Choate exposed the Andover Girls Squash team’s inexperience on Saturday, cruising to a 6-1 victory. Andover’s young squad played hard but was clearly overmatched. The players hope to overcome their weaknesses but know they have their work cut out for themselves. Captain Ali Zindman ’07, returning for her second consecutive season at the number one position, gathered the team’s only victory of the day. She did so with relative ease, stumbling in the first game but rebounding for a 3-1 win. In the first game, Captain Zindman found herself trailing 3-8, but she regained the serve and seemed to take control. With low, penetrating rails, she frustrated her opponent and brought herself to within one point. After a few more exchanges of the serve, however, her opponent squeaked out a 9-7 first game victory. But Captain Zindman soon put Andover on the board. She maintained her composure and took the court in the second game with the same confidence that earlier enabled her comeback. Using her drives in concert with finesse lobs and drop shots, she rolled to a 9-0 win in the second game. The points were short, and she stymied her opponent with a combination of power and precision. Captain Zindman encountered no further roadblocks, winning the last two games 9-1 and 9-0. She easily arrived at a 3-1 win, leveling the overall match score at one. Despite this encouraging result, Andover soon dropped two more mid-lineup matches. Lydia Smith ‘’09 fell at number two. Though a strong newcomer, Smith could not counter the experience and talent of her Choate opponent and lost 9-0, 9-1, 9-0. These losses set Andover down 3-1 overall, and victories in the three remaining matches would be necessary for a team win. Diana Willson ’07 was playing with an injured leg at number three. In a similar situation to that of Jiramongkolchai, she was overmatched and lost 9-2, 9-2, 9-3. The most competitive match still in progress was that of Carolyn Brown ‘’09 at number five. She lost 9-5. The serve continually changed hands, and the game went long, but she dropped it 10-9. She lost the preceding game 9-6 and took the match loss.
