Women's squash goes for third national title in four years

In both 1998 and 1999, the Princeton women's squash team won the national championship by winning the Howe Cup. Last year, the Tigers stumbled, losing the crown to Ivy-rival Penn. Princeton gets its chance to retake the throne this weekend, when the Howe Cup is contested in New Haven, Conn.

This year's Princeton team will need more help in gaining the national championship than the 1998 and 1999 teams. Midway through the season, the Tigers lost their No. 3 player when freshman Akanksha Hazari decided to leave the team.

Even Princeton's most dependable player, senior superstar Julia Beaver, has proven fallible this year. Beaver lost a dual-meet match for the first time in her career against Penn earlier this season.

The Tigers lost that match against the Quakers, 6-3, as well as two others to Harvard and Brown (6-3 and 5-4, respectively).

Those are the only teams that have given Princeton much trouble so far this year, and should be the three most likely challengers to the Tigers this weekend.

Even with three losses, however, it is impossible to ignore Princeton as a contender for any year's national women's squash championship.