Princeton University Athletics
Princeton University
Constable Semifinals/Finals
Players Mentioned
Sophomore Amanda Siebert Keeps Constable Cup In Princeton; Riley Wins Second Flight
January 13, 2008 | Women's Squash
The Constable Cup will stay in Princeton for another year. One year after classmate Neha Kumar won the annual individual tournament, sophomore Amanda Siebert won four tough matches, including a five-game semifinal against teammate Emery Maine, to win the Constable Cup, named after one of Princeton's most historic coaches.
Siebert, one of the top players in the Princeton lineup since her career began, opened the tournament Friday with a 3-0 win over Trinity's Emily Paton (3,5,1), and she reached the semifinals by topping Trinity's JoAnn Jee, a former All-America, 9-6, 5-9, 9-3, 10-8. The win sent her into an all-Princeton semifinal with sophomore newcomer Emery Maine, who also plays on the lacrosse team. The two put on a terrific show, and Siebert advanced with a 9-2, 5-9, 9-6, 4-9, 9-1 victory.
That sent her into the final against Trinity's Tehani Guruge, who advanced to the final with a hard-fought 10-8, 10-9, 9-7 win over Kumar, although she had strong wins against Princeton's Carly Grabowski and Jackie Moss in the first two rounds.
"I knew that Tehani was going not going to be easy and her quick speed to the front, and ability to kill the ball like no one else I have
ever played was going to be difficult to tackle," Siebert said. "I tried to stay steady and patient waiting for her to make the errors, which were few and when made were after really long rallies."
The two players split the first two games, with Siebert opening with a 9-6 win and Guruge coming back for a 5-9 win in the second. Siebert took the advantage back in the third game and won 9-3, but the fourth game would prove to be the closest. It would be tied at 8 before Siebert won the final two points to win the match and the title.
"All of the people I played this weekend were strong squash players and in order to beat them I had to be playing my best," Siebert said. "Tehani made me play some of my best squash and if I had done anything less she could have taken the win."
Head coach Gail Ramsay agreed.
"Amanda played well," she said. "She start off strong in the first game taking control of the T. Her length was really on target. Amanda was 1-4 down in the 4th game but she clawed her way back to the 5-4 with an incredible effort. The points were long and hard and they both cover the court well."
In the second flight, senior tri-captain Casey Riley topped teammate Joanna Scoon 9-4, 6-9, 9-3, 9-3 to win the title. After receiving a first-round bye, Riley won a pair of 3-0 matches to reach the final.