After a disappointing 8-16 finish last year, the women's squash team hopes a revamped lineup will lead it to success this season.
The Jumbos have injected their team with new talent in multiple forms, including the return of their No. 1 player from abroad, a new assistant coach, and six new faces - three freshmen, a sophomore and a junior.
Tufts has acquired a new assistant coach in Kelsey Engman, a former No. 1 for Bates who graduated in the spring of 2006 and has now returned to collegiate squash. The hire should help with some coaching issues, as Doug Eng has been forced to split his time as head coach of both the men's and women's programs.
"So far she has a great impact," senior co-captain Rebecca Rice said. "She can bring that enthusiasm and drive to our team, and she maintains a good balance between hard work and keeping it fun. Her presence at practice is a good influence, as it raises everyone's level of play."
"We are all really excited about having her with the team," sophomore Stefanie Marx said. "She is good at pumping us up but also not putting too much pressure on us. She is pretty close in age so she knows how to communicate with us."
Two influential seniors, Julia Avrutin and Liz Thys, graduated from the team last year, and the Jumbos now look to fill those voids. Right now, the team has three freshmen in the top 10 looking to do just that, with Valerie Koo starting at No. 5, and Margaret Fisher and Allison Dempsey filling in at Nos. 9 and 10. The ability to produce wins at the bottom of the lineup will be crucial for Tufts, which struggled to get points outside of its top players last year.
"If they can make the bottom of the ladder stronger, they will make a big impact on the team," Marx said.
In addition, Tufts boasts the addition of two new upperclassmen. Junior Caroline Choi and sophomore Laura Curren are expected to deepen the ladder. Curren is slated for No. 2, filling in a top spot that was left vacant after two of the top four players graduated last year.
Riding a deeper and much-improved ladder, the women will enter into the season with two important but difficult matches against NESCAC teams. This evening, they will take on Conn. College in a home match which will be played at Belmont Hill at 6:30 p.m.
Due to the non-regulation size and poor quality of the courts at Cousens Gym, the Jumbos are unable to play any home matches on the Tufts campus, and instead must use the courts of other schools in the area.
"The lack of home courts is not so much a disadvantage for games, but to not be able to practice on the courts we will play on is a definite disadvantage," Rice said. "The courts here are narrower and not in great shape. One positive thing is that this year we are having an athletic van take fans to Belmont Hill so that we can get more people out to our home matches."
In addition to the practice disadvantage, the lack of home courts forces the team to schedule around other school's schedules and play at inconvenient times.
Despite their home-court disadvantage, the Jumbos are ready to go for their first match. Last year, Tufts lost to the Camels by a 5-4 margin, with three of the five Tufts losses coming on five-game nail-biters.
"Last year we had a very tight match," Marx said. "But this year we have added girls in both the top and bottom of the lineup so we hope to really crush them."
Tufts will then travel to Williams to take on the Ephs tomorrow evening. The Jumbos have been shut out 9-0 by the Ephs each of the last three times the teams have faced. This year, the Jumbos know that a challenge awaits them, but the players are looking to come away with a better result.
"Williams is always tough and normally quite a bit stronger than us," Rice said. "But hopefully everyone will put up a good fight and hang tough."
