Erik Wang ’21 plays second-seed for Andover.
Without dropping a set in its five successful matches, Andover Boys Squash defeated Tabor Academy 5-2 on Saturday, but later went on to fall to St. George’s 6-1 this past Wednesday. Its record now stands at 11-3 with one match left before the 2020 Head High School National Championships.
In its matches against Tabor and St. George’s, the team was able to increase its confidence and gain exposure to a similar opponent to the ones the team may face at Nationals, according to Cody Comyns ’23.
Comyns said, “I think Tabor and St. George’s have very strong top players on their teams. For the rest of the team, however, it was an easier match for us, which is important because we have to practice against all types of teams to make sure we are performing and getting the job done. At Nationals, we might play a few teams that are similar to the schools we faced this past week, and because every match counts, it was good practice for us to take care of business.”
According to Siddhant Sinha ’21 and Comyns, the team looks to get more competitive matches in, while also focusing on its training regime.
“Obviously, it is going to be very competitive, and we’re not going to have a single easy match throughout, but we are planning on just sticking to the basic practices we’ve had while focusing a bit more on our fitness and strength. We are playing against Deerfield this coming week who is a historically strong team, so they will also help us be more prepared,” said Sinha.
Comyns added, “We ramped up the fitness going into Nationals, and I think we are playing a lot better as a team nearing the end of the season. We’re going to have to get used to playing on different courts, which should become easier towards the end of the tournament, and even though it will be a more pressured situation than any of our other matches, it will be good for the team to be out against.”
The team has performed well throughout the season to earn its spot in the Division 1 Nationals, where the team will compete against 16 other schools with the hope of success, according to Will Yun ’20 and Sinha.
“It will be my first Nationals, so I’m pretty excited. I’m not sure what to expect, but we’ve done pretty good throughout the season to put us in a good spot in the tournament. We’re just looking to come out and compete to the best of our abilities because this is what the season has been leading up to,” said Yun.
Sinha added, “We made Division 1 this season, which is a huge improvement for us as a team… We will be competing among the top 16 schools, so I hope that we can at least reach the quarterfinals. I think that in particular would be a big deal for us, but we are just looking to go out there and play our best squash. It will definitely be hard, but besides that I hope some of the younger players on our team can perform well because it will be their first time competing, and I hope we can make it a memorable competition for our seniors.”
The team will face Deerfield at home next Saturday.
