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Princeton University Athletics
Princeton Squash Newsletter
February 08, 2001 | Men's Squash
Dear Alumni, Parents, and Friends,
Wow, was that a close one!
I left with the team last Saturday morning feeling confident about our chances of beating Yale comfortably later that afternoon. Boy, was I ever wrong! After three hours of gut wrenching, stomach turning, head spinning squash, the match was over. Never will I underestimate an opponent again!
Last Saturday was Yale's Alumni Squash day with tons of old and young alumni back to support their teams. After our Women's team beat Yale comfortably 8-1, the crowd settled in for the much anticipated men's match. The crowd was electric, and as the afternoon wore on and the match grew tighter, the noise level became deafening. The large crowd sensed that an upset was in the making!
In college squash we play two shifts of five matches each, with the even numbered players playing first and the odd numbered players playing second. I expected us to be leading at least 3-1 in matches (#10 doesn't count in the scoring) after the first shift, or 2-2 at worst. It didn't quite work out that way! In the first shift, our #4 player, Dan Rutherford, played Blake Gilpin, a senior and former #1 player at Yale. Blake is very talented, but Dan played well and reeled off the first two games comfortably. So far so good. Will Osnato at #8 won a close first game and lead slightly in the second game. Will Evans at #2 loves to play in big pressure matches and was 1-1 in games with his opponent, Peter Grote. Co-Captain Marshall Sebring playing #6, was in a tight match with Ryan Byrnes, a talented player from the Taft School, who he had beaten Marshall earlier in the fall. Everything seemed tight but okay at this point.
Naturally it is at this point, that all hell breaks loose! Dan loses the third game and goes down 4-10 in the fourth. Will Osnato loses the second game and is struggling with leg cramps. Will Evans, just back from two weeks with the flu, goes down 2-1 in games. Marshall's match is slipping away at #6!
Fortunately, Dan fights back from 9-14 to save 5 game balls and win the fourth game in overtime 17-16. Whew! Marshall, unfortunately, loses a close fourth game. Will Osnato never recovers and loses 3-1 while Will Evans goes down 3-1 as well! What happened to my best laid plans! We are now down 3-1 in matches! If we are to win, we need to pull out four of the remaining five matches! A tough task!
The second shift begins with David Yik, at #1 playing beautifully against Yale's new freshman sensation from India and goes quickly ahead 2-0. Peter Kelly at #3 is playing beautifully and leads 2-0. Eric Pearson at #5 is playing a very talented player from India at #5, but as Eric says "these close matches are what we train for and play for!" and takes the lead 2-0 as well. We need to win all these matches plus #7 or #9 to win the overall match! That is the good news. The bad news is that both Randolph McEvoy at #7 and Co-Captain Harrison Gabel at #9 both lose their first games badly. David Yik, Peter Kelly, and Eric Pearson complete a clean sweep of their opponents while Randolph fights valiantly before losing 3-0. The match score stands at 4-4 with everything riding on Harrison Gabel's shoulders. Twice before Harrison has been in this situation and has come through both times. This time with a vocal crowd, an unfamiliar court, and an inspired opponent, I am not sure what to expect.
Harrison plays well in the second game to tie the match up at 1-1. He slowly but surely pulls ahead in the third game to lead 14-9. One more point and we will lead 2-1 in games! But in the flash of an eye, the opponent storms back and takes the lead 15-14! What is happening! As I fumble to find a sharp object to do myself in, Harrison plays the overtime beautifully to win the game 17-15. One more game to go for a team victory! Harrison is playing well now and feeling positive. His opponent, a sophomore from India, is feeling the weight of the situation on his shoulders. Harrison moves ahead 5-1 in the 4th game, but just as quickly his opponent ties it up 5-5! Harrison is working flat out, volleying everything and drop shotting beautifully. He pulls ahead 7-5, 10-5, and finally 14-6. As the crowd quiets, Harrison scores once more to seal the victory for the team! Thank goodness it is over!
We all feel a huge sense of relief as we go to congratulate the Yale players on a truly well played match. Their sportsmanship was spectacular and their warmhearted congratulations in defeat is truly impressive.
As our whole team gathers for our post match meeting, I tell them all to take a deep breath since I knew they had been holding it for the past three hours!
It was a happy and relieved team that rode home that night knowing that we were still undefeated and looking forward to our show down with Harvard for the Ivy League Championship this Sunday, February 11 here at Jadwin Gym at 3 PM.
I invite you to come cheer on both the Women's and Men's teams as we take on Dartmouth this Saturday at 12 noon and 2 PM respectively at Jadwin Gym and on Sunday as we do battle with Harvard at noon and 3 PM. It should be a great weekend of squash! It is the last time you can see Princeton play at home this season, so come join us for two great afternoons of squash.
All the best,
Bob Callahan A Relieved Princeton Men's Squash Coach