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Harrow Sports College Squash Players of the 2016 Men’s National Team Championship

Michael T. Bello
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New Haven, CT — The 2016 Men’s College Squash Association National Team Championships had great team and individual performances. In this special edition of the Harrow Sports College Squash Player of the Week, we recognize a player from each division of the tournament. 

Potter Cup (A Division) – Kah Wah Cheong (Yale) and Tomotaka Endo (Rochester): In a contentious team match, the Potter Cup and national team title came down to #4 match between Yale’s Kah Wah Cheong and Rochester’s Tomotaka Endo. Despite intense crowd reaction to the points throughout the match, both players remained calm. In the end, Cheong won the match in four games (11-9, 9-11, 15-13, and 11-8). Upon winning the final point, Cheong raised his racquet to thank both the Yale and Rochester crowds. He and Endo shook hands and patted each other on the back.

Hoehn Cup (B Division) – Atticus Kelly (Drexel University): To claim their first Hoehn Cup, Drexel had to overcome Cornell. To do this, the Dragons needed a solid first flight of matches. Kelly, Drexel’s #3, helped the Dragons by capturing a tight three-game match over the Big Red’s Perry Hanson (11-5, 12-10, and 11-8). Drexel went on to capture the match, 5-4. In the Hoehn Cup, Kelly also had a five-game victory over Brown’s Alex Baldock and a four-game win against Princeton’s Vivek Dinodia.

Summers Cup (C Division) – Darrius Campbell (Bates College): At the #3 position, Bates’ Darrius Campbell defeated William’s John Shuck in four games (11-6, 12-14, 14-12, and 11-6) to assist Bates in capturing their first Summers Cup since the 2007 – 2008 season. At the tournament, Campbell, a junior, also earned a victory over Hobart’s Felipe Pantle.

Conroy Cup (D Division – Stefan Houbtchev (Western Ontario): In the Conroy Cup final, Western Ontario’s 5-4 victory over Dickinson was hard fought. In the match at the #2 position, Western Ontario’s Stefan Houbtchev topped Dickinson’s Brian Hamilton in five games (11-9, 11-3, 4-11, 6-11, and 11-5). Houbtchev’s victory helped the Mustangs clinch the team victory in the second flight of matches.

Chaffee Cup (E Division) – Brett Raskopf (Tufts University): In winning the Chaffee Cup, Tufts earned its most victories in a single season, 14, in team history. In the finals, Tufts faced Conn College, a team that they split matches with during the regular season. At the #6 position, freshman Raskopf earned a victory over Conn’s Santiago Moran. In the three-game match, two of the three games required extra points (11-6, 13-11, and 12-10). The Jumbos finished the Chaffee Cup with a 5-4 victory over Conn College.

Serues Cup (F Division) – Evan Jacobson (Northeastern University): Jacobson, a junior, helped Northeastern march through the Serues Cup bracket. In the opening round, he had a four-game victory over Bard’s Ayateru Maeda (11-6, 12-10, 7-11, and 11-7). In the semifinal, he defeated Miami’s Ben Roth (11-8, 11-7, and 14-12), before helping the Huskies to the Serues Cup crown with a three-game victory over Boston University’s Parker Tonissi.

Hawthorn Cup (G Division) – Ryan Wetsman (Colgate University): Wetsman, a freshman for Colgate, assisted the Raiders in winning the Hawthorn Cup with a five-game victory in the final against Northwestern’s #3, Michael Leonard (11-8, 11-7, 10-12, 4-11, and11-7). He also had victories over Penn State and Notre Dame in the tournament.

H Division – David Lau (Duke University): As Duke’s #3 and #4 player, Lau helped the Blue Devils win the H Division at the 2016 Men’s College Squash Association National Team Championship. In the opening round, he defeated Oregon’s Gordon Reed (11-7, 11-4, and 11-5). In the semifinals, he beat Cal’s Samridh Saluja (11-5, 11-8, and 11-1), and in the finals, he earned a five-game victory over Vanderbilt’s James Michaelis (5-11, 11-0, 6-11, 11-3, and 11-1).

Women’s College Squash Individual Championships: 2016 Ramsay Cup Finals (Video)

Michael T. Bello
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Women’s College Squash Individual Championships: 2016 Ramsay Cup Finals (Video)

Stamford, CT — The Women’s College Squash Association Individual Championships concluded with the Ramsay Cup (A Division) final.

For the fourth consecutive season, Kanzy El Defrawy, a Trinity senior, was playing in the final. This season, she faced Reeham Sedky, a first-year student at Penn.

El Defrawy, the 2016 Richey Award winner, was the sentimental favorite for the title. After all, she had lost the past three seasons. Sedky won the first game, but El Defrawy recovered to capture the match in four games (11-13, 11-7, 11-3, and 11-7).

In the coming days, CollegeSquashAssociation.com will have video from the Men’s College Squash Association Individual Championships (Pool Trophy) final.

Below is video of the match.

Game 1:

Game 2:

Game 3:

Game 4:

2016 College Squash Association Past Champions Gala

Michael T. Bello
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2016 College Squash Association Past Champions Gala

Stamford, CT — As part of the 2016 College Squash Association Individual Championships, a gala to honor past winners of the Ramsay Cup (women’s individual championship) and the Pool Trophy (men’s individual championship) was held.

Chelsea Piers, the host of this year’s tournament, organized the gathering. The event was held in Chelsea Piers’ LOFT event space.

Current players, coaches, past champions, and fans arrived at the event along a red carpet. After an hour of mingling, attendees were greeted by Wendy Lawrence, the head coach of George Washington University and Women’s College Squash Association president, and Martin Heath, the head coach of the University of Rochester and the Men’s College Squash Association president. Natalie Granger, Chelsea Piers’ Director of Squash, also welcomed guests at the packed event.

CSA Individual Champions: 1952 – 2016

Twenty-seven past champions of the Ramsay Cup and Pool Trophy were present for the gala, which represented forty-four years college squash play.

For the women, the following Ramsay Cup winners were in attendance: Lee Howard (Radcliffe College/Harvard University, 1973 winner); Gail Ramsay (Pennsylvania State University, 1977, 1978, 1979, and 1980 winner); Alicia McConnell (University of Pennsylvania, 1982, 1983, and 1984 winner); Demer Holleran (Princeton University, 1986, 1987, and 1989 winner); Vanya Desai (Harvard University, 1993 winner); Libby Eynon (Harvard University, 1995 winner); Jessica DiMauro (University of Pennsylvania, 1996 winner); Julia Beaver (Princeton University, 1999, 2000, and 2001 winner); Laura Gemmell (Harvard University, 2010 winner); Amanda Sobhy (Harvard University, 2012, 2013, 2014, and 2015 winner); and Kanzy El Defrawy (Trinity College, 2016 winner).

For the men, the following Pool Trophy winners were present: Charles Ufford (Harvard University, 1952 and 1953 winner); Ben Heckscher (Harvard University, 1956 and 1957 winner); Walter Oehrlein (United States Military Academy at West Point, 1965 winner); Howard Coonley (University of Pennsylvania, 1966 winner); Anil Nayar (Harvard University, 1967, 1968, and 1969 winner); Palmer Page (University of Pennsylvania, 1971 winner); Ned Edwards (University of Pennsylvania, 1979 winner); John Nimick (Princeton University, 1981 winner); Jeff Stanley (Princeton University, 1987 and 1988 winner); Daniel Ezra (Harvard University, 1996 winner); Bernardo Samper (Trinity College, 2002 winner); Yasser El Halaby (Princeton University, 2003, 2004, 2005, and 2006 winner); Baset Chaudhry (Trinity College, 2008 and 2009 winner); Todd Harrity (Princeton University, 2011 winner); Amr Khaled Khalifa (St. Lawrence University, 2013 winner); and Ahmed Abdel Khalek (Bates College, 2015 and 2016 winner).

After the audience recognized the champions with applause, the Richey and Skillman awards were presented.

The Skillman Award is given annually to a senior men’s squash player who has demonstrated outstanding sportsmanship during his entire college career. The 2016 Skillman Award was presented to St. Lawrence University’s Amr Khaled Khalifa, the 2013 Pool Trophy winner.

The Richey Award, which is given annually to the women’s college squash player who best exemplifies the ideals of squash in her love of and devotion to the game, her strong sense of fairness, and her excellence of play and leadership, was presented to Trinity senior and the 2016 Ramsay Cup champion, Kanzy El Defrawy.

00125_MTB_2016_CSA_Gala_2016-03-05
2016 CSA Hall of Fame: Yasser El Halaby (Princeton), Billy Doyle (Harvard) and Julia Beaver (Princeton)

The evening’s program concluded with three players and two coaches being inducted into the Halls of Fame.

Carol Weymuller, Hobart College’s coach from 1995 – 2011, was the first inductee. Dent Wilkens, the master of ceremonies, accepted on behalf of Weymuller. She was also inducted into the US Squash Hall of Fame in 2008.

Marcus Cowie, a two-time Pool Trophy winner, was the second inductee. He was unable to attend the evening’s events, but Paul Assaiante, the head men’s coach at Trinity College, read Cowie’s acceptance letter.

Yasser El Halaby, Princeton University’s four-time Pool Trophy winner, honored his coaches, including the late Bob Callahan, and teammates in his acceptance speech.

The sole inductee into the Women’s College Squash Association  Hall of Fame was Julia Beaver. She is one of only five women to capture at least three Ramsay Cups.

The final inductee of the evening was Harvard coach Billy Doyle. In 2007, Doyle was inducted into the Women’s College Squash Association Hall of Fame. This year, he was also recognized by the Men’s College Squash Association. Doyle guided the Crimson men to five Potter Cups (national team championships).

CollegeSquashAssociation.com will have more in-depth coverage of the Richey and Skillman awards in the coming weeks and months. In addition, profiles of the five new members of the men’s and women’s Hall of Fames will be published.

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For photos from the gala, please visit mtbello.com.

2016 Women’s and Men’s College Squash Most Improved Team Awards Winners

Michael T. Bello
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Hatfield, MA — Today, the final women’s and men’s team award winners of the season were announced.

Most Improved Team Award: The Most Improved Team Award is based on both the number of spots a team has improved in the rankings as well as the strength of the opponents they have surpassed. The 2016 Women’s College Squash Association Most Improved Team Award was presented to Stanford University and head coach Mark Talbott.

Barnaby Award: The Barnaby Award is given annually to the team showing the most improvement from the previous season. The 2016 Men’s College Squash Association Barnaby Award was presented to Dickinson College and head coach Chris Sachvie.

CollegeSquashAssociation.com will have more in-depth coverage of the awards in the coming weeks and months.

2016 Women’s and Men’s College Squash Team Sportsmanship Awards Winners

Michael T. Bello
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Hatfield, MA — Today, the first women’s and men’s team award winners of the season were announced.

Chaffee Award: The Chaffee Award is given annually to a women’s coach whose team has demonstrated the qualities of sportsmanship, teamwork, character, and improvement. The 2016 Chaffee Award was presented to Haverford College and head coach Niki Clement.

Sloane Award: The Sloane Award is given annually for team sportsmanship. The 2016 Sloane Award was presented to Bard College and head coach Craig Thorpe-Clark.

CollegeSquashAssociation.com will have more in-depth coverage of the awards in the coming weeks and months.

2016 College Squash Individual Award Winners

Michael T. Bello
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Hatfield, MA — Today, the winners of the Women’s College Squash Association’s Richey and Wetzel Awards and the Men’s College Squash Association’s Skillman Award are announced.

Richey Award: The Richey Award is given annually to the women’s college squash player who best exemplifies the ideals of squash in her love of and devotion to the game, her strong sense of fairness, and her excellence of play and leadership. The 2016 Richey Award was presented to Trinity College’s Kanzy El Defrawy.

Skillman Award: The Skillman Award is given annually to a senior men’s squash player who has demonstrated outstanding sportsmanship during his entire college career. The 2016 Skillman Award was presented to St. Lawrence University’s Amr Khaled Khalifa.

Wetzel Award: The Wetzel Award is presented annually to a senior who began playing squash in college and has progressed to a high level of skill, demonstrates a sound understanding of the game, and exhibits good sportsmanship and a positive demeanor on the court. The 2016 Wetzel Award was presented to Wellesley College’s Kate Loftus.

CollegeSquashAssociation.com will have more in-depth coverage of the awards in the coming weeks and months.

Abdel Khalek Wins 2016 Men’s Individual Championship

Michael T. Bello
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Stamford, CT — Ahmed Abdel Khalek of Bates defeated Ryosei Kobayashi of Rochester 3-1 to win the Pool Trophy and the 2016 Men’s Individual Championship.

Abdel Khalek reached the semifinals of the Pool Trophy in 2013 and won the event last season. He was recently named the New England Small College Athletic Conference (NESCAC) Player of the Year, a distinction he has earned for four straight seasons.

Kobayashi is Rochester’s first-ever Pool Trophy finalist. He was named to the Liberty League All-Conference Team in 2014 and 2015.

Abdel Khalek, a senior who was a First Team All-American in 2012-2013 and 2014-2015, entered the tournament as its top seed and opened the weekend by defeating Neil Cordell (Rochester) in the round of 16. In the quarterfinals, he met St. Lawrence’s Moustafa Bayoumy and fought for a five-game victory. After losing the first game of the semifinal to Rick Penders (Trinity), Abdel Khalek rebounded to capture the match in four games.

Seventh-seeded Kobayashi, a junior and a two-time First Team All-American, defeated Trinity’s Michael Craig to open the 2016 Individual Championships. In the quarterfinals, he upset the 2013 champion, St. Lawrence’s Amr Khaled Khalifa, in four games, before defeating teammate Mario Yanez to earn a trip to the finals.

Kobayashi and Abdel Khalek last met in the 2015 Pool Trophy semifinals. In that match, Abdel Khalek prevailed in three games (11-2, 11-4, and 11-3).

Today’s match opened with Abdel Khalek opening up a 4-1 lead on Kobayashi in the first game. There was a series of long points between the two players, but Abdel Khalek remained in control. He won the first game 11-5.

Kobayashi came out with all cylinders firing in the second game, building up a 4-0 lead. Abdel Khalek closed the gap a bit thanks to a stroke, bringing the score to 2-4. Errors from Abdel Khalek helped Kobayashi increase his lead to 7-2. Abdel Khalek slowly began to chip away at Kobayashi’s lead. The Bates senior tinned a shot, then rebounded to win the next point, bringing the score to 6-9. The next two points went to Kobayashi, who won the game 11-6 and tied the match at 1-all in games.

Kobayashi got on the board first in game three. Abdel Khalek answered by winning the next three points. Kobayashi tied the score at 3-all. Abdel Khalek began to build up a lead again thanks to a few errors from Kobayashi: a ball hit out of court, a tin, a stroke. Kobayashi caught him again at 7-all. The two players kept the score close through 9-all. After a long point, Abdel Khalek had game ball. A stroke to Kobayashi tied the score at 10-all. There was a let ball, then another, and then Abdel Khalek went up 11-10. A Kobayashi volley cross-court that hit the nick tied the score again at 11-all. With Abdel Khalek bleeding, play paused for an injury timeout. Play resumed with a let ball and then a point to Abdel Khalek. Kobayashi once again tied it at 12-all. A stroke to the Rochester junior gave him game ball at 13-12. Both players hit the ground in the next point, and Kobayashi’s hand was injured. Play paused again for a fifteen-minute injury timeout. After play resumed, Abdel Khalek won the next two points to win the game 15-13.

Abdel Khalek had small leads several times early in the fourth game; at one point he was up 6-2. Kobayashi closed the gap after that, never letting Abdel Khalek get more than a point or two ahead. They tied at 10-all, then 11-all, before Abdel Khalek finally broke away to win 13-11, capturing the national title.

This is Abdel Khalek’s second consecutive intercollegiate individual championship and the second men’s national individual title for Bates. Abdel Khalek is coached at Bates by head coach Pat Cosquer.

 

2016 College Squash Individual Championships: B Draws and Consolation Finals

Michael T. Bello
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College Squash AssociationStamford, CT — Congratulations to the winners of the B draws and the consolation finals!

Women’s B Division: Zandra Ho (Stanford), Jennifer Haley (Trinity), Tanvi Khanna (Columbia), and Breanne Flynn (George Washington) won their draws in the B Division of the 2016 Women’s Individual Championships.

In the A draw, Ho dueled with Haidi Lala of Penn through five games, winning the match 12-10 in the fifth. Haley defeated Madlen O’Connor 3-1 in the B draw final, while Khanna won in three against Kristyna Alexova of Bates. Flynn outlasted Trinity’s Anna Kimberley to win her match 12-10 in the fourth.

With their victories, Ho, Haley, Khanna, and Flynn will be named to the Second Team All-American.

Sophie Mehta (Harvard), Isabel Hirschberg (Princeton), Karolina Holinkova (Trinity), and Hayley Parsons (Williams) won the consolation finals of their draws.

Men’s B Division: Kah Wah Cheong (Yale), Lenard Puski (St. Lawrence), Tomotaka Endo (Rochester), and Hayes Murphy (Penn) won their draws in the B Division. All four will be named Second Team All-Americans.

Cheong defeated Afeeq Ismail of Trinity in three games to win the A draw, while Puski came back from 0-1 to win in four against Gustav Runersjo of Cornell in the B draw. Endo had a come-from-behind win of his own in four against Atticus Kelly of Drexel in the C draw final. The most drama was saved for the D draw final. Murphy held Tom De Mulder of Trinity off 12-10 in the third to force a fourth and then a fifth game, ultimately coming back from two games down to win 3-2.

Pierson Broadwater (Yale), David Cromwell (Middlebury), Wyatt French (Middlebury), and Tim Lasusa (St. Lawrence) won the consolation finals in their respective draws.

Ramsay Cup (Women’s A Division): Marie Stephan (Penn) defeated Alyssa Mehta (Harvard) in four to win the first round consolation final.

Pool Trophy (Men’s A Division): Ahmed Bayoumy (St. Lawrence) defeated Marwan Mahmoud (Penn) 3-0 to win the first round consolation final.

 

El Defrawy Wins 2016 Women’s Individual Championship

Michael T. Bello
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Stamford, CT — Kanzy El Defrawy of Trinity defeated Reeham Sedky of Penn 3-1 to win the Ramsay Cup and the 2016 Women’s Individual Championship.

El Defrawy had reached the final in each of her four years at Trinity, but the Ramsay Cup had eluded her in her first three tries, as she lost to Harvard’s Amanda Sobhy in the final year after year. An individual title was the only absence in an otherwise sterling collegiate resume. El Defrawy is a three-time First Team All-American, a four-time New England Small College Athletic Conference (NESCAC) Player of the Year, and the 2012-2013 NESCAC Rookie of the Year. A senior co-captain, she has played atop the Trinity ladder throughout her career, including during the Bantams’ run to the national team title in 2014.

On Saturday at a gala for past champions, she was named the 2016 Richey Award winner. The Richey Award, which is voted on by CSA players and coaches, is given annually to a women’s college squash player who best exemplifies the ideals of squash in her love of and devotion to the game, her strong sense of fairness, and her excellence of play and leadership. It is the highest individual honor in women’s college squash.

As a first-year player, Sedky has had less time to accumulate collegiate accolades. However, she brings an impressive junior resume to college squash. She was a member of the US Junior Worlds teams in 2013, 2014, and 2015. In addition, she captured the 2015 U19 U.S. Nationals Squash Tournament.

To reach the finals,neither player surrendered a game. Sedky defeated Celine Yeap (Yale), teammate Anaka Alankamony in the quarterfinal, and Laila Samy (Wesleyan) in the semifinal. El Defrawy opened with a victory over Hayley Hughes (Drexel), defated Yan Xin Tan (Penn) in the quarterfinal, and Kayley Leonard (Harvard) in the semifinal.

In January, El Defrawy and Sedky met as Penn visited Trinity. The pair represented their respective schools at the #1 position. Sedky won the first game, 11-9, while El Defrawy won the second game, 11-9. Due to an injury to Sedky, the match concluded after two games. Today’s match appeared wide open.

Sedky built up a lead in the first game, but El Defrawy battled back to tie the game at 11-all. A no-let call put Sedky at game ball. El Defrawy dove to recover a shot, but it wasn’t enough. Sedky won the first game 13-11.

In the second game, Sedky again built up a small lead. El Defrawy tied the score at 5-all, then broke a string. After two no-let calls in a row, Sedky led 7-5. El Defrawy hit the nick to tie the game 7-all. She won the next four points, unanswered, and dove on a long point to win the game 11-7, tying the game score at 1-all.

El Defrawy opened with an ace on her serve and went out to a 4-0 lead. Sedky tinned a shot and then another for El Defrawy to go up 6-0. El Defrawy tinned a shot of her own for Sedky to finally get on the board at 1-6. El Defrawy powered ahead to win the game 11-3. She was within a game of the national title.

In game four, El Defrawy went out to a 3-0 lead thanks, in part, to stokes. Sedky wasn’t about to let El Defrawy get away. She closed the gap to 3-4, forcing El Defrawy to dive and miss a shot. A stroke to El Defrawy brought the score to 5-3 for the Trinity senior, who broke another string and had to hunt for another racquet, having gone through her spares. She was able to borrow one from a teammate, albeit a frame from a different maker than the one she had been using. El Defrawy went out to a 8-4 lead, tinning once as she adjusted to the new racquet. At 8-4 the players collided violently, sending them both the ground. The referee came onto the court, talking to Sedky. A stroke to Sedky in the next point brought the score to 5-8. More strokes brought the score to 9-6 for El Defrawy. A tin from Sedky brought El Defrawy to match ball. The next point was El Defrawy’s, and with the 11-7 win in the fourth, she was the 2016 individual champion!

At Trinity, El Defrawy is coached by Wendy Bartlett. She is the first Trinity player to win the Ramsay Cup since Nour Bahgat won in 2009.

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