Women’s Squash Earns Five All-America Selections
CAMBRIDGE, Mass.
- The No. 2 Harvard women's squash team garnered
five College Squash Association All-America selections, the CSA
announced this week. Freshman Nirasha Guruge was tabbed to
the All-America first team, while the quartet of sophomore Alisha
Mashruwala, freshman Emily Park, sophomore June Tiong and sophomore
Bethan Williams were honored on the second team.
Guruge, the Ivy League Rookie of the Year and All-Ivy
recipient, posted a 10-5 overall record in her first season at
Harvard, including an impressive 6-1 mark at the No. 2 position and
a 5-1 record against Ivy League opponents in the regular
season. The native of Colombo, Sri Lanka opened her career
with victories against Brown, Williams, Dartmouth, Cornell and
Stanford. At the CSA National Team Championships, Guruge
defeated Stanford's Lilly Lorentzen in the quarterfinal round, 3-0
(9-1, 9-0, 9-6), helping the Crimson eventually reach the national
championship. Two weeks later, the freshman advanced to the
quarterfinal round of the Ramsay Cup at the CSA Individual
Championships, topping Princeton's Jackie Moss, 3-1 (9-3, 9-5, 5-9,
9-1) along the way. Guruge ranks seventh in the final CSA
individual poll of the season.
Mashruwala, a first-team honoree last season, received All-Ivy League recognition for the second straight year after going 14-3 overall, including 5-1 at the No. 3 slot and 4-0 at the No. 4 position. The Crimson sophomore from Mumbai, India placed 10th in the Ramsay Cup as she was a finalist in the consolation bracket in the tournament. She picked up a victory over Princeton's Kaitlin Sennatt, 3-1 (7-9, 9-3, 9-1, 9-0) in the national team final and was a perfect 3-0 at the CSA team tournament. She also posted a 5-1 mark against Ivy League opponents during the regular season and appears 12th on the final CSA poll.
Park enjoyed a stellar rookie season with the Crimson, as she boasted a 10-4 record including a perfect 4-0 mark at the No. 4 slot. She began her career with a trio of victories against Brown, Williams and Dartmouth and also posted regular-season wins against Stanford, Trinity, Penn and Princeton. During the CSA National Team Championships, Park, ranked 16th in the final poll, topped players from Stanford and Penn and closed out her season by earning a 3-0 victory against Cornell's Shivangi Paranjpe (9-7, 9-5, 9-3) in the CSA individual tournament.
Tiong makes her second appearance on the CSA All-America squad, after being named to the first team a year ago. A native of Sarawak, Malaysia, Tiong owned a 4-5 record with all victories coming at the No. 1 slot. She opened her season with a 4-0 mark after downing opponents from Brown, Williams, Dartmouth and Cornell and ranks 14th in the final poll.
Williams, who hails from Swansea, Wales, had a Crimson-best 15 victories in 2008-09, going 15-3 overall and 7-1 at the No. 6 position. She began her year 7-0 and was 8-1 during the regular season, dropping her lone match by a 3-2 margin. At the CSA team tournament, Williams, who appears 18th in the final CSA individual rankings, defeated her opponents from Stanford, Penn and Princeton, enabling the Crimson to finish second in the country. She won a consolation bracket at the CSA Individual Championships by topping Penn's Alisha Turner in four sets (9-3, 5-9, 9-1, 9-1) and was 4-1 overall over the course of the weekend.
As a team, Harvard went 10-2 overall during the season, including 5-1 against Ancient Eight opponents.
