Reflecting on the team’s season, captain Maxwell Orr ’25 told the News that he is pleased with the team’s ability to come together and make it to the national championship finals for the first time since 2016. 

“I am very proud of what we were able to accomplish as a team this year. Nationals brought out some phenomenal performances, and while we fell short of a championship, we can confidently look back on the year without regrets,” Orr wrote to the News. 

The team traveled to Philadelphia to play Harvard in the semifinals. In a tight match-up between the No. 1 Elis and the No. 6 Crimson, the Bulldogs secured a narrow 5–4 win. 

No. 1 and No. 2 seeds Tad Carney ’26 and Arav Bhagwati ’26 fell to Harvard’s David Costales (3–1) and Denis Gilevskiy (3–0), respectively. Harvard’s Neel Joshi defeated Lachlan Sutton ’27 to secure Harvard’s third match. Orr fought hard against Jacob Lin in a close (3–2) match-up but was ultimately unsuccessful as well. 

However, the remaining five Elis rose to the challenge, each taking down his Crimson opponent. Rohan Gondi ’28 and Merritt Wurts ’25 swept Conner Stoltz and Marcus Lee (3–0), respectively. Rishi Srivastava ’28 dropped the first two sets to Tate Harm but came back and crushed Harm in the next three games to maintain his undefeated first season at Yale. Max Forester ’25 and Nikhil Ismail ’25 emerged victorious over Segev Rome and Omar Azzam (3–1) to clinch the Elis’ second victory over the Crimson this season and earn the team a spot in the semifinals.  

The Bulldogs took down the No. 2 Princeton Tigers (6–3) in the semifinals, overcoming their earlier 4–5 upset on Jan. 11.  

Carney secured the first win for the Elis, sweeping Ahmed Wael (3–0). The Tigers tied things up with Avi Agarwal’s win (3–0) over Bhagwati. Although Princeton’s Hollis Robertson and Gordon Lam secured the Tigers’ next two victories over Orr and Wurts, the Bulldogs came back with three consecutive victories of their own: Srivastava over Hassan Khalil, Gondi over Zain Ahmed and Forester over Aly Ibrahim.  Sutton’s narrow defeat of Thomas Rosini (3–2), and Ismail’s 3–1 taming of Federico Sosa earned the Bulldogs their spot in the championship, putting the team in the running for the national title. 

With their impressive victory over the Tigers, the Elis prepared to take on the Penn Quakers. 

As the defending national champions, Penn’s team strove to defend its title, winning the first four matches. The Bulldogs remained determined to put up a strong fight, with Wurts clinching a narrow victory over Varun Chitturi, and Srivastava defeating Dana Santry to conclude his season with an undefeated record. 

However, these wins were ultimately not enough to turn things around for Yale. As the Quakers rallied around the glass court, Salman Khalil secured Penn’s second consecutive national title, edging out Carney (3–1). Forester then concluded his final collegiate squash match with a victory over Zane Patel. 

The Quakers’ defeat over the Bulldogs did not diminish Carney’s pride in the team’s accomplishments this season. 

“We were obviously disappointed to have lost in the national championship final, but I have no regrets about the season and am proud of everyone,” Carney wrote to the News. 

While the Bulldogs ended with a runner-up finish, this postseason finish marked the team’s best result since its 2016 title. Carney is proud of the team’s season conclusion, noting that the team worked hard throughout the season. 

“I am super grateful to have been a part of the team this year. After a slow start to the season, we worked really hard to get ourselves back into a good position,” Carney wrote to the News. “And I would like to thank our graduating class for a year of solid leadership.” 

This tournament marked the end of Orr, Forster, Ismail, Wurts and Taylor Clayton’s ’25 time with the Bulldogs. The team’s strong final result was bittersweet for Orr, who told the News he will deeply miss his teammates. 

“We pride ourselves on having the strongest culture in college squash, and it has been such a privilege to be a part of the program and experience that each day,” Orr wrote to the News. “At the end of our loss in the national championship, it was clear to me that the sentiment of the team, and especially the seniors, was that we were more disappointed our time competing together was over than that we had lost. I have so much to be grateful for over my time playing for Yale, and I am so thankful to everyone that made it possible.” 

The Elis concluded the 2024-25 season with a 10–3 record, with losses only to Princeton and Penn. 

The post MEN’S SQUASH: Bulldogs topple Harvard and Princeton over break, end season with national runner-up finish appeared first on Yale Daily News.

The Bulldogs worked hard to prepare for the three matches in a span of only five days.

“We prepared as we would for most matches, trying to emphasize a consistent approach that we can take into nationals,” men’s team captain Maxwell Orr ’25 wrote to the News. “The challenge of this stretch was having three matches in five days, so we were careful about our training volume.”

The Bulldogs crushed the Cornell Big Red and Columbia Lions. However, while the men’s team triumphed over the Trinity College Bantams, the women’s team brutally fell to the No. 2 ranked team in the nation. Overall, the chockfull week of matches proved to be a significant feat. 

“We’re thrilled with our performance against both Cornell and Columbia, securing dominant 7-2 victories,” Whitney Taylor ’26 wrote to the News. “We have all been working hard both mentally and physically on [the] court, so it was great to see that dedication pay off.”

Yale vs. Cornell, Saturday, Feb. 1

The men’s and women’s teams started the weekend strong, defeating Cornell 9–0 and

7–2, respectively.

The men’s team (6–2, 4–2 Ivy) aced Cornell (5–6, 1–4 Ivy), winning all nine matches. Tad Carney ’26, Arav Bhagwati ’26, Rohan Gondi ’28, Max Forster ’25, Nikhil Ismail ’25 and Merritt Wurts ’25 crushed the Big Red in straight sets, helping move the team up in their Ivy League standing. Lachlan Sutton ’27, Rishi Srivastava ’28 and Orr swept Cornell in their matches 3–1. 

On the women’s team, the Bulldogs (5–4, 3–3 Ivy) improved their standing in the Ivy League while taking down Cornell (5–6, 1–4 Ivy) in a 7–2 victory. Heng Wai Wong ’28, playing in the No. 1 position, was unsuccessful in her rematch against Yee Xin Yang, whom she previously fell to a week ago at the CSA Individual Championships. 

Nevertheless, Spring Ma ’28, Meghna Sreedhar ’25, Mika Bardin ’26, Rashi Goverdhanam ’27 and Layla Johnson ’27 took down Cornell in 3-1 sweeps. Whitney Taylor ’26 made a huge comeback after dropping the first two games to win the next three against Sabine Ball. Meha Shah ’28 fell to Maya Voloshin 3–0. 

Yale vs. Columbia, Sunday, Feb. 2

The Elis kept up the momentum on Sunday, squashing the Lions. 

Carney, Sutton and Gondi aced Arhan Chandra, Yusuf Sheikh and Zach Nam, respectively, 3–0. Bhagwati fell to Shaurya Bawa. Orr, Srivastava, Forster, Ismail and Wurts took down the Lions in 3–1 matches. Srivastava’s latest victory continues his undefeated first season with the Bulldogs. 

With their 8–1 win over Columbia (4–6, 1–4 Ivy), the men’s team picked up their fourth straight win of the season, advancing in the Ivy League. The men’s team has proven to be a strong force this season, only dropping matches against Princeton and Penn. They are now ranked third in the country. 

The women’s team put up a strong front, beating Columbia’s team, which is currently No. 7 in the Ivy League, 7–2. 

Lau, Sreedhar and Bardin didn’t let the Lions win a single game, sweeping their opponents in straight games. Ma and Taylor fought hard against Columbia’s Nourin Khalifa and Andreea Ghiorghisor to narrowly claim 3–2 victories. Shah and Johnson defeated Columbia 3–1, and Wong and Goverdhanam fell 1–3. 

Yale vs. Trinity, Wednesday, Feb. 5

The teams took Monday and Tuesday to prepare for the tough battle against Trinity.

The men’s team triumphed with a 7–2 victory over the Bantams. Sutton, playing in the No. 3 position and Ismail, playing No. 8, swept Mateo Restrepo and Marawan ElBorolossy, respectively, 3–0 in straight games. 

Bhagwati, Orr, Srivastava and Wurts took down Trinity 3–1. Gondi battled Huzaifa Ibrahim to secure a narrow 3–2 victory, but number one Carney fell to Joachim Chuah, and number seven Forster was unsuccessful against Dmytro Shcherbakov. 

Nevertheless, the Bulldogs’ seven decisive victories helped them glide to victory over Trinity. Srivastava’s latest victory continues his undefeated streak with only one match left in the regular season.

On the women’s team, the Elis fought hard but fell to Trinity’s team 2–7. Wong, playing in the number one position, easily defeated Jana Safy in three straight games. Bardin picked up the other victory for the Bulldogs, defeating Lujan Palacios 3–2, whom she previously beat at the CSA Individual Championships to become the Holleran East Champion. Lau, Taylor and Goverdhanam had close matches, pushing them into five games, but were unsuccessful. 

Taylor reflected on the close 2–3 losses, sharing that, while she was disappointed, the team worked hard. 

“The final score was 2-7, but that doesn’t truly reflect how close the matches were. The majority of the matches went to five games, showing the incredible strength of our team against a top-tier opponent,” Taylor wrote to the News. 

As the teams prepare for the final matches of the regular season and the CSA Team Championships, Orr is proud of the team’s successes. 

“It is tough to get a win against any team in the Ivy League, and Trinity has historically been so dominant, so to go 3-0 during that stretch is a great accomplishment,” Orr wrote to the News. “I could tell that the things we have been working on started to click, which showed through the conviction and energy that we played with. There will always be things to improve, but we did exactly what we needed to in order to position ourselves well down the stretch.”

Orr also shared that the team’s final match will be bittersweet. 

“Playing Western University for senior day will be the last home match for our five seniors, so there will definitely be some mixed emotions. The team is feeling good, knowing it will be another test to see whether we are on track going into nationals.” 

The women’s team will host Stanford, and the men’s team will play Western University at the Brady Squash Center for their final matches of the season on Saturday, Feb. 22 at 1 p.m. 

The post SQUASH: Bulldogs crush Cornell and Columbia, split Trinity appeared first on Yale Daily News.

The men’s team started slow against the Hoos, falling behind 0–2 in the morning, but they were able to quickly reverse the outcome, coming back strong to finish the day 7–2.

Tad Carney ’26, playing number one for the Bulldogs, had a strong performance against UVA’s Karim Elbarbary, scraping a 3–2 win.  

“I really want to play to my full potential this year by staying at the number one spot on our ladder and winning matches for Yale,” Carney said when asked about his individual goals for the season. “This past weekend at UVA was a great start — I want to continue on that trajectory and try to learn as much as I can from that win moving forward.”

There were many tight matches on Sunday for the men, with both Jack O’Flynn ’27 and Rohan Gondi ’28 also battling to beat their opponents 3–2 to turn the competition in favor of the Bulldogs.

On Sunday, the women also began match play but couldn’t scrape the wins they hoped for, ultimately falling 8–1 to the sixth-ranked Hoos.

Sixth seed Whitney Taylor ’26 was able to fight for the only Bulldog win, beating her opponent 3–2. 

“The toughest part about this weekend of competition was playing in front of their home crowd, especially after the long days of travel,” women’s captain Nina Mital ’25 said. “Many of the close matches did not end up going our way.”

As the Bulldogs head into the regular season, the men’s team is ranked second nationally, and the women’s team is slotted at seventh.

“The final result was 7–2, but that doesn’t really capture how tight this match was. We started down 1–2, and I am proud of how we responded as a team,” men’s captain Maxwell Orr ’25 said about the men’s team’s overall performance this weekend. “That first wave of three matches consisted of the three seniors in the lineup, so for the rest of the team to clean up our rough start and go 6–0 led by four underclassmen reflected great maturity and composure in a challenging setting.”

Looking ahead, the women play Georgetown University (0–2, 0–0 NCAA Big East) on Saturday, Dec. 7, in Washington, DC, and Drexel University (4–1, 0–0 MASC) on Sunday, Dec. 8. 

The men play Drexel University (4–1, 0–0 MASC) in Philadelphia, Pa. on Dec. 8, their last match before the new year. 

The post SQUASH: Men’s and women’s squash kick-off season play against UVA appeared first on Yale Daily News.

The Elis hosted the event at the Payne Whitney Gymnasium’s Brady Squash Center, welcoming the other Ivy League Schools, except Brown, to New Haven. As preparation for the regular season, which will begin on Nov. 17, the scrimmage gave the Elis a chance to scope out the competition. 

Lynn Leong, head coach and Brooks G. Ragen Director of Squash at Yale, explained to the News that the scrimmage offered the team “a valuable testing ground to see where both teams stand.”

Leong worked with both teams ahead of the scrimmage to train them for the high level of competition. 

“We prepared for this weekend by focusing on our mental readiness and taking care of our bodies to perform at our best,” Leong wrote to the News.

On Saturday morning, the women’s team triumphed against Cornell in the quarterfinals, advancing to the semifinals against Princeton. However, the women’s team fell to Princeton on Saturday afternoon. Sunday, the women’s team took on Penn in the consolation bracket. 

The men’s team also beat Cornell in the quarterfinals and defeated the Tigers in the semifinals, continuing to the finals against Penn on Sunday morning. 

Per Ivy League rules, the scrimmage results were not released. 

Reflecting on the men’s team’s performance in the scrimmage, captain Maxwell Orr ’25 was proud of the team’s advancement to the finals.

“There were some great results this weekend, and reaching the final for the first time in my time here is definitely a promising start to the season. I am particularly proud of the underclassmen on the team that pulled out some big wins and demonstrated a high level of maturity,” Orr wrote to the News. 

Men’s first years Rohan Gondi ’28 and Rishi Srivastava ’28 put up impressive performances in their first scrimmage at the collegiate level, both going undefeated (3–0) in their matches against Cornell, Princeton and Penn. 

On the women’s team, first years Heng Wai Wong ’28, Spring Ma ’28 and Meha Shah ’28 “displayed great resilience and competitive spirit. They all brought an exciting energy and fight to the court,” Leong said.

The men’s team enters the 2024-25 season, having finished third nationally in the CSA Team Championship for the last several years and with a pre-season ranking of #2 in the Ivy League; the women’s team is ranked No. 7.

Leong wrote to the News that her primary goals for the teams this season are working hard to maintain their positions and advance further in the Ivy League and CSA Team Championship.

“Both teams aim to secure a top 4 position this season. With our men’s national preseason ranking at No. 2, we’re focused on maintaining our position while striving to give ourselves a shot at reaching the national championships finals and strongly contending for the Ivy League title. On the women’s side, with a preseason ranking at No. 7, we’re focused on progressing steadily, moving forward as the season unfolds. We recognize the hard work ahead and are committed to staying on track, focusing on our process and continuous improvement throughout the season.”

Echoing Leong, Orr looks forward to a competitive final season with the team. 

“My hope for this team is to have no regrets after the season. We want to be thoughtful in our approach day in and day out, and if we do the little things right, I am confident that we’ll have a successful year.”

As captain, Orr is excited to welcome the newcomers and encourage returning teammates on and off the court. 

“The appeal of college squash is the high pressure moments when the outcome of the match is up in the air — I’m excited to support my teammates in those settings and hopefully play in a few myself.” 

Although the teams will have competition in the Ivy League, Orr’s main goal for the team is consistency, especially when facing Trinity College, whom the Bulldogs fell to in the 2024 CSA Team Championship. 

The teams now prepare to take on UVA in their first regular season match. 

“The Ivy scrimmage has been instrumental as a preview and gauge, providing us with insights on areas to fine-tune for our UVA match. Our training has been productive, and as we move forward, we’re focusing on managing our training load effectively while dedicating time to analyzing gameplay and refining our strategic approach,” Leong wrote to the News. 

Hosting many matches this season at the Brady Squash Center, Orr is excited for fans to enjoy the unique, close-up experience of watching squash, where fans are in on the action. 

“Anyone watching is immediately outside of the court and can really impact the feel of the match,” Orr wrote to the News. 

Mihnea Udroiu ’28 could feel the excited energy Orr described when watching the scrimmage on Saturday.

“Even though it was a scrimmage, they were very concentrated … everybody was taking it seriously,” Udroiu told the News. 

The Bulldogs will begin their regular season, playing UVA on Sunday, Nov. 17 in Charlottesville, VA.

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The men’s team fell to the University of Pennsylvania (12–1, 5–0 Ivy) on Saturday, but ended the weekend with a victory against Princeton University (7–2, 4–1 Ivy) on Sunday. 

On Saturday, the men’s team took on the Quakers at the Brady Squash Center in a series of close matches, ultimately falling 7–2. It was a hard-fought match, as Penn is ranked No. 1 and had been undefeated all season until their loss to Trinity College (13–0, 0–0 NESCAC) on Feb. 4. 

On Sunday, the men rallied against Princeton, beating the Tigers with a dominant 7–2 win. 

Sunday night’s game celebrated the three graduating seniors: Yee Xian Siow ’24, Brian Leonard ’24, and Jed Burde ’24 for their last home game at the Brady Squash Center. 

“From this weekend, we had a tough loss against Penn, but I feel like we collectively rallied as a team and played with a lot of confidence and enthusiasm going into the Princeton match,” Lachlan Sutton ’27 wrote to the News. “We are always in each other’s corners, win or lose, and that helps us play to the best of our abilities and get these big wins.”

Siow, in his last point of his last match at the Brady Squash Center, hit an outright winner to beat his Princeton opponent in his final match at home as a Bulldog. It was an emotional moment for the Blue and White, as Siow has played No. 1 on the ladder for both his junior and senior years. 

On Saturday, the women’s team competed against Penn (​​10–3, 3–2 Ivy), securing a hard-fought 6–3 win. The Bulldogs have been victorious over the Quakers for the past six years. 

On Sunday, the women competed against Princeton (8–2, 4–1 Ivy) but fell to the Tigers with a final score of 2–7. The women put up a good fight, though, with Christy Lau ’25 and Mika Bardin ’26 winning their matches 3–2.    

Sunday night’s game celebrated the three graduating seniors: Elisabeth Ross ’24, Gigi Yeung ’24 and Sneha Sivakumar ’24 for their final home game at the Brady Squash Center.  

“I think this past weekend really emphasized for our team that we are capable of competing at a high level against top ranked teams,” Meghna Sreedhar ’25 wrote to the News. “Knowing this will help motivate us through Nationals in a couple of weeks.” 

On Wednesday, the women concluded their regular season with a match against Trinity College (11–0, 0–0 NESCAC), falling 8–1. Lindsay Westerfield ’25 clinched a victory in the No. 9 spot, while Ross, Yeung and Rashi Goverdhanam ’27 all displayed strong efforts, narrowly missing out with five games apiece. 

“As a team, we have been working hard on physical, mental and technical aspects of the game,” Sivakumar wrote to the News. “The focus these next few weeks leading up to Nationals will definitely be on pushing our physical fitness up another level as well as mental fitness.” 

Looking ahead, the men will travel to Hartford on Friday to compete against Trinity for their last match of the 2023-24 season. 

Both the men’s and women’s teams are getting ready for the College Squash Association National Championships that will be held at the end of February and the beginning of March.

The post SQUASH: Men’s and women’s squash round out Ivy competition over weekend, women fall to Trinity in mid-week match appeared first on Yale Daily News.

against Columbia University (4–5, 0–3 Ivy) on Saturday then traveled up to Ithaca, NY to face off against Cornell University (7–4, 0–3 Ivy) on Sunday. These pivotal matches marked significant milestones in their quest for an Ivy title.

On Saturday, the Bulldogs played Columbia, clinching a narrow victory against the Lions with a score of 5–4.

Siow Yee Xian ’24 secured an impressive straight-set win as the No. 1 seeded player for the Blue and White, maintaining his undefeated streak for the season, a streak that would be broken the next day after he fell to the Big Red.

“The highlight for me is definitely coming back from 2–4 and beating Columbia 5–4,” Siow Yee Xian wrote to the News. “This really showed that all of the work we’ve done on and off court is paying off, especially on the mental side where the whole team stayed really positive and composed no matter whether we were winning or losing.”

The Bulldogs have 12 wins and five losses against the Lions since 2011. In 2023, they beat

Columbia in a commanding 9–0 showing.

On Sunday, the Bulldogs competed against Cornell with a decisive victory over the Big Red.

“My favorite moment was watching Lachlan [Sutton ’27] clinch the win against Cornell,” Tad Carney ’26 wrote to the News. “It was a big moment for him and the team, making it a lot less stressful than it was against Columbia the day before.”

The Bulldogs beat the Big Red 7–2. Tad Carney, Nikhil Ismail ’25 and Brian Leonard ’24 all beat their opponents in dominant 3–0 games.

Since 2011, the Bulldogs have 15 wins and one loss against Cornell. The Bulldogs beat the Big Red last season with a score of 9–0.

Looking ahead, the Bulldogs take on the University of Pennsylvania and Princeton University this weekend at home. These games mark the last two conference matches before the men’s team gears up for the College Squash Association National Championships.

“Throughout this week, [men’s and women’s head coach] Lynn [Leong] and the rest of the coaching staff have maintained the team’s focus on the week’s goal: defeating Penn and Princeton,” men’s captain Brian Leonard wrote to the News. “Playing Ivy matches are always tough, but the team is ready for a big weekend ahead.”

Games this weekend against UPenn and Princeton start at 12 p.m. Saturday and Sunday, respectively, at the Brady Squash Center inside Payne Whitney Gymnasium.

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Of the men’s team, Siow Yee Xian ’24, Maxwell Orr ’25, Arav Bhagwati ’26 and Nikhil Ismail ’25 competed in the CSA Individual Championships. Xian and Orr competed in the A Division Pool Trophy, while Bhagwati and Ismail competed in the B Division East Molloy Cup. Merritt Wurts ’25 and Taylor Clayton ’25 played in the doubles championship as partners. 

“I think the atmosphere of the whole event is really nice,” Wurts wrote to the News. “It’s very laid back in comparison to the regular season. It’s also a great opportunity to play with one of your friends. Doubles still has the competitive edge but in the end we’re all just there because we enjoy the game.”

Of the women’s team, Elisabeth Ross ’24 played singles in the A Division Ramsay Cup and Whitney Taylor ’26 played singles in the B Division Holleran Cup.  

On Friday, Xian lost in a close 3–2 match against his Princeton University opponent, Karim Elbarbary. Later in the day, he defeated his Rochester opponent, Yash Fadte, 3–0.

Orr fell to his Harvard University opponent, ​​Marwan Tarek, 3–0, but rallied to beat his University of Virginia opponent,​​ Omar El Torkey, 3–1 on the same day. Both Xian and Orr moved on to the consolation semifinals.

“My personal highlight this weekend was upsetting the top seeds as a No. 7 seed, and making the final,” Bhagwati wrote to the News. “Since I was seeded lower, I played with no pressure which allowed me to play freely … playing this tournament has given me a huge confidence boost which I will bring into next season.”

Bhagwati had a strong performance on Saturday, beating his Chatham opponent Sebastian Vaca Sanchez and Cornell University opponent Aaron Liang 3–0, which moved him on to the national semifinals. 

Ismail beat his Colby College opponent Youssif Mostafa 3–0 on Friday, but fell to his St. Lawrence University opponent Lewis Anderson 2–3. 

In their opening match of the doubles bracket, Wurts and Clayton defeated their St. Lawrence opponents Tray Denman and Henry Worden. 

Among the women’s team, Taylor defeated her Middlebury College opponent Lindsey Burnham 3–1, but fell to her Princeton opponent Caroline Spahr 3–0. Taylor finished 5–8 in her draw in the Holleran Cup. Ross fell to both her Harvard opponent Marina Stefanoni and Stanford opponent Si Ma, finishing 13–16 in her draw in the Ramsay Cup. 

On Saturday, Bhagwati, playing individually, and Wurts and Clayton, playing doubles, both beat their opponents. Bhagwati beat his Drexel opponent Jose Andres Lopez 3–2, and Wurts and Clayton beat their Middlebury opponents 3–1. Bhagwati, Wurts and Clayton advanced in their respective divisions.  

Wurts and Clayton won both their matches on Saturday against their Brown University and Middlebury opponents. 

In consultation matches on Saturday, Xian rallied hard to beat his Harvard opponent Ido Burstein 3–1, while Orr fell to his University of Pennsylvania opponent Nathan Tze Bing Kueh 3–1. The next day, Bhagwati competed in the finals for the Molloy East Championship, falling to his St. Lawrence opponent Lewis Anderson 3–1. No. 7 Bhagwati finished second in the Molloy East Championship. 

Wurts and Clayton competed in the doubles semifinals, losing to their Naval Academy opponents Millen Randell and Henry Sparkman 3–1. The Bulldog pair finished 3–4 in the Intercollegiate Doubles Championships. 

“One of the most challenging aspects of Individual Championships is competing after the team season has finished,” assistant coach Tate Miller wrote to the News. “Every one of our players demonstrated perseverance and a strong mindset to give themselves the best chance on court. Seeing the group we brought down to Philadelphia support each other and fight for the All American status is something I truly enjoyed.”

Xian competed in the Pool Trophy consolation finals, ultimately losing to his UPenn opponent Nathan Tze Bing Kueh 3–2.  

The men’s and women’s squash teams have officially finished regular season and tournament play. They will have a short break before they begin practicing and preparing for the 2023-2024 season. 

The post SQUASH: Bulldogs compete in CSA Individuals and Doubles Championships appeared first on Yale Daily News.

The men competed at Trinity College’s George A. Kellner Squash Courts in Hartford, Connecticut. The Bulldogs entered the tournament as the No. 4 seed and finished third in this year’s Potter Cup with wins over the University of Virginia (13–4, 0–0 MASC) and the University of Pennsylvania (16–3, 5–1 Ivy). 

“The past weekend proved that we are one of the best teams in the country,” assistant coach Tate Miller wrote to the News. “The squash that the men played was absolutely brilliant and all of them should be proud of the teamwork and passion that they displayed, and we will be going into the offseason with plenty of confidence for next season.”

The Bulldogs played the Cavaliers back in November to start Yale’s 2022-2023 regular season, beating UVA with the same score of 6–3. 

On Saturday, the Bulldogs played in the semifinals against the undefeated No. 1 Harvard University team (16–0, 6–0 Ivy). The Blue and White fell to the Crimson 6–3. There were many close matches against the Crimson, with Brian Leonard ’24 and Maxwell Orr ’25 both losing their matches with a tight scoreline of 2–3. 

On Sunday, the Bulldogs competed in the 3/4 playoffs against the University of Pennsylvania and played their last matches of the tournament. The men had a hard fight and rallied to beat the Quakers 5–4, which placed them third in the tournament. 

“The team showed incredible grit and resilience on Sunday in the 3/4 playoff after losing to Harvard in a heartbreaking semifinal,” Nikhil Ismail ’24 wrote to the News. “We were able to bounce back from that loss and take down a team that we hadn’t beaten in 7 years in what was a true team effort. Everyone from positions 1–14 contributed to our success this season on and off the court and I think this weekend proved that.”

Ismail was last on for the Bulldogs in a game-deciding match, with the Bulldogs and the Quakers tied 4–4. He battled to beat his opponent 3–2, turning the victory over to the Bulldogs. Merritt Wurts ’25 played an important role for the Bulldogs by also winning with a close match of 3–2. 

This was an exciting win for the Blue and White, as the men broke their 10-match losing streak against the Quakers. 

“We proved to ourselves that we belong up there with the best teams in the country,” team captain Eric Kim ’23 wrote to the News. “It’s been a privilege to captain this group of guys this year. They made my job easy and although we didn’t reach our goal of winning a national championship, I’d rather lose with this team than win with another.”

Kim is the only graduating senior seeded in the top nine. 

Looking ahead, some of the Bulldogs will compete in the CSA Individual and Doubles Championships at the Arlen Specter US Squash Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, during the weekend of March 1. 

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After a weekend of competition, the women fell to Trinity College (18–1, 0–0 NESCAC) and Drexel University (13–4, 0–0 MASC) and rallied to beat Cornell University (9–8, 5–2 Ivy) in the Howe Cup.  

On Friday, the women began CSA Championship play against No. 1 Trinity, falling 0–9 to the Bantams. 

“I think this weekend of competition taught our team to really believe in the process,” Meghna Sreedhar ’25 wrote to the News. “We had some tough competition but were able to find successful moments in all of our matches by sticking to the game plan and working for every point. My personal highlight of the weekend was watching my teammates put in their best efforts for our final matches of the season.”

On Saturday, the women continued into the consolation set of matches. The Bulldogs fell to the No. 4 Dragons 2–7. The Blue and White fought hard, with Whitney Taylor ’26 and Joy Qu ’26 both losing their matches with close scorelines of 2–3. 

On Sunday, the Bulldogs rallied after a long weekend to compete in their final match of the Howe Cup against No. 6 Cornell. The Bulldogs were victorious over the Big Red 5–4. Sreedhar, Mika Bardin ’26, Lindsay Westerfield ’25, Qu and captain Brianna Jefferson ’23 won their matches for the Bulldogs. 

“The team faced tough opponents this past weekend, but showed grit to flip the Cornell result from earlier in the season, demonstrating that the more determined team will come out victorious,” assistant coach Tate Miller wrote to the News. “I will always remember watching Joy Qu come back from 10–7 down in the fifth game against Cornell and clinching the match for the Bulldogs.”

Yale women’s squash entered the 2022–2023 Howe Cup as the eighth seed and finished seventh in this year’s National Collegiate Women’s Varsity Team Championship. The top five finishers in this year’s CSA championships were Harvard (14–1, 6–0 Ivy), Trinity, University of Virginia (13–7, 0–0 MASC), Drexel and Columbia (5–8, 3–3 Ivy).  

Last year, the Bulldogs entered the tournament as the fifth seed and finished fourth. 

“I am really proud of the team for their tenacity this season,” Jefferson wrote to the News. “We had a lot of setbacks with injuries and such, but I am so glad that we were able to finish strong through nationals.”

Harvard women’s squash won this year’s Howe Cup. The Crimson has won the CSA Team National Championships every year since 2015, except 2021 when there was no tournament play due to COVID-19. 

Looking ahead, the Bulldogs will compete in the College Squash Association Individual and Doubles Championships at the Arlen Specter US Squash Center in Philadelphia, PA during the weekend of March 1. 

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On Saturday, the men played Western at the University of Rochester’s squash center, beating the Mustangs 9–0. Eight out of the nine ladder players beat their opponents 3–0. 

“Going into Nationals it was good to get some more match experience under our belts,” Maxwell Orr ’25 wrote to the News. “There were a lot of solid wins throughout the entire ladder over the weekend, when at this level of college squash nothing is a guarantee. We are looking to build off these results and make some strides in the next couple weeks as we prepare for a championship run.” 

The Bulldogs have five wins and zero losses against Western since 2011. In 2021, the men beat the Mustangs in a commanding 9–0 showing. 

On Sunday, the Bulldogs competed against the University of Rochester at the Lyman Squash Center, the Yellowjackets’ home court. 

“The matches this weekend were a good test of the team’s adaptability and mental agility,” assistant coach Tate Miller wrote to the News. “Looking forward, we know that both Men’s and Women’s Team Nationals will test our talented teams and are preparing our teams to enjoy and embrace that challenge.”

The Bulldogs beat the Yellowjackets 7–2. Eric Kim ’23, Brian Leonard ’24, Arav Bhagwati ’26, Jed Burde ’24 and Siow Yee Xian ’24 all beat their opponents in dominant 3–0 games.

Since 2011, the Bulldogs have nine wins and seven losses against the Yellowjackets. The Bulldogs beat the Yellowjackets last season with a score of 8–1. 

Looking ahead, both the men’s and women’s (5–5, 3–3 Ivy) squash teams are preparing for the College Squash Association Nationals Championship. The men are competing at Trinity College in Hartford, CT and the women are playing at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia, PA. 

“After finishing out our regular season, our coaches have done a fantastic job identifying where we can improve,” men’s captain Eric Kim ’23 wrote to the News. “We like where we’re at physically, but can always improve and will hope to make more strides in the next two weeks. Competition is the fun part so we’re looking forward to our first match at nationals after a hard two week training block.”

The CSA Team Championships will be held over the weekend on February 24 through 26.

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