The women’s squash team (4-7) rebounded with a 9-0 win over Mount Holyoke (10-12) last Saturday after a 0-9 loss to Drexel (4-6) earlier that afternoon. The Polar Bears went on to defeat Wesleyan (4-7) and Smith (0-11) by scores of 5-4 and 8-1, respectively, at the Pioneer Valley Invitational on Sunday, while the still winless men’s team suffered three tough losses to Drexel, Hobart, and Wesleyan.

Head Coach Tomas Fortson praised his athletes and their performances this past weekend, remarking that he was impressed by many moments throughout the string of matches. 
“All of our players are on a committed road to improve and most have competed very well,” he said.

Co-captain of the men’s team Max Bearse ’15 attributed the scrappy 5-4 losses against Hobart (7-5) and Wesleyan (4-4) to its thinned lineup, with “a couple key players” injured after the teams’ intensive winter training.

 “5-4 losses…are obviously as close as it can possibly get, and I think if we had healthy lineups for all of those, [if] everyone was 100 percent physically ready to go, a couple of those would have gone our way. But it’s very tough to say that. I think we competed very well despite such difficult matches,” he said. 

On Saturday, the women’s team lost to Drexel 0-9 before turning the tables on Mount Holyoke, crushing the Lyons 9-0. The dramatic shift in the team’s performance may have resulted from what Emily Simonton ’15 said are long-standing traditions that have helped facilitate team bonding in preparation for crucial matches at the start of a new semester.

The match later in the day against Smith  was easier for the women, who handily beat a pioneer team that Bowdoin has dominated historically, winning 8-1.

“The competition was different—we only played one NESCAC [school]. The previous weekend, we played Williams, Amherst, and Middlebury, who are all extremely talented, as are we, but in the NESCAC…it’s really competitive,” said Simonton.

In preparation for these recent matches, the men’s and women’s squash teams logged grueling workouts and competed frequently during Winter Break. Fortson mentioned the significance of winter training as a springboard for success later in the season.

 “Winter training is the most important segment of our season, in terms of athletic growth and team dynamics. We only had two weeks this year [versus three in past seasons] but much was accomplished in both areas. We have a solid foundation to face the final month of the season,” said Fortson.

Both Bowdoin squads will travel to Brown Saturday before facing Colby this Sunday at 1 p.m. at the Lubin Squash Center.

“The key to this weekend’s matches will be how we practice this week. One day at a time,” said Fortson.