CAMBRIDGE, Mass. – Harvard women's squash is set to make its return to team play this weekend with a pair of key Ivy League contests against Penn and Princeton at the Murr Center Squash Courts. Harvard (7-1, 4-0 Ivy) will first host the No. 4 Penn Quakers (10-1) on Saturday afternoon before hosting the No. 1 Tigers (7-0) on Sunday. Both matches are set for a noon start and will air live on the Ivy League Streaming Platform.
WHAT TO KNOW
Last Time Out
Harvard squash last competed a week ago with a team match against No. 5 Stanford before sending six representatives to the CSA Individual National Championships. The Crimson took care of business against the No. 5 Cardinal, winning the top six matches on the ladder to capture a 6-3 victory.
Saran Nghiem and
Caroline Fouts finished as quarter-finalists in the Ramsay Cup main draw, concluding their runs at the Nationals this afternoon. Fouts was forced to withdraw before her match and Nghiem put up a fight in a loss to her opponent in the quarters.
Habiba Eldafrawy made a run through the consolation bracket in the Ramsay Cup draw, winning three consecutive matches to finish in the 17-18 position.
Ocean Ma claimed the Holleran South draw championship after defeating her Georgetown opponent, 3-0, in the semifinals before dropping Miriam Cheng from Stanford in the finals, 3-1.
Molly Stoltz finished as the runner-up after putting up a fight in the Holleran West bracket but could not complete the victory in a narrow 3-2 defeat.
Breaking Down the Stats
Three members of the Crimson sport perfect records on the season including
Lucie Stefanoni and
Habiba Eldafrawy – who own 8-0 records – and
Caroline Fouts owns a 6-0 record. Combined individually, the Crimson own a 60-12 record and own an advantage in game won with a 191-65 clip.
Series History Against Penn and Princeton
Harvard owns a 50-7 advantage in the all-time series against Penn dating back to the 1974 season. The Crimson has not lost a match to the Quakers since the 2015 campaign and own wins in the last 11 all-time meetings.
The Tigers and the Crimson have had some battles in the past several seasons but Harvard still owns a 41-22 advantage in the all-time series. Princeton managed to take the last meeting, 4-5, over the Crimson for its first win over its Ivy rival in 11 years. Prior to last season, Harvard had won 14 consecutive meetings.
Ivy Championship Implications
The Tigers and the Crimson are currently tied atop the Ivy League standings at 4-0 in conference play. With two wins on the weekend, Harvard would claim its 28th Ivy League Championship in program history.
