Princeton University Athletics
Princeton University
Stanford (Quarterfinal)
Players Mentioned
3-Seed Tigers Top Stanford, Earn Howe Cup Rematch They Sought v. No. 2 Penn
February 26, 2016 | Women's Squash
The third-ranked Princeton women's squash team earned a rematch with No. 2 Penn by defeating Stanford 8-1 in the Howe Cup quarterfinal. Princeton won five of its matches by a 3-0 score and have now won seven straight heading into its semifinal against Penn (Saturday, noon, Courts 7-9).
The first shift provided the most drama for Princeton, but it came away with a 2-1 lead thanks to 3-1 wins from senior Rachel Leizman (No. 3) and freshman Isabel Hirshberg (No. 9). Leizman, the hero from last Saturday's 5-4 victory over Trinity and a guest on the latest edition of TigerCast, had to go extra points in the fourth game, but she closed it with a 12-10 win.
Despite a loss by Kira Keating, it was fairly smooth sailing after that. Princeton won 18 of the final 19 individual games to close the 8-1 win and turn its attention to Penn. The second-seeded Quakers, a 9-0 winner over Columbia Friday, defeated Princeton 8-1 in Philadelphia during the regular season, though that was the first match of the season for sophomore Lindsey Scott.
Besides the fact that they are playing much better at this point of the year, Princeton can also take confidence from its performance at the 2015 Howe Cup. After nearly shocking Harvard in a semifinal match, the Tigers flipped a regular season loss into a third-place win over the Quakers during the final day of the team season.
Can they do it again?
One thing we know for sure; the Tigers earned the opportunity to answer that question.
THOUGHTS FROM THE TIGERS
Lindsey Scott
Our win against Stanford today was a great way to start off the Howe Cup weekend. Last time we played Stanford, I lost to their #4 player in a tight four games. Today, I used that as motivation and really focused on getting the ball deep and playing patiently, both of which helped me win in 3 games.
Alexandra Toth
We all had had a strong showing and started the weekend off strong.
Rachel Leizman
Stanford is a tough opponent and they come out stronger every time we play them. I played well the first two games of my match and then lost focus of my winning game plan, making the next couple games harder for me. The end wasn't as pretty as the beginning, but I was happy to get a win for the team and help us move on to the next round. Tomorrow we play Penn, and it was great to have a good match today to get the nerves out. We're ready to come out strong tomorrow.
PRINCETON 8, STANFORD 1
1 - Olivia Fiechter (P) d. Madeleine Gill 4, 1, 9
2 - Maria Elena Ubina (P) d. Zandra Ho 9, 7, 9
3 - Rachel Leizman (P) d. Sarah Bell 7, 5, (6), 10
4 - Lindsey Scott (P) d. Tara Shannon 6, 9, 12
5 - Alexandra Toth (P) d. Lucy Rowe 6, 9, 7
6 - Christina Huchro (S) d. Kira Keating 1, 8, 11
7 - Samantha Chai (P) d. Tatyanna Dadabbo 5, 4, 3
8 - Tara Harrington (P) d. Grayson Melby 10, 4, (8), 3
9 - Isabel Hirshberg (P) d. Anna Marie Manning 3, (10), 6, 5