W. Squash stakes claim as an elite

It is one thing to throw around phrases like "No. 2 in the nation" and "capable of playing with anyone" in the preseason. Delivering when the games matter is entirely different. Last weekend, the Penn women's squash team delivered. The Quakers picked up three victories in two days, including one against traditional power Trinity, and validated claims that they are indeed a team on the rise. The road trip started with a 9-0 demolition of Vassar. Penn coach Demer Holleran was so sure of victory against the Brewers that she opted not to place the normal first and second players in the lineup. Instead two alternates took places at the bottom of the squad. It didn't matter. "They weren't very good at all," said Jessica DiMauro, one of two Quakers who got the night off. The next afternoon, Penn met two more opponents in Hartford, Conn. The first was the host, Trinity, which finished fourth in the nation last season. The two teams exchanged wins, four apiece, until only one match was left. Everything depended upon the result of Elissa Helt's match. Playing in the fifth position, Helt had fallen behind two games to none. She fought back, as the rest of the players gathered in the gallery to watch. Helt brought herself level at 2-2. "She didn't want to know?She had a feeling [that the meet depended on her]," said senior Lissa Hunsicker. Helt won the deciding game 9-7, giving the Quakers a 5-4 victory over the Bantams. It was the first time that Penn had ever defeated Trinity in women's squash. It was also the first time Penn had won a close 5-4 match in over a year. "It was the most climactic that our team has ever gotten," Hunsicker said. A few minutes later the Quakers were back on the court, this time laying waste to the Cardinals of Wesleyan, 9-0. It was a fitting end to an ideal opening weekend. "It's huge. Our coach was freaking out," DiMauro said. Although squash titles are determined by the Howe Cup, a tournament at the end of the season, the regular season is meaningful. Penn learned that much last season, when a 7-10 record prevented the Quakers from receiving a high seed in the Cup. Starting 3-0, including a win against a high calibre foe like Trinity, is a step in the right direction. "You have to be successful from the start of the season," DiMauro said. Penn took that message to heart over the weekend.