PHILADELPHIA - The No. 29 Haverford College women's squash team (0-2) opened up the 2023-24 campaign with the first day of the Pennsylvania State Championships, falling to No. 20 Chatham and No. 8 Penn in action at the Penn Squash Center. 

The Penn State Championships, or Penn Cup, is an annual tournament style event contested between every varsity squash program in the state of Pennsylvania, including a pair of perennial Division I powerhouses in Philadelphia's Penn and Drexel along with upstart Chatham out of Pittsburgh. Centennial Conference foes Franklin & Marshall and Dickinson round out the annual field.

No. 20 Chatham 6, No. 29 Haverford 3 

Against the Cougars, Haverford found its success at the bottom of the ladder with a pair of key match wins coming via the sweep at the seventh and eighth flights, respectively. Amy Saxon defeated Yukta Rana with scores of 11-2, 11-0, 11-3, showcasing resilience for Haverford at the seventh flight. Lily Matthews picked up the win in her collegiate debut by defeating Amari Spivey with a score of 11-5, 11-3, 11-1.

The ninth match resulted in a default win for Haverford, with Sarah Kotapka awarded the victory due to the absence of a Chatham player to reflect the 6-3 scoreline. 

No. 8 Penn 9, No. 29 Haverford 0

 In the evening match with the Quakers, Haverford struggled against one of the nation's top teams, with Penn taking sweeps at all nine spots on the ladder on its home courts.  Amelia Stevens was able to take her opponent, Emma Wolf, to five points in consecutive games in a competitive battle at the second flight, while Matthews also reached five in the second game of her battle with Ella Cohen at the eighth flight.

Haverford now returns to action on Sunday, taking on No. 25 Franklin & Marshall at 10 a.m. as action wraps up from the Penn Squash Center.