After Princeton ended the Harvard women's squash team's six year reign as national championship last year, the Crimson were determined to return to the top of the hill this season.

With the No. 1 ranking for most of the year, the Howe Cup--college squash's national championship--appeared to be returning Cambridge.

But despite dominating for most of the season, the Crimson (12-1) let the national title slip through its fingers. No.2 Princeton played the spoiler once again, grabbing the Cup away from Harvard by winning a 5-4 nailbiter.

Despite failing to reclaim Howe glory, the Crimson rebounded to find what silver lining remained available.

After losing the national crown to Princeton, Harvard won the Ivy League championship with an amazing 9-0 victory over the Yale Bulldogs.

Demonstrating that Harvard did contain championship material, each Crimson player won her match by the score of 3-0 to bring home the Ivy title.

Strengthening its belief that the Crimson, Howe Cup or not, is the best squash team in the nation, all fifteen players on the team's roster played during the championship match--a rarity in a sport in which teams usually play only nine players.

"We all feel great about [winning the championship]," said sophomore Virginia Brown. "We're excited about how we ended the season."

Seven seniors who played integral roles in the team's league championships will look upon the Ivy League title as a bittersweet tribute to their four years as a national squash powerhouse.