Women’s Squash Goes 3-0 in Weekend Postseason Action, Claims Walker Cup
Issue   |   Tue, 02/28/2017 - 21:48
Clarus Studios
Mae Cromwell ‘18 went 3-0 in competition at this weekend’s Walker Cup.

Amherst women’s squash picked up their seventh straight victory last Sunday en route to the program’s fourth Walker Cup title since 2009.

Friday, Feb. 24 and Saturday, Feb. 25 saw two blowout victories for the purple and white against St. Lawrence University and William Smith College.

Sunday’s match proved more difficult, however, with Amherst clawing their way back to a 5-4 win over No. 17 Franklin and Marshall in the deciding match of the tournament.

The weekend started favorably for the purple and white, as they matched up with No. 23 St. Lawrence.

The purple and white registered five sweeps from Haley McAtee ’18, Katy Sabina Correia ’20, Jenna Finkelstein ’20, Mae Cromwell ’20, and Jenni Brown ’20 on courts five through nine, respectively.

The Amherst squad continued to show off their surfeit of young talent as sophomore Rachael Ang and first-year Caroline Conway earned wins on courts two and four. St. Lawrence picked up their only two wins on courts one and three, as Kim Krayacich ’18 and Priya Sinha ’19 fell in five and four sets, respectively.

Continuing on to semifinal action the next day, the purple and white matched up against William Smith, who had disposed of Bowdoin the day before.

Amherst carried its momentum from the previous day, earning sweeps on six of the nine courts.

Ang and Sabina-Correia battled to 3-1 victories on courts two and six to push Amherst’s win total to 8.

The team suffered their only loss on the first court, where Krayacich forced her match to five sets, ultimately falling to William Smith’s Gabrielle Fraser.

With their sixth straight victory under their belt, the women walked into the championship match on Sunday morning with the momentum in their favor.

The purple and white were up against Franklin and Marshall, who had bested the team earlier this year at Amherst’s Davenport Squash Courts. Purple and white first-years Finkelstein and Brown provided sweeps on courts seven and nine, while classmate Sabina Correia edged her opponent in four sets.

McAtee and Cromwell added two thrilling five-set victories to complete their perfect records for the weekend and earn the 5-4 victory for the purple and white overall.

The win is the purple and white’s third Walker Cup in four years, after just narrowly being edged by Bates in the finals last winter.

Although team play has concluded for the season, individual members of the purple and white will move on to CSA Individual Championships at Dartmouth College this Friday-Sunday March 3-5.