St. Louis, MO — Washington University in St. Louis topped an impressive debut season in 2011 with solid improvement in 2012. The Bears came home from their first trip to the Men’s National Team Championships with the 2011 G Division title. Last season, they rocketed up the rankings, improving from 50th to 37th. Wash U is now pointed at the D Division and the top 32, and they have six additions to the roster who should help take them there. Sheldon Pariser and Stirling Hedderich are returning from study abroad and are expected to play in the top 5. First-year Mark Temple (Rye Country Day) should also play in the top half of the line-up. Lyall Cooper (Menlo School) will fit in somewhere in the middle of the order, and Trevor Newman (Wakefield School) and Brendan Sturm (Packer Collegiate) will compete for spots in the top 9. In addition to the new players, the team has two newly converted courts to train on and a new coach, Mike Puertas. Captain Luke Shapiro, who has been instrumental in launching the team, encourages new players to check out WashU squash: “This year marks the transition to a real competitive team. Our program is changing rapidly. If you want to be a part of WU history, our team is the team to join.”
2011-2012 SEASON RECAP
Season Record: 6-3
Final Ranking: 37
Team Championships: 5th in the Chaffee Cup (E Division)
2012-2013 SEASON PREVIEW
Program Status: Club
Head Coach: Luke Shapiro
Returning Players from Team Championships: 1. Hunter Williams; 2. James Underwood; 3. Wonkyu Seo; 4. Dylan Heckscher; 5. Zac Bluestone; 6. Lawrence Liu; 7. Luke Shapiro; 8. Jim Keaney; 9. Adam Kurtz; 10. Kasidis Horsangchai
Additions to the 2012-2013 Roster:
- Expected to play in the top 5: Sheldon Pariser, Stirling Hedderich, and Mark Temple
- Expected to play in the middle 3: Lyall Cooper
- Expected to compete for spots in the top 9: Trevor Newman and Brendan Sturm
Captains: Luke Shapiro
Team Goals: To move up in the rankings to the top 32; to practice more and increase the amount of squash players at Wash U
Key Matches: Navy Round Robin, matches against Midwestern schools
To read other team previews, please visit the 2012-2013 College Squash Season Previews page.
