Penn, meanwhile, posted sweeps at the No. 2 through 4 spots. Bajwa tried to strengthen the lineup by moving Brown, who had a 9-1 record on the year, up to the No. 5 spot, but she was unable to come through, falling 3-0 (9-2, 10-8, 9-4).

The semifinal match came done to the No. 1 spot, with Elias facing Penn senior Katie Patrick. Elias had lost to Patrick 3-0 (9-6, 9-0, 9-3) the week before, but Elias was better prepared this time.

"I knew what I had to do," Elias said. "I had to stay in there every time and play to the last point."

While Patrick took the first game 9-7, Elias, instead of letting down, turned the tables on Patrick and won 9-7 in the second. Then, in what must have been an absolute shock to the Quakers, Elias took the third game easily from Patrick, 9-3, and for a few moments, it looked as if the upset was possible.

But Patrick knew what was at stake, and she was not about to let her final chance at a national championship slip away. Patrick managed to win a close fourth game, 9-6, and then take the fifth by a 9-4 score.

The win put the Quakers in the Howe Cup finals, where Penn upended Princeton, the two-time defending champion, 5-4, to win its first ever championship while Harvard was set back to the third-place game for the first time in recent history.

Nevertheless, the Crimson had plenty of reason for optimism after the close defeat.