William Boyle, Hobart’s captain, reports on the team’s trip to California. Images courtesy of the Hobart Squash Facebook page.
Geneva, NY — During this past winter break the Hobart men’s squash team was fortunate enough to take part in a training trip to Palo Alto, California. In order to raise money for the trip the team enlisted the support of alumni, friends, and family as well as participated in call-a-thons. The team raised additional funds by selling custom Harrow rackets designed in Hobart colors to the student body. Fund raising proved to be successful and on January 11, 2014 the Hobart men’s squash team traveled to Palo Alto! Despite the excitement of embarking on the team’s first winter training trip, Coach Tim Riskie and each player traveled to California with one clear goal in mind: to beat the Stanford men’s team. The 2012-2013 season saw Hobart and Stanford play two matches resulting in two Stanford victories so the Hobart team surely had their work cut out.
The first two days of the trip the Hobart team practiced twice a day at Stanford’s beautiful squash courts housed in the recreational sports building on campus. The players chose to spend their free time recovering, soaking up rays by the hotel pool and exploring the pleasant city of Palo Alto. The third day of the trip the Hobart team practiced in the morning then traveled to San Francisco to see the beautiful sights including Alcatraz and Fisherman’s Warf. Fun was had by all, but the Stanford match, which would take place the very next day, was in the back on everyone’s mind. After a light hit in the morning the team relaxed then traveled back to the courts and began preparing for the upcoming match. To Coach Riskie’s pleasure the team performed strongly and came away with a 7-2 win. Seniors William Boyle (#4) and Billy Abrams (#1) both received victories, Billy in three games and William in 4. Junior McGee O’Neil (#6) and Sophomore Danny Cabrera (#5) both played strong matches and won in three games. Freshmen Scott Marcus (#7) and Art Martella (#9) also won decisively in three games, while freshman Felipe Pantle (#2) won in four games. Freshman Bo Orchard (#3) and sophomore Michael Woods (#8) were the only Statesmen who lost; Bo losing in a five-game battle and Michael losing in three games.
While Hobart won their only formal match of the trip, they were also able to play the Olympic Club men’s team in San Francisco. The Olympic Club is home to many talented players, and they were able to beat Hobart 7-2. However, fun was had by all while playing singles matches and a few exhibition doubles matches.
The trip was an enormous success; it gave the Hobart team a chance to form relationships with Stanford’s players and Coach Mark Talbot and a chance to explore an exciting part of the country.
