In only the second match of the season, the men and women's squash teams have proven that they belong among the best in the nation.
The No. 4 women and No. 6 men both pulled off upsets over Yale on Saturday by scores of 5-4 and 6-3, respectively. The Elis boasted the No. 2 women's and No. 4 men's teams.
Against Brown yesterday, both teams won their matches 9-0.
"It's just incredible to get a win over Yale," men's senior captain Gilly Lane said. "Everyone did very well; it was probably our best effort ever."
Both Penn teams got off to a great start. The men (3-0, 3-0 Ivy) won five out of the first six flights, and the women (3-0, 3-0) won all three flights in the first shift, including 3-0 wins by senior co-captains Paula Pearson and Radhika Ahluwalia.
While the men swept the second shift to clinch victory before the last three flights, the women's match was up for grabs until the final point. After freshman Christina Matthias gritted out the only win of the second rotation for Penn, the match came down to the No. 4 flight between Quakers sophomore Alisha Turner and Elis junior Sarah Barenbaum. Turner won the flight 3-1.
"We all expected her to win," Pearson said. "We were right behind the court cheering for her and then at the end we had a nice celebration."
The top three men, Lane, junior Lee Rosen and freshman Mark Froot, all won their flights. The women, however, struggled at the top, with freshmen Kristen Lange and Sydney Scott falling to All-Americans - senior Catherine McLeod and junior Miranda Ranieri.
"They didn't come out on top, but they played well for us," women's coach Jack Wyant said. "We've got these two freshmen at the top of the ladder that are gaining invaluable experience against the top players in college squash."
Despite being underdogs in a hostile environment, the Quakers were full of confidence. The men had pushed Yale (0-1, 0-1) to the brink last season and the women already bested the three-time defending champion Elis (0-1, 0-1) at the Ivy Scrimmages this year.
"There was a lot of hype going into this match because we knew we had a chance," Ahluwalia said. "It was a great atmosphere, all these girls around me playing their best. We all wanted it so badly."
Both teams continued to show how dominant they can be in yesterday's match against the No. 11 men and No. 8 women Bears. All nine players on both teams won their flights 3-0 - the second time this has happened this season. They had beaten Cornell in a similarly dominant fashion.
With such big wins early in the season, both Penn teams have cemented themselves as contenders. Now that they have upset one of the four perenially elite teams, they can turn their attention to their post-break matches, especially those against the other three - Princeton, Trinity and Harvard. After a monumental win like this, ambitions as high as Ivy League and national championships are not unreasonable.
"We're cautiously optimistic about the rest of the season," Pearson said. "We've got a lot of games after winter break, and squash is a very mental game, so getting ahead that way is crucial."
