PHILADELPHIA, Pa. – The third-ranked University of Pennsylvania men's squash team defeated second-ranked Princeton on Saturday afternoon, 5-4, solidifying its spot in the CSA National Championship match taking place tomorrow afternoon.

On the final day of the regular season, The Tigers defeated the Quakers, resulting in a share of the Ivy title. This afternoon however, Penn took down Princeton, bringing them one step closer to a national title.

The first wave featured Omar Hafez, Varun Chitturi, and Rehan Luthra. Freshman Chitturi was the first finisher of the day for Penn with a win at No. 6 in four games and 38 minutes. Chitturi's only loss of the season came against Princeton, as Chitturi was able to get his revenge this afternoon.

Hafez started off with an 11-4 win in game one, but fell in the next two, leaving room for the Tigers to strike back. Hafez then powered through the next two games in dominating fashion at No. 2 to make the match 2-0.

Although Nathan Kueh began his match in the second wave for Penn, he was able to secure the third point on the board with a sweep at No. 4 in 26 minutes.

Luthra eventually fell in his match at No. 9, after battling it out for five games and one hour and 19 minutes.

Nick Spizzirri swung the momentum back in Penn's favor with a win at No. 1. Spizzirri dropped the opening game but won the next three to give the Quakers a 4-1 lead.

Needing just one more win to secure the match, Penn had its sights set on Abdelrahman Dweek and Dana Santry to secure the win. At No. 7, Santry won games two and three, but could not secure the win in a five-game battle.

At No. 5, Dweek won the first and fourth games, played a highly competitive game five but ultimately fell short, as the match stood 4-3, still in favor of the Quakers.

All eyes were set on freshman, and Ivy League Rookie of the Year, Salman Khalil to secure the match for Penn. At No. 2, Khalil dropped game one, dominated in game two and was able to push through games three and four for the win.

To round out the match, Roger Baddour fell in three games at No. 8, making the final score 5-4.

Results

1. Nick Spizzirri (Penn) def. Karim Elbarbary (Princeton) 8-11, 11-3, 11-8, 11-6
2. Salman Khalil (Penn) def. Hollis Robertson (Princeton) 9-11, 11-1, 12-10, 11-6
3. Omar Hafez (Penn) def. Thomas Rosini (Princeton) 11-4, 8-11, 6-11, 11-3, 11-5
4. Nathan Kueh (Penn) def. Ahmed Wael (Princeton) 11-6, 11-5, 11-5
5. Alastair Cho (Princeton) def. Abdelrahman Dweek (Penn) 4-11, 11-5, 11-3, 4-11, 12-10
6. Varun Chitturi (Penn) def. Avi Agarwal (Princeton) 11-7, 11-9, 4-11, 11-5
7. Hassan Khalil (Princeton) def. Dana Santry (Penn) 4-11, 11-7, 14-12, 3-11, 11-6
8. Zain Ahmed (Princeton) def. Roger Baddour (Penn) 12-10, 11-5, 11-7
9. Gordon Lam (Princeton) def. Rehan Luthra (Penn) 11-13, 11-6, 5-11, 11-9, 11-6

Up Next
The Quakers will take on Trinity tomorrow morning at 10:30 a.m., for a chance to claim the CSA national championship at the Arlen Specter Squash Center.