HAVERFORD, Pa. — The No. 27 Haverford College women's squash team (4-9) faced a challenging day inside the GIAC Squash Courts on Saturday, dropping matches to No. 23 Dickinson (4-8) and No. 24 Franklin & Marshall (5-9) in the annual Centennial Conference Round Robin.
#23 Dickinson 5, #27 Haverford 4
Dickinson built its early advantage in the middle of the order, opening with a straight-game victory in the No. 2 flight, as Kathryn Herring defeated Zoe Liu, 3-0 (11-0, 11-1, 11-1). The Red Devils continued their run at No. 3, where Thea Hegde earned a 3-0 decision over Julia Carrasco (11-6, 11-5, 11-2).
At the No. 4 flight, Victoria Savelius added another point for Dickinson with a 3-0 win over Avallina Orfield (11-2, 11-3, 11-3), before the visitors capped their scoring at No. 5, as Gabi El-Masry topped Ofri Geva, 3-0 (11-2, 11-5, 11-2).
Haverford answered in the back half of the lineup, beginning at No. 6, where Amy Saxon delivered a dominant 3-0 victory over Grace Miller (11-1, 11-7, 11-6). The Fords continued to chip away at the deficit in the No. 7 flight, as Madeline Bulbulia rebounded after dropping the opening game to defeat Lila Brown, 3-1 (12-14, 11-0, 11-7, 11-4).
The Scarlet and Black added another point at No. 8, with Matilda Chartener earning a 3-0 win over Lauren Flowers (11-0, 11-2, 11-5). Haverford secured its fourth point via default in the No. 9 flight, as Sarah Kotapka was awarded the match.
The match concluded at the top of the order, where Anabel Romero Gemmell defeated Joelle Phuah in the No. 1 flight, 3-0 (11-2, 11-3, 11-1), sealing the narrow 5-4 victory for Dickinson.
#24 Franklin & Marshall 6, #27 Haverford 3
Franklin & Marshall opened the match at the No. 2 flight, where Rory Dasher defeated Zoe Liu in straight games, 11-5, 11-3, 11-8. The Diplomats extended their lead at No. 3, as Mia Todd earned a 3-0 victory over Julia Carrasco, 11-3, 11-6, 11-2.
At the No. 4 flight, Noelle Bardorf added another point for Franklin & Marshall with a 3-0 win over Avallina Orfield, 11-9, 11-8, 11-4. The visitors continued their scoring at No. 6, as Lavanya Mio Seshasayee defeated Amy Saxon, 11-5, 11-6, 11-7.
At No. 7, Elisabeth Stout overcame Madeline Bulbulia in four games, 11-5, 6-11, 11-6, 11-8, before the Fords added consecutive wins at the lower flights, with Matilda Chartener topping Destiny Ponce, 11-3, 11-3, 11-6 at No. 8, and Sarah Kotapka defeating Nathalie Hernandez, 11-1, 11-2, 11-7 at No. 9.
The top of the lineup featured competitive matches. At No. 5, Joey Ho defeated Ofri Geva in four games, 11-5, 7-11, 11-6, 11-6, while No. 1 Joelle Phuah battled Ashanti Amastal to a five-game victory, 12-10, 12-10, 8-11, 5-11, 11-0. Despite Phuah's win, Franklin & Marshall's strong early play proved decisive in securing the 6-3 team victory.
Haverford will head to Canton, N.Y., for its next matchups, participating in the Liberty League Championships on Saturday, February 14, and Sunday, February 15, on the campus of St. Lawrence University.
