Men's Squash Takes Home National Championship

In more ways than one, it was the perfect end to a perfect season for the No. 1 Harvard men’s squash team (18-0, 7-0 Ivy). In this year’s CSA Men’s National Team Championships, the Crimson handily defeated No. 5 Franklin and Marshall (15-5) on Saturday and No. 2 Trinity (18-2) on Sunday, winning 18 straight matches to take home the Potter Cup.

“I think as a coach…you’re happy for your players, but the word to describe what I’m feeling is probably relief,” coach Mike Way said. “I was happy that it was over because you could sort of feel the tension around the team over the last few weeks…. You want to get on with it. We knew we were good, and [we] just wanted to get [the championships] going.”

Harvard tallied three 9-0 victories this weekend to make a total of 12 sweeps on the year.

“[It was] definitely the best we’ve played all season,” co-captain Gary Power said. “I think it’s something we’ve been building towards. Four years ago we came in fifth, three years ago we came in fourth, and last year we came in second, so it’s something we’ve been working on year by year.”

HARVARD 9, TRINITY 0

In its last contest against Trinity, a win that snapped the Bantams’ 18-season home winning streak, the Crimson dropped two matches in the number six and seven spots. Both freshman Bryan Koh and sophomore Nick Hopcroft were able to redeem their losses with victories in this weekend’s rematch.

Against Koh, the Bantams’ Zevad Elshorafy won the first two games with ease. After the set break, Koh regained momentum and won the next three games.

“It was a phenomenal performance by Bryan,” Power said. “He was getting beaten pretty comfortably in the first two games, but then he sort of changed his strategy and changed his tactics, and beat a kid that he had lost to last time. I feel like that was the moment where I thought we won, so I could absolutely not be happier.”

In the match that secured the title, co-captain Brandon McLaughlin came back from a 2-1 deficit to best Trinity’s Karan Malik for the fifth, clinching win.

“To be honest, I think we were all more excited than nervous,” Power said. “When you feel pressure, you have to view it as a good thing because it means you’re good enough to feel that pressure. I woke up really excited and I really wanted to play a match that mattered, and it felt great to play it in front of all the fans. We love the atmosphere.”

Harvard’s starting lineup consists of five seniors—Ali Farag, McLaughlin, Power, Nigel Koh, and Tom Mullaney—who have waited four years for their chance to be national champions.

“For Gary and Brandon, and for Ali, they felt the deepest sense of responsibility for delivering a result and for helping the team,” Way said. “It’s just awesome for them, and Nigel and Tommy, as well. They’ve all grown as athletes and as men, and they’re ecstatic.”

The national team title was not the only honor won on Sunday. The Skillman Award was given to Farag for outstanding sportsmanship during his collegiate career.

“I thought [Ali] was very deserving,” Way said. “There are always a few athletes in the running, but it would be hard to find a better athlete in college squash, and definitely one who plays with such grace in victory.”

Sunday’s win marks the Crimson’s 31st national title, and its first since 1998.

“There’s that wonderful sense of accomplishment for each athlete when each individual player wins, which I’m very proud of,” Way said. “When I go up and down that list [of players], and I look at how they’ve grown as young men and how they were able to cope with that amount of stress, I just think ‘How can you not be the proudest coach of any sport?’”

HARVARD 9, FRANKLIN AND MARSHALL 0

Saturday’s contest was the first time that Harvard had faced Franklin and Marshall this season. After narrowly defeating St. Lawrence in its last outing, the Diplomats found it hard to grab even a single game from the Crimson, and Harvard ended its semifinal matchup with six 3-0 wins.

“I liked how we matched up [against Franklin and Marshall],” Power said. “The fact that they lost [to St. Lawrence] meant it was an easier semifinal game [for us], which enabled us to be fresher for the final.”

—Staff writer Emily T. Wang can be reached at emilywang@college.harvard.edu.