I am finally recovering from the most difficult squash loss of my Vassar career, losing 3-2 with three tie breaking 13-11 losses. I scored more points than my opponent and still managed to lose, which is almost unheard of. It was senior day and friends and family packed the stands at Kenyon Hall, adorned in maroon and gray, waving signs for senior team members. We were all excited and anxious to face Wesleyan in our last regular season match.
We lost 5-4 and there are five graduating seniors. All five seniors lost. I am still in disbelief. Each one of us wanted to win our last home match so desperately, and yet, we all lost. think in some ways it was a testament to how difficult it was for all of us to realize that it was our final match at Vassar and how much the past four years have meant to us. I know I was starting to feel emotional during our warm up, knowing this will be the last time I warm up on our home courts and play for Vassar in Kenyon.
It was hard for all of us to lose, and hard for the team to fall to Wesleyan, a team we have consistently beaten over the last four years. It was even harder to leave the courts that day, knowing that I would be back for practices, but not for another Vassar match. So many of my Vassar memories are squash related, as my teammates were the first friends I made upon arrival freshman year.
The women’s team heads to nationals this Friday at Yale seated second, just behind Wesleyan. We have a tough schedule ahead of us, but we are a close-knit team with big hearts and high hopes for victories this weekend. We have our eyes on the Walker Cup and the seniors would love to bring it home to Vassar to end our careers on a high note. Go Brewers!
Thursday, February 25, 2010
Thursday, February 11, 2010
Winding Down the Regular Season
“Surprise them,” said head coach Jane Parker in the locker room before our match against No. 13 ranked Middlebury. “We have nothing to lose and they have everything to lose. Let’s go out there and surprise them and prove to them how strong we are.”
Although we ended up losing, we certainly did surprise them. While Middlebury expected an easy win, we pushed them to a much closer, 6-3 victory. Emilie Kraft won at the number one spot and Meg Taylor and Alexa Lichtenstein picked up yet another set of wins for Vassar at number six and seven. Libby Pei lost to her opponent in a difficult five game match and many of the other spots had close games that could have gone either way. We left the match with our heads high, confident that we could contend with higher ranked teams, and ready for the Seven Sisters Tournament the following weekend.
We entered Seven Sisters seeded second for another year as Mt. Holyoke has won the last three years and proven to be a difficult team to beat. Our first match, Saturday morning, was against an improved Smith team. We pulled out a fairly easy win, beating Smith 9-0 and advancing to the finals against Mt. Holyoke as we had anticipated.
Mt. Holyoke entered the tournament with an impressive No. 12 ranking and we knew we would have one of our toughest matches of the season ahead of us. We went into the match with the same mentality as Middlebury, wanting to prove, despite our lower ranking, that we could still compete. Kenyon Hall was packed with friends, family, and professors, but Mt. Holyoke once again was too strong for us to beat. A 7-2 loss was still an improvement from last year’s 9-0 defeat. Additionally, although we only won two matches, the scores were much closer as Emilie’s loss consisted of two 12-10 games against Mt. Holyoke’s number one who is ranked No. 54 individually in the CSA. Sophomore Meg Taylor and freshman Alexa Lichtenstein remain forces to be reckoned with and received Liberty League Performer of the week and Rookie of the week respectively, for the second straight week.
As the regular season is drawing to a close with our final home matches being played this Saturday, February 13, at Kenyon Hall, we are hoping to add two more wins to our record before heading to nationals. Now placed in the C division, we have set our goal to win the Walker Cup at Yale, bring the trophy home to Vassar and finish at No. 17, a two spot improvement from last year. Compared with the last three seasons I’ve been here, the growth on the team this year has been exceptional. We are eager and excited to win our remaining matches and continue to improve as a team.
Although we ended up losing, we certainly did surprise them. While Middlebury expected an easy win, we pushed them to a much closer, 6-3 victory. Emilie Kraft won at the number one spot and Meg Taylor and Alexa Lichtenstein picked up yet another set of wins for Vassar at number six and seven. Libby Pei lost to her opponent in a difficult five game match and many of the other spots had close games that could have gone either way. We left the match with our heads high, confident that we could contend with higher ranked teams, and ready for the Seven Sisters Tournament the following weekend.
We entered Seven Sisters seeded second for another year as Mt. Holyoke has won the last three years and proven to be a difficult team to beat. Our first match, Saturday morning, was against an improved Smith team. We pulled out a fairly easy win, beating Smith 9-0 and advancing to the finals against Mt. Holyoke as we had anticipated.
Mt. Holyoke entered the tournament with an impressive No. 12 ranking and we knew we would have one of our toughest matches of the season ahead of us. We went into the match with the same mentality as Middlebury, wanting to prove, despite our lower ranking, that we could still compete. Kenyon Hall was packed with friends, family, and professors, but Mt. Holyoke once again was too strong for us to beat. A 7-2 loss was still an improvement from last year’s 9-0 defeat. Additionally, although we only won two matches, the scores were much closer as Emilie’s loss consisted of two 12-10 games against Mt. Holyoke’s number one who is ranked No. 54 individually in the CSA. Sophomore Meg Taylor and freshman Alexa Lichtenstein remain forces to be reckoned with and received Liberty League Performer of the week and Rookie of the week respectively, for the second straight week.
As the regular season is drawing to a close with our final home matches being played this Saturday, February 13, at Kenyon Hall, we are hoping to add two more wins to our record before heading to nationals. Now placed in the C division, we have set our goal to win the Walker Cup at Yale, bring the trophy home to Vassar and finish at No. 17, a two spot improvement from last year. Compared with the last three seasons I’ve been here, the growth on the team this year has been exceptional. We are eager and excited to win our remaining matches and continue to improve as a team.
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