ITHACA, N.Y. — The ninth-ranked Cornell women's squash team punched its ticket to the inaugural Ivy League Tournament with a 6-3 victory over No. 9 Yale on Saturday afternoon at Belkin Squash Courts, claiming the fourth and final spot in next weekend's conference championship.

The Big Red (7-6, 3-3 Ivy League) needed a victory over the Bulldogs and seven or fewer individual match wins by Dartmouth against Princeton to secure the tournament berth. With Cornell's win and the Big Green being swept by the Tigers, the Big Red will advance to the postseason.

Senior Alysa Ali dispatched Meha Shah in straight games to open the scoring, 13-11, 11-5, 11-9, before sophomore Sabine Ball (No. 5) and junior Saniya Jaggi (No. 8) each posted five-game victories to give Cornell a 3-0 lead.

Ball outlasted Eedha Mehta, rallying from a 2-2 deadlock to win 11-7, 11-9, 7-11, 6-11, 11-8, while Jaggi stormed back from a 2-0 deficit to defeat Layla Johnson with a trio of 11-6 victories, 5-11, 5-11, 11-6, 11-6, 11-6.

Freshman Lamees Shalaby posted a commanding straight-game victory at No. 9 to put Cornell ahead 4-0, cruising past Swetha Sivakumar, 11-5, 11-5, 11-4.

Voloshin provided perhaps the most dramatic finish of the afternoon at No. 7, battling through a marathon five-game contest against Whitney Taylor. After dropping the first and third games, Voloshin prevailed 14-16, 11-6, 7-11, 13-11, 14-12, with the final two games needed to be decided beyond the 11-point threshold.

Yale (2-7, 1-4 Ivy League) claimed three points on the afternoon. Spring Ma defeated senior Aishwarya Khubchandani at No. 2, 11-9, 11-8, 7-11, 14-12, while Elise Kang rallied from a 2-1 deficit to beat Vicky Lai at No. 4, 11-13, 11-9, 9-11, 11-2, 11-4. Alyssa Ho also secured a four-game victory at No. 6, outlasting Christa Kay, 19-17, 11-8, 7-11, 11-7.

The victory marked Cornell's first win over Yale since a 5-4 road triumph on Jan. 22, 2023, while snapping the Bulldogs' three-match winning streak in the series. Yale still holds a commanding 33-3 advantage all-time.

RESULTS
No. 1: Xin Ying Yee def. Heng Wai Wong, 11-6, 11-9, 11-3.
No. 2: Spring Ma def. Aishwarya Khubchandani, 11-9, 11-8, 7-11, 14-12.
No. 3: Alysa Ali def. Meha Shah, 13-11, 11-5, 11-9.
No. 4: Elise Kang def. Vicky Lai, 11-13, 11-9, 9-11, 11-2, 11-4.
No. 5: Sabine Ball def. Eedha Mehta, 11-7, 11-9, 7-11, 6-11, 11-8.
No. 6: Tsz Ling Alyssa Ho def. Christa Kay, 19-17, 11-8, 7-11, 11-7.
No. 7: Maya Voloshin def. Whitney Taylor, 14-16, 11-6, 7-11, 13-11, 14-12.
No. 8: Saniya Jaggi def. Layla Johnson, 5-11, 5-11, 11-6, 11-6, 11-6.
No. 9: Lamees Shalaby def. Swetha Sivakumar, 11-5, 11-5, 11-4.

UP NEXT
Cornell will await its opponent for next Saturday's semifinal in the inaugural Ivy League Women's Squash Tournament, which will take place at 3:30 p.m. The winner of the semifinal will play in the Ivy League Championship on Sunday, Feb. 22, also at 3:30 p.m.