HAVERFORD, Pa. – The Haverford College women's squash team has announced its 2018-19 schedule, a slate that includes 17 total matches and six regular season home matches at the GIAC squash courts. Last season, the Fords finished with the No. 30 overall ranking, the highest year-end rank in the College Squash Association (CSA) rankings for the Haverford program since the 2008-09 campaign. The Fords also posted their most wins in a single season since the 2014-15 season.
The 2018 portion of the schedule gets underway on November 10 as the Fords head to the Navy Round Robin in Annapolis, Md. Haverford faces off with Boston University and Johns Hopkins on the campus of the United States Naval Academy. The Fords won their inaugural meeting with Boston University last November and have won their last three matchups with Johns Hopkins dating back to the 2015-16 season. A visit from Swarthmore on November 14 serves as a prelude to the Alumnae matchup on November 17.
December opens with a doubleheader in Poughkeepsie, N.Y. on the campus of Vassar College. The Fords will face off with the host Brewers as well as the Raiders of Colgate. Haverford is 6-1 all-time against Colgate, with a win at the 2017 CSA Team Championships the latest meeting between the two schools.
The Fords will host a single match at the GIAC Squash Courts on December 8 against Bard. Haverford is 12-0 all-time against the Raptors in a series that was renewed last year after 18 years of dormancy. The two teams first met in the 1994-95 season.
After a break for the winter holidays, the Fords pick action back up on January 18 at the Pioneer Valley Invitational. The Fords visit Mount Holyoke (Jan. 18) before neutral-site matchups with Colby (Jan. 19), Wesleyan (Jan. 19), and Bard (Jan. 20) at Amherst College.
On the final weekend of January, the Fords welcome Georgetown and Vassar (Jan. 26) to the GIAC Squash Courts for a doubleheader. Haverford posted a 6-3 win over the Hoyas a season ago and have won three of the last four matchups between the two programs.
February begins with home doubleheader action against familiar foes Boston College and Bucknell (Feb. 2). Haverford has beaten Boston College in each of the last two seasons and took down Bucknell a season ago with a 9-0 sweep on Senior Day.
The Fords will participate in the Centennial Conference round-robin with squads from Dickinson, Franklin & Marshall, and Johns Hopkins. The inaugural event is slated for February 9 on the campus of Franklin & Marshall. Haverford will be looking for its first win over the host Diplomats since the 2007-08 season.
The CSA Team Championships will be held in Hartford, Conn. From February 22 to February 24 while the CSA Individual Championships are ticketed for Providence, R.I. on March 1 to March 3.
Haverford has lost co-captain Isabelle Gotuaco, who is tied for the program's all-time career wins' lead, along with key contributors Olivia Franco and Grace Fioramonti-Gorchow to graduation. The Fords will have to replace the production of the 2018 graduating class but have stability at the top of the ladder as co-captain Kaitlin Reese returns for her junior season with two years of experience, including a year in the captaincy.