Virginia Welcomes Five to 2022-23 Roster
CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – The Virginia men’s and women’s squash program welcomes its newest recruits as five athletes will join the Cavaliers in the fall of 2022, the program announced Thursday (July 21).
The men’s team adds Kareem El Torkey (Giza, Egypt), Patrick Keller (Rye, N.Y.), and JP Tew (Cincinnati, Ohio) to the team, while the women’s team adds Nina Hashmi (Marin, Calif.) and Lina Tammam (Alexandria, Egypt) to the fold.
“We are welcoming five superb student-athletes to our squash program this August, and I know each one of them is going to make a profound impact on the team and the University over the next four years,” said head coach Mark Allen. “Both our men’s and women’s teams have now made their way up into the top tier of the college squash rankings, competing for the Potter and Howe Cups respectively. As I look forward to the season ahead, I think that if we perform to our potential, both teams are positioned to finish higher in the national rankings than ever before. Given the level of talent and experience that this class of 2026 brings, I fully expect that our incoming first years will play a crucial role in realizing that ambition to push upward in the college standings.”
Patrick Keller – Rye, N.Y. – Brunswick School
Keller joins the Cavaliers as a four-year letter winner at the Brunswick School, where he helped the Bruins to three national titles (2019, 2020, 2022) and New England regional championships in 2019 and 2020. In his senior season, Keller was awarded the 2022 Jim Stephens Racquet Award for Leadership and Skill. Individually, Keller finished as runner-up at the Connecticut Junior Squash Championships in 2020.
JP Tew – Cincinnati, Ohio – Loveland High School
Tew joins the Cavaliers with a total of three national junior titles to his credit (BU11, BU13, and BU15). A US Squash High School All-American, he arrives in Charlottesville having reached a #1 ranking in every age division in junior squash. In high school, Tew was also a two-time varsity letter winner in track and field, earning first-team all-district honors in the 800 meters.
Kareem El Torkey – Giza, Egypt – Wadi Degla Sporting Club
El Torkey currently ranks as the No. 1 player in Egypt in the BU19 age division. Individually, he holds a total of five Egyptian National titles, a Hong Kong Junior Open title (2019), and a British Junior Open championship (2014). El Torkey has competed in several PSA World Tour events, twice winning the Madkour Academy satellite, as well as the CIB Smash Les Rois. El Torkey. He will be joining his brother, Omar El Torkey, who is a three-year letter winner on the team and a two-time All American.
Lina Sherif Tammam – Alexandria, Egypt – International American School
Tammam enters the UVA program after competing at Alexandria Sporting Club from 2011-2022. In 2022, Tammam finished in third-place in the U19 divisions at both the Gezira Open and the Maadi Open. Her best finish in a PSA World Tour event came at the 2022 Madkour Academy Satellite, where advanced to the finals. Tammam took the Cairo Regional Open Championship in the U17 division and a third-place finish in the Egyptian National Championships (U17).
Nina Shah Hashmi – Marin, Calif. – Choate Rosemary Hall
Hashmi is a three-time varsity letter winner at Choate Rosemary Hall and served as a team captain for the 2021-2022 season. She held the top spot on the Choate ladder throughout her senior season and was named to the All-NEPSAC team. Individually, she took a fifth-place finish at the 2020 NEISA Girls Division II individual championships and a third-place finish in the GU15 division at the West Coast Closed Regional Championships. She earned an individual ranking inside the top-25 in the GU11, GU13, GU17, and GU19 divisions.