ITHACA, N.Y. — Cornell men's squash returns to the Belkin Squash Courts this weekend for a critical Ivy League doubleheader, hosting No. 8 Princeton on Friday and No. 3 Penn on Saturday. Both matches begin at noon and will stream live on Stretch Internet.
The 10th-ranked Big Red (4-5, 0-2 Ivy) enters the weekend searching for answers after dropping four straight matches, including a winless opening weekend of conference play on Jan. 17-18, when it fell 7-2 to No. 9 Dartmouth and was swept 9-0 by No. 3 Harvard. Junior
Syan Singh and sophomore
Vivaan Shah provided the team's only victories.
Despite its recent struggles, Cornell has shown flashes of individual promise. Singh has been stellar from the top position, posting a 4-1 record at No. 1 and leading the team with a .714 win percentage (5-2 overall). Shah has been the Big Red's most consistent performer with six wins, going 6-2 in matches at No. 8 and No. 9.
Four Cornell players competed in last weekend's CSA Individual Championships in New York City, with sophomore
Youssef Sarhan advancing to the Round of 32 of the Pool Trophy before falling in straight games to top-seeded Tad Carney of Yale.
Friday's opponent, Princeton (2-4, 0-1 Ivy), arrives in Ithaca riding a three-match losing streak but remains dangerous. The Tigers' four losses have all come against top-eight opponents, including a 5-4 defeat to No. 5 Yale and a 7-2 loss to No. 2 Trinity on Jan. 17-18. Aly Ibrahim leads Princeton with a 4-2 record, while Hollis Robertson recently reached the Round of 16 at the CSA Individual Championships.
History heavily favors the Tigers, who have won nine consecutive matches against Cornell and hold a 56-5 all-time advantage. The Big Red hasn't defeated Princeton since a 5-4 victory on Feb. 12, 2016, and was defeated 8-1 in last year's meeting — though Sarhan claimed a thrilling five-game victory over Robertson.
Saturday brings an even steeper challenge in Penn (7-2, 0-1 Ivy), the third-ranked team in the nation. The Quakers started 7-0 before dropping consecutive 5-4 decisions to No. 2 Trinity and No. 5 Yale on Jan. 17-18. Omar Hafez and Zane Patel both sport 7-1 records, with Hafez holding down the No. 1 spot.
Penn dominates the all-time series 48-21 and has won eight straight over Cornell, including six sweeps in the last seven meetings. The Big Red's last victory over the Quakers came on Feb. 14, 2016 — a 5-4 home triumph.
