February 1, 2012

Photo courtesy of Yale Sports Publicity

PRINCETON, N.J. -- After 252 matches and 13 years, the Trinity men’s squash team finally suffered the agony of defeat thanks to the Yale Bulldogs, who upset the No. 1 ranked squad, 5-4, and will likely take its place at the top of the next Dunlop Men’s College Squash Association (CSA) Rankings.

The Bulldogs are tied with Princeton for first-place in the Ivy League standings at 3-0 apiece. The Tigers are ranked No. 3 in the latest CSA poll. Harvard and Cornell are each 2-1 and ranked No. 5 and No. 6, respectively. Dartmouth comes in at No. 7 and Penn is No. 9.

The Ivy teams will take part in the CSAC Team Championships from Friday-Sunday, Feb. 17-19 at Jadwin Gym in Princeton, N.J. The CSA Individual Championships will take place from March 2-4 in Amherst, Mass.

Here is a team-by-team look at the Ivy League squads this season:

Brown (6-4, 0-3 Ivy League)
Results & Highlights: The Bears are ranked No. 16 in the latest Dunlop Men’s CSA poll. Brown has dropped all three of its League contests thus far, falling to Columbia, 6-3, Cornell, 9-0 and Yale, 9-0. The Bears’ non-conference slate includes wins over No. 18 Bates, 5-4, and No. 19 Wesleyan, 8-1. Brown has won its past two contests, defeating No. 22 Bowdoin, 5-4, and No. 20 Colby, 9-0. Sophomore Blake Reison dropped his first game against Bowdoin before winning the next three to take the match.

Brown’s Return to the Courts: Saturday, Feb. 4 at Penn; vs. Drexel

Columbia (5-6, 1-2 Ivy League)
Results & Highlights: Columbia is No. 15 in the latest Dunlop Men’s CSA Rankings. The Lions are 1-2 in conference play; they claimed their first-ever Ivy League victory with a win over Brown, 6-3. Freshman Ramit Tandon, junior Graham Miao and freshman Thomas Galluccio each swept their respective opponents in the win. In other Ivy action, Columbia fell at Cornell, 8-1, and at Yale, 9-0. The Lions’ non-conference slate is highlighted by a 7-2 win over No. 18 Bates. Columbia has won two of its past three matches as it fully enters Ivy play.

Columbia’s Return to the Courts: Friday, Feb. 3 vs. Harvard

Cornell (8-3, 2-1 Ivy League)
Results & Highlights: The Big Red is No. 6 in the latest Dunlop Men’s CSA Rankings. Cornell is tied for third-place with Harvard in the Ivy League standings at 2-1, with wins over Columbia, 8-1, and Brown, 9-0. The lone conference loss for the Big Red came at the hands of likely No. 1 Yale, a tough 5-4 defeat. Cornell is 3-3 in its past six matches after a 5-0 start. Its non-conference slate includes 9-0 wins over No. 10 Williams, No. 12 St. Lawrence and No. 13 Middlebury. Junior Owen Butler leads the team with a 10-1 record while sophomore Bryan Keating is 9-1. Junior Arjun Gupta and senior Will Hartigan are each 9-2 on the year.

Cornell’s Return to the Courts: Friday, Feb. 3 vs. Franklin & Marshall

Dartmouth (6-4, 1-2 Ivy League)
Results & Highlights: Dartmouth comes in at No. 7 in the latest Dunlop Men’s CSA Rankings. The Big Green is tied for fifth-place in the Ivy League standings with Columbia at 1-2. Dartmouth defeated Penn, 5-4, but fell to Harvard and Princeton each by a score of 8-1. Senior Nick Sisodia leads the team with a 2-0 record in Ivy League play. It has been a year of streaks for the Big Green, as it opened with three straight wins, followed by two losses, then three more wins and currently a two-game slide. Dartmouth’s non-conference schedule is highlighted by 5-4 wins over No. 8 Franklin & Marshall and No. 10 Williams.

Dartmouth’s Return to the Courts: Saturday, Feb. 4 at Cornell

Harvard (11-2, 2-1 Ivy League)
Results & Highlights: Harvard is ranked No. 5 in the latest Dunlop Men’s CSA Rankings. The Crimson is tied with Cornell for third-place in the League standings with a 2-1 mark, thanks to wins over Dartmouth, 8-1, and Penn, 9-0. Harvard’s conference loss was to Princeton by a score of 5-4. Sophomore Ali Farag competed in his first action for the Crimson and ended Princeton junior Todd Harrity’s 26-match winning streak with a five-set victory. Nine of the Crimson’s 11 wins have been shutouts. Freshmen Julian Kirby and Nick Hopcroft are first and second on the squad with 10-1 and 9-1 records, respectively. Junior Zeke Scherl boasts a 9-2 mark.

Harvard’s Return to the Courts: Friday, Feb. 3 at Columbia

Penn (3-5, 0-3 Ivy League)
Results & Highlights: The Quakers are ranked No. 9 in the latest Dunlop Men’s CSA poll, despite their 3-5 record. Penn’s five losses have been to teams listed in the top-10 of the rankings, including tough 5-4 defeats at the hands of No. 7 Dartmouth and No. 8 Franklin & Marshall. The three wins for the Quakers have come against No. 10 Williams, No. 14 Navy and No. 29 Drexel. Penn has dropped its last four contests. Sophomore Derek Chivers, senior Thomas Mattsson and freshman Michael Mutscheller each have four wins on the season to lead the Quakers.

Penn’s Return to the Courts: Saturday, Feb. 4 vs. Brown

Princeton (8-0, 3-0 Ivy League)
Results & Highlights: Princeton is one of two undefeated teams in the Ivy League, joining Yale. The Tigers are ranked No. 3 in the latest Dunlop Men’s CSA poll and are tied for first-place with the Bulldogs in the Ivy League standings. Princeton has defeated six top-10 teams, including No. 4 Rochester, 6-3, and No. 5 Harvard, 5-4. Junior Todd Harrity is 7-1 on the year after suffering his first loss since the 2010 national individual title in the Tigers’ win over Harvard. That defeat ended a 26-match winning streak for Harrity, who fell in five sets.

Princeton’s Return to the Courts: Wednesday, Feb. 1 at Trinity

Yale (11-0, 3-0 Ivy League)
Results & Highlights: The Bulldogs will be the new No. 1 team in the nation in the Dunlop Men’s CSA Rankings after their 5-4 upset of previous No. 1 Trinity, ending the Bantams’ 252-match winning streak. Trailing, 4-3, Yale seniors Robert Berner and John Roberts each defeated their opponent, Roberts in an decisive five-game match, to give the Bulldogs the victory. In League play, Yale is 3-0 and tied for first-place with Princeton in the conference standings. The Bulldogs are 4-0 since defeating Trinity, including a tight 5-4 win over No. 4 Rochester.

Yale’s Return to the Courts: Saturday, Feb. 4 at Princeton