No. 6 Virginia Sweeps No. 21 Chatham 9-0

CHARLOTTESVILLE, VA. – The No. 6 Virginia men’s squash team (2-2) closed the weekend with a 9-0 win against No. 21 Chatham (2-4) on Sunday (Nov. 24) at the McArthur Squash Center in Charlottesville, Va.

The Cavaliers won all ten courts against the Cougars, including the exhibition court. Virginia won by 3-0 scores on seven of the 10 courts.

Junior JP Tew played on the top court for the first time this season, picking up an 11-1, 11-8, 11-8 victory.

Senior CJ Baldini trailed 2-1 at seven but came back to win games four and five, taking the match 11-5, 9-11, 5-11, 11-7, 11-8.

QUOTE FROM ASSISTANT COACH GRANT WHITE

“Once the college squash season gets, started, the matches pile up quickly. And I am so proud of the resilience and spirit our guys have demonstrated. To come out and post a 9-0 win over a deep and talented Chatham squad was a very positive result, especially after coming up short in outings against Yale and and Penn, the top two teams in the nation. Between the fatigue and the onset of the Holiday Season, it is reasonable to worry that you might overlook a match.

But this team did nothing of the sort; instead, we got our heads and our bodies into prime-time mode on our home courts. CJ Baldini’s match, in particular, embodied that will to grind to win. He was out there the full five games and was the last match on for most of it. But he maintained consistency and composure regardless of the ups and downs. He finished like the leader he is and seeing what that looks like will, I hope, inspire our guys to keep working over the Thanksgiving recess. Big matches against Harvard (#5) and Dartmouth (#12) are on the horizon and we are looking to make the most of the trip to New England.”

MATCH NOTES

• CJ Baldini and senior Maxwell Velazquez picked up their first victories of the season
• Senior Charles Braff made his season debut, also picking up his first win of the season at position eight
• Freshman Isaac Mitchell made his UVA debut, picking up an 11-6, 11-3, 11-3 win at nine
• Virginia improves to 4-0 all-time against Chatham

UP NEXT

• The Cavaliers will finish 2024 on the road, taking on No. 5 Harvard on Friday (Dec. 6) and No. 12 Dartmouth on Saturday (Dec. 7).

#6 Virginia 9, #21 Chatham 0

1 | JP Tew (VA) def. Jared Nalliah (CHAT) 11-1, 11-8, 11-8
2 | Juan Jose Torres (VA) def. Agustin Carranza (CHAT) 11-7, 11-4, 11-9
3 | Maxwell Velazquez (VA) def. Lucas Oliveira (CHAT) 11-6, 11-7, 11-4
4 | Dylan Moran (VA) def. Muhammad Hassaan Raza (CHAT) 11-3, 11-8, 11-6
5 | Nathan Rosenzweig (VA) def. Abdelrahman Sadek (CHAT) 9-11, 11-3, 11-4, 6-11, 11-5
6 | Evan Hajek (VA) def. Alejandro Cruz (CHAT) 11-9, 11-5, 11-4
7 | CJ Baldini (VA) def. Haidar Jafry (CHAT) 11-5, 9-11, 5-11, 11-7, 11-8
8 | Charles Braff (VA) def. Brett Poles (CHAT) 13-11, 11-2, 9-11, 11-7
9 | Isaac Mitchell (VA) def. Keyel Beasley (CHAT) 11-6, 11-3, 11-3
Exh | Patrick Keller (VA) def. Isaac Mitchell (CHAT) 11-1, 11-1, 11-5