The St. Lawrence men’s squash team is off to just the start they were hoping for. They earned a 2-0 record through the first two matches of the season against two top-ten teams. They opened the season last Saturday against Ivy League powerhouse Princeton, beating them five matches to four. The Tigers were ranked eighth in the country heading in to the match and had already achieved a 2-0 record, while the Saints were ranked No. 3 heading into the match. The Saints took their matchups at 2,3,4,6, and 7 ranks to overcome the Tigers. On Sunday, the Saints traveled to the University of Pennsylvania to take on the No. 5 ranked Quakers. Penn went into the match unbeaten with a record of 4-0, but the Saints dispatched the Quakers by a score of 6-3. The men’s team plays their next match against Harvard University on Thursday, January 11 in Cambridge. Harvard is ranked No. 2 in the nation behind perennial powerhouse Trinity College.
The members of the men’s squash team come from very diverse backgrounds. There are eight players that hail from Egypt. Athletes also come from Hungary, the U.K., India, Hong Kong, Canada, and the United States. In his thirteenth year at the helm of both the men’s and women’s squash programs, Coach Chris Abplanalp believes that this might be the best men’s team he has ever coached. Coach Abplanalp said that the top five spots on the ladder are interchangeable, which is certainly a testament to the amount of talent on the squad.
The women’s squash team has gotten off to a 0-2 start on the season. Coach Ablanalp explained that the 1,2, and 3 players from last season all graduated. He went on to say that with the addition of five new players, the depth of the team is incredible, and that the future is very bright for the program. The Saints are ranked No. 22 in the country and were beaten by The University of Virginia and Middlebury College who are ranked No. 13 and No. 15 respectively.
The men’s and women’s squash teams will both be able to defend their home court against formidable opponents in the coming months. The men’s team will play Yale and Columbia on January 20 and 21 and the following weekend are scheduled to play the No. 1 ranked Trinity Bantams in the Robie Squash Center. The women’s squash team matches up against Hamilton College on January 29.