Princeton University Athletics
Photo by: Beverly Schaefer
Women's Squash Wins Thriller For Third Straight National Championship
February 15, 2009 | Women's Squash
The top-ranked women's squash team completed one of the most exciting, exhausting and pressure-packed 24-hour stretches in recent Princeton lore with the one thing it wanted most, the 2009 national championship. After fighting off a semifinal match ball Saturday night and trailing in two key matches Sunday afternoon, the unbeaten Tiger women pushed past Harvard 5-4 and can call themselves national champions for the third straight season.
The two-time reigning national champions were no stranger to pressure when they arrived to the Murr Center on the Harvard campus for Sunday's Howe Cup national team final. One week earlier, Princeton held off Harvard at home for a 5-4 win that clinched the 2009 Ivy League title.
That sent Princeton into the Howe Cup championships with the top seed and a clear bullseye on it. After an 8-1 victory over Williams, Princeton was pushed to the brink against Trinity in a semifinal thriller; Kaitlin Sennatt fought off a match ball in a decisive 3-2 victory, which pushed Princeton into Sunday's final with a 5-4 win.
With all that, the Tigers still had the daunting challenge of facing the second-seeded Crimson on its home courts with a championship at stake. Playing a three-shift format, head coach Gail Ramsay sent out both youth and experience with hopes of getting off to a quick start.
The first team point was earned by junior Emery Maine, who won the clinching match in the 2008 Howe Cup final over Penn. Maine, who lost for the first time all season during Saturday's semifinal, came out with tenacity and laid the foundation for a championship effort.
“I was a little nervous going out first because I hadn't played early most of the season,” Maine said. “I wanted to get out and get the team out to a solid start, which I think I did. I'm so excited about the result. We all definitely played great matches and pulled it out for each other.”
Harvard bounced back with a 3-1 win at the No. 6 position, as Maggie O'Toole, who won a key match in the regular season win over Harvard, was unable to match that result against Bethan Williams.
That left youth to decide which team would claim a 2-1 edge after the first session. Freshman Katie Giovinazzo, who has shown composure beyond her years all season, had to reach down deep. Coming off her only five-game match of the season in the semifinal, she won the first two games before dropping the third game 9-7.
“This match was more difficult and had more pressure then the one last week,” Giovinazzo said. “After the third game, I knew I had to go back to basics and use my length to keep her behind me, then go short when I had the opportunity.”
That strategy earned her a match ball at 8-7, but Ali Zindman fought it off and evened the game at 8-8. Proving her resiliency, the Tiger freshman maintained her undefeated record by regaining serve and winning the next points to clinch the match.
Princeton would go up 3-1 with a victory from junior Neha Kumar, who has fought off numerous injuries all season to get in position to help her team to another title. When on the court, Kumar has proven time and again to be as tough as they come, and she showed it again with a 9-6, 9-1, 9-4 victory over June Tiong at the No. 2 position. It would be the most decisive victory for either team during the match.
“I am really excited about the team's win,” Kumar said. “I went on court knowing every point counted. I had to ignore the pain because I knew we needed it. I just played my game, lobbing and dropping, and just tried to move her around the court.”
Harvard got one in the win column when Katherine O'Donnell recorded her second 3-2 victory over Princeton junior Jackie Moss in as many tries. Moss was able to get out to a 2-1 lead, but O'Donnell pulled out the match with 9-5 and 9-0 wins in the last two games.
Harvard was one game away from evening the team score at 3-3, but Princeton sophomore Nikki Sequeira was able to pull out the comeback of her career. One week after letting a 2-0 lead slip away to Harvard's Cecelia Cortes, Sequeira found herself in the exact same position.
“My match was definitely a fight,” Sequeira said. “I was down almost beyond a comeback, but somehow I managed to pull it off. I felt like my team was really pulling for me, and that helped pull me through the final points.”
Trailing 7-2 in the third game, Sequira rolled to 27 of the next 30 points to earn a 3-9, 3-9, 9-7, 9-0, 9-3 victory that put the Tigers on the brink of a third straight national championship, as well as a 17th championship overall.
It wouldn't come easily, though. Harvard got the score to 4-3 when Joanna Snyder earned a 9-5, 9-3, 9-3 victory over Tiger tri-captain Aly Brady at the No. 7 position. That meant that either Sennatt or junior Amanda Siebert needed to earn a win, and both trailed 2-1 after three games.
Siebert had won the first game 9-5, but Nirasha Gurgue came back with a flawless effort to win the second 9-0 and the third 9-2. She trailed 5-2 in the fourth, but like Sequeira, was about to get on a serious roll. She claimed 16 of the next 17 points to win the last two games, the match and the 2009 Howe Cup.
“I am so excited,” Siebert said. “It was really tough, but I came back to win. I may have gotten the fifth win, but it was only one. It takes five to win, and this was a great team effort.”
Harvard's Alisha Mashruwala closed the match by taking a 3-1 victory over Sennatt, whose Saturday effort will remain one of the most indelible memories of the weekend. Afterwards, Ramsay couldn't hide her pride in this team.
“It was just a great performance this weekend,” Ramsay said. “Everybody chipped in with big wins, and everybody supported their teammates. It was the perfect end to a perfect season.”
“I couldn't be more proud of my teammates,” said O'Toole, who joined Brady and Joanna Scoon as the tri-captains of this squad. “This says so much about our entire season, the sportsmanship and teamwork that went into it. It's been the most incredible team effort I have ever been part of.”
The win also continues a proud streak for Princeton athletics, which has now won either an individual or team national championship in each of the last 23 years. Ramsay's squad will compete for an individual crown in two weeks when the men's and women's CSA singles tournament is held in Williamstown, Mass.
No Princeton player will enter that weekend as the favorite to win the national title. While players like Siebert, Kumar and Maine will certainly be viewed as major contenders, the 2008-09 Princeton Tigers spent the last four months proving one thing.
From top to bottom, the best women's squash team wore Orange and Black.
Again.
PRINCETON 5, HARVARD 4
1) Amanda Siebert (P) d. Nirasha Gurgue 5, (0), (2), 5, 1
2) Neha Kumar (P) d. June Tiong 6, 1, 4
3) Emery Maine (P) d. Emily Park 1, 3, 10-8
4) Alisha Mashruwala (H) d. Kaitlin Sennatt (7), 3, 1, 0
5) Katherine O'Donnell (H) d. Jackie Moss 5, (0), (6), 5, 0
6) Bethan Williams (H) d. Maggie O'Toole (7), 6, 3, 5
7) Joanna Snyder (H) d. Aly Brady 5, 3, 3
8) Nikki Sequeira (P) d. Cecelia Cortes (3), (3), 7, 0, 3
9) Katie Giovinazzo (P) d. Ali Zindman 6, 6, (7), 10-8
The two-time reigning national champions were no stranger to pressure when they arrived to the Murr Center on the Harvard campus for Sunday's Howe Cup national team final. One week earlier, Princeton held off Harvard at home for a 5-4 win that clinched the 2009 Ivy League title.
That sent Princeton into the Howe Cup championships with the top seed and a clear bullseye on it. After an 8-1 victory over Williams, Princeton was pushed to the brink against Trinity in a semifinal thriller; Kaitlin Sennatt fought off a match ball in a decisive 3-2 victory, which pushed Princeton into Sunday's final with a 5-4 win.
With all that, the Tigers still had the daunting challenge of facing the second-seeded Crimson on its home courts with a championship at stake. Playing a three-shift format, head coach Gail Ramsay sent out both youth and experience with hopes of getting off to a quick start.
The first team point was earned by junior Emery Maine, who won the clinching match in the 2008 Howe Cup final over Penn. Maine, who lost for the first time all season during Saturday's semifinal, came out with tenacity and laid the foundation for a championship effort.
“I was a little nervous going out first because I hadn't played early most of the season,” Maine said. “I wanted to get out and get the team out to a solid start, which I think I did. I'm so excited about the result. We all definitely played great matches and pulled it out for each other.”
Harvard bounced back with a 3-1 win at the No. 6 position, as Maggie O'Toole, who won a key match in the regular season win over Harvard, was unable to match that result against Bethan Williams.
That left youth to decide which team would claim a 2-1 edge after the first session. Freshman Katie Giovinazzo, who has shown composure beyond her years all season, had to reach down deep. Coming off her only five-game match of the season in the semifinal, she won the first two games before dropping the third game 9-7.
“This match was more difficult and had more pressure then the one last week,” Giovinazzo said. “After the third game, I knew I had to go back to basics and use my length to keep her behind me, then go short when I had the opportunity.”
That strategy earned her a match ball at 8-7, but Ali Zindman fought it off and evened the game at 8-8. Proving her resiliency, the Tiger freshman maintained her undefeated record by regaining serve and winning the next points to clinch the match.
Princeton would go up 3-1 with a victory from junior Neha Kumar, who has fought off numerous injuries all season to get in position to help her team to another title. When on the court, Kumar has proven time and again to be as tough as they come, and she showed it again with a 9-6, 9-1, 9-4 victory over June Tiong at the No. 2 position. It would be the most decisive victory for either team during the match.
“I am really excited about the team's win,” Kumar said. “I went on court knowing every point counted. I had to ignore the pain because I knew we needed it. I just played my game, lobbing and dropping, and just tried to move her around the court.”
Harvard got one in the win column when Katherine O'Donnell recorded her second 3-2 victory over Princeton junior Jackie Moss in as many tries. Moss was able to get out to a 2-1 lead, but O'Donnell pulled out the match with 9-5 and 9-0 wins in the last two games.
Harvard was one game away from evening the team score at 3-3, but Princeton sophomore Nikki Sequeira was able to pull out the comeback of her career. One week after letting a 2-0 lead slip away to Harvard's Cecelia Cortes, Sequeira found herself in the exact same position.
“My match was definitely a fight,” Sequeira said. “I was down almost beyond a comeback, but somehow I managed to pull it off. I felt like my team was really pulling for me, and that helped pull me through the final points.”
Trailing 7-2 in the third game, Sequira rolled to 27 of the next 30 points to earn a 3-9, 3-9, 9-7, 9-0, 9-3 victory that put the Tigers on the brink of a third straight national championship, as well as a 17th championship overall.
It wouldn't come easily, though. Harvard got the score to 4-3 when Joanna Snyder earned a 9-5, 9-3, 9-3 victory over Tiger tri-captain Aly Brady at the No. 7 position. That meant that either Sennatt or junior Amanda Siebert needed to earn a win, and both trailed 2-1 after three games.
Siebert had won the first game 9-5, but Nirasha Gurgue came back with a flawless effort to win the second 9-0 and the third 9-2. She trailed 5-2 in the fourth, but like Sequeira, was about to get on a serious roll. She claimed 16 of the next 17 points to win the last two games, the match and the 2009 Howe Cup.
“I am so excited,” Siebert said. “It was really tough, but I came back to win. I may have gotten the fifth win, but it was only one. It takes five to win, and this was a great team effort.”
Harvard's Alisha Mashruwala closed the match by taking a 3-1 victory over Sennatt, whose Saturday effort will remain one of the most indelible memories of the weekend. Afterwards, Ramsay couldn't hide her pride in this team.
“It was just a great performance this weekend,” Ramsay said. “Everybody chipped in with big wins, and everybody supported their teammates. It was the perfect end to a perfect season.”
“I couldn't be more proud of my teammates,” said O'Toole, who joined Brady and Joanna Scoon as the tri-captains of this squad. “This says so much about our entire season, the sportsmanship and teamwork that went into it. It's been the most incredible team effort I have ever been part of.”
The win also continues a proud streak for Princeton athletics, which has now won either an individual or team national championship in each of the last 23 years. Ramsay's squad will compete for an individual crown in two weeks when the men's and women's CSA singles tournament is held in Williamstown, Mass.
No Princeton player will enter that weekend as the favorite to win the national title. While players like Siebert, Kumar and Maine will certainly be viewed as major contenders, the 2008-09 Princeton Tigers spent the last four months proving one thing.
From top to bottom, the best women's squash team wore Orange and Black.
Again.
PRINCETON 5, HARVARD 4
1) Amanda Siebert (P) d. Nirasha Gurgue 5, (0), (2), 5, 1
2) Neha Kumar (P) d. June Tiong 6, 1, 4
3) Emery Maine (P) d. Emily Park 1, 3, 10-8
4) Alisha Mashruwala (H) d. Kaitlin Sennatt (7), 3, 1, 0
5) Katherine O'Donnell (H) d. Jackie Moss 5, (0), (6), 5, 0
6) Bethan Williams (H) d. Maggie O'Toole (7), 6, 3, 5
7) Joanna Snyder (H) d. Aly Brady 5, 3, 3
8) Nikki Sequeira (P) d. Cecelia Cortes (3), (3), 7, 0, 3
9) Katie Giovinazzo (P) d. Ali Zindman 6, 6, (7), 10-8
Players Mentioned
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Tuesday, June 04
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Tuesday, March 01