Princeton University Athletics
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Pennsylvania
Princeton Squash Teams Sweep Penn, Ready For Yale Matches Saturday
January 28, 2004 | Women's Squash
Jan. 29, 2004
PHILADELPHIA - The Princeton men's and women's squash teams opened the 2004 portion of their Ivy League schedules with hard-fought Ivy League victories Wednesday night at Penn. The men's team, which has won the last two Ivy League titles, knocked off Penn 7-2, while the upstart women's team earned a 6-3 win.
The women's team got five wins from five different freshmen, including No. 2 Claire Rein-Weston and No. 3 Ali Pearson, to go along with a 3-2 victory at No. 1 by sophomore Ruchika Kumar. The freshman with the toughest match was Anina Nolan at No. 9, who had to win in five games.
"The match was quite exciting," head coach Gail Ramsay said. "It was close. We had that five-game match to give us the 6-3 win, and that one at No. 9 could have gone either way. Marilla Hiltz, a freshman, did a great job to win her match. All the freshmen pulled off wins, which was great to see them do under pressure. Everybody played some great squash." The men had to battle hard to earn a win over an improved Penn squad. The fight started at the top, where 2003 national champion Yasser El-Halaby dropped the first game 9-4 before winning a trio of 9-1 wins. Richard Repetto, Penn's No. 1 last year, swept freshman Vincent Yu at No. 2. Penn did earn another win at No. 9, but Princeton's depth carried it to wins at 3 through 8 to earn the team win. The most dramatic individual win came from veteran Nathan Beck, who is no stranger to big matches. He dropped the first two games to Jacob Himmelrich before rallying and earning a 7-9, 6-9, 9-5, 9-0, 9-1.
"It was a very tough match," head coach Bob Callahan. "It ended up 7-2, but it was a lot closer than it sounds."
Princeton will return home this weekend to battle Yale in both men's and women's competitions. Yale is the favorite to win the Ivy title in both leagues, but Princeton will hope its mix of youth and experience will provide roadblocks to both teams.
Princeton 6, Penn 3
1 Ruchika Kumar (Princeton) def. Linda McNair (Penn) 3-2
2 Claire Rein-Weston (Princeton) def. Paula Pearson (Penn) 3-0
3 Ali Pearson (Princeton) def. Dafna Wegner (Penn) 3-0
4 Radhika Ahluwalia (Penn) def. Tricia Gadsden (Princeton) 3-0
5 Rhea Bhandare (Penn) def. Annie Rein-Weston (Princeton) 3-1
6 Genevieve Lessard (Princeton) def. Annie Barrett (Penn) 3-0
7 Marilla Hiltz (Princeton) def. Rohini Gupta (Penn) 3-0
8 Lorin Riley (Penn) def. Franny McKay (Princeton) 3-1
9 Anina Nolan (Princeton) def. Melissa Cosgrave (Penn) 3-2
10 Lily Evans (Penn) def. Rebecca Shingleton (Princeton) 3-1
Princeton 7, Penn 2
1 Yasser El Halaby (Princeton) def. Gilly Lane (Penn) 3-1 (4-9, 9-1, 9-1, 9-1)
2 Rich Repetto (Penn) def. Vincent Yu (Princeton) 3-0 (9-3, 9-4, 10-9)
3 Michael Gilman (Princeton) def. Ben Ende (Penn) 3-1 (5-9, 9-1, 9-5, 9-1)
4 Nathan Beck (Princeton) def. Jacob Himmelrich (Penn) 3-2 (7-9, 6-9, 9-5, 9-0, 9-1)
5 Dent Wilkens (Princeton) def. Will Simonton (Penn) 3-0 (9-1, 9-5, 9-1)
6 Will Boothby (Princeton) def. Colby Emerson (Penn) 3-0 (9-5, 9-2, 9-3)
7 Patrick Comey (Princeton) def. Eric Bardawil (Penn) 3-0 (9-1, 9-1, 9-5)
8 Parker Sutton (Princeton) def. Drew Crockett (Penn) 3-2 (9-5, 10-8, 5-9, 3-9, 10-9)
9 Doug Weeden (Penn) def. Brendon Bascom 3-0 (9-4, 9-4, 9-7)
10 Will Osnato (Princeton) def. Graham Bassett (Penn) 3-0 (9-3, 9-5, 9-0)