The United States Naval Academy men’s squash team, led by Head Coach Tyler Osborne, is the chosen recipient of the 2022 Sloane Award for team sportsmanship. The College Squash Association (CSA) announced the award on Saturday, March 5 prior to the first Pool Trophy semifinal at the Arlen Specter US Squash Center. Navy last earned the award in 2004.
The Midshipmen had a challenging early part to the season, but they regrouped in the second half to capture several upsets and make an impressive run at the 2022 National Collegiate Men’s Team Championships. Entering the event as the seventh seed in the Summers (C) Division, Navy grinded out three consecutive upsets, winning the Summers Cup and clinching a final season ranking of 17.
“We are honored to be voted by the coaches as this year’s recipient of the Sloane Award,” said Osborne. “I’m so proud of the way our team carried themselves throughout the entire season while representing the Naval Academy. We are competitors at heart, but it really means a lot to me to be able to say that we did so with integrity, respect and fair play. A sincere thank you to our four seniors who set the tone this season, for how each of us individually and as a team should conduct ourselves. I’m humbled to see this sense of character being recognized by our peers.”
The Sloane Award is given annually to the men’s team exhibiting a high level of sporting behavior. The team characteristics this award honors may be best described in the words of former Williams coach, Clarence Chaffee: “a sense of esprit de corps, of sportsmanship, of hard but fair play, of being gracious in victory and defeat, and enjoying the camaraderie and pride of being part of a team.” Coaches discussed with their players which team they felt is deserving of the award. Coaches were then polled for nominations and then voting was conducted online leading up to the team championships.
An award for team sportsmanship was first given in 1981. The team that won the award that year — Williams College — was coached by Sean Sloane. A nationally ranked hardball player, Sloane had been coaching both squash and tennis at Williams since the 1970s, and his teams were known for their spirit and sportsmanship. Sloane eventually left Williams to serve as the Director of the USTA’s Education and Recreation Program, but when he returned to coaching in 1997 at Haverford College, his teams continued to be recognized for their sportsmanship. The CSA renamed the award in Sloane’s honor in 2005.
Harvard University, University of Pennsylvania, and Drexel University were the other teams receiving the most votes in the coaches’ poll for the 2022 Sloane Award.
