Unlikely pair: W. Squash's co-captains

Chances are, if you had asked Rina Borromeo and Lauren Patrizio four years ago if they thought they would ever co-captain a team together, they might have scoffed at you. They first met during their senior year in high school, as opponents in a junior squash tournament. All they knew about each other then was that they would soon both be playing for the Penn women's squash team. "I lost to her and didn't talk to her at all," Borromeo said. "I wasn't too happy about the outcome of the match, but one thing I noticed was that she's a tough player, especially mentally." The competitiveness did not subside as they became freshmen teammates. "Lauren and I have had a very interesting four years," Borromeo said. "At the beginning, we were extremely competitive with each other. We would have these crazy challenge matches that even included throwing racquets." And though the two co-captains have turned their competitive drives toward leading the Red and Blue to one of the best seasons in Penn squash history, their much more friendly rivalry has by no means disappeared. "Whenever they play, they both play to win, and it can get pretty scrappy," Penn sophomore Runa Reta said. And probably the most beneficial aspect of their differences are the two niches Patrizio and Borromeo have come to fill as leaders of the Quakers. "They really balance each other," Penn freshman Daphna Wegner said. "Lauren might talk more about the mental part of a match and Rina is more about the squash. They have always kept us together." Even in terms of personality and leadership style, the co-captains are more complementary than they are alike. "Rina has a great sense of humor and is just really really funny," Penn senior Helen Bamber said. "Lauren is very thoughtful in what she does. She's always thinking about others. I think that reflects in the ways that they lead because Rina is more laid back while Lauren is more directly involved." But, as with all good team leaders, Patrizio and Borromeo have set exemplary standards of on-court play. "They're both just really driven, as well as being extremely focused and committed to the team," Reta said. "They lead by example. Everyday at practice they just go out and give it their all." Together, Borromeo and Patrizio have compiled a 78-25 record. They've earned three All-American honors, one All-Ivy Selection and, perhaps most significantly, a national championship. "Everyone on the team has so much respect for them," Bamber said. "They're so close in ability levels and they share a common respect for each other." This season has, in several different ways, evolved to be a more challenging year in comparison to previous seasons. Patrizio and Borromeo have had to befriend and incorporate a relatively large incoming class, lead a team playing without two of its upperclassmen for half the season, and play to maintain the respect the Quakers earned after winning last year's national title. Quite clearly, the jump to becoming the coined leaders of the Red and Blue has been quite an experience. "It's been a very good learning experience in that we discovered that there's so much more to a team than winning," Patrizio said. "We've been talking about how much we've come to realize that it's not about personal success, it's about the team." In that respect, the leadership responsibilities have been distributed among the four seniors, effectively increasing the strength of the team. "All the seniors are definitely leaders in the sense that we all have different traits," Patrizio said. Borromeo added that, much like Patrizio and herself, each upperclassman has made a unique contribution to guiding the team through the season. "Helen always has great things to say to make people feel more at ease and Megan [Fuller] has been inspirational with the way she has played on court. The four of us have different roles and it makes my job easier because the other seniors are there to help lead the team." In spite of any past differences, the co-captains share the same goals for their team as well as the same sentiment towards each other. "We both want to win personally, but we know that the overall objective is to win as a team," Patrizio said. "We're different but we get along really well." "We've come a long way," Borromeo added. "We know we can depend on each other."

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