W. Squash finishes regular season No. 1

The Quakers defeated Harvard for the first time in school history. Twenty-four years of waiting are over. The No.1 ranked Penn women's squash team lived up to its preeminent status this weekend by beating both Harvard and Dartmouth for its first-ever Ivy League title and regular season national championship. "It was a well-deserved victory -- a tremendous culmination of eight years of effort on my part and four years on the team's part," Penn coach Demer Holleran said. "To beat Harvard at Harvard was something special." The Quakers (8-0, 6-0 Ivy League) defeated the Crimson 6-3 on Saturday in Cambridge, Mass. Senior co-captain Katie Patrick, freshman Runa Reta, senior Helen Bamber and junior Lauren Patrizio all won their matches 3-0. Senior co-captain Paige Kollock and junior Rina Borromeo were 3-1 winners. One of the most exciting matches of the afternoon was Kollock's nail-biter over Harvard's Sara Connelly. Kollock won the fifth and decisive match to nix the Crimson. "It was really great that Paige won her match," Holleran said. "It was her last dual match for Penn, and it was a well-deserved victory." "I was just relieved," Kollock said. "I prepared four years for this. I just tried to play calm and stay focused. I never was physically tired, just emotionally." Keeping her focus was easier said than done. Harvard is known for its boisterous fans, and on Saturday the Crimson faithful lived up to their reputation. "[The fans were] obnoxious," Kollock said. "Fans were screaming and banging on benches." The Quakers, though, made more noise with their rackets then Harvard's fans could with their voices and hands. In particular, Patrizio, who won her last game in a tie-breaker, 10-8, played a little chin-music for her opponent. Over the course of her match, Patrizio and her opponent, Abigail Drachmantous, exchanged accidental glances to their respective faces with their rackets. "I was hit in my face with [her] racket," Patrizio said. "I had a fat lip and cheek and my hearing went dead for a minute." Adding injury to Harvard's insult of losing the match, Patrizio accidentally swung and connected with Drachmantous' eye, leaving the Harvard player with something of a shiner. "It was awesome to win," Patrizio said. "It was extremely satisfying, especially to beat them at their own court. It was also great that my parents were there, as well as other Quaker parents, supporting us." After the final match on Saturday was over, a small celebration took place. At this point the Quakers had clinched at least a share of the Ivy League championship. "We were really excited," Patrick said. "We turned on the boom box and took pictures. The parents of the players congratulated us and served us food." After the match on Saturday, the Quakers put their celebrating on hold as they traveled to Dartmouth. The Red and Blue did not reach Hanover, N.H., until midnight. The Quakers then had to be careful that they did not allow the fatigue of travel result in a letdown against the Big Green. "We had to take Dartmouth seriously -- they were ranked No. 5," Patrizio said. "We had to keep focus -- to lose to Dartmouth wouldn't have been fun." The Quakers rolled over Dartmouth 9-0 to clinch their first Ivy-League championship and first regular season national championship. It was no contest as the Red and Blue won eight of the nine matches 3-0. The Quakers will next play on February 18-20 at the Howe Cup National Team Championships at Yale University. For now, though, the Quakers can let their victory set in and enjoy the title of "nation's best."

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