Dunlop 2015-2016 Men’s College Squash Preseason Team Rankings

In late September, a series of College Squash Association rule changes were announced. This season, only varsity teams will be ranked during the regular season (manually until January 25th, and then by computer algorithm). Club and emerging club programs will only be ranked the week before Team Championships.

For the preseason rankings, varsity coaches were polled to determine the top 25 ranking positions. Nearly all varsity coaches voted, according to the following parameters:

• Coaches were provided with a summary of each school’s team preview information (returning players, graduating/non-returning players, and expected additions) to assist in evaluating the teams.
• Teams received points for every vote they received. For example, each first place vote garnered 25 points, a second place vote garnered 24 points, a third place vote garnered 23 points, etc.
• If there was a tie, the team with the higher ranking at the conclusion of last season received the higher ranking position in the preseason rankings.
• Coaches were not allowed to vote for their own school.
• The poll was based on how strong teams are at the beginning of the season and not how strong teams will be at the end of the season. Coaches took into consideration if players are abroad during the Fall semester.

Last season’s national champions, Trinity, retained the top position in the poll. The varsity coaches moved Harvard to 2nd, followed by St. Lawrence, Rochester, and Columbia. With the talent amongst the top 10 teams, this season should be extremely competitive once again..

Princeton moved up to 8th, while Franklin & Marshall dropped to 9th. Drexel moved up two positions to 10th, followed by Dartmouth and Cornell.

George Washington moved up one position to 13th from Team Championships, while Bates dropped to 14th. Similarly, Brown and Western Ontario switched positions. Brown now occupies the 18th ranking position.

Select schools have already commenced their seasons.  The results of these early matches were not factored into the preseason rankings. 

Teams are reminded that to qualify for the National Team Championships, they must meet minimum match requirements:

• Varsity teams are required to play ten (10) matches against other CSA teams to enter team championships. At minimum, each team should have at least 6 different opponents. Varsity teams should play the majority of their matches against other varsity schools.
• Club teams are required to play eight (8) matches against other CSA teams to enter team championships in a 9 player division. In addition, club teams must play at least four (4) matches between January 1st and February 10th. At minimum, each team should have at least five (5) different opponents.

Below are the 2015 – 2016 Dunlop Men’s College Squash Association preseason team rankings.  Listed after each school’s name is their final ranking from last season and the overall number of votes and points received in the varsity coaches’ poll.

1. Trinity College (1; 31 Votes Received for 761 points received)
2. Harvard University (3; 31 Votes Received for 719 points received)
3. St. Lawrence University (2; 31 Votes Received for 718 points received)
4. Rochester, University of (5; 31 Votes Received for 686 points received)
5. Columbia University (4; 31 Votes Received for 647 points received)
6. Yale University (6; 31 Votes Received for 630 points received)
7. Pennsylvania, University of (7; 31 Votes Received for 619 points received)
8. Princeton University (9; 31 Votes Received for 534 points received)
9. Franklin & Marshall College (8; 31 Votes Received for 515 points received)
10. Drexel University (12; 31 Votes Received for 506 points received)
11. Dartmouth College (10; 31 Votes Received for 496 points received)
12. Cornell University (11; 31 Votes Received for 472 points received)
13. George Washington University (14; 31 Votes Received for 403 points received)
14. Bates College (13; 30 Votes Received for 372 points received)
15. Williams College (15; 31 Votes Received for 345 points received)
16. Naval Academy (16; 31 Votes Received for 337 points received)
17. Middlebury College (17; 31 Votes Received for 287 points received)
18. Brown University (19; 31 Votes Received for 260 points received)
19. Western Ontario, University of (18; 29 Votes Received for 240 points received)
20. Wesleyan University (20; 31 Votes Received for 198 points received)
21. Colby College (21; 31 Votes Received for 185 points received)
22. Bowdoin College (22; 31 Votes Received for 140 points received)
23. Amherst College (23; 31 Votes Received for 125 points received)
24. Hobart College (24; 28 Votes Received for 82 points received)
25. Hamilton College (25; 27 Votes Received for 59 points received)
26. Connecticut College (26; 13 Votes Received for 25 points received)
27. Tufts University (28; 5 Votes Received for 9 points received)
28. MIT (30; 5 Votes Received for 5 points received)
29. Haverford College (38; 2 Votes Received for 2 points received)
30. Dickinson College (55; 9 Votes Received for 22 points received)
31. Fordham University (39; 0 Votes Received for 0 points received)
32. Bard College (58; 1 Votes Received for 1 points received)
33. Vassar College (57; 0 Votes Received for 0 points received)