Personal titles fall just out of reach

On the men’s side, Trinity College and Princeton dominated the draw. Two players from each university made it to the semifinals. For Princeton, juniors Mauricio Sanchez and Kimlee Wong both advanced to the semifinals while Bantams Baset Chaudry and Gustav Detter won their first three matches to earn faceoffs with these Tigers.

Sanchez, the No. 2-seeded player in the draw, fell to Detter in four close games. Sanchez stormed back in the second game, winning 9-3, after Detter opened with a 9-5 win. In the pivotal game, however, Detter edged Sanchez 10-9. The defeat left Sanchez with a two-to-one deficit, which ultimately proved too much for the two-time All-American. Sanchez played another scrappy game but lost 9-6.

“I played well for most of the weekend,” Sanchez said. “Unfortunately, I made my second-round match tougher than I needed to, and it took some of the energy that I could’ve used better for the rest of the weekend.”

Sanchez went on to explain the difficulties that came with the tournament’s uniquely draining schedule.

“The tournament has a difficult format in which we play two tough matches on Friday and Saturday,” Sanchez said. “You have to be really efficient with your performances if you want to physically survive through the later rounds.”

Considered one of squash’s elite endurance athletes, Sanchez battled cramps throughout the match. Speed and running often prove to be the difference between players of this caliber, as each player’s technique and racquet are phenomenal. While unforced errors do occur, the elite player’s ability to move his opponent around the court is his fundamental strength.

This turns squash into a game more of strategy than of brute force. With Sanchez slightly slowed by fatigue, his reaction time had to be that much better to compete against a top-shelf rival like Detter. Sanchez’s cramps were a huge advantage for Detter when he faced the normally nimble Tiger.

On a side note, freshman standout Dave Letourneau advanced to the quarterfinals in his first attempt at the Porter Cup. He fell to Sanchez in the quarterfinals, as Sanchez won, 9-3, 9-0, 9-2. Letourneau should be serious candidate for All-American standing.

In the other semifinal, Wong faced No. 1 seed Chaudry of Trinity. Wong had earlier advanced to his first semifinal by upsetting the No. 4 seed, Harvard’s Colin West, 2-9, 9-2, 9-3, 9-4. Upsets in college squash occur rarely because the difference in skill level between players tends to be fairly pronounced, which makes Wong’s victory all the more impressive. After his win, Wong fell in three games, 9-3, 9-5, 9-0, to Chaudry. Chaudry ultimately went on to win the Porter Cup.

For the women, sophomore Neha Kumar was the only player to advance past the first round. Unfortunately for Princeton, the national champion Tigers ran into a talented group of individuals from the other top teams.

Kumar advanced to the quarterfinal before being edged in three close games, 9-6, 9-7, 9-7, to the eventual champion, Yale’s Miranda Ranieri.

“Physically, I was not feeling that great,” Kumar said. “My ankle was hurting a lot still from the matches last week even though I let it rest all week, but regardless of that, Miranda is a great player and came out strong in every match at the tournament. I’ve played with her a few times in the past two seasons I’ve played for Princeton, and it’s always been a hard close match that goes either way.”

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Yet the squash season ends with hope for the future. The women’s side loses its three tri-captains to graduation, but the men lose only one member of their current starting lineup. With a strong returning cast, the Tigers look primed for next season.