With a loss to Taft still fresh in the minds of Girls Squash, Andover came storming back against Tabor this Wednesday for a dominant 5-2 victory behind the strong play of Christine Choi ’09 and Captain Lydia Smith ’09. Andover and Tabor played very close matches last year, so this year the girls hoped to capitalize against their opponents on their home court. Smith, who participated in last year’s close competition, said, “They are a good team, but our girls demonstrated passion this match. The whole team played very good squash this round.” Prior to the Tabor victory, Andover stormed onto the courts at home to face New England rivals Loomis Chaffee and Taft last Saturday. With the home court advantage in mind, the team looked for its first official win of the season. The girls cruised to a victory versus Loomis by a score of five games to their two. The great win and a restored sense of confidence was not enough, however, as the girls stumbled against a very tough Taft squad. Carolyn Brown ’09 said that, “Although we lost to Taft, they were a good team this year and we knew beforehand that they would be a challenge.” Rather than being discouraged by the loss, Brown was excited about the team’s enthusiasm and determination in every game. Andover went on to lose each game, losing by a final score of 0-7. Despite the tough loss, many of the matches were close. Smith, who has secured her position as the number one player on the team, battled in a close loss to one of the best girls squash players in all of India. After the weekend games, practice was focused mainly on skill development and consistency. The girls are working extra hard in hopes of ensuring a win versus their opponents in the following weeks. The impressive victory over the Tabor team gave the team a full head of steam heading into the games this weekend. After a long stint of home games, the girls are hitting the road to face Deerfield Academy and archrival Phillips Exeter Academy later this week.
