The #13/top-seeded Middlebury women's squash team took Sunday's battle against #14/second-seeded Georgetown to the brink, but ultimately fell in a 5-4 nailbiter in the College Squash Association (CSA) Divisional Team Championships Kurtz Cup Third/Fourth-Place Match.

HIGHLIGHTS

• The Panthers rattled off three consecutive triumphs to begin the bout. Sabrina Schwarz shrugged off a two-point defeat in the first game to best Ella Erickson in the fourth position (10-12, 11-4, 11-8, 11-9), while Izzy Ronda held a 2-1 edge at #3 before retirement pushed Middlebury ahead 2-0.
• Lucy Ronda took the third point from Virginia Wood in a game-for-game grind in the ninth slot. The Panther bounced back from a loss in the opener with a lengthy 19-17 line in the second and an 11-4 win in the third. Wood took the fourth, but Lucy Ronda tallied a decisive 11-7 victory to prevail in the five-game tilt.
• The Hoyas trimmed the margin to one (3-2) with four-game wins at #2 and #6.
• Madeline Schwarz outlasted Lindsay Lee in the longest match of the day, going the distance in the seventh spot (8-11, 11-6, 11-7, 7-11, 13-11) to lead 4-2.
• Sanah Syed (#1), Mary Kacergis (#5) and Katie Hennessy (#8) earned the final three decisions to seal the match.

NOTES

• The sides met for the second time in the CSA Championships and the seventh matchup overall.
• The Panthers claimed their second fourth-place finish in the Kurtz Cup in as many seasons.

Middlebury concludes the campaign at 13-7 overall, eclipsing double-digit wins for the fourth season in a row while establishing a program-best winning streak of 10.