For El-Halaby, three crowns down, one to go

Last year, the men's squash team faced some extremely difficult opening conditions when five of the projected nine starters decided not to play and several others were injured. Depth will no longer be an issue this year as a strong group of freshmen will don the Orange and Black for the first time this weekend in a scrimmage against Yale and Harvard.

Last year's team boasted a third-place national performance, and with the strength of the incoming freshman class, fans have every reason to expect the Tigers to do even better this season.

"We hope to do [as well as last season] or maybe better this year," head coach Bob Callahan '77 said. "We graduated only the No. 9 player and got three very strong freshmen."

Though new to the college game, the three freshmen are veterans to squash, and not just at the high school level. They have all also competed at the international level. Playing in the No. 2 position, freshman Mauricio Sanchez is certainly not new to high-caliber competition. Hailing from Mexico City, Sanchez was named one of the top players in his age group in North America.

"The transition from the high school level to college level hasn't been so difficult because I used to train with some college and pro players," Sanchez said.

In the third spot, freshman Kimlee Wong has no less impressive credentials: he was named the top high school player in Europe. Playing at No. 4, freshman Hesham El-Halaby is already comfortable on campus and on the team. His older brother is three-time national champion senior Yasser El-Halaby, who occupies the No. 1 spot on the team.

"It's great having a family member at Princeton, and it's even better having him on the team," Hesham said.

Yasser will be looking to make collegiate squash history once again this season by adding a fourth national championship to his record three. Callahan stressed that it is certainly within his reach.

"It all comes down to one weekend," Callahan said of Yasser's prospects at a fourth championship. "Assuming he is healthy and playing well, he's certainly got a chance to win a fourth one. There are some very strong rivals, but we're hopeful he will continue to play as well as he has."

Along with Yasser, all of last year's starters but one will return this season.

"We have the talent to go as far as we want to nationally. It is up to us to put in the effort, and the rest will take care of itself," junior Michael Gilman said. "Up and down the lineup we are strong. There is no area in the lineup where we feel weak or vulnerable."

While there are high expectations on the C-floor of Jadwin this year, it will certainly take a lot of hard work to overcome the traditional powerhouses. Harvard and Yale have always been tough matches for the Tigers, though seven-time national champion Trinity College will pose the greatest challenge for Princeton.

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The Tigers also have to be on the lookout for other rising schools that are quickly filling in what has traditionally been an Ivy League-dominated sport.

"The level of college squash is improving rapidly, and the teams are getting more competitive by the year," Yasser said.

Princeton will nevertheless be fit to meet the challenge. Though they only started regular practices on Oct. 15, the Tigers have long been focusing on getting back into shape to meet the physical demands of this grueling game. Over Fall Break, the team stayed on campus for twice-a-day practices in order to prepare for this weekend's scrimmage.

Though the strong freshman class and the large number of returning players seem to spell out success, this weekend will provide a clearer indication of what this year's team can accomplish — Princeton travels to New Haven for a scrimmage against the Yale and Harvard squads.

"For the scrimmage, I'm a little bit scared that I might not play because my shoulder has been hurting quite a lot," Sanchez said. "But if I can play and if Hesham and Yasser can play as well, I think we have a good chance to beat Harvard in the final."

Regular season play will then open on Nov. 21 against Cornell and Western Ontario. The Tigers will then have their first home match against Franklin and Marshall on Nov. 31.