SOUTH HADLEY, Mass. - The William Smith College squash team used a strong effort at the bottom of the ladder to post a 6-3 win over Mount Holyoke College on Saturday morning at the Kendall Squash Courts. With the victory, the #22 Herons move to 12-6, while the #31 Lyons slip to 3-15 overall.
The match opened with the even flights on court. At six, senior Delaney Teceno (Osterville, Mass./Tabor Academy) posted an 11-5, 11-1, 11-3 win against MHC sophomore Tanishka Sachidanand (Karnataka, India/Canadian International School). From the fourth flight, Herons' senior Allie Rubin (Jenkintown, Pa./Abington Friends School) recorded an 11-9, 11-5, 11-7 win against Lyons' senior captain Allison Shilling (New Canaan, Conn./Choate Rosemary Hall) for the 2-0 advantage.
The Lyons struck back as sophomore Ragini Ghose (Dubai/Millfield School) bested junior Michaelann Denton (Kingston, Jamaica/Berkshire School) at two, coming from behind for a 7-11, 11-4, 11-6, 11-8 win. Senior Brooke Hayes (West Hartford, Conn./Kingswood Oxford School) made it a 3-1 lead for the visitors from the eighth position as she played to an 11-4, 11-6, 8-11, 11-6 win against MHC grad student Rose Minichiello (Collinsville, Conn./Canton).
In the switch over to the odd flights, William Smith junior Peyton Capute (Baltimore, Md./The Bryn Mawr School) notched an 11-2, 8-11, 11-4, 11-6 victory against MHC senior captain Amanda Lee (Windsor, Conn./Ethel Walker School) at nine. While from the top spot on the ladder, Herons' first year Gabby Fraser (Toronto, Ont./Mercersburg) won 11-2, 12-10, 11-2 against junior Brandy Williamson (New York, N.Y./Thurgood Marshall Academy) to make it a 5-1 score in the match.
At five, Mount Holyoke sophomore Lessly Portillo (New Haven, Conn./Hill Regional Career Magnet) gutted out an 11-6, 13-11, 8-11, 13-11 victory against first year Djenebo Ballo (New York, N.Y./Fredrick Douglas Academy II), followed by an win from Lyons' sophomore Nadindhi Udangawa (Colombo, Sri Lanka/Colombo International School) over junior Cashel McCarthy (Malvern, Pa./The Baldwin School) at three by an 11-7, 11-7, 6-11, 11-3 margin.
The final match of the day saw Herons' sophomore Madison Bradley (Orchard Park, N.Y./Nardin Academy) face-off against Lyons' junior Emily Chang (Carmichael, Calif./Mira Loma). Bradley opened with a pair of victories, but Chang rebounded to take the third game, 11-3. Despite the momentum, Bradley would edge it out in four, taking the match by an 11-7, 11-8, 3-11, 11-8 score.
Mount Holyoke is now idle until Wednesday when it returns to action with a home match against Amherst at 6pm. William Smith is right back in action at 12pm this afternoon, playing Wellesley in a neutral site match on the Kendall Courts.
