Saturday against Cornell, the men's and women's squash teams were just going through the motions. And going through the motions was all they needed to do as each team decisively defeated the Big Red, 9-0, at Ringe Courts to start a promising season on the right track.
"Sometimes, our practices are harder than college-level matches," men's coach Craig Thorpe-Clark said.
Thorpe-Clark and women's coach Jack Wyant agree that this season's Penn teams are among the best in the nation. The upperclassman have taken a large part in setting the pace for the freshmen on and off the courts.
"This year, we know we have such a good chance of winning, so we are all working really hard; we want to play to our full potential," said co-captain Paula Pearson, who played at No. 3 for the Quakers.
None of the women struggled in any of the matches, showing that they deserve their No. 5 national ranking.
"We all played really well and proved that we are one of the best teams in the league," senior co-captain Radhika Ahluwalia said.
According to Ahluwalia, the team attributes much of its improvement to coach Jim Steel and his strength and conditioning regimen.
Against the Big Red, Penn's freshmen showed exactly why they are ranked in the top 10 in the junior national division. Wyant played freshmen Sydney Scott and Britt Hebden as his top two, and they both crushed their competition this weekend to further bolster the team's effort.
"The freshmen are one of the strongest recruiting classes in the country," said sophomore Alisha Turner, Penn's No. 1 player last year. "They have all brought their own individual parts to the game and made our ladder really deep."
As the season continues, the women's team hope to climb the Ivy League and national ladders. The depth of the team greatly contributes to the success the Quakers hope to see this year, with 16 players who could be ranked among the best in the nation.
"I think my goal is for us to get better every day, and I hope our focus is on the process - the journey rather than the outcome," Wyant said.
On the men's side, the victory over Cornell was easy but still sweet nonetheless. Top seeds Gilly Lane and Ben Ende comfortably defeated Cornell.
"We hoped to win 9-0 pretty comfortably," senior Will Simonton said. "My freshman year, we lost to Cornell, 7-2, so we have really turned it around and cleaned up."
Not only did the No. 6 Red and Blue defeat Cornell, but it didn't even give the away team a chance. Across the board, the Penn players won their individual matches by a perfect 3-0.
"We were all pretty decisive in the way we played," Thorpe-Clark said. "We are pretty strong overall and have been working hard."
With the determination that the team possesses, an easy win was exactly what it was looking for - the Quakers certainly have their eyes on the top teams in the country this season.
"We are definitely a contender for the top in the nation," senior Graham Bassett said. "A lot of people think this will be a really good year for us."
