CAMBRIDGE, Mass. --Â The No. 19 nationally ranked Bates women's squash team opened the Walker Cup in style with a 7-2 win over #22 Hamilton Friday morning.
The Bobcats (11-7) swept five of their matches against the Continentals (9-10) and won at the top seven positions to advance to Saturday's semifinals.
Junior Kristyna Alexova (Boskovice, Czech Republic) moved up to the No. 1 position for the first time this season and won 3-0 (11-3, 11-1, 11-5) over Hamilton's Rafiatou Ouro-Aguy. Sophomore Luca Polgar (Budapest, Hungary) swept her opponent at the No. 2 position with a 3-0 (11-4, 11-7, 11-2) victory over Hamilton's Charlotte Zonis.Â
The Bobcats' two captains were victorious as well, with junior Vicky Arjoon (Georgetown, Guyana) holding off Megan Grip 3-1 (11-9, 11-13, 11-6, 11-8) at the No. 3 position and sophomore Eliza Dunham (New Haven, Conn.) sweeping Grace Munschauer 3-0 (12-10, 11-9, 11-6) at the No. 4 position. Dunham improved her personal record to 13-1 on the year.Â
The Bobcats' pair of first-years Maeve O'Brien (Essex, Conn.) and Katie Manternach (Brooklyn, N.Y.) won again, with O'Brien beating Caitlin Stern 3-0 (11-6, 12-10, 11-2) at the No. 5 position and Manternach sweeping Katherine Bauer 3-0 (11-2, 11-5, 11-7) at the No. 6 position.Â
The most dramatic win of the morning belonged to junior Molly Brooks (Charlottesville, Va.) at the No. 7 position. She rallied from a game down to win 3-2 (11-6, 10-12, 10-12, 11-6, 11-9) over the Continentals' Liesl Guenther.Â
The Bobcats take on No. 18 Tufts in the Walker Cup Semifinals Saturday at 11:15 a.m. Bates defeated the Jumbos twice during the season, once by a count of 7-2 in January and again by a count of 6-3 in the fifth place match at the NESCAC Championships. Friday was Bates' first match against Hamilton this season. Â
No. 19 Bates 7, No. 22 Hamilton 2
Feb. 16, 2018 at Cambridge, Mass.
1. Kristyna Alexova (BAT) def. Rafiatou Ouro-Aguy (HAM) 11-3, 11-1, 11-5
2. Luca Polgar (BAT) def. Charlotte Zonis (HAM) 11-4, 11-7, 11-2Â
3. Vicky Arjoon (BAT) def. Megan Grip (HAM) 11-9, 11-13, 11-6, 11-8
4. Eliza Dunham (BAT) def. Grace Munschauer (HAM) 12-10, 11-9, 11-6
5. Maeve O'Brien (BAT) def. Caitlin Stern (HAM) 11-6, 12-10, 11-2
6. Katie Manternach (BAT) def. Katherine Bauer (HAM) 11-2, 11-5, 11-7
7. Molly Brooks (BAT) def. Liesl Guenther (HAM) 11-6, 10-12, 10-12, 11-6, 11-9
8. Marina Hartnick (HAM) def. Katie Bull (BAT) 11-5, 11-6, 5-11, 2-11, 11-8
9. Danielle Reisley (HAM) def. Cata Robert (BAT)Â 11-2, 7-11, 11-1, 8-11, 11-6
