With the women's squash team's season coming to a close, the Jumbos still have one hurdle ahead of them that could define their success this season: nationals.
This weekend, the nationally ranked No. 25 Tufts squad will travel to Yale to compete in the B division of the Howe Cup, the last team competition of the year. And in earning the top seed in the division, the Jumbos have high hopes for a deep run in the bracket. The road to a championship, however, will not be an easy one, as the second−seeded Columbia — ranked just below Tufts nationally — may have what it takes to pull off the upset.
"We know we're top−seeded in the B division right now, so our goal is obviously to win our division," junior tri−captain Valerie Koo said. "We know that Columbia … should be a tough opponent we could see in the final. We're doing everything we can to prepare right now. We're working on keeping the ball deep, covering the front court and attacking shots."
Competing in the B division are numerous teams that the Jumbos have seen already earlier this season — and that did not put up too much of a fight as Tufts handily put those matches in the "win" column.
Squads like the Northeastern Huskies, Wellesley Blue and Conn. College Camels were all silenced by the Jumbos, who yielded just five games out of 36 in matches against the B−division rivals. While the Jumbos are confident in their abilities, they will need to stave off complacency in a do−or−die tournament that could give rise to opportunities of vengeance from their past opponents.
"I think being top−seeded is going to give us the confidence we need," Koo said. "We also beat other teams in our division fairly convincingly before. We could get to final if all goes as planned."
"Based on our record against three of the teams in our division that we've played before, we should have a good chance at winning," sophomore Alix Michael added. "But it's not going to be an easy road, and we need everyone to go out, play their hardest and be consistent. Consistency is going to be a big factor in our success this weekend."
Complicating matters is the fact that the Tufts squad will be matching wits with one of its own if it plays Columbia: former Jumbo coach Kelsey Engman. Engman, who now serves as the head coach of the Lions, was for the past two seasons an assistant coach under current Tufts head coach Doug Eng.
But the Tufts program has experienced somewhat of a rebuilding year, in which a number of new players and freshmen have found their way into the top nine positions, shaping a different team altogether when compared to the 2008−09 roster.
"Because Kelsey coached us, she knows how some of us play, which could be an advantage to them," Koo said. "However, we've improved from last season and we have a game plan to follow. We're going to try to go on the court and make them play our game."
"The improvement of the returning players has been so much that a couple of us don't play anything like we did last year," Michael added. "With four completely new players [Engman has] never seen play before and returning players that play differently since she left, the history here shouldn't have too big of an impact."
This season hasn't been easy for 4−13 Tufts, but the trials it has faced may have brought the players closer together as a team. Beginning the season without even enough players to fill the top nine positions, the Tufts squad has wrapped up the year with respectable wins over some formidable nationally ranked opponents. While the Howe Cup may not be the main determinant in judging the season, it would surely be meaningful for a team that has overcome difficult setbacks in the past few months.
"I think we're pretty happy with how our season is going, considering how our team is so young," Koo said. "We lost a lot of experienced players last year. Also, considering how we started out this season and not having enough players for a team and having to do last−minute recruiting, it would be great to be successful this weekend. We'd like to win the division because it would show how far we've come together as a team in just the past few months."
"If this weekend goes poorly, we obviously will be upset," Michael added. "But … we just want to go out and play our best and play to the high level that we know we can."
