Hartford, Conn. - Junior Amanda Sobhy (Sea Cliff, N.Y.) won the deciding match, 3-0, at the top spot in the lineup to lead the visiting Harvard University Crimson to a 5-4 victory over the Trinity College Bantams in women's squash action this evening at Kellner Center. Trinity, ranked No. 2 in the nation, falls to 11-1, while the top-ranked Crimson improve to 10-0.
Harvard took a 2-0 lead with wins at No. 9 and No. 6 by juniors Megan Murray (Bronxville, N.Y.) and Julianne Chu (New York, N.Y.), respectively, but Trinity senior Wee Nee Low (Penang, Malaysia) posted a 3-1 triumph in the No. 3 match to slice the Crimson lead in half at 2-1. Bantam senior Jennifer Pelletier (Richmond Hill, Ontario) and Harvard sophomore Michelle Gemmell (Toronto, Ontario) traded wins to make the score, 3-2, in the visitors' favor with Bantam senior co-captain Catalina Pelaez (Bogota, Colombia) battling Harvard junior Haley Mendez (Brooklyn, N.Y.) in a close contest at the No. 2 position in the lineup on the Champions Court. With the score tied at 2-2, Pelaez faced deficits of 9-6 and 10-8 before outlasting Mendez in a 16-14 marathon fifth game that tied the overall score at 3-3. Pelaez has not lost in 11 matches this season.
Trinity first-year No. 3 Anna Kimberley (Essex, England) remained perfect (10-0) as a collegian with a 3-1 win in the No. 4 match, but Harvard rookie Dileas McGowan (Toronto, Ontario) won by the same score in the No. 7 match to tie the teams back up at 4-4 with one match remaining. Sobhy had already taken the first game against Trinity sophomore Kanzy El Defrawy (Cairo, Egypt), 11-4, and edged her, 12-10, in the second game just as the overall score was knotted up at 4-4. Sobhy earned an 11-4 win in the third game to clinch the decision for Harvard.
MATCH RESULTS
1. H- Amanda Sobhy d. Kanzy El Defrawy, 11-4, 12-10, 11-4
2. TC - Catalina Pelaez d. Haley Mendez, 11-6, 9-11, 11-6, 7-11, 16-14
3. TC - Wee Nee Low d. Katie Tutrone, 11-5, 8-11, 11-8, 11-7
4. TC - Anna Kimberley d. Saumya Karki, 11-6, 4-11, 11-9, 11-4
5. H - Michelle Gemmell d. Ashley Tidman, 11-5, 11-9, 11-8
6. H - Julianne Chu d. Natalie Babjukova, 11-5, 11-9, 11-7
7. H - Dileas Mac Gowan d. Sachika Balvani 8-11, 11-9, 11-6, 11-7
8. TC - Jennifer Pelletier d. Isabelle Dowling 9-11, 11-3, 12-10, 11-6
9. H - Megan Murray d. Chanel Erasmus, 11-8, 11-8, 11-2
Harvard 5, Trinity 4
