Men's Squash Blasts Past Fordham, 9-0, Earning Navy Round Robin Split

Alden Weinberg

Posted: Nov 13, 2021

ANNAPOLIS, Md. - The No. 30 Haverford College men's squash team (2-1) split the day at the Navy Round Robin on Saturday, sweeping past No. 31 Fordham by a 9-0 final before falling to the 21st-ranked host Midshipmen by that same 9-0 final at the United States Naval Academy.

Haverford 9, Fordham 0

In a comprehensive performance against the Rams of Fordham (0-5), Haverford earned sweeps at all nine spots on the ladder, the second consecutive match in which the Fords did not drop a single individual game after blanking Swarthmore in the opener on October 29. Quinton Crawford posted a win at the top flight (11-5 11-3, 11-8) blanking Henry Frawley.

The Fords also received dominating wins at the eighth flight, with Garrett Fantini allowing just six total points to his opponent (11-2, 11-3, 11-1), while Ben Schiltz was also a standout at the fifth flight with just 10 total points surrendered in his three-game dispatching of Nicholas Choo (11-2, 11-5, 11-3). Haverford improves to 20-8 all-time against Fordham in a series that dates back to the 1994 season. Haverford has not dropped a match to the Rams since the 2000-01 season.

Navy 9, Haverford 0

Challenging themselves against the round robin host Navy (8-1), the Fords struggled to find consistency with Navy coming away with the 9-0 sweep in the late afternoon match. At the first flight, Crawford was a standout performer as he proved his mettle against Millen Randell. After a narrow victory in the first game and an easier triumph in the second, Randell was immediately put on the defensive as Crawford took an 11-7 victory in the third game. Randell eventually prevailed in the fourth, but not before a scare from Haverford's top player.

At the eighth flight, Benjamin Balser needed extra points to escape from Fantini in the first game, grabbing a 13-11 victory in that hard-fought battle. John Collins and Alden Weinberg both also posted notable performances in their losses at the sixth and seventh flights, taking the Midshipmen to the brink in their first games.

The Fords will next be in action on Friday with a home match against No. 19 St. Lawrence. The contest is Haverford's final home matchup of 2021 before the home slate resumes in January. Haverford last faced off with the Saints at the 2020 CSA Team Championships, coming away with a 7-2 win.