Women's Squash Takes Down No. 4 Princeton

With the memory of last season’s loss to Princeton and the resulting loss of the Ivy League title still fresh, the Harvard women’s squash team took the courts for its matchup against the Tigers with a whole lot to prove. The Crimson (5-0, 2-0 Ivy) came out on top against Princeton (4-1, 0-1 Ivy), 6-3, at the Murr Center to maintain its perfect season record.

“It was a big win for us,” co-captain Natasha Anzik said. “Princeton’s definitely one of the teams to beat this year, so I think overall we’re really excited with the performance. Everyone came away with some new things to work on and think about, so all in all it was a really beneficial day.”

The No. 1 Crimson had already dropped an unofficial contest to No. 4 Princeton this season at the Ivy League Scrimmages, making today’s victory all the more meaningful for the team.

“Having lost to them already this season at the scrimmages in November, we were really able to get after it today,” junior co-captain Haley Mendez said. “The pressure was off of us.  We could really just zero in and play our game.  We all came out very strong, it was a great performance all around and we’re all really happy with it.”

Harvard was able to score a more decisive margin of victory on Saturday than either squad has in the past two meetings. In the 2013 season, the Crimson lost to Princeton by just one match, while the Tigers eked by Harvard in equally tight fashion at the scrimmages in November.

“I think you can tell that we’ve come a long way since then, as a team,” Anzik said.  “We’re a lot fitter than we were and a lot mentally tougher, and I really think that the confidence was there today.”

Mental toughness was a common theme for the Crimson throughout the day’s contest. Freshman Dileas MacGowan, playing at the seventh seed position, took Princeton’s Tara Harrington to five sets.  After trailing throughout the match, the rookie managed to evade match point three times to and finally triumphed, 15-13, in the fifth game.

“Dileas MacGowan won a very big match for us today today... it was a huge win,” Anzik said. “For a freshman on the team to be that mentally tough, and fight back from that, it’s a very big deal.”

Mendez also contributed a key victory for Harvard.  The number two player outmaneuvered her opponent, Nicole Bunyan, to notch the win, 11-8, 11-6, 7-11, 11-8.

“It was a very physical match,” Mendez said. “There was a lot of running and it was really hot in there, so it was great to be able to come through for the team and pull out the win.”

For sophomore Isabelle Dowling, today was also a fight to the finish, as she managed to outplay Princeton’s Alexis Saunders and notched her first career win against the Tigers.

“Izzy has been consistently improving throughout the entire season,” Anzik said. “She beat a girl that she’s never beaten before today, and played a very solid game. We are all really proud of her.”

Fellow sophomore Michelle Gemmell also contributed a comeback performance, rallying after dropping her first game, 9-11, to take the next three,11-8,12-10, and 11-7.

For the Tigers, Alexandra Lunt, Hallie Dewey, and Alexandra Toth accounted for Princeton’s three victories of the day at the fourth, sixth, and ninth positions, respectively. Lunt and Toth notched their wins in decisive fashion, taking their respective matches in straight sets, while Dewey battled it out for four sets against Harvard junior Julianne Chu to register the win.

The No. 1 nationally ranked junior Amanda Sobhy glided by the Tigers’ Maria Elena Ubina in straight sets, allowing her opponent to register a team low of seven points the entire match, while the freshman front of Katie Tutrone and Caroline Monrad continued its winning streak, as the third and tenth seeded rookies notched wins for Harvard as well.

With a game against No. 5 Penn following this win for the Crimson, Harvard is keeping its fundamental goals in mind.

“The plan is just about staying consistent,” Anzik said. “We know now that we have everything we need to win, we’re strong enough to be in contention for a national championship game.”

—Staff writer Jillian Dukes can be reached at jilliandukes1@gmail.com.