There were 182 entrants, and over 300 matches played. Dramatic five game matches were frequent; great squash. The draws in each division were quite well done, so that no one reached the Finals without passing through a strong gauntlet of opposition. The management of the eleven courts at the Harvard Murr Center provided a smooth progression of matches.

This year, many members of Squashbusters, an ever improving club of players, finished higher in most of the draws.

GU19: Alexandra Zindman stopped Helen Woolworth(2) in the semis, but bowed to Alia Aziz(1) in the Finals. Woolworth finished 3rd, Krissy Rubin 4th. Samantha Smith won the Consolation; Emma Tall won the Plate. The matches in the main draw were predominantly decided 3-0.

GU17: Twenty seven entered this draw. Cece Cortes(1) and Natasha Kingshott(2) met in the Finals. Each had won her prior matches 3-0. There were long tiring rallies, as each point was yielded reluctantly. Cortes won game one. Games two and three were much like the first with fast paced rallies, each opponent patiently waiting for a kill shot. Kingshott won both. Game four opened much like the preceding three. Cortes had to avoid loose shots; she did and prevailed, leading to game five. This game went into overdrive, the pace faster, the rallies longer. Shots that were clearly winners were reached and responded to with equally precise shots. Rally by rally the game was in contention until the very end, Kingshott winning, 9-7. Long and loud applause of appreciation greeted both women as they exited. Samantha Buechner(3) finished 3rd, and Rhetta Nadas(4) 4th. Lauren Gesswein won the Consolation and Eliana Saltzman the Plate.

GU15: This was a strong draw of thirty entrants; the top four seeds made it to the semis. Sarah Loucks(1) beat Courtney Jones(4) in four, one of which was a rigorous 10-8 game. The match to watch in this division was the semi between Julianne Chu(3) and Dori Rahbar(2). It was one of the closest matches in the entire tournament. Rahbar won game one and Chu won game two. It seemed as though each was feeling out the other. Those two games did not reveal what was to follow. Game three went back and forth until the score reached eight all. Set two was called, and each player was determined to win and go up 2-1. It went to nine all, with Chu to serve. Chu served game ball. The rally lasted several minutes; Chu hit a winner and prevailed. Although Chu was up 2-1 in games as they entered the court for game four, the match still seemed up for grabs, and so it was, for Rahbar took game four, 9-6. Neither young woman appeared tired as they began game five, the reward of endurance training and conditioning. Game five reached eight all. Again, set two was called, and once again, the score tied at nine all, the match ultimately to be determined by one point. Chu served and after a long rally hit a winning shot. Chu after some rest faced Loucks in the Finals and lost in three. Rahbar finished 3rd defeating Courtney Jones(4) in four. Corey Schafer won the Consolation and Nyesha Hannah Wornum won the Plate.

GU13: Kate Calihan(1) easily dispatched her opponents on her way to the Finals. Yuleissy Ramirez(2), however, was confronted by unseeded Torey Lee in the semis. After winning the first game handily, Lee lost games two and three; Ramirez had seized the momentum and seemed unstoppable. The impediment was Lee, who came back to win games four and five and go on to face Calihan in the Finals. Even with a night’s rest after her five game semi, Lee fell to Calihan’s relentless attack, 3-0. Ashley Dona won 3rd and Ramirez 4th. Jennifer Huynh won the Consolation and and the Plate was won by Jessica Sanon.

BU19: This draw was comprised of a talented, geographically diverse dozen. Will Hartigan(1) came well prepared and cruised through to win the Finals. It was not that his opponents were not worthy, it was just that Hartigan played flawlessly. On the other side of the draw, Matthew Candal(2) was confronted by David Funk who took Candal to four games before yielding. Candal was Finalist. Christopher Vernick finished 3rd and Funk 4th. The Consolation was won by Rees Sweeney-Taylor, and the Plate by Sharyar Aziz. Aziz and his twin sister, Alia (W-GU19) will enter Yale this Fall. Good luck to both.

BU17: Thirty eight young men entered. Plenty of talent, and several who on any given day could win this draw. Matches began to tighten up in the quarters; each went to four games. The semis proved even tougher. Will Sullivan(1) won a five game match against his school teammate, Andy Bernard(4). They had played each other many times, and it was a seesaw battle, each familiar with the other’s tactics. The other semi was won by unseeded William Morris. Harry Smith(2) yielded only after a well played five game match. Morris won the Finals and Sullivan was the Finalist. Smith finished 3rd and Bernard 4th. The very last match of the tournament was a five game masterpiece played between Amory Bennett and Charles Gertler in the consolation finals. It was a match for the archives. Not many balls made it to the back wall. Volley followed volley, trying to catch his opponent wrong footed. Drop shots, lobs, tight low rails, wide cross courts; it was a tutorial. Each was up to it. Fifth game ended 10-8, Bennett. Earl Smith III won the Plate.

BU15: There were thirty one players. Juan Marcos Flores(1), Winner of the Finals, dispatched all his opponents in three. The other side of the draw was dominated by the young, diminutive wonder Peter Dylan Murray(2), until he met Alexander Greaves-Tunnell(3) in the semis. It took Murray five games to beat Greaves-Tunnell. With just over three hours rest, Murray faced and lost to Flores in three in the Finals. Liam McClintock finished 3rd and Greaves-Tunnel 4th. The consolation was won by Mark Funk and Sam Cheney won the Plate.

BU13: Nicholas Greaves-Tunnell(1) faced stiff opposition only in the semis, and it took five games to defeat unseeded Hayden Dunham. Pehlaaj Bajwa(2) gave up only nine points in his three matches to reach the Finals. Bajwa lost game one, but as the second game began, he seemed calm, settled down and focused. He proceeded to win the next three, despite Greaves-Tunnell’s valiant efforts. Thus, Bajwa was Finals Winner and Greaves-Tunnell, Finalist. Dunham finished 3rd, and Shakeele Scott 4th. Mario Payne won the consolation, and John Bogle won the plate.