The women's squash team suffered its second and third losses this weekend to Penn and Princeton on the road. On Saturday, the Big Green were clawed by the Tigers, 8-1, and then fell in a 5-4 heart-breaker to Penn on Sunday. The weekend losses dropped the squad's record to 8-3.
Against Penn, the Big Green wereunable to hold off a feisty Quaker team in the early matches. But their success would not last as co-Captain Heather Duckworth '98 and sophomores Laurie Sykes and Jenny Johnson all lost 3-0 at one, two and three positions, respectively.
Dartmouth quickly found itself in a rut, but was not prepared to concede the match. Clutch wins by Andra Winokur '99, Brady Beale '97 and Nicole Haneman '98 in the later stanzas tied the score at three. At the No. seven slot Winokur continued to dominate as she boosted her season record to 11-0.
Haneman filled in the ninth spot when co-Captain Tory McEvoy '97 fell ill. The feisty junior stepped up her level of play with solid rails and crisp, spin shots.
In one of the most exciting matches of the day, Big Green's Jen Karlen '98 lost in an epic five-game battle at the No. four slot. Despite jumping out to a 2-1 lead with excellent form and consistency, Karlen was unable to keep the pedal to the metal as she fell in the fifth and final set.
Freshman sensation Carolyn Levine made quick work of her opponent with a 3-0 shutout at the sixth slot to balance the score at 4-4. The Big Green's fate rested on the ninth and final match of the day.
In the final match, Lindsey Rhoads '00 was able to hold her Penn opponent for the first three games. Scrambling around the court, Rhoads was unable to out-hit the Quaker in the fourth game and lost a nerve-wrecking 3-1 contest.
On Saturday, Dartmouth was simply outplayed by the Tigers. The Big Green were shutout in all eight matches. The highlight of the afternoon was sparked by Winokur who swept her opponent 3-1.
The Green will travel to Cambridge tomorrow to challenge Harvard.
