MEDFORD, Mass. – Just one day after picking up a huge team victory against a top 16 team at MIT, No. 19 the Franklin & Marshall men's squash team battled another perennial power in No. 12 Tufts on Saturday. The Diplomats (6-6) got key big five-game wins from Sharan Punjabi and Jordan Sprecher in the top third of the ladder, but the Jumbos were able to control the bottom half of the lineup during their 7-2 home victory.

Playing at No. 2 on the ladder, Punjabi dropped a hard-fought extra point game to start his match but rallied to take the lead with back-to-back wins during the second and third games. His opponent leveled the scored and forced a decisive fifth game during the fourth. Following a 12-10 result against him during the first game, Punjabi was not going to be denied a second game in extra points as the decisive game once again went to a 12-10 final where the Diplomat emerged on the winning side.

Sprecher secured his win at No. 3 on the ladder with the exact same 12-10 score during his final game. He started his day with a strong 2-0 lead that was punctuated by a 13-11 score during his opening game to grab the early advantage. His opponent was not going to go down with a fight and evened the match at two-all, but Sprecher kept his composure and won his second extra point game of the day to secure his individual victory. Punjabi and Sprecher are now both a perfect 2-0 this weekend and will look for the trifecta on Sunday afternoon.

Playing their second consecutive three-match weekend, the Diplomats will finish this weekend at home on the Mayser Squash Courts Sunday when they welcome No. 30 Connecticut College to Lancaster, Pa. That match – which will be part of a doubleheader with the women – will get underway at 12 p.m. noon.

#12 Tufts 7, #19 Franklin & Marshall 2
1: Kerwin Teh (Tufts) def. Kyle Broadhurst (F&M); 3-0 (12-10, 12-10, 11-6)
2: Sharan Punjabi (F&M) def. Harry Charlton (Tufts); 3-2 (10-12, 11-9, 11-6, 5-11, 12-10)
3: Jordan Sprecher (F&M) def. Sanjeev Jeyabalan (Tufts); 3-2 (13-11, 11-8, 8-11, 9-11, 12-10)
4: Youssef Ezzo (Tufts) def. Noah Katzer (F&M); 3-0 (11-7, 12-10, 11-1)
5: Nachiket Desai (Tufts) def. Sam Freed (F&M); 3-0 (11-5, 11-7, 11-4)
6: Jared Chin (Tufts) def. Evann Tan (F&M);3-0 (12-10, 11-5, 11-7)
7: Rutva Samant (Tufts) def. Juan Hinostroza (F&M); 3-0 (11-2, 11-6, 11-3)
8: Emerson Wang (Tufts) def. Hunar Kohli (F&M); 3-0 (11-5, 11-3, 11-3)
9: Aarav Gill (Tufts) def. Blake Newcomer (F&M); 3-0 (11-2, 11-7, 11-1)