LANCASTER, Pa. – After cruising past No. 54 Dickinson with a 9-0 shutout on Sunday, the No. 7 Franklin & Marshall men's squash team was narrowly edged by No. 6 Columbia at 5-4 in a doubleheader at the Mayser Center. The Diplomats moved to 4-2 on the season, while the Red Devils fell to 0-2 and the Lions remained unbeaten at 2-0.

F&M was in control throughout its contest with Dickinson, earning three-game sweeps in all nine matchups. Michael Sorochev was solid at No. 1 with a consistent 11-3, 11-3, 11-3 victory.  Brian Henry was strong at No. 2 with an 11-2, 11-4, 11-1 sweep, while Kareem Nabil Abdel Mawla cruised from the No. 3 spot at 11-3, 11-1, 11-0. 

The middle of the order was also impressive as No. 4 Christopher Bown (11-2, 11-2, 11-1), No. 5 Jackson McCord (11-3, 11-2, 11-5) and No. 6 Ishan Advani (11-0, 11-0, 11-0) were all dominant. Matt Gagnier dropped just one point through his three-game sweep at No. 7 with an 11-0, 11-0, 11-1 win, while Peter Koekkoek (No. 8) and Sam Chudner (No. 9) each rolled with a pair of sweeps to pace the bottom part of the lineup.

Against Columbia, No.'s 1-4 struggled for the Diplomats against the top of the Lions potent order, falling by sweeps in all four matchups. However, F&M was strong throughout the middle and bottom part of the order, taking four of five contests. 

Gavan Hitchenor battled back from a 2-1 deficit with wins of 11-7 and 11-9 in the final two games for the 3-2 marathon victory at No. 5. Sorochev earned his second shutout of the day with a three-game sweep at No. 6, while Henry outlasted his opponent for a 3-2 win from the No. 7 spot. 

The Diplomats return to action on Saturday, Dec. 6, traveling to Yale for an 11:00 a.m. matchup.