Editor's Note: — This story was edited on Friday, Feb. 10, following a disciplinary decision against Yale in the No. 7 match that overturned the result in favor of Columbia.

NEW HAVEN, Conn. — The No. 8 Columbia women's squash team bested No. 5 Yale in a match that came down to the wire, 5-4. Meanwhile, the No. 9 men were taken down by the fourth-ranked Bulldogs, 8-1.
 
Trailing 4-2 entering the final wave, Columbia got victories from Erica McGillicuddy at No. 4 and Simmi Chan at No. 2 to level the score, 4-4. It came down to a grueling duel between Kiro Manoharan and Yale's Mika Bardin at No. 7. Eventually, it was Bardin who pulled it out in over an hour, 19-17, 12-14, 5-11, 13-11, 12-10. However, following a disciplinary ruling by the College Squash Association, Manoharan was awarded the match, overturning the team result in favor of Columbia, 5-4.
 
"Just a terrific effort by Kiro, who is getting better every week and getting more comfortable and confident," Kenneth W. Torrey Director of Squash Chris Sachvie said. "She's learning week to week. She lost the first 19-17 and didn't get discouraged. She was down 10-8 in the second, could have gone down two and kept battling to win 14-12. It was just neck-and-neck the whole match."
 
Chan had to go the distance for her victory, 6-11, 11-2, 11-13, 11-5, 11-1, and stay undefeated. Farida Mohamed also kept her perfect record intact, sweeping Elizabeth Ross in the top match, 11-8, 11-6, 12-10. Columbia's other point came from Amal Izhar at No. 9, who won in four games.
 
"Simmi went down 2-1 turned it into another gear to win the last two pretty handily," Sachvie added. "Another really good performance from Amal Izhar. Erica played a fellow Canadian in a similar age bracket, so that was a familiar opponent, and she played great. The Yale player was doing a really good job tracking down her shots in the first few games but had to put in a lot of work. In the end, the amount of work Erica made her do really paid off in the end."
 
On the men's side, Columbia got a victory from the No. 5 match in first-year Franklyn Smith. The rookie came back from 2-1 down to defeat Jed Burde in five, 6-11, 11-8, 6-11, 11-6, 11-6. The Lions were competitive throughout, especially near the top of the lineup. Harold Castiaux battled Siow Yee Xian to a four-game defeat, 11-8, 10-12, 3-11, 8-11.
 
"I think they played two or three times last year and had close encounters each time," Sachvie added on Castiaux's match. "It was super close. They are both really good athletes with really good movement.
 
"Good win for Franklyn. There are no easy ones and he had to play well to close it out. He's had a few close ones this year so it was nice to see him get a win."
 
The Lions turn around to take on Trinity Sunday. The match is set to get underway from Hartford, Connecticut at 12 p.m. ET.
 
For the latest on the Columbia squash programs, be sure to follow the teams on Twitter and Instagram (@CULionsSquash), on Facebook (Facebook.com/ColumbiaSquash), or by visiting GoColumbiaLions.com.