PHILADELPHIA — The 10th-seeded Cornell men's squash team gutted out a 5-4 victory over No. 11 Tufts on Friday morning in the first consolation semifinals at the 2026 CSA National Team Championships at the Arlen Specter US Squash Center.

The match was decided by razor-thin margins throughout, with six of nine matches going to four or five games.

Sophomore Youssef Sarhan delivered the match's most grueling performance, outlasting Nachiket Desai in a marathon four-game battle at No. 2. Sarhan saved match points in a 18-16 first-game thriller before dropping the second, then steadied himself to win the final two games to close out the match, 18-16, 10-12, 11-5, 11-7.

Freshman Aly Ezzat was equally resilient at No. 3, dropping the second game to Rohan Valia before regrouping to win the third and fourth games, 11-9, 4-11, 11-9, 11-7. Sophomore Roman Bicknell added a crucial four-game win at No. 4, overcoming a first-game deficit to defeat Milo Friedman, 10-12, 11-6, 11-8, 11-6. Fellow first-year Edward Thng dropped the opening game before storming back to win three straight at No. 6, 7-11, 11-4, 11-9, 11-9.

Tufts claimed victories at Nos. 1, 5, 7 and 8, which included straight-game triumphs at Nos. 7 and 8. Santiago Medina defeated Syan Singh at the No. 1 position after Singh retired mid-game while ahead, 4-3, in the third game to give Medina the victory.

RESULTS
No. 1: Santiago Medina def. Syan Singh, 11-7, 5-11, 3-4, retired.
No. 2: Youssef Sarhan def. Nachiket Desai, 18-16, 10-12, 11-5, 11-7.
No. 3: Aly Ezzat def. Rohan Valia, 11-9, 4-11, 11-9, 11-7.
No. 4: Roman Bicknell def. Milo Friedman, 10-12, 11-6, 11-8, 11-6.
No. 5: Jared Chin def. Arnav Tevatia, 7-11, 11-4, 11-5, 4-11, 11-3.
No. 6: Edward Thng def. Mustafa Ayaz, 7-11, 11-4, 11-9, 11-9.
No. 7: Aarav Gill def. Jeh Pandole, 11-6, 11-6, 11-9.
No. 8: Ali Tarek def. Vivaan Shah, 11-6, 11-7, 11-7.
No. 9: Vedant Chheda def. Shivin Kumar, 11-8, 11-7, 8-11, 12-10.

UP NEXT
Cornell (6-10) advances to the Potter Cup First Consolation Finals, where it will face No. 9 Dartmouth (8-8) on Saturday at 10:30 a.m. The Big Green defeated the Big Red, 7-2, in the Ivy League opener on Jan. 17 in Hanover, N.H., with Singh and Shah accounting for Cornell's only victories that day.

The matchup marks the second consecutive year the programs have met at the CSA National Team Championships. Dartmouth edged Cornell in the same round a year ago, 5-4, on March 8, 2025. A win for the Big Red on Saturday would also deny the Big Green a third straight victory over Cornell — a streak Dartmouth last achieved with seven consecutive wins between Feb. 1, 2015, and Feb. 1, 2020.