Girls’ Squash Annihilates Andover 6-1

Last Saturday, the Exeter girls’ varsity squash team competed at home against Andover. Big Red battled hard and won decisively with a score of 6-1. This win raised the team’s record to 7-1.

Lower Euwie Park, the girl’s number one seed, thought her game was challenging. “My opponent was really tough. She went for anything. It could have been a lot worse,” Park said. Nevertheless, Park won a 3-1 victory against her opponent. She felt that the team morale was upbeat and lively, but also noted the difficulty of fostering camaraderie in a single-player sport. “I think we do a pretty good job cheering each other on, but it’s still hard because the sport is individual, so we have to work together as much as we can,” she said.

Lower Ursula Sze, Exeter’s varsity second seed player, felt nervous stepping onto the court. Sze played on the first court, the most spectated, and felt timid for the first game as a result, saying that she made a lot more unforced errors than usual. “I sometimes feel like I don’t live up to people’s expectations and that really affected my mental game,” she said. Fortunately, Sze was able to pull through with a 3-1 victory against her opponent, crediting support from the team. “I’m so thankful I had Euwie and the team behind me because they were always cheering me on, and in the end I pulled through,” she said.

"We have a lot of new players this year and great managers, but I think that the team is getting more in shape as the season progresses.”

Upper Alyssa Kuwana faced challenges at the beginning of her match, but eventually pulled through. “At the start, I was really not in the game, and I kept on hitting my shots out, and I wasn’t moving, but in the third game I came back 3-2.” Like the other team members, Kuwana is optimistic for the team’s future. “I feel like if we keep up with this trajectory, we are going to do really well this season,” she said. She felt that the team’s morale is always very good, and they always cheer each other on. “I think we always boost each other up and support each other at games,” Kuwana said.

Senior and co-captain Jiwon Sung was happy with the results overall. She credited her own strong performance to the pre-game advice she received from her teammates. “Before the game, we always tell each other to hit the balls wide and deep, so that’s what I focused on every game,” she said. So far, the team has only had one loss. Sung believed that the team was in good spirits. “I think we’re doing really well. The team atmosphere is really nice. We have a lot of new players this year and great managers, but I think that the team is getting more in shape as the season progresses,” she said.

Prep Nikita Thummala felt that despite the obstacles, the team was very hard working. “I know that everyone worked really hard and everyone put their best efforts into playing,” she said. Similar to the other players, Thummala felt that the atmosphere was very encouraging. “In our practices, we are always cheering each other on,” she said.

Coach Freddy Brussel believed that the team was very hard-working, but hopes for improvement. “I think that everyone tried really hard and did their best, but I think there’s still room for improvement,” he said.

Senior and team manager Kaitlyn Kang was satisfied with the effort the team put in. “They brought their best game today and I’m really happy with our results today,” she said. “Of course, we’re not going to stop trying our hardest.”  The team’s season continues to be exciting, with a tough match against Andover this week. Big Red squash will play against Dana Hall School and Noble and Greenough School this coming week.