Coming off a disappointing 3-13 season, Tufts' men's squash team now looks to build upon a base of returning players and a group of new freshmen, hoping the mix of novelty and experience will be the formula for success.
The Jumbos' season begins on Friday with a match at Vassar, followed by a date at Hobart the following day.
Last year, the squad's ranking rose from the previous year's - from 25th to 24th in the final National Intercollegiate Squash and Racquets Association (NISRA) poll - despite the dismal record and a rare defeat at the hands of arch-rival Connecticut College at Nationals. Following last year's season, Colin O'Higgins, a junior and this year's co-captain, had commented that the team's morale fell after the defeat.
Using the loss as a wake-up call, coach Doug Eng, in his seventh year in the position, believes that his team is more than ready for the coming season.
"Following last year's failures, the team has rallied support and is ready to go full steam," Eng said. "We're going to try and build momentum throughout the season," he added.
Senior co-captain Bennett Kolasinski also believes this year will see marked improvement. "We have a lot more potential than last year," he said. "We realize the things that we need to do in order to achieve."
The team has been training for the past two months to prepare for the upcoming season. "I think everybody's in pretty good shape," said Dave Carson, a senior new to the team. Kolasinski concurred with Carson, adding, "some of the players at the top have gotten a lot better."
"I'm looking for sophomore Chris Choi's game to improve this year," Kolasinski said.
Choi finished last season 2-11, playing in the top tier of the team, but is expected to be among the team's biggest threats this year. He will most likely play at the three spot again.
Also at the top of the roster is junior Neil Pallaver, who played in the number one spot last year, O'Higgins, who finished in the top group as well, and senior Dylan McPhetres. Last season, Pallaver came in 1-6, O'Higgins finished 3-10, and McPhetres was 2-11.
Despite the returning core up front, Coach Eng feels that the real strength of the team lies in the lower positions. "This is the deepest team we've ever had," he said, "We're good all-around, and the eight and ninth spots will be very solid, better than ever."
Junior Shayan Haque, who holds the highest career average on the team with a 13-15 record, will likely play the sixth or seventh position.
The only two members of the top nine that the Jumbos lost to graduation were Omar Malik and Cameron Essalat. Both players will be replaced by fresh faces that could spell improvement in the bottom group. Carson and sophomores Michael Gleeson and Nathan Anderson are the non-freshman additions to the squad, while the incoming freshman group consists of Phillip Beatson, Jesse Goldberg, Arman Kamenov, and Kolasinski's younger brother, Jordan.
"The new recruits have all have great talent," Kolasinski said. "Arman is going to be great, as is Nathan."
Likely, three of the newcomers will be in the top nine, meaning competition at the lower positions could lead to improved play. Still, Kolasinski feels the difference from one through nine will not be significant.
"The players at the bottom can already keep up with the players at the top," he said. "The freshmen just need experience. They've got the fundamentals down and know what's going on."
The new players will be tested early in the season, as the team is playing Vassar and Hobart, who defeated the group 2-7 and 3-6, respectively, last year. Vassar's season has already begun, with the team beating Haverford on Sunday.
"The early matches are going to set the tone for the season," Eng said. "They are going to tell us a lot about ourselves."
In the face of what will likely be strong competition, team members seem to be resoundingly confident. Senior Andreas Heiss said "Trinity or nothing," referring to the nation's number one-ranked team, Trinity College. This may not be a realistic goal, because "playing Trinity is like playing a major league baseball team," according to Kolasinski. "They're in another league."
The Jumbos' nemesis, Connecticut College, is also scheduled for the season. For some, the goal is revenge, in light of the defeat at Nationals last season. Incidentally, the new head coach at Conn. College, William McNally, was O'Higgins' coach in high school.
"It's somewhat of a personal vendetta," he said. Tufts will face Conn. College on February 13.
With the season starting on Friday, optimism remains high among team members, which expects to surpass last year's marks.
"It's the beginning of a golden period," Kolasinski said. "We're going to be more successful, starting with this year."
"We've been a growing team for 2 years," O'Higgins said, "and now we're becoming mature and experienced."
