January 30th,
Trinity College, Hartford CT -
They had the
crowd. They had the intimidation factor. They had the No.
1 ranking. They had "the streak." Only the crowd
was guaranteed to show up again, as for the first time in
two years, there was a real notion that Trinity might lose.
They didn't. They didn't even come close. Instead they defeated
Princeton 6-3 and proved why they had all those things in
the first place.
"Going in we thought we were the underdogs," said Princeton
head coach Bob Callahan. "We thought we had a good chance
at this. We lost 3-0 at one and two and we thought we might
win those, but we were trounced."
With the winner of the match not yet determined,
Trinity's No. 2 took to the court with the crowd chanting "Gustav,
Gustav, Gustav." It's been almost exactly two years since
they first started doing that, after he defeated future four-time
national champ Yasser El Halaby to save the match against
Princeton. The last time Gustav Detter played Kimlee Wong,
the match lasted for more than two hours, with Detter walking
away with a 3-2 victory. This time it was 3-0, to Detter.
"I didn't know what to expect," Detter said. "I
went out to play my game. My strategy was to wear him down,
and I think I wore him out a lot in the first game. After that,
the points went quick."
In the first game, it looked like it
might be another two-hour match, as the two retrieved nearly
every shot, and spent time in all corners of the court. Drop
shots that would be winners against almost anyone else were
picked up over and over and both looked sharp and fit. The
only way to tell that Detter was expelling any energy at
all was by the sweat visible on the back of his shirt.
"One and two looked so dominant," said
Trinity head coach Paul Assaiante.
Yes, number one was dominant
as well. Trinity's No. 1, Baset Ashfacq Chaudhry defeated
Mauricio Sanchez, the No. 1 ranked player in the nation,
3-0. Chaudhry allowed just two points in each of the first
two games before blanking Sanchez in the third.
Immediately
following the win, Chaudhry said, "It's magic.
I feel wonderful. There are no words."
When Chaudrhy and Sanchez
took the court, Trinity had already defeated Princeton.
"I think Mauricio was a little dispirited because the match
was over," Assaiante said.
Chaudrhy won 3-1 the only other
time the two have played.
"He played really well," Sanchez said. "I
tried to attack and it didn't work out. I tried to play basic
squash and that didn't work either. He was playing well,
and that made my game off a bit."
Randy Lim shut the door on the Tigers' hopes
for a victory when he defeated Tom McKay 3-1. McKay didn't
make it easy for Lim. Both players knew what was at stake
when they entered the match. With the bigger crowd watching
the action on the glass courts, most of their teammates and
a still substantial crowd watched the No. 7's fight for what
would be a match victory or a "we still have a chance victory." McKay came
back from 8-4 in the third to keep the Tigers alive, but
was dominated by Lim in the fourth.
"In the fourth I wanted to take the first five to build
my confidence," said Lim. "Playing in front of a big crowd,
the momentum changes very fast. It felt good to win. I'm
happy for the team. The streak is still alive."
McKay was
noticeably frustrated when Lim got a few lets in the fourth.
McKay made used his shot making to come back in the third
and thought he was handing out more winners in the fourth.
"He was asking for lets with minimal contact," McKay said. "It's
tough. I am a big guy and I can get in the way, but it's
tough when you've made a good shot and you think you've won
and you've got to play the point again."
The match of the
night belonged to the sixth men on the ladder, Supreet Singh
and Santiago Imberton. The two played each other tight throughout,
but it was Singh coming back and winning three straight games
that most will remember.
"If Princeton would have won at six, then the match would
have been hanging," said Assaiante.
Singh and Imberton played
first on court number two. The number five and number four
players took that court after them, while the top three played
on court one in descending order. Both courts were surrounded
by fans and every inch of stands separating the courts was
jammed as well. Court five, where nine, eight and seven faced
off, still had packed rows of Trinity faithful.
Princeton's
David Letourneau won first on court one, but by the end of
the match between the number fives, Trinity had the victory
thanks to wins from Detter on court one, and Sahil Vora,
Simba Muhwati and Lim on court five.
Princeton's David Canner
and Hesham El Halaby gave the Tigers their additional wins.
With
the national championships three weeks away, both teams still
have tests in front of them. Both teams play Harvard next
week, with Trinity getting the first shot at them. Princeton
also faces Yale and Dartmouth, with the Ivy title up for
grabs. Neither coach or team is taking those matches for
granted, but the Tigers are hoping for another chance against
Trinity at nationals.
"Even though we lost 6-3, we have to keep positive and train
hard," said Sanchez. "I still think we have a chance at nationals."
So
while the streak is intact, who will be crowned victorious
at the end is not a safe bet. If the two teams meet again,
they will have a better idea what to expect-and Trinity won't
have their substantial home court advantage.
MATCH RESULTS
1. Baset Chaudhry (Trinity) d. Mauricio Sanchez, 9-2, 9-2,
9-0
2. Gustav Detter (Trinity) d. Kimlee Wong, 9-5, 9-2, 9-1
3. David Letourneau (Princeton) Manek Mathur, 7-9,
9-7, 9-1, 9-5
4. David Canner (Princeton) d. Andres Vargas, 9-4, 3-9,
0-9, 9-5, 9-1,
5. Hesham El-Halaby (Princeton) d. Parth Sharma, 9-7,
9-4, 2-9, 10-8
6. Supreet Singh (Trinity) d. Santiago Imberton, 5-9,
5-9, 9-4, 9-3, 9-2
7. Randy Lim (Trinity) d. Tom McKay, 9-3, 9-6, 8-10, 9-0
8. Simba Muhwati (Trinity) d. Peter Sopher, 9-4, 9-6,
9-0
9. Rushabh Vora (Trinity) d. Philip Sopher, 9-0, 9-1,
9-6
Trinity (Conn.) 6, Princeton 3
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