Feb. 26, 2008

ANNAPOLIS, Md. - One of six emerging women's teams in college squash, head coach Craig Dawson led the Navy Midshipmen to a third-place finish at the 2008 Women's College Squash Association Howe Cup Championship at Princeton, N.J. over the weekend. It was the first time Navy has sent a women's team to compete in the championship.

Made of up two pools, the emerging teams tournament competed as five-player programs with three teams in each pool. Navy opened the tournament by easily handling NYU, 4-1. In the second round, Navy was paired up with Vermont, who just nipped the Mids, 3-2, and went on to place first in the pool and second overall. The loss sent Navy to the 3-4 playoff where it claimed a 3-2 victory over Boston College and the Mids captured third place.

Freshman Julie Kiernan (Bernardsville, N.J.), Navy's No. 1 player, was Navy's anchor, winning all three matches during the tournament without giving up a game. Kiernan, whose father Thomas is a Naval Academy grad, as is her brother Tom who played squash for the Mids, will play in this weekend's College Squash Association Individual Championship that will be held at the Naval Academy. Both the men's and women's tournament will be played at the Halsey International Squash Courts, as well as the Bancroft Hall Squash Courts beginning Friday and running through Sunday.