The men’s and women’s squash teams were both shut out by undefeated teams from Trinity College on Wednesday night in Hartford, Conn.
The No. 8 Big Green women (1-4, 0-3 Ivy) fell to No. 2 Trinity (5-0) 9-0 . Tori Dewey ’16 was the only player to win a game, taking two before her opponent won three in their eighth position match.
“We certainly expected a tough match going in,” said head coach Hansi Wiens. “The Trinity women’s team got stronger over the last year as well, but our teams fought hard.”
Despite what appeared to be a landslide victory for the Bantams, the Big Green worked hard throughout the match,first seed Jackie Barnes ’17 said.
“Even though the scores may not indicate it, a lot of the girls on the team challenged Trinity and made them work hard to earn points,” Barnes said.
The No. 10 Dartmouth men had a similarly challenging match against the top ranked Bantams, with Trinity’s players winning all nine matches.
Out of the scoring nine players, only Fletcher Pease ’14 and Michael Mistras ’15 were able to win a game for Dartmouth, losing in four games at the No. 4 and No. 6 spots, respectively.
In the non-scoring 10th spot, Joshua Renaud ’17 won his first two games, eventually falling in five games to his opponent.
On the women’s side, Dewey had the closest match, falling 3-2 against Trinity’s Chanel Erasmus. Dewey got out to a quick lead, taking the first two games, but Eramus rallied and was able to walk away with a victory.
“Tori had a chance to win and it was a great match for her,” Wiens said.
Trinity is renowned for its squash program. The men have won the College Squash Association championship 14 of the last 15 years while the women finished as the 2012-2013 runners-up. Aware of the Bantams’ reputation, the Big Green tried to keep a clear head going into the match.
“They always have a strong program,” Dewey said. “They are known for recruiting players from around the world. Everyone from Dartmouth did put up a good fight, though, and stayed in it against Trinity, despite how good they are.”
Dewey’s teammates agreed and said they were impressed by the depth of the Trinity squash program.
“It’s actually quite inspiring playing really highly ranked girls because it just shows the level of squash that can be achieved,” Barnes said.
Sarah Caughey ’15 also played an intense match at the No. 9 spot. While she lost in three games, she scored nine points in the first game, six in the second and eight in the third.
Despite the setback, the team has its sights on end-of-season goals. The women hope to make it into the top eight in five weeks, Wiens said.
“For the men, it would definitely be a tough road to the top eight, but if we play well then we should succeed,” he said.
The Big Green, return to action on Jan. 25 when the women will face Stanford University and both will play Bates College.
