Men's & women's squash victorious at Yale Tourney

Author: Kevin Carpenter

Middlebury men's and women's squash teams return from the Yale Round Robin Tournament in good spirits after a victorious weekend. The men's squad won four of five matches while the women came away on top in three of their four matches.

The men opened up the weekend with an 8-1 defeat over Colby before losing to # 13 Bowdoin in a tight 5-4 match later that night. Middlebury swept their next two matches in stunning fashion with 8-1 wins over George Washington and Connecticut College before closing the weekend with a 9-0 win over Wesleyan, the team that the Panthers lost to in the 2008 nationals.

"The team put in a solid performance in our last match against Wesleyan," said co-captain J.P. Sardi '09. "On paper Wesleyan was a weaker team, but they had both a home court advantage and were physically fresher having played fewer matches over the previous two days."

Despite the 9-0 Wesleyan domination, the game was, in truth, tightly contested. Six of the nine matches went into four games. The Panther's resilience and ability to close tight matches was crucial to their success.

"In all the matches that went to five games (the most possible in squash), Middlebury players pulled out wins," remarked Sardi. "In total, the men's team went 11-0 in five-game matches over the course of the weekend."

Assistant coach David Schwarz commented during the match that, when a match gets to the fifth game, the key to capturing the win is "will, not skill".

Impressive performances came from Micah Wood '10, Will Piekos 11, Valentin Quan '12 and Josh Taylor '12, who all went 4-0 in their matches on the weekend.

The will and determination of the men was matched by the women's performance. The women went 3-1 on the weekend with victories over #14 Colby, #22 George Washington and Connecticut College. The only loss on the weekend came in a close 6-3 match at the hands of #13 Bowdoin.

Senior tri-captain Sarah Hatfield finished 3-1 in her #1 singles matches in a display of her athletic prowess. Apart from the success at the top of the totem, the #7-9 players on the women's squad proved equally as dominant. Liz McMorris '09, Jamie Burchfield '12 and Al Boillot '12 shut down the competition with an 81-4 points tally against Bowdoin, 81-5 against Conn. College and 81-13 against Colby. Outstanding performances across the board ensured a dominant weekend for the Panthers.

The Yale Round Robin upped the women's record to 13-5 on the season as the men improved to 9-6. On the team's performance, Sardi commented, "As a captain, the grit, toughness and determination to fight that our players displayed made me genuinely proud of the team and the preparation we have undergone to be able to perform in just such moments."

Both the men's and women's squads take on Vassar and Vermont at home on Jan. 24 and 25.