HAVERFORD, Pa. – Haverford College's men's squash team is looking forward to the 2011-12 season after closing out the last one with a big win that pushed the Fords to a ranking of No. 39 in the final Collegiate Squash Association (CSA) poll.
Second-year head coach Niki Clement has a solid group of returners coming back this season but will have to wait until the spring semester to see her team whole again. Co-captain Zef Konst, along with Andy McComas, Matt Liscovitz, Zeek Barnett and David Chang are all studying abroad in the fall semester.
Co-captain Alex Spilioteswill lead the team through the first semester of competition. Upper class teammates Chris Tyson, Robbie Thompson, Peter Boal, Harry Gallway and Charlie Michele join Spiliotes in giving Clement a strong core of returning players through the first half of the season.
The Fords add six newcomers -- Eric Helm, Zach Kaden, Bret Marlowe, Jonathan Nguyen, Matt Rohnand Arman Terzian -- who share the same inquisitiveness for the game that the upper class players exhibit. The young players have gelled quickly with the returning guard to form a closely-knit group who are proud to represent Haverford with the diligence and sportsmanship presented by last year's squad.
The schedule opens with a Thursday, Oct. 27 match against visiting Drexel University. The fall slate offers exciting contests against Georgetown and Vassar. The first of two tournaments for Haverford arrives in November with a trip to Boston where the Fords will square off against Northeaster, MIT and Boston College.
After the study-abroad players rejoin the team, the Fords will take on Swarthmore and Columbia, and will travel down the road to Drexel for a re-match. The Pioneer Valley Invitational in January, hosted by Amherst, is a large event that includes various teams from the New England and Tri-State area.
Clement believes wins last season against Vassar, Vanderbilt, Johns Hopkins and the Univ. of Washington will propel this season's squad to greater heights at the CSA 2012 Team Championship in February.