Feb. 26, 2008
Stanford completed their season at the How Cup in Princeton, N.J. by winning one of three matches to finish their season as the No. 7 team in the nation. It was a historic year for Cardinal squash who qualified for Howe Cup for the first time this season. Only the top eight teams in the country qualify for this season ending tournament. Stanford played in the B bracket (No. 9-16 teams) last year, and the C bracket (No. 17-24) teams in 20005 and 2006.
In Stanford's first match of the tournament they faced Pennsylvania and lost 8-1. Although the score may not be indicative, the play was greatly improved from three weeks ago when the Cardinal lost 9-0 to the Quakers. #2 Katy Brewster was the lone Cardinal winner as she came out strong against Penn #2 Alisha Turner and with a close score earned a win by default when Turner went down with an injury. #4 Cecilia Haig also played well, taking the third game from Penn #4 Tara Chawla before falling in five.
In the first round of the consolation bracket, Stanford took on No. 5 Harvard. The Cardinal were beaten soundly by the Crimson, 9-0. However, the Cardinal again showed improvement from their first match against Harvard back in November. Stephanie Kwok picked up the only win for the Card at the #10 spot, dispatching the Crimson's Diana Wilson in just three games. Brewster and #1 Lily Lorentzen also played well, each picking up a game apiece. Brewster picked up the first game from #2 Alisha Mashruwala 9-5 before losing 3-1. After dropping the first game 9-5 to Crimson #1 June Tiong, Lorentzen picked up the second game 9-6 before also eventually losing 3-1.
In the final match, Stanford faced off against No. 7 seeded Brown for the No. 7/8 position in the country. After losing a heartbreaking 5-4 decision to Brown just three weeks ago, Stanford looked to avenge their loss and move back ahead of the Bears in the national standings. Stanford pulled ahead early as Shannon Harrington got the win against Brown #6 Sophie Scherl, winning 10-8 in the fifth. Also, senior #8 Esther Cheng had a tough-fought match against Brown #8 Lily Cohen, but claimed the win in five games.
Senior #5 Elizabeth Riley came out strong against Brown #5 Minoo Fadaifard and won the first game 9-0 before losing a close second game 10-8 and dropping the third 9-1. Riley looked to mount a comeback when she went up 8-0 in the final game, but Fadaifard rallied to win the game 10-9 and bring the match score to 4-2. With three matches left on court, the Card needed just one win to claim the match. Pamela Sherwood played strongly at the #7 position but succumbed to Brown #7 Kali Schellenberg to bring the match score to 4-3.
That left the match up to either Haig or Lorentzen to claim the match for the Cardinal. Haig played determined squash and easily dispatched Brown #4 Breck Haynes in just three games to secure the win for the Cardinal. Lorentzen handily defeated Brown #1 Megan Cerullo in just three games to put the final match score at 6-3 for the Cardinal. The match was particularly rewarding for Harrington and Cheng who both emerged triumphant in five games against the same opponents they had lost to in tough five-game matches just a few weeks ago.
The end of the regular season for Stanford is truly historic as the Cardinal have competed with perennial squash powerhouses to achieve their best ever No. 7 national finish. They also achieved a program high No. 6 ranking during the regular season and competed in the prestigious Howe Cup for the first time.
Stanford loses four seniors next year who have been with the team since it was a club program. The team will miss their steady leadership and inspiration both on and off the court. However, the Cardinal look to get even stronger with a new crop of talented freshman coming to Stanford next year.
Lorentzen will represent Stanford at the individual championships at Navy from February 29 to March 2. Lorentzen won an individual title in 2006 when she was a freshman at Harvard, and will be looking to recapture her title.