Rappaport honored with sportsmanship award

Not only was squash co-captain Craig Rappaport the only representative of the Penn men's squash team at the national championships last weekend, but he also won the coveted Skillman Award for Sportsmanship. "I was pretty psyched," Rappaport said. "It still hasn't really sunk in yet. It's good to be recognized by teammates, but by the whole country, it feels weird." The award is given to the one senior in intercollegiate squash who displays the best sportsmanship and attitude, both on and off the court. It is voted on by a cross-section of squash coaches from around the nation who are a part of the executive committee. "I remember when I was a freshman," Rappaport said, "and looking up to the guy who won that award. He was awesome, and I looked up to him. He deserved it, and I thought it would be nice to deserve that as a senior." The award only reinforces the reputation Rappaport has earned during his past four years as a Quaker. "He's gained the admiration of of all the players and all the coaches he's been in contact with," Penn coach Ned Edwards said. "Every opposing coach has made a point to say?how fair he is." And in a sport like squash, where players often are their own referees, that reputation is a special honor in itself. "This award means that we have a guy at the top of our lineup who, every time he goes on the court, he enhances the respect that people have for the Penn squash program and for the University of Pennsylvania," Edwards said. The award was presented during last weekend's individual championship tournament. Rappaport finished among the top 16 players in the nation. He won his first two matches easily, defeating Randall Etheridge of Cornell in the first round and Amherst's Evan Kahn in the second round, both by a score of 3-0. He lost , 3-1, to Jason Jewel, Princeton's top player, in the round of 16. He then won a consolation match against Princeton and lost one to Harvard. Though official rankings have not yet been released, Rappaport will likely finish the season close to No. 10 in the nation. "I felt privileged to coach Craig during the course of his career," Edwards said. "As seriously as I take the sport of squash and my role as a coach, he has met or exceeded my expectations as a player. I'm sad that his career's coming to an end."