POUGHKEEPSIE. N.Y. - The No. 28 Haverford College men's squash team (2-4) swept the day at the Vassar Round Robin, taking a hard-fought 5-4 victory over No. 25 St. Lawrence before returning in the late afternoon match against the host No. 33 Brewers, logging a 7-2 victory to complete action at Kenyon Hall.
Haverford 5, St. Lawrence 4
Haverford looked strong in a comeback victory against a formidable Saints side after St. Lawrence went up 3-0. After the Saints grabbed early wins at the one, three, and four spots, the Fords answered with a crucial surge through the middle of the ladder. Wins at positions six, seven, and eight pulled Haverford even at 3-3, showcasing the team's depth.
Advait Chandramouli earned a key win at the six spot, grinding through a four-game battle to prevail 11-4, 6-11, 11-2, 13-11 over Dmitry Stepanenko. At No. 7, Francis Betkowski added another point for the Fords with a composed 3-1 victory, taking control early for an 11-5, 11-4, 7-11, 11-3 result over Colby Galarza. Arvin Krishnan followed with one of the day's tightest matches at the eight spot, pushing through five games and trading momentum throughout before securing an 11-8, 6-11, 11-8, 7-11, 11-6 win over Luke Black.
St. Lawrence briefly regained the lead at No. 2, but Haverford struck right back in the nine spot to tie the match once again as Dean Ibrahim swept past Jesus Pena 11-7, 11-9, 11-2 and set the stage for a winner-take-all showdown at No. 5.
In the decisive match, Qianzhi Zhao delivered under pressure, outlasting Gavin Cassidy in four games (7-11, 12-10, 11-6, 11-3) to clinch the team victory. Zhao's poise in the pivotal second game swung the momentum sharply in Haverford's favor and eventually secured the Fords' fifth win of the day.
Haverford 7, Vassar 2
Against the Brewers, Haverford overpowered its opposition with strong showings up and down the ladder.
At No. 1, Aaryaman Jaising earned a 3-1 win over Vassar's Konstantinos Georgallides. After dropping the first game 11-6, Jaising evened the match with an 11-4 second game before taking the next two, 11-5 and 11-9, to close out the victory.
Haverford earned several more strong results throughout its matchup with Vassar, highlighted by composed performances in the middle and lower flights as the Fords overcame adversity to dispatch the hosts. Jet Li battled Vassar's Matthew Okulski in a competitive four-game match. Li took the opening game but ultimately fell 8-11, 7-11, 10-12, 8-11 in a hard-fought effort at the second flight.
At No. 3, Zhao faced Kyle Benson and produced one of the day's most dramatic matches. After dropping the first two games, Zhao surged back to take the third and edged out a marathon fourth to force a decisive fifth, where he prevailed (5-11, 8-11, 11-9, 13-11, 11-4).
Haverford picked up its first win of the day at No. 4, where Chandramouli defeated Aqeel Merchant in four games, 11-8, 5-11, 11-6, 11-6, showing control and consistency throughout the match.
The Fords added another point at No. 5 as Betkowski took the victory over Razaan Lalji by default.
In the lower flights, Haverford continued to put together strong performances. At No. 7, Ibrahim swept Julian Cardenas in decisive fashion, 11-2, 11-6, 11-5. Wayne Hsu followed with a gritty win against Alexander Thorn at No. 8, taking the match 11-1, 6-11, 11-2, 12-10. At the ninth flight, Nevin Mital delivered a commanding sweep over Joseph Donato at No. 9, earning an 11-4, 11-6, 11-2 victory to round out Haverford's scoring.
The Fords have now wrapped up action for the 2025 portion of the slate, and will now return to action in the spring semester, heading to the Wesleyan / Connecticut College Round Robin for action in the Nutmeg State beginning January 16, 2026.
