W. Squash | Bantams bring int'l flavor to Ringe

In a crucial Ivy faceoff two months ago, Tara Chawla and Kristen Lange took the court for the women's squash team against Yale needing to win both matches. They did just that, giving the Quakers a 5-4 comeback win over the Bulldogs in New Haven, Conn.

The scene was eerily similar Wednesday night in Hartford, Conn., when Trinity No. 1 Nour Baghat beat Yale's Logan Greer to give the Bantams a win by the same score, 5-4.

And their Collegiate Squash Association rankings are nearly dead even, with Penn at No. 2 and Trinity at No. 3. Tomorrow, they will test their skills against each other at Ringe Courts.

Both Penn coach Jack Wyant and Trinity coach Wendy Bartlett expect a nail-biter.

"I think the teams are pretty well-matched one through nine," Wyant said. "I don't think there will be too many matches that will be very decisive."

Last year, the Quakers beat the Bantams, 7-2, on Trinty's home courts. But in 2009, a few things are different.

"This year, they've got in some good recruits," Lange, Penn's top player, said. "Hopefully, because of our preparation and our training earlier this year, we'll be ready to take them on."

Lange will face one of those recruits on Saturday - Baghat, who hails from Cairo and has consistently played at No. 1 for the Bantams.

In addition to Baghat, Trinity will bring a very diverse squad to Philadelphia. Seven countries are represented on the Bantams' roster.

"It's not like some other teams in the league that I'm pretty familiar with, [where] I've seen the kids play for five or more years," Wyant said. "So I don't know what to expect [from Trinity] other than that they're very talented."

Lange added: "They're going to come out fierce, wanting to win, and very focused. So we're just going to have to match that intensity with our own intensity."

At least this time, the Quakers will be playing in familiar surroundings. The women were caught off-guard last year by Trinity's unusual "rainbow courts," which are painted a blue-green color with dark-brown wood floors. The ball is also white instead of the typical black.

"It was one of those things where we had to really focus and play hard," Lange said.

"I think it took a few of us by surprise the first couple games, but after that we settled in."

Saturday won't call for that same adjustment period, and Wyant feels his team is as prepared as it can be.

"I think we're peaking at the right time, and the girls are really fit and really keen," he said.

A win against Trinity will keep the Quakers' record untarnished, but it may come down to the final bounce.

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