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Princeton University Athletics
Seven Tigers Go For Top Individual Squash Honors This Weekend
February 27, 2003 | Men's Squash
Feb. 27, 2003
HARTFORD, Conn. - One week after reaching the collegiate team final, the Princeton men's squash will send three representatives to Trinity College to battle for the 2003 Collegiate Squash Association individual title. Heading the field is freshman Yasser El-Halaby (Cairo, Egypt), who earned the top seed last weekend by sweeping two of the top four payers in the country, including the defending national champion. On the women's side, freshman Ruchika Kumar (Oakville, Ont.) is the fifth seed and one of four Tigers in the Gail Ramsay Cup, named for the Princeton women's squash coach and only four-time national champion.
El-Halaby will open competition Friday at 1:30 against Sam Miller, the No. 3 player at Penn. In two matches against Princeton this year, Miller was swept 3-0 both times by senior David Yik (North Vancouver, B.C.), the 2001 intercollegiate champion and the seventh seed in this tournament. Yik, the highest rated player to play No. 3 on his respective team, will open Friday at 11 a.m. against Asher Hochberg, the No. 6 player at Harvard. Hochberg was one of two Harvard players to earn a win against Princeton during the team match this season, defeating Aaron Zimmerman 3-1. The third seed in the tournament and the defending finalist is senior Will Evans (Auckland, N.Z.). Evans will open at 11:50 a.m. against Breck Bailey, the No. 2 at Brown. The two didn't meet in the team meet this season.
If seeds hold, Yik would face the defending intercollegiate champion, Trinity's Bernardo Samper, in the quarterfinals. In the same half of the draw, Evans could face Harvard's No. 1, Will Broadbent. In the top half of the draw, El-Halaby could see Cornell's Matt Serediak in the quarterfinals and either Yale's Julian Illingworth or Trinity's No. 2, Michael Ferreira, in the semifinals.
The quarterfinals and semifinals would be played Saturday, while the championship match would be Sunday. Sophomore Dent Wilkins (Rochester, N.Y.) is the second seed in the 'B' Division, while sophomore Nathan Beck (Concord, Mass.) is the tenth seed.
The women's field has four Princeton representatives, with Kumar leading the way at the fifth seed. She opens with Clare Whipple, the No. 2 player at Williams College, Friday at 11:40 a.m. If Kumar can make it to the quarterfinals, she will likely face Michelle Quibell, the No. 1 at Yale. The two played a classic match two weeks ago at the Howe Cup, with Quibell rallying from 2-0 down in games to win 3-2.
The rest of the draw is not friendly to Princeton, which will send three players against three of the six top players in the country. Sophomore Franny McKay (Ridgewood, N.J.) will take on Lindsey Wilkins, the No. 2 player at Harvard and the No. 6 seed in the tournament, while classmate Anne Warner (Philadelphia, Pa.) takes on Quibell, the fourth seed. Sophomore Frances Comey (Cincinnati, Ohio) will play the No. 2 seed in the tournament, Penn's Runa Reta.
All results will be updated throughout the tournament on www.squashtalk.com.