The women’s squash team traveled to Princeton University to participate in the Walker Cup Division of the Team National Tournament this past weekend. On Sunday the Polar Bears edged St. Lawrence 5-4 to take 19th place in the nation and finish 3rd in the Walker Cup Division.
The team began the tournament on Friday with a 5-4 victory over a strong Wesleyan side—the third win against the Cardinals this season.
The women collected key wins from Sarah Nelson ’17 (No. 2), captain Michaela Martin ’14 (No. 3), Sara Wlodarczyk ’15 (No. 6) and Emily Simonton ’15 (No. 8) to leave the contest tied at 4-4 with one match remaining. Bowdoin’s Alden Drake ’15 (No. 4) secured the win in the final match to seal the result.
On Saturday the Polar Bears faced Amherst, the highest-seeded team in the Walker Cup Division. The team suffered a heartbreaking defeat, losing 5-4 for the second time this month at the hands of the Lord Jeffs. The women said they were happy to claim victories from their top three spots in the ladder, with captain Rachel Barnes ’14 at No. 1, Nelson at No. 2 and Martin at No. 3. Chloe Polikoff ’17 claimed the final win for the Polar Bears at No. 5.
“Luck did not go our way in the Amherst match. They were a tough side but we can take some solace from the fact that they ended up winning the division,” said Martin. “In my match, I beat the girl on Amherst that had beat me earlier in the season. That felt good.”
On the final day of matches the women faced a St. Lawrence side that had defeated them earlier in the season. The Polar Bears got off to a great start, collecting early wins from Nelson, Polikoff, Wlodarczyk and Simonton.
For the third straight day, the last match would decide the contest. Senior Christiana Whitcomb (No. 7)—in her final game ever as a Polar Bear—swept her opponent to claim the win for Bowdoin.
“We were very happy with Christiana sealing the win for us in her last collegiate match,” said Head Coach Tomas Fortson. “Collectively, during this competition we competed better than at any other point over the season,” he added.
The weekend’s action wrapped up the 2013-14 campaign for the Polar Bears, whose eyes are now set towards the future.
“I think we are going to return a lot of talent next year,” said Nelson. “We are sad to lose our two seniors, but we have a lot of juniors who will step up and good leadership throughout the team.”