This past weekend saw the men’s and women’s squash teams play out their final home matches of the season. Before the final matches, the seniors on both teams were called forth and introduced to the large crowd of alumni, parents, and friends.
“It was an awesome way to finish up senior year,” said Kenny Greer.
The finish certainly was awesome for the men’s team, which started play on Friday afternoon with a match against Amherst. It was the first time in five years that the Lord Jeffs had ventured to the East Hill.
They may never want to come back.
The Red sent its opponents packing, quickly dispatching Amherst 9-0.
“This was a nice warmup for Dartmouth on Saturday,” said coach Scott Stoneburgh.
The men and women took the courts at Belkin Arena on Saturday, hoping to dismantle the Green. At No. 5 in the country, the Dartmouth women’s team was a formidable foe for the Red’s final home matches. Cornell fell decisively to the Dartmouth onslaught, although not for lack of effort and passion.
“Two performances stood out,” said Stoneburgh. “Senior Becca Brier-Rosenfield and senior captain Rachel Perschetz played as they always do, giving the team 110 percent and never losing their composure.”
The results were much more in Cornell’s favor in the men’s draw. Ranked just above Dartmouth at No. 5 in the nation, the Red men were expecting tough and heated matches — the morning did not disappoint. Fans in attendance saw some of the most rugged, hard-fought squash in recent memory, as five of the nine matches went at least four games.
“It was a barnburner,” said Stoneburgh. “Dartmouth came ready to avenge their Ivy Scrimmage loss and, to their credit, played great.”
“It was really important that we beat Dartmouth, looking ahead to the draw for the NISRA National Championships,” said Greer.
The Red did just that, defeating the Green 7-2 and avenging last season’s heartbreaking loss.
“I got sick the night before the match last year and ended up losing. We lost the whole thing 5-4, so we would’ve won if not for me,” said Greer. “This year, I felt a lot of pressure to get revenge and make up for last season.”
Greer defeated his opponent in four games.
After the triumphant victory against Dartmouth, the men’s match against Denison on Saturday evening almost seemed anticlimactic. Cornell did not disappoint in their final home matches, rolling to a 9-0 win. The success was highlighted by freshman Matt Serediak’s bout with Denison’s resident stud, Javier Castilla. Ranked sixth in the nation at the start of the season, Castilla was looking to knock off Cornell’s freshman sensation. Serediak, ranked twelfth, would have none of it.
“I was pretty pumped for the match. I knew that if I played well, I could win,” he said.
After five grueling games of running each other all around the court, Serediak’s superior fitness was able to get the best of the higher-ranked Castilla.
The Red travels south this weekend to take on the men and women of the Naval Academy, the George Washington women, and the Franklin & Marshall men.
Archived article by Per Ostman