HANOVER, N.H. – The No. 7 Cornell women's squash team claimed a dominant victory in its Ivy League opener on Saturday afternoon at the Berry Squash Center, defeating No. 13 Dartmouth 8-1. The Big Red improved to 5-2 overall and 1-0 in Ivy League play, while the Big Green fell to 3-4 overall and 0-2 in conference action.
Cornell secured victories across the entire ladder, dropping only the No. 2 position in the dominant performance.
At No. 1, junior Xin Ying Yee set the tone with a commanding 11-7, 11-2, 11-3 victory over Maria Clara Ramirez Velaquez. Senior Alysa Ali followed with a hard-fought four-game win at No. 3, defeating Eleanor Clifford 15-13, 11-9, 6-11, 11-6 after edging out a tight opening game.
The Big Red rolled through the middle positions with straight-set victories. Freshman Vicky Lai dispatched Maya Shroff at No. 4 (11-5, 11-5, 11-3), while sophomore Sabine Ball claimed a three-game decision at No. 5 over Nathalie Taylor (14-12, 11-8, 11-8). Junior Maya Voloshin added another straight-set victory at No. 7, defeating Callie Worth 11-6, 11-5, 11-4.
Junior Christa Kay needed four games to prevail at No. 6, outlasting Kriti Muthu 11-5, 6-11, 11-5, 11-5. At No. 8, junior Saniya Jaggi topped Uma Patnaik in three games (11-5, 11-8, 11-9), and freshman Lamees Shalaby capped Cornell's winning effort with a dominant 11-2, 11-2, 11-2 victory over Zayna Usman at No. 9.
Dartmouth's lone point came at No. 2, where Ziyi Liu defeated senior Aishwarya Khubchadani in straight games 11-9, 11-8, 11-6.
RESULTS
No. 1: Xin Ying Yee def. Maria Clara Ramirez Velaquez, 11-7, 11-2, 11-3.
No. 2: Ziyi Liu def. Aishwarya Khubchdani, 11-9, 11-8, 11-6.
No. 3: Alysa Ali def. Eleanor Clifford, 15-13, 11-9, 6-11, 11-6.
No. 4: Vicky Lai def. Maya Shroff, 11-5, 11-5, 11-3.
No. 5: Sabine Ball def. Nathalie Taylor, 14-12, 11-8, 11-8.
No. 6: Christa Kay def. Kriti Muthu, 11-5, 6-11, 11-5, 11-5.
No. 7: Maya Voloshin def. Callie Worth, 11-6, 11-5, 11-4.
No. 8: Saniya Jaggi def. Uma Patnaik, 11-5, 11-8, 11-9.
No. 9: Lamees Shalaby def. Zayna Usman, 11-2, 11-2, 11-2.
UP NEXT
Cornell faces its toughest test of the season on Sunday, Jan. 18, traveling to face top-ranked Harvard (3-0, 1-0 Ivy League) at noon at the Murr Center Squash Courts. The match will be streamed live on Stretch Internet.
