Princeton University Athletics
Players Mentioned
Fifth-Seeded Princeton Looking For Home Cooking At Howe Cup Championships
February 17, 2011 | Women's Squash
2011 HOWE CUP BRACKETS l JACKIE MOSS ON TIGERCAST
The Princeton women's squash team will welcome 37 other programs to the Jadwin Squash Courts this weekend for the 2011 Howe Cup national championships. The Tigers, who come in as the fifth seed, aren't too concerned about the 32 programs ranked below them. It's those four above that stand between them and a fourth national championship in five years.
Princeton completed its regular season with a 9-4 record, but will likely need to avenge three of those four losses this weekend to get through Sunday unscathed. That journey begins on Courts 1-3 Friday at 2 p.m., when the Tigers will host fourth-seeded Penn in the most anticipated quarterfinal match of the tournament.
Penn holds the higher seed because of its 5-4 win over the Tigers earlier this season. Of course, the last time Penn and Princeton met in a Howe Cup match at Jadwin was the 2008 national final, and Penn was also one seed higher than Princeton due to a 5-4 regular season win.
Should history repeat itself, Princeton will still be in the mix come the Saturday semifinals. The Tigers avenged the loss with a 6-3 home win to clinch the second of three straight national titles. Tiger senior co-captain Jackie Moss played No. 3 for that team, and you can hear her recollections of that match and views on this season's Howe Cup by clicking on the 'TigerCast' link above.
Princeton will need to rely on youth, as six of its nine starters are either freshmen or sophomores. Assuming no injuries, Princeton will likely start each match with a shift of freshmen; postseason squash matches are played in three shifts of three matches apiece (3-6-9, then 2-5-8, then 1-4-7). No. 3 Libby Eyre, No. 6 Alex Sawin and No. 9 Caroline Feeley will be called upon to give Princeton an early edge, and head coach Gail Ramsay is hopeful that their youthful exuberance will provide a winning foundation.
"We're excited and confident about the weekend, especially since we get to host the championships," Ramsay said. "We've worked hard and we're looking forward to playing our best squash throughout the lineup over the three days."
The middle shift will feature Moss at the No. 2 spot, junior Katie Giovinazzo at No. 5 and sophomore Casey Cortes at No. 8. Moss and Cortes are two of Princeton's three double-digit winners this season; Moss leads the team with an 11-1 record, while Cortes has gone 10-2 in her impressive sophomore season. Giovinazzo is one of the most experienced players in the lineup, and she showed her toughness in a critical win over Harvard in the 5-4 victory during the 2009 national final.
Princeton will round out competition with sophomore Julie Cerullo at No. 1, freshman Lexi Saunders at No. 4 and senior co-captain Nikki Sequeira at No. 7. Like Giovinazzo, Sequeira had a huge win in the Harvard final, rallying from an 0-2 hole for a five-game win. In a remarkable coincidence, Saunders has the same number of victories (nine) as each of her three classmates, while Cerullo will be looking for a strong finish to her nine-win sophomore season.
Top-5 team lineups with class years:
#1 Yale:
1. Logan Greer (2011)
2. Camilla Tomlinson (2014)
3. Sarah Toomey (2011)
4. Kimberley Hay (2014)
5. Rhetta Nadas (2012)
6. Katherine Ballaine (2013)
7. Caroline Reigeluth (2011)
8. Gwendoline Tilghman (2014)
9. Alexandra Van Arkel (2013)
10. Lillian Fast (2014)
#2 Harvard:
1. Laura Gemmell (2013)
2. Nirasha Guruge (2012)
3. Alisha Mashruwala (2011)
4. June Tiong (2011)
5. Natasha Kingshott (2013)
6. Cece Cortes (2012)
7. Sarah Mumanachit (2013)
8. Bethan Williams (2011)
9. Ali Zindman (2011)
10. Vidya Rajan (2013)
#3 Trinity College:
1. Catalina Pelaez (2014)
2. Pamela Hathway (2012)
3. Jennifer Pelletier (2014)
4. Wee Nee Low (2014)
5. Emery Holton (2011)
6. Alicia Rodriguez (2012)
7. Robyn Hodgson (2013)
8. Andrea Echeverria (2012)
9. Robyn Williams (2011)
10. Pamela Jimenez (2012)
#4 Penn:
1. Nabilla Ariffin (2013)
2. Rachael Goh (2013)
3. Annie Madeira (2011)
4. Yarden Odinak (2013)
5. Pia Trikha (2013)
6. Courtney Jones (2014)
7. Stephanie Vogel (2013)
8. Chloe Blacker (2014)
9. Hyland Murphy (2014)
10. Josy Blair (2013)
#5 Princeton:
1. Julie Cerullo (2013)
2. Jackie Moss (2011)
3. Libby Eyre (2014)
4. Lexi Saunders (2014)
5. Katie Giovinazzo (2012)
6. Alex Sawin (2014)
7. Nikki Sequeira (2011)
8. Casey Cortes (2013)
9. Caroline Feeley (2014)
10. Daphne Rein-Weston (2012)