Following
a third-place finish at Nescacs earlier this month, where the Panthers
pulled off a 5–4 win over Amherst, the 15th-ranked women’s squash team
headed to the CSA Team Championships in Boston last weekend to compete
in the B draw for the Kurtz Cup. They finished their season ranked 15th,
after losing their first two matches of the weekend then defeating
Amherst in a rematch on Sunday, Feb. 18.
Middlebury entered the weekend as a huge underdog — the
Panthers were the 15th-ranked team in a draw that features the ninth
through 16th-ranked teams. While they were the second lowest ranked team
in the draw, their morale was high.
They began by facing No. 10 Dartmouth, the same team the Panthers lost to 8–1 earlier this season on their home courts.
Virginia Schaus ’21, who performed consistently well
throughout her first season with the Panthers, claimed Middlebury’s only
point against Dartmouth in a four-set triumph (11–3, 9–11, 11–7, 11–7)
against Julia Potter at No. 6.
While the Panthers only tallied one point against the Big
Green, several matches stood out as near misses for Middlebury. One of
those was Alexa Comai ’19’s matchup in the No. 3 slot.
Comai battled into the fifth set against Dartmouth’s
Sandra Reiss despite dropping the first game of the match 11–5. Comai
quickly recovered though, and manufactured some momentum as she fought
back to win the next two games 11–3 and 11–4, which made the next two
games potential close-out sets. Unfortunately, after a hard fought
fourth set, Comai ’19 fell 11–9, she could not get her energy back up
for the fifth game and lost 11–3.
In the middle of the ladder, Anne Glassie ’20 and Natalie
Madden ’21 missed the chance to pull off victories in their matches
that went all the way to a fifth set. At No. 4, Glassie ’20 dropped the
first two games against opponent Brynn Bank, 11–3, 11–7. But the tide
changed when she fought tooth and nail for the third set, securing it
with a score 13–11, before falling in the fourth set 11–7.
Madden ’21, another outstanding Panther rookie lost at
No. 5 against Janel Gaube in a closely contested four set match 11–3,
11–7, 8–11, 11–4.
After falling to Dartmouth, Middlebury went on to play
No. 14 Virginia in the consolation semifinal, where the Panthers fell to
Virginia for the second time this season. Although, by only falling 7–2
this time around, the Panthers improved on their 8–1 showing earlier in
the season.
In last weekend’s meeting with Virginia, the Panthers
managed to get off to a good start when Natasha Lowitt ’20 tied the
overall match 1–1 by winning a four set nailbiter in the No. 9 slot
(11–7, 4–11, 13–11, 14–12). Unfortunately the winning streak didn’t last
as Virginia won the next six matches, leading with a score of 7–1.
Mira Chugh ’20 put up a good fight in a tough five set
match at No. 8 against Isabelle Ezratty. Chugh led the match with a
two-game lead, 14–12, 11–5 but was then overtaken the next three sets
11–4, 11–8, 11–9.
At the top of the ladder, Beatrijs Kuijpers ’19’s match
was the last on the day for the Panthers. Kuijpers ended the match on
her terms as she defeated Carey Danforth in a well played four set match
(11–9, 7–11, 11–4, 11–6). Their 7–2 loss to Virginia sent the Panthers
onto the 15th-versus-16th-place game against Amherst. The matchup with
the Mammoths offered a chance for the Panthers to finish in the top 15
in the year-end rankings for the ninth time in the last 10 seasons.
The team’s head coach, Mark Lewis, talked about how
proud the team should be given the level of competition it faced in the
first two rounds at nationals.
“We played really strong teams in the first two rounds
(Dartmouth and UVA), played pretty well and learned that the team that
applies pressure, sustains that pressure and relieves pressure tends to
win.” But even after the two losses, the Panthers looked forward to
apply pressure against Amherst to claim the 15th rank.
Rounding out the three day tournament with a 6–3 victory
over Amherst in the 15/16 match, the Panthers finished their season
with a 12–10 record.
Lowitt got things started on the right foot for the
Panthers in the No. 9 slot, as she won a four-game match over Ashira
Mawji. Undeterred from losing the first set 11–8, Lowitt powered through
full force, claiming the next three sets, 11–5, 11–7, 11–7.
The Mammoths went on to two consecutive victories at No.
3 and No. 6 to gain a momentary 2–1 advantage. Comai put up a fight
with a five set match in the No. 3 slot, narrowly falling by a score of
9–11, 11–6, 11–8, 5–11, 11–8. The loss at No. 6 by Schaus was also
closely contested (6–11, 11–3, 11–8, 13–11).
Chugh’s result in the No. 8 slot broke the Mammoths
winning streak. She racked up a four-game triumph over Pierson Klein.
After losing the first set relatively quickly 11–3, Chugh made a huge
comeback and won the next very close three sets, 11–9, 11–8, 11–8.
After that, the tide changed for the Panthers as they
went on to win the next three consecutive matches. The wins came from
Madden at No. 5, Emily Beinkampen ’21 in the No. 7 slot, and Lucy
Bostwick ’18 at the No. 2.
Madden slipped past Madison Chen with a close four
setter with a score of 11–9, 8–11, 11–8, 11–9. Beinkampen locked down
her match in only three games (11–7, 11–7, 12–10), rounding out her
first season on a positive note. Bostwick clinched a deciding five set
match against Haley McAtee with a close score of 9–11, 11–5, 11–3, 8–11,
11–1.
The Mammoths gave a final push, breaking the Panthers’
winning streak with a three-game win at No. 4 (11–5, 11–6, 11–8), making
the score 5–3. Kuijpers closed out the match, and tournament, with a
three-game triumph against Kimberly Krayacich (11–6, 12–10, 11–9) in the
top spot on the ladder.
Comai reflected on the tournament and the season in general.
“This season obviously had its high and low points,”
Comai said. “I felt that overall the team really came together both on
and off the courts.”
Coach Lewis agreed with Comai’s sentiments.
“In the match against Amherst we put in a really strong
performance,” Lewis said. “Overall the season was good. Every team
member had some wins and in their losses hopefully walked away with some
valuable takeaways.”
Some great contributing factors to a solid season for
the Panthers boiled down to great leadership and a strong support
system, even from the underclassmen.
“We had a lot of great freshman who had an enormously
positive contribution to the team and I am excited to see how they can
help us to be even better next year,” said Comai.
“This year we had amazing leadership under our captain,
Lucy Bostwick, as well as the rest of the senior class. We feel super
grateful for everything that they have done for us and will miss them
dearly.”
The women’s squash team is officially finished with
their season, except for a select few competing in the Individual CSA
championship in Washington D.C., March 2–4. After a grueling and
competitive season, most of the Panthers are ready for a break, but also
looking forward to continue training hard, getting prepared for the
next season.
“I think after a little break we want to try to do a lot
of match play and captains practices this spring to keep our skill
level and fitness high,” Comai said on behalf of her Panther teammates
who are already looking forward to the team’s potential going forward.
“We also want to try to incorporate a lot of mental fitness training
this spring and fall in order to allow each of us to be in our best
competitive headspace come season.”
The decision was taken at the National Council on Sports meeting which ended on Thursday at the General Hassan Katsina House, Kaduna.
Ali Farag with the trophy
