Hatfield, MA — The University of Western Ontario won the 2017 Men’s College Squash Association Barnaby Award.
The award is named for Jack Barnaby, who coached the Harvard men for decades and later coached the Harvard women. Harvard struggled during the first few years of Barnaby’s tenure, but the Crimson ultimately became a national powerhouse under his leadership, winning national title after national title. By the time he retired from coaching the men’s team in 1976, Barnaby had compiled a 355-95 lifetime record. His team capped his final season with a national title, going undefeated.
First presented in 1983, the Barnaby Award recognizes the most improved team in men’s college squash. Voting for the Barnaby Award was conducted after Team Championships, which allowed schools to view Team Championship results prior to casting their vote.
After winning the 2016 Conroy Cup (D Division), Western Ontario had aspirations of returning to the Hoehn Cup (B Division). Each season, many teams have lofty goals of moving up two divisions, but the Mustangs made that a reality. They moved from 25th in the 2016 season-ending rankings to 15th at the conclusion of this season.
The 2016-2017 Western Ontario team was led by head coach Derek Moore, who guided the Mustangs to a 9-4 record. This is the first Barnaby Award presented to Western Ontario. In 1995, Western Ontario won the Sloane Award.
