The first few weekends of the season always offer an extra layer of intrigue as line-ups are unveiled and preseason expectations are put to the test. This weekend was no exception, featuring several close matches and a few upsets according to the preseason rankings.

The most exciting day of the weekend might have been Friday, which delivered on the promise of its scheduled matches. The No. 25 Bowdoin men secured the biggest upset of the weekend, taking out local rival No. 21 Bates 5-4 at home. It was the first time Bowdoin had beaten Bates since 2002.

Also looking for home court advantage on Friday night were Hobart and William Smith Colleges, who welcomed St. Lawrence. No. 27 William Smith earned the upset victory they were looking for with a 5-4 win over the visiting No. 25 Saints, but No. 27 Hobart fell just short of its upset bid.

Not to be outdone, No. 15 Western Ontario traveled to Ithaca to take on the No. 13 Cornell men and emerged victorious by a convincing 7-2 scoreline. All of this without even mentioning the No. 8-versus-9 match-up between the George Washington and Virginia men which grabbed the headlines prior to the match. The Cavaliers earned the upset victory over the Colonials, matching Western’s 7-2 score.

The rest of the weekend unfolded mostly true to form up and down the Northeast Corridor with a few extra notable exceptions. The University of Pennsylvania teams swept the informal Pennsylvania state tournament in Philadelphia, although it took a few comebacks and a tight 5-4 victory for the women over higher-ranked Drexel to secure the wins.

Next season, they should consider inviting their neighbors from the other side of the state, as relative newcomers Chatham University continued their winning ways. The Cougars pushed their season-opening win streak to eight with three more wins over the weekend.

Other teams to go undefeated with more than three victories over the course of the weekend included the women’s teams from Georgetown University and Northeastern University and the men’s teams from Western Ontario and University of California-Berkeley. Georgetown won their matches at home, while Northeastern and Cal triumphed in road round robins at Bard College and Fordham University, respectively.

In the only other Top-10 match-up of the weekend, No. 4 Princeton men won a hard fought 7-2 match against No. 8 George Washington.

Full results from the weekend, as well as upcoming matches, can be found here: Women and Men.

With all CSA teams eligible to begin match play this weekend, the schedule is packed with intriguing early season match-ups.

The fireworks get started right away this evening, covering many different areas of interest. Both the George Washington and Virginia men set program bests with their preseason rankings – 8 and 9, respectively – and the winner of their contest in Washington tonight could ultimately decide which program earns its first Potter Division berth at the end of the season.

In upstate New York, two other regional rivalries could have the same long-term impact on the end-of-season rankings. The No. 27 William Smith women welcome No. 25 St. Lawrence aiming for an early Epps Cup edge, while the No. 13 Cornell men work to keep No. 15 Western Ontario at bay.

Bates and Bowdoin, both with new, first-time head coaches, will kick off the NESCAC season with the rivalry match in Brunswick. The friendly foes from Maine are one of four pairs of NESCAC matches which open the season for the conference this weekend.

On Saturday, squash fans can find excellent college action up and down the mid-Atlantic corridor, from New York to Philadelphia to Baltimore and Washington, DC. Starting in the north, the Fordham men host potential Chafee Cup previews with Bucknell, Cal-Berkeley, New York University, Northeastern, and Stanford coming to town.

The informal Pennsylvania state tournament takes place in Philadelphia this season, with Dickinson and Franklin & Marshall taking on Penn and Drexel. In Baltimore, Meadow Mill Athletic Club hosts another valuable round robin for emerging and club teams, including a surging Chatham team, as well as Johns Hopkins (men & women), Georgetown (men & women), North Carolina-Chapel Hill (men), and Bucknell (Women).

Finally, the Princeton men and their newly-minted No. 4 preseason ranking travel south to take on Navy (Saturday) and George Washington (Sunday). Farther north, Cornell and St. Lawrence renew their rivalry in Ithaca (including the No. 13 vs. No. 12 men’s match) and No. 6 Rochester men start their season against Western Ontario, both on Sunday morning.

The order of play for this weekend is:

• 3-court system:  2,1,3 / 6,5,4 / 8,7,9
• 5-court system:  2,1 / 3,4 / 6,5 / 8,7 / 10,9

View the full college schedules here:
College Squash Women’s Schedule
College Squash Men’s Schedule

Live Scoring will be available for many matches during the weekend on Club Locker.

Please also follow the CSA on Twitter (@CollegeSquash) and Instagram (@college_squash) for social media updates throughout the weekend.

The college squash schedule is relatively light this weekend, but there will be hot spots of action for fans to follow.

Once again, the CSA’s growing geographical diversity will be on display. Teams will be traveling to Chicago, Pittsburgh, Annapolis, Maryland, and Upstate New York for round robin competition. Even the Ivy League, bastions of tradition, have found a new home for their annual Scrimmages in Penn’s new squash center.

The CSA’s midwest contingent will gather at MetroSquash in Chicago for the aptly-named Big Ten Tournament. University of Chicago was the highest ranked team in last year’s rankings, but emerging teams from Indiana University, University of Minnesota, University of Michigan, Northwestern University, University of Notre Dame, and University of Wisconsin will be out to show their growth and improvement.

For example, newly appointed Northwestern coach Mike Masius had this to say about his team: “The club squash program at Northwestern University is prepping to move up the collegiate ranks. The university has had a club team since the mid 90’s and enjoyed some growth and lulls over the years as both a coed program and as two individual teams. Now that the student run program has a coach in place, increased awareness throughout campus and outside support; the future looks bright.”

The Ivy League Scrimmages, typically hosted at Yale, migrate south to coincide with the official opening ceremonies of the Martin and Julie Franklin Squash Center at Penn. All eight Ivy League institutions will be in action in a bracket format.

Traditional round robins will take place at the Naval Academy and Bard College over the course of the weekend. Boston University, Fordham University, Georgetown University, Haverford College, Johns Hopkins, and Lehigh University will congregate in Maryland, while Colgate University, Lafayette College, Siena College, Swarthmore College, and Vassar College will compete at Bard.

In additional action, the Chatham men host debutantes Carnegie Mellon and Pittsburgh in the battle of the Steel City, and the Colgate women host Bard, Bucknell, and Vassar.

The order of play for this weekend is:

• 3-court system:  3,1,2 / 4,6,5 / 8,9,7
• 5-court system:  1,2 / 4,3 / 6,5 / 7,8 / 10,9

View the full college schedules here:
College Squash Women’s Schedule
College Squash Men’s Schedule

Live Scoring will be available for many matches during the weekend on Club Locker.

Please also follow the CSA on Twitter (@CollegeSquash) and Instagram (@college_squash) for social media updates throughout the weekend.

Last weekend saw the college squash season kick off in earnest with several round robin competitions between club teams, plus one varsity team in action. In a display of the expanding geographical diversity of the College Squash Association, the schedule included matches in Pittsburgh, Columbus, Baltimore, Charlotte, and New York City.

Left: Chatham’s Vini Muniz, their top returning player, helped the Cougars to their first wins in program history. Right: Johns Hopkins swept their two opponents at their home venue, Meadow Mill Athletic Club.

Second-year varsity men’s program Chatham University earned the program’s first ever victories with wins over visitors Denison University and Bucknell University. Other top performing teams including the Washington University of St. Louis men, the Ohio State University men, the Colgate University women, and the Johns Hopkins University men, who all went undefeated on their opening weekends of play.

This weekend’s action features several more round robin competitions in diverse locations with more varsity teams starting their formal competition seasons. University of Virginia and Vassar College will host many matches throughout the weekend, while Denison University will be the host institution for round robin play staged at Nardin Academy in Buffalo.

The headlining matches on the men’s side involve two early-season rematches of Hoehn Cup (B Division) play from last year.  Virginia and Franklin & Marshall renew their closely contested rivalry on Saturday, while Western Ontario welcomes Navy north of the border, hoping to avenge their tight 5-4 loss to the Midshipmen in Annapolis last season.

In Buffalo, Chatham will look to build on the momentum from their first victories, especially when they take on their first varsity opponent of the year, Hobart College. Hobart and William Smith Colleges will aim to exert dominance over the competition in Buffalo under the guidance of new head coach, Pat Cosquer.

Vassar and head coach David Ames host a round robin with Fordham University, Bard College, Northeastern University, and Lafayette College coming to town. The Fordham and Northeastern women’s teams had a taste of competition last weekend, but they will be tested with a full weekend of play this time around.

The order of play for this weekend is:

• 3-court system:  1,3,2 / 6,4,5 / 9,8,7
• 5-court system:  2,1 / 4,3 / 5,6 / 7,8 / 10,9

View the full college schedules here:
College Squash Women’s Schedule
College Squash Men’s Schedule

Live Scoring will be available for many matches during the weekend on Club Locker.

Please also follow the CSA on Twitter (@CollegeSquash) and Instagram (@college_squash) for social media updates throughout the weekend.

Starting this weekend, all intercollegiate squash contests between CSA teams will follow a random order of play for the individual matches. The CSA central office will establish a new randomized order each week, which will be announced every Thursday throughout the season on the CSA website and social media platforms.

Historically, CSA team matches have followed the same prescribed order each week. Using either three-court or five-court playing systems, matches would begin with the lowest ladder positions (i.e. Numbers 9, 6, and 3 in the three-court system or numbers 10, 8, 6, 4, and 2 in the five-court system). Now, the order of the matches will be randomly generated and will likely change from week to week.

“We are excited to try this new format this year,” said CSA Executive Director & League Commissioner David Poolman. “A few teams used a random order during last season’s league matches, and it has gained popularity among the coaches. It allows the student-athletes to experience different playing situations within team match-ups, while removing the need for some of the unnecessary gamesmanship in creating lineups.”

The random order will be announced each week during the season on Thursdays. That order of play will stay in effect for every match played during the subsequent seven-day period. Spectators interested in attending matches and watching specific players should take note of the order of play for that week before traveling to a match.

Random order of play will also be applied during the College Squash Team National Championships at the end of the season.

The order of play for the week of October 24 to October 30 is:

• 3-court system:  1,2,3 / 6,4,5 / 7,8,9
• 5-court system:  1,2 / 3,4 / 6,5 / 8,7 / 10,9