Individuals To Play Top Talent

In a single regular season, a Harvard squash player meets each equally seeded adversary from opposing teams only once. It is a fleeting opportunity to upset the competition and climb in the national rankings. If there’s a time for individual skills to be tested, rematches to be played, and grudges to be settled, it’s this weekend as members of the Crimson head to the 2009 Collegiate Squash Association (CSA) Individual Championships.

“You only get to play each team once during the regular season,” said junior No. 1 Colin West. “[This is] definitely going to be a good weekend for some possible redemption.”

Much of the men’s and women’s teams traveled to Williams yesterday to compete in what will be a very competitive national field. Tournament play begins this morning with first round match-ups and concludes on Sunday with championship matches scheduled to begin at 4:00 pm.

Each year the CSA compiles team and individual squash rankings according to results from individual collegiate matches played during the season and updates these rankings monthly. At the season’s conclusion, the CSA invites the nation’s top 160 individual players (80 men and 80 women) to compete for individual titles. This year, 56 colleges will be represented at Williams, providing a breadth of talent and opportunity for stellar match-ups.

“It is pretty exciting to see all of the best players in one place,” said junior No. 7 Frank Cohen.

Last weekend, the Crimson traveled to Princeton for the CSA Team Championships. The squad was ranked fifth headed into the tournament but finished the weekend in fourth place. In the first round, Harvard took revenge on No. 4 Cornell, a team they had lost to, 6-3, earlier in the season. This time around, the Crimson had the edge and defeated their Big Red opponents, 5-4. A loss against eventual-champion Trinity sent the Crimson into the bronze medal matchup against a strong Rochester team, where it battled for third, but came up short, losing 7-2.

Harvard deemed the fourth place finish a success, but the team is looking to exhibit its individual talent and make a big impact on the college squash scene in its final showing this season.

“Because this is an individual tournament, the goals are individual,” said Cohen. “Colin is going to play for a national championship and we are really amped up about that, and Richard Hill is looking to repeat as winner of the B bracket.”

West, ranked No. 3 in the country entering the tournament, will play in the A bracket and is Harvard’s best chance at claiming a National title. Among those entered in the tournament are Princeton’s Mauricio Sanchez and Trinity’s Baset Chaudhry, the only players who have defeated West this season .

“I’m very excited to get another shot at the two guys who beat me earlier this year,” West said.

Sanchez and Chaudhry won’t be the only talents that West may face. The junior will have to contend both against players from outside the Ivy League as well as lower-ranked opponents who may pose threats to West’s run at the title. Last year, West lost in the quarterfinals to Kimlee Wong.

“It is very difficult [during the season] to say who is better,” said West. “[If it is] number seven on Harvard versus the number three on Dartmouth, you can never be sure [who will win]. This [tournament] is a great way to get different matches that no one has ever played before.”

The top 32 players compete in the A bracket with the remaining competing in the B division. Captain Verdi DiSesa, Harvard’s No. 2, and No. 3 Senior Niko Hrdy will join West in A bracket competition. Each of the three stands a chance at earning All-American honors, which are awarded to the final top-20 players.

Last year sophomore No. 6 Richard Hill was the only member of the Crimson to advance to the third day of tournament play, where he captured the Malloy Cup as winner of the B bracket.

Harvard will look to strong individual performances to cap off an already successful season. The young team’s performance this weekend may be a preview of what we can expect to see next year.