Martlets Defeat Rhinos

The Martlets took the Kohn Squash Pavillion one final time on Wednesday where we took on Taft for the second time this season. Given the 4-3 Taft victory in our opening match of the season, the girls looked forward to the rematch and were pumped up for the challenge of playing them again. After a celebration for our five seniors (Clover Cooper, Lucy Morton, Luna Yang, Clara Covill and Lily Abdel-Meguid), we lined up and took to the courts. 

Lucy Morton ‘26 was first off the marks with a quick 4,1,7 victory at #2. Lucy controlled this match from start to finish with her steady and consistent play, coupled with her delicate drop shots and was a worthy winner on her senior day . Luna Yang ‘26 fought back from a deficit to take the first game 12-10. After a second game win of 11-7, she dropped the third game 9-11. She battled from another small deficit in game 4, which she turned around for a 12-10 victory to put the Martlets ahead 2-0. Similarly, Saleha Rahimi ‘27 took the first 11-9 at #4, but dropped the second 11-6. After going ahead 4-1 then behind, Saleha dug in and battled back to take the third game 11-9. She had a similar experience in game #4 where she was behind 6-9, but continuously battled and took the final game 12-10 to put the Martlets ahead 3-0 overall. Clara Covill ‘26 battled hard at #7 but dropped the first two games. She battled back and changed her strategy to take the third game 11-5. She couldn’t keep up her momentum into the fourth game which the Taft player won to put them on the board. Similarly, Clover Cooper ‘26 battled hard to two 9-11 finishes but lost in a very competitive 3 game match at #1. Her drop shots allowed her many points but she sadly could not pull this one out on senior day. That left the decision of the match up to Lilly McMillen ‘27 and Wynne Prichett ‘28, two of the leaders in helping put together our senior day celebrations. Lilly McMillen ‘27 came out determined to take this match and took the first game 11-9. A back and forth second game saw Lilly come out with another 11-9 victory. After nearly taking game 3 but dropping it 10-12, she knew she needed to come out with another strong effort to take game 4. She did just that, and pulled out an 11-8 to seal a big victory for the Martlets. That left less pressure on Wynne Prichett ‘28 as she saw herself in the middle of a tight contest. After dropping the first 9-11, she dug in and used her athleticism and precise shot selection to take the final 3 games 7,6,7. Fatima Al Abood ‘28 and Lily Abdel-Meguid ‘26 both fought valiantly in their exhibition matches. The Martlets were thrilled with the win as a great way to honor our five seniors, all of whom have played on these team for at least 2 years. The Martlets used today as a great way of wrapping up a wonderful season and enjoyed some cookies, grapes and juice as a celebration of an amazing senior day and a great season!