But the Tigers face two essential questions: Will juniors Chris Callis and Kelly Shannon rebound to their full playing potential? And who outside the top four will step up on game day? If the answer to the first question is yes, and everyone comes ready to play, this could be the season Princeton has been waiting for.
Senior co-captain Dave Letourneau said the Tigers’ edge this year will be their experience. The team currently has nine seniors and four very strong juniors. More importantly, a lot of these upperclassmen have yet to begin their Princeton squash careers.
“Not everyone has played, so everybody is really hungry. Everyone has been waiting for this moment,” Letourneau said. “These are the kind of guys I know I can bank on, since they all want it so bad.”
The starting nine are especially talented players who are challenged from the bottom of the team’s roster. “I find it personally more encouraging for guys who are 15 and 16 to be working really hard in practice. That encourages everyone,” Letourneau said. “When we create this chain effect, suddenly everyone is working hard together, and it is going to push everyone on the team up through the No. 1 spot.”
As much as they value depth and experience, the Tigers have found the team much more enjoyable since welcoming freshmen Dylan Ward and Ash Egan. Ward has faced some injuries this season but continues to outrun almost everyone else on the team.
“They have been battling in the lineup and beating some of the top guys,” Letourneau said of the two freshmen. “They are both really going to make an impact.”
Not only do they add skill and precision, they also add to the team’s quirkiness. Letourneau said they are “both great people in terms of team character.”
“The squash team is just like a quirky human being factory. We bask in our quirks,” senior co-captain Peter Sopher said.
Sopher also cited sophomore No. 1 Todd Harrity as one of the funniest guys on the team. He is also one of the best. Harrity just returned from representing the United States in the Pan-Am ericaGames, and he claimed All-America honors along with Letourneau last season.
Harrity certainly is not the only talented player on the team. “We are a deep team. That is definitely another one of our strengths,” Letournaeu said.
One of the biggest deciding factors for Princeton this season is whether Callis and Shannon both rehabilitate their long-standing injuries, who are both still playing despite not being at full capacity. If this is the case, Sopher said, “We could potentially have the best four players in the country.”
The Tigers face much-improved teams this season.
“We could conceivably lose to Cornell but beat Trinity,” Sopher said. “Each game is completely even when you go in, which is different than two years ago when Trinity and us were the only two battling it out. The key will be team toughness and readiness — who will be able to survive the fray.”
The team feels that it is doing things a little differently this season to come out on top of the even pack. Each practice is individualized so that each player can work on aspects specific to his own game.
“Each individual is taking responsibility for themselves and their own game,” Letourneau said.
That being said, the Tigers are focused on remaining together as a team, because in the end it is the team score that matters. “You can look after yourself, but you also need to look after the team,” Letourneau explained. “Every week we play challenge matches so you can go at it, but in the end we need to come together as a team.”
Going into the season, the team is dedicated, hard working and ready for top spot.
“What you are guaranteed on the squash team is love for the game,” Sopher said. That love is what the Tigers hope will take them to No. 1 this year.
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