SOUTH HADLEY, Mass. (Oct. 20, 2012) - Babson College swept all three doubles matches and powered its way to wins in five of six singles for an 8-1 victory over Mount Holyoke College on Saturday afternoon. With the win, the Beavers move to 7-3 overall and 4-3 in conference play. The Lyons slip to 5-4 on the season with a 4-3 record in the NEWMAC.
In the match between Babson and Mount Holyoke, the Beavers stormed out to the early lead as its three doubles pairs posted solid victories. Junior Sarah Whitaker (Dellwood, Minn./St. Paul Academy) and sophomore Alex Freeman (Medfield, Mass./Medfield) combined for an 8-1 win over MHC senior Nahrhee Han (Albertson, N.Y./Herricks) and junior AnnElizabeth Konkel (Camp Hill, Pa./Harrisburg Academy) in the first flight.
The second flight saw an 8-4 decision in favor of first year Tori Paolino (East Orleans, Mass./Nauset Regional) and sophomore Alexis Ferraro (Coral Gables, Fla./Palmer Trinity), who bested juniors Eman Malik (Karachi, Pakistan/Karachi Grammar School) and Maya Sayarath (St. Johnsbury, Vt./St. Johnsbury Academy).
Singles action fell in Babson's favor as it claimed victory in each of the first five flights. Mount Holyoke first year Margaux Holloschutz (Franklin Lakes, N.J./Saddle River Day School) continued to shine for the Lyons, posting her eighth win of the season in the sixth flight with a 6-3, 6-4 victory over senior Victoria Lorido (Miami, Fla./Carrollton School of the Sacred Heart).
Han and Malik both played to tough singles action on the day as Han shouldered a 4-6, 6-1, (10-1) loss to Freeman. Malik suffered a 6-4, 3-6, (10-0) defeat to Ferraro.
Both teams return to action next week in the NEWMAC Championship. Babson, Mount Holyoke and Wheaton all finished in a three-way tie for third in the final standings. A tie-breaking scenario based on points scored between the three tied teams was applied, pushing Babson to the #3 seed. Wheaton takes the #4 seed, while Mount Holyoke is the #5 seed.
The Lyons will now play in the NEWMAC Quarterfinals at Wheaton on Wednesday at 3pm. The winner will advance to Saturday's Semifinal against MIT - the top-seed - at Wheaton's venue.
