Men/Women's Squash Look to Win BackTitles

The Harvard squash dynasty--men's national champions from 1994-1998 and women's champions from 1993-1997--came to a screeching halt last year, as for the first time in seven years, neither of Harvard's teams took home a national crown.

At the end of the year, Coach William Doyle resigned due to his desire to relocate to New Orleans. In his seven years as head coach, Doyle racked up an amazing 93-4 record with the men and an 86-3 record with the women.

But the years of Crimson squash dominance are by no means over. The teams have been rejuvenated under the leadership of new Coach Satinder Bajwa, and with both the men's team and the women's team bringing in a crop of talented freshman recruits, the prospects of Harvard squash are as bright as ever.

"We definitely have the potential on both the men's and women's teams to do better," said Bajwa. "If we don't, it won't be because of lack of trying."

The returning players are thrilled to have Bajwa as their new coach.

"It was sad to see Bill go. He taught me a lot my freshman year," said sophomore Margaret Elias, Harvard's top female player. "This year, Satinder's been great. He's energetic, enthusiastic, and very supportive."

"He's fantastic," added captain Tim Wyant, Harvard's top male player, and No. 4 in the NISRA preseason rankings. "He's a remarkable trainer, and he knows the game as well as anybody I've met in my squash career."

The men's squash team begins the season at No. 2 in the NISRA preseason rankings. That is understandable, considering that last year the Crimson was defeated, 8-1 by Trinity in the Potter Trophy finals, the national championship in men's squash. But according to Bajwa, the gap between Trinity and Harvard right now is not that large.

"Of those eight matches we lost, all of them were very close matches," Bajwa said. "Wyant and [No. 6, sophomore] Peter Karlen have beaten Trinity players. With the new freshmen, we're stronger. I think those matches can be turned around."

Trinity, with its strong recruiting last year, was able to give the Crimson a tremendous challenge for the first time.

"I think that last year, there was an aura surrounding the Trinity recruits," Bajwa said. "But the hesitation is no longer there, having played them last year."

Bajwa's experience and knowledge about the game of squash will certainly be a great boon to the Crimson.

"I am familiar with about half of the Trinity players from my past experience," Bajwa said. "So hopefully we can have better insight in how to play them."

Harvard has the utmost confidence it can beat Trinity. The Crimson has only lost one starter, Dave Beitchman '99. With its incredibly strong freshman class, the team is bound to improve.

"We have three great freshmen this year," Wyant said. "It really raises the bar for our team."

Wyant, junior Deepak Abraham, and junior Gray Witcher will start at the top three spots, while freshman Dylan Patterson will take the No. 4 spot for the Crimson.

Patterson has made the most of his time with the squash team thus far.

"I was never on a high school team, so it's been great," Patterson said. " It's easier to train and practice with such a competitive team."

Junior Shondip Ghosh, who played last season despite a back injury, will begin the year at the No. 5 position.

"Shondip Ghosh highlights our strength." Bajwa said. "If he maximizes his potential, that alone makes us stronger than last year."

Junior Andy Merrill, who was No. 4 on the team last year, will start down at No. 7.

"You can see that with Andy moving down that we have a solid group from one to nine," Bajwa said.

Rounding out the Crimson lineup will be sophomore Dave Barry at No. 8 and Deepak's brother, freshman Dilip Abraham at No. 9.

The women's team, meanwhile, begins the year ranked third in the country behind two-time defending Howe Cup champion Princeton and current No. 1 Penn.

Last year the Crimson defeated both Penn and Princeton, 5-4 in the regular season. However, it fell to Princeton by the same score in the Howe Cup finals. Harvard has dropped an additional spot in the rankings from last year's finish due to the graduation of four seniors from last year's squad. But if the Ivy preseason scrimmages are any indication, the Crimson will be just as competitive as ever.

In the Ivy scrimmages, Harvard defeated Princeton, but fell to Penn by a narrow 5-4 margin.

"We know we're close to Penn now," Bajwa said. "So there's a self confidence with the women-we know we're not far behind."

The women's team is young this year. Only captain Blair Endresen, junior Virginia Brown, and junior Katie Gregory have more than two years of college experience.

With such a young team, Bajwa is excited about the potential that they have.

"With the women, what's good, is that we have a lot of potential that is untapped," said Bajwa. "That makes me feel that if we can tap that potential, we will catch up."

Elias, and sophomores Carlin Wing and Colby Hall will start in the top three spots this year. Bajwa is confident that the Crimson's depth will put it over the top.

"Our middle No. 5 to 8 is very strong," Bajwa said. "I think that is where our strength lies."

Top freshman Ella Witcher, Gray's sister, will start at the fourth or fifth position this year. Endresen, Brown, freshman Lindsay Coleman, and sophomores Francis Holland and Sarah Feinberg will likely round out the Crimson lineup.

"I had never played on a team before coming here," said Ella Witcher. "There's a lot more spirit. It's great to have the team encouraging you."

As the Crimson pursue team championships this year, there are also national individual squash titles up for grabs. Wyant, who lost in the NISRA finals last year, has the best chance among both the men and women to walk away with a crown.

"I don't know what chance I have to win," Wyant said. "I just want to focus on improving my performance throughout the extended season."

For the women, Elias looks to improve upon her quarterfinal finish in last year's individual championships.

"At the Ivy scrimmages Elias went five sets with Princeton's Julia Beaver, one of the national favorites," Bajwa said. "I think [Elias] has every chance to do well and go all the way."

With the losses in the finals last year, Harvard has lost the aura of invincibility it held during its dynasty. But that should make this year even more exciting. Both teams have reloaded, and judging by expectations, this should be another banner year for Harvard squash.