Nighingale, playing in the No. 1 slot, lost her first two games against Clair Oblamski but stormed back to tie the score with 11-6, 11-5 victories over her Smith (6-7) opponent. Oblamski stole the match with a game five win.

Roxanne Jaffe, at No. 6, mirrored Nightingale's efforts by falling behind 2-0 before rallying with a pair of 11-9 victories against the Pioneers' Catie Blunt who bounced back in game five to seal another point for her Smith teammates.

Haverford's Alex Love gave Smith's Eunice Zhao a tussle at No. 3, winning game three to pull within one before falling to Zhao, 3-1. And though Zoe Becker dropped a 3-0 decision to Smith's Szilvia B. Kiss, Becker made Kiss earn her points in an 11-7, 11-7, 11-9 match.

The Fords continue play Saturday at the Invitational with scheduled match-ups against No. 23 Connecticut College and 26th-ranked Wellesley College.