Lancaster, PA — The no. 11 Ephs edged the no. 14 Diplomats in a 5-4 thriller at Franklin & Marshall, with sophomore
Nick Agger overcoming a 7-2 deficit in the fifth game to clinch a crucial win for his team. Agger and his opponent initially traded games, and in the fifth, with the entire venue watching him, Agger mounted an epic comeback that would be etched in the annals of Ephs squash history. "I'm incredibly proud of Nick," Eph head coach
Hesham Aly commented after the match. "He was facing a rough patch of form, but he came back better than any of us could have expected in one of the biggest matches of his career."
Elsewhere, first years
Ty Green and
Will Newton also claimed points for their team on their courts. In two convincing performances, Green defeated his opponent in three games while Newton won in four. "[The first years] really stepped up today," said co-captain
Andrew Minnis, "They played with the same level of grit and experience of players two, three years older than them." Junior
Rafay Syed also contributed to the Ephs win at the ninth seed, composing himself after a first game loss to return with a dominant four game sweep. Junior
Alex Akbari also wrestled three games and a point for his team onto the score sheet, all of which were within a two-point margin.
In spite of their best efforts, seniors
Andrew Minnis,
Pierce Henderson, and
Jack Lee were bested by their respective F&M opponents. Minis took the first game but lost in four, Pierce lost in three, while Lee went 10-8 up in the fifth after battling back from a game-deficit, but was unable to close out the match. First year
Himanshu Pannu lost his match in three games.
