CARLISLE, Pa. – The 27th-ranked Haverford College women's squash team (6-10) faced a challenging day at the Centennial Conference Round Robin, falling to both No. 23 Franklin & Marshall (4-12) and No. 19 Dickinson (12-10) by 7-2 final scores.
No. 23 Franklin & Marshall 7, No. 27 Haverford 2
Franklin & Marshall secured a 7-2 victory over Haverford, winning the top seven flights while the Fords claimed the final two rungs on the ladder.
Gurlin Kaur won at the top flight for the Diplomats with a hard-fought four-game win (11-5, 11-3, 11-13, 11-6) against Ariana Solecki. Zarine Gidwaney added another four-game triumph (11-6, 11-5, 6-11, 11-7) over Joelle Phuah, while Mia Todd extended the lead by defeating Catherine Fortin (11-8, 11-4, 11-6) in the third flight.
Ashanti Amastal added to F&M's total with an 11-6, 11-6, 11-3 victory over Julia Carrasco, and Tatum Long did the same with a commanding 11-5, 11-7, 11-1 performance against Zoe Liu in the fifth flight. Rory Dasher (11-2, 11-5, 11-8) and Joey Ho (11-3, 11-9, 11-8) picked up additional wins for Diplomats at the sixth and seventh flights.
Matilda Chartener put the Fords on the board with a four-game victory (11-4, 11-7, 4-11, 11-9) over Lavanya Mio Seshasayee at number eight, while Laine Reshefsky grabbed a decisive 11-6, 11-3, 11-4 sweep against Marwa ElHawwam at the ninth flight.
No. 19 Dickinson 7, No. 23 Haverford 2
Against the Red Devils, Haverford battled but ultimately came up short, falling 7-2 in the late afternoon match.
The Fords found success in the bottom third of the ladder, with Laine Reshefsky at the eighth flight and Sarah Kotapka at the ninth flight securing hard-fought victories to give Haverford a pair of wins on the day.
Reshefsky battled back after dropping the first game to claim a four-game victory over Lila Brown (7-11, 11-7, 11-7, 11-7). The first-year showed composure in crucial points to seal her second victory of the day.
At the ninth flight, Kotapka started fast with an 11-1 first-game win, then weathered a second-game loss before grinding out a tough 11-9, 11-5 finish to defeat Lauren Flowers in four games.
Elsewhere in the lineup, Catherine Fortin (No. 3) pushed her match to four games, taking the second 11-9 before Dickinson's Gabri El-Masry responded to close it out, 11-7, 9-11, 11-1, 11-7.
Despite the final score, Haverford showed resilience against a Dickinson squad that has consistently been one of the nation's top 20 programs.
Zoe Liu (No. 5) and Joelle Phuah (No. 2) both had strong moments in their matches, keeping sets close before falling in straight games.
Women's Squash now returns to action on Friday, February 28, as play at the College Squash Association (CSA) Divisional Team Championships opens at the Specter Center in the University City area of Philadelphia. More information on the CSA Championships, including draws, schedule and streaming information, is expected to be announced early next week.