The Andover Girls Varsity Squash had two unsuccessful matches this week. The girls lost first against Deerfield 6-1 on Friday before bowing to Groton on Wednesday by the same score. Deerfield and Groton have always proved a challenge, but the team would have hoped for closer matches this week. Charlotte MacMillan ’05 won her game against Deerfield 3-0. Despite the accurate shot placement of Deerfield’s number two seed, she did not have the endurance to stay with MacMillan. MacMillan alternated between deep rails and short drop shots from the start of her match, tiring her opponent out quickly. Midway through the second game, it was clear that MacMillan’s opponent was on the ropes, and MacMillan became relentless, hitting drop shots that her player could not reach. Captain Diana Grace ’05 lost 3-0 in quick match, struggling with the offensive aspect of her game. The captain commented afterwards, “Even though they are a really good team, I wasn’t that nervous going in.” Despite Grace’s confidence, the Lady Blue had a tough go of it in the match. Throughout the match she consistently hit well down the line and kept rallies going, but her opponent often took the offensive shot before Grace had a chance. In general Grace played a good game. Teammate MacMillan said of her captain’s performance, “I thought that she played well, and she definitely could have beaten her opponent.” Although Emily Watson ’05 fell 3-0, she still played well. In the first game of her match, she did a good job getting some long drives to the back and hit some terrific attacking shots upfront. In the second and third game, she began to have trouble getting her serve over to the far wall. “It was too bad that the game wasn’t closer as we were practically the same level,” Watson said after the game. Even though each game was close, Skylar Washburn ’05 also lost 3-0. It did not take long for her to notice that her player had trouble moving around the court. Washburn tired her opponent by hitting some great drop shots. Washburn was not satisfied with the game she played, saying, “I made some mistakes that really cost me.” As always, Washburn did a great job getting back to the “T,” especially in the third game, and she put away some terrific shots. Jean-Marie Gossard ’05 had an especially close contest, but also dropped her match 3-0. Gossard took her third game to a tiebreaker that went all the way up to 10-8. During the game Watson observed, “Jean-Marie is awesome at running around the court, and runs for every ball.” After the tough loss to Deerfield, Andover faced off with the Girls of Groton Squash. Nearly a month ago, the Lady Blue Squash squad faced off with these same Groton girls. Andover dropped that meet 5-2. Unfortunately, their record was not as good this time, falling 6-1. Only Washburn won her match. Washburn won her game 3-0. She was great at getting back to the “T” and was always set up for her opponent’s shot. In addition, Washburn had some strong rallies and was always able to hit an offensive drop shot. Grace did not play up to her expectations. Even though she had already played her opponent earlier in the season, she had trouble getting into her game and did not hit the ball to the back wall very successfully. Grace said of her match, “I think I could have beaten my opponent. I had played her before and I knew how she played. Things didn’t work out for me on Wednesday, maybe I’ll see her again at Interschols.” MacMillan lost 3-2 in a close and hard fought game. She played really well until the last game. At the end, she just had trouble getting back to the “T,” said Grace. Once again MacMillan was able to make her opponent tired by using a variety of shots as she did on Friday against Deerfield. Next Wednesday, the Girls Squash will be playing against Exeter in their final match of the season. Squash Intershols will be held the next weekend, both Saturday and Sunday. The girls are excited to show off their skills next weekend but are worried about who they might face. Captain Diana Grace explained of the important day, “Interschols is out biggest weekend of the Squash Season. There are going to be some really talented players, and everyone is going to have to play their best.” Grace continued, saying, “We have been working hard all season, and I know that it will pay off when we face all the schools in our league next weekend.”
