The men’s and women’s squash teams competed for individual glory at the College Squash Association’s Individual Championships at Penn this weekend.
Yale’s highlight performance came from Shiyuan Mao ’17, who brought home the Holleran Cup after winning the B division. Millie Tomlinson ’14 also advanced after her Friday matches, but was defeated at the second round in the A division. Kah Wah Cheong ’17 was able to secure a win over his Harvard opponent in a Saturday consolation match after losing in the first round.
“I’m just really happy that my mom was able to be here when I won the Holleran division,” said Mao, whose mother flew in from Singapore for the championships. “My coaches and teammates are the best I could ask for, and I’m so happy to be a part of the Yale women’s squash team.”
Mao had to play and beat her teammate Annie Ballaine ’16 to advance in the championship.
Her win this weekend topped off an undefeated season, playing 13–0 at the eighth position for Yale. She is following in the tracks of her sister, Shihui Mao ’15, who also won the Holleran division as a freshman.
“We all had strong weekends,” Tomlinson said. “Although I was disappointed I didn’t make it further [than the semifinals], I feel very proud to have made it to the top four in the nation with the strength of college squash today.”
Tomlinson finished her college squash career ranked No. 3 in the country.
Kim Hay ’14, Issey Norman-Ross ’15, Shihui Mao and Jenny Scherl ’17 all gave strong performances, but were defeated in the first day of play. No. 16 Shihui Mao fought especially hard pushing her No. 17 Trinity opponent to a fifth deciding game.
Representing the Eli men, Cheong, Neil Martin ’14 and Sam Fenwick ’16 were all bested in the first round.
“I gave my best in the individuals,” Cheong said. “It was a really close match, and my opponent was of higher seed than I was, so I’m happy to have given him a good battle.”
According to Cheong, the Bulldogs are looking forward to an even stronger season next year after giving their best this year.
Harvard’s Ali Farag won the men’s individual championship, while the Crimson’s Amanda Sohby took the women’s title.