Women's Squash Defeats George Washington to Advance to Semifinals of Kurtz Cup

NEW HAVEN, CT – The Ephs defeated the Colonials 6-3 today in the quarterfinals of the Kurtz Cup, sending them into the semifinals tomorrow against Dartmouth. The Ephs previously played George Washington earlier in the season, defeating them 7-2. Today, the women's team played incredible squash to keep that winning streak.

The match followed a three-court system, with Caroline Hogan (#9), Ellen Coombe (#6), and co-captain Nicole Feshbach (#3) on first. Hogan fought hard, winning a game against her opponent, but eventually fell in four close games. Coombe, despite loosing her second game, stayed strong and defeated her opponent 3-1. Feshbach followed her example, only dropping the first game 13-15, to eventually win in four games and make the score 2-1 to the Ephs.

Next on court were Charlotte Walsh (#8), Esther Baek (#5), and Hayley Parsons (#2). Walsh and Baek were both dominant throughout their matches, playing excellent and tough squash to defeat their opponents in three games. Parsons fought hard against an excellent player, but eventually fell in three, making the overall match score 4-2 to the Ephs.

Last on court were co-captain Lily Grant (#7), Ananya Mahalingam-Dhingra (#4), and Nicole Friedman (#1). Friedman, too, faced a very skilled player and played an excellent game despite losing in three games, making the score 4-3 to the Ephs. Grant and Mahalingam-Dhingra both came back from deficits to win their matches, Grant coming back from 1-0 down and Mahalingam-Dhingra coming back from 2-0 down. Their wins secured the final points for the Ephs, making the overall score 6-3 to Williams.

Head coach Levy was extremely pleased with the win, stating "Really inspiring win tonight. Our team played great tonight and won against an excellent team. Our seniors led the way but everybody chipped in. We had a tough loss to Dartmouth earlier in the season and we are excited to get a second chance to beat them."

Co-captain Feshbach echoed his sentiments, commenting, "We couldn't be more pleased with our win tonight against GW. Facing an extremely tough first round opponent, it was critical that we played well and everybody rose to the occasion. Our win tonight showed a lot of heart and fight, and reflected how much everybody has grown as players over the course of the season. We are excited to take on Dartmouth in the semis tomorrow. We lost 5-4 to them in the regular season, so are eager for a rematch. If we played like we did today, I'm confident that we can pull off an upset and make it to the finals of the Kurtz Cup."

The Ephs will face Dartmouth, who they lost to 5-4 in the regular season, tomorrow in the semifinals at 5:30pm.