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Princeton University Athletics
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Men's Squash Goes Title-Hunting This Weekend, Hosts Cornell Friday Afternoon
February 08, 2012 | Men's Squash
Coming off its 8-1 victory over the top-ranked Yale Bulldogs Saturday, the Princeton men's squash has put itself in position for back-to-back championship weekends. The first title at stake is the Ivy League championship, which Princeton can clinch Friday afternoon when it hosts sixth-ranked Cornell at the Jadwin Squash Courts.
Princeton is currently 10-1 overall and 5-0 in the Ivy League, giving it a one-match lead over both Yale and Harvard. The Tigers swept both teams, including a 5-4 thriller at Harvard in mid-January that featured wins by two freshmen (Tyler Osborne and Samuel Kang), two sophomores (Dylan Ward and Ash Egan) and senior co-captain Chris Callis.
While a win either Friday against Cornell (10-4, 3-2) or Sunday at Columbia (5-8, 1-4) would clinch at least a share of the title with either Yale or Harvard, who play each other Saturday in New Haven, head coach Bob Callahan knows how important it is to win both matches.
First, it would give Princeton the outright Ivy League title, its first since 2009. Princeton has won 16 Ivy League titles, including seven of the last 12. In the 17 years prior to the start of that run in 2000, the Tigers had won only title, so Callahan appreciates how difficult it is to win this league.
Second, it would likely clinch the second seed in the national team championships, which would mean that Princeton would likely avoid Cornell during the quarterfinal round. While the Big Red has not beaten a higher-seeded team yet this year, a close look at its scores shows just how dangerous Cornell can be. The Big Red lost to No. 1 Yale 5-4, and one of those losses ended 14-12 in the fifth game. The Big Red also lost 5-4 to Harvard, with a 12-10 fifth-game loss hurting Cornell in that one as well.
Cornell is led by Nick Sachvie, the 2011 national individual finalist who lost to Princeton's Todd Harrity in the championship match.
Columbia is the newest program in the Ivy League, and it picked up its first league win with a 6-3 victory over Brown last month. The Lions are led by head coach Jacques Swanepoel, a former All-America at Trinity.
Princeton, whose only loss this season came last week to Trinity, has gotten stellar play throughout the lineup. The senior trio of Callis, Kelly Shannon and Clay Blackiston each scored 3-0 wins over tough Yale opponents last weekend; Blackiston capped a perfect week, which included a victory at Trinity. Shannon has returned after injury cost him half the season, but he has made a habit of saving his best squash for the biggest moments, and none will be bigger than the final weeks of his senior year.
Junior Steve Harrington may not have the resumé of his classmate Harrity, but he provided the winning point in the victory over Yale last weekend. Ward, a sophomore, remains Princeton's lone undefeated starter, and the freshman due of Osborne and Kang have given Princeton a pair of consistent winners in the top five.
The Cornell match will be video streamed live on GoPrincetonTigers.TV.
Following Sunday's Columbia match, Princeton will turn its attention on the 2012 CSA team championships, which will come to Jadwin Gym Feb. 17-19.