Women's squash takes out Wellesley 5-4

In their only home match of the season, the Tufts women's squash team pulled off an impressive 5-4 victory Wednesday afternoon against Wellesley College. Last year, Wellesley defeated Tufts convincingly in two separate matches, 9-0 and 8-1 so the Jumbos knew they were going to be challenged.

Coach Dough Eng said he thought the game would be tight. "I did think we'd be favored, and our team played well and did the job," he said.

The Jumbos came out of the gate very quickly, winning the first three matches at the number two, four, and six positions without too much suspense. However, things got a bit dicey when Wellesley pulled off narrow victories at the number one, five, and eight spots.

In the end, it all came down to the number nine spot match-up of Tufts sophomore Joelle Polivy against Wellesley's Erin Hunson. The Jumbos held on for the victory when Polivy defeated Hunson 10-8, 9-4, 9-4 in the fifth, and deciding, match.

"I was a bit nervous at first because there were so many people watching," Polivy said. "But I felt I played well, and the team as a whole did amazingly. It was certainly a greet feeling to win at home."

Freshman Jules Avrutin, playing at the number one position for the Jumbos, fell in a hard-fought four game match, 9-3, 3-9, 5-9, 8-10. Classmate Erica Adler played at the number two position, easily dominating her opponent 9-2, 9-2, 9-1. Senior captain Leigh Checchio also won without too much trouble (9-1, 9-5, 9-1) at the number three spot. Checchio was more than satisfied with the team's performance.

"It was a terrific match," Checchio said. "We knew they were a strong team, but we played well. It was certainly nice to have a home match because we're used to the courts and we had a lot of supporters."

Juniors Nicole Arens and Eliza Drachman-Jones were victorious at the fourth and sixth positions, winning 9-0, 7-9, 9-2, 9-4 and 9-2, 7-9, 9-3, 9-4, respectively. Tufts Senior AJ Crane fell at the number five position as did sophomore Zoe Bolesta at number seven. Freshman Liz Thys also dropped a tight five-game match at number eight, losing 9-4, 9-5, 1-9, 7-9, 7-9.

The fact that Tufts plays on American courts at home when most matches are played on international courts became a factor in Thys' match. American courts are narrow and a little longer than their international counterparts. As a result, it was harder for the Jumbos to capitalize on their speed, which is one of their strengths.

"Liz's opponent played very well this time, but I think Liz will win the next time she plays her," Eng said. "I think the court-type may have made a difference in that match."

The Jumbos' strong play bodes well for the matches they play will this weekend against Trinity, St. Lawrence, Wesleyan, and Hamilton.

"This match certainly shows we're much improved and it was a good thing to lead into this weekend." Eng said.

Even with the momentum Tufts acquired from Wednesday's match, it will be extremely difficult for the team to even compete with Trinity, a national power.

"With Trinity, every player is world class," Eng said. "It's like taking the top five college basketball players in the nation and putting them on one team, that's how good Trinity is."

The matches against Wesleyan, St. Lawrence, and Hamilton should be more competitive.

"St. Lawrence is very strong at the top, but they are beatable. Wesleyan lost to Wellesley earlier this year, so I think we have a good shot against them. And we beat Hamilton 5-4 last year, so that will probably be a close one too. " Eng said.

The Jumbos have their work cut out for them, but if they can match Wednesday's level of play, it could be a good weekend.