March 2, 2008

Complete Results

ANNAPOLIS, Md. - Navy team captain Jeff Sawin (Haverford, Pa.) and rookie Allan Lutz (McLean, Va.) closed out the season Sunday by each taking the consolation title in their respective brackets at the 2008 College Squash Association Individual Championship held this weekend at the United States Naval Academy.

Sawin, who won his opening round match on Friday before dropping his next match, competed in the second consolation bracket. He turned in a pair of wins on Saturday to advance to the semifinals held Sunday morning at Bancroft Hall. Sawin easily defeated Princeton's Philip Sopher, 9-0, 9-2, 10-8 and would be tasked with facing Sopher's twin brother, Peter, in the championship bout. After a brief scare that resulted ina hard-fought 10-9 victory in the opening game, Sawin ended the match by winning the next two, 9-3 and 9-0. He produced a 5-1 record at the CSA Individual Championship en route to capping the season with a 23-5 record. He concluded his career by posting an 88-29 record, the most wins by a Midshipman under the direction of eighth-year Navy head coach Craig Dawson.

"I'm so glad that I was able to end my career with a win, especially a 9-0 win in the last game," said Sawin. "This was really special for Tucker and myself to play our final matches at home in front of our friends and family. I couldn't have asked for much more."

"How many college players get to close out their career with a win," said Dawson. "I really couldn't be happier for him. I know he was disappointed that he lost in his second match, but he did not let that stand in the way of fighting back through and winning the consolation bracket. That shows what he's all about."

After losing his first match of the tournament, Lutz was forced to play with urgency, knowing he could not lose another match. After winning a pair of three-gamers on Saturday, Lutz was paired up with Middlebury's John Paul Sardi in the semis of the consolation bracket. Lutz seemed to have little trouble in getting past Sardi, earning a 9-5, 9-6, 9-7 victory, and setting up the finals match against Williams' Will Gruner. Lutz looked strong early on, taking game one, 9-3. However, Gruner bounced back to not only even the score at one apiece with a 9-4 game two win, he was able to sneak past Lutz in the third game, 10-8, to take a 2-1 lead in the match. Lutz, though, would not be denied as he evened the match at 9-5 before dominating Gruner in the fifth and deciding game, 9-1. Lutz finished the year with a team-high tying 23 wins (23-8).

"I was really disappointed that I lost my first match of the tournament," said Lutz on Sunday. "My opponent was ranked a few spots ahead of me and I wanted to get that win, but instead I tried to make the best of the situation. I knew I wanted to win the consolation bracket.

"I knew through the training that Coach Dawson has provided us throughout the year that I would be prepared for the finals match. We practice being down games and points, so having that experienced helped me. I felt comfortable that I would be able to come back after getting down in the match."

"This was just a tremendous experience for Allan," said Dawson, who is excited about his young prodigy's future. "I think what he got out of this weekend's tournament will pay dividends down the road."

This weekend's tournament marked the first time Navy has had the opportunity to host the individual national championship in its current form. The renovation and addition to the Halsey Field House International Squash Courts Complex provided Navy with the necessary 12 courts it needed to play host to the tournament.

"Overall it was a great weekend and a pleasure to host this tournament," said Dawson, a former All-American at the Naval Academy. "It was a tremendous experience. I think it was a good opportunity for all of the other schools to see what the Naval Academy was all about and in turn, more people at the Naval Academy got the chance to see what squash is all about.

"There has never been a moment like Friday in college squash," he added, in regards to the more that 2,300 fans, comprised mostly of the Brigade of Midshipmen, who cheered on Navy senior Tucker George (West Hartford, Conn.) in the featured match in the specially erected glass court. "People are still talking about it today."

NAVY AT THE CSA INDIVIDUAL CHAMPIONSHIP

Tucker George (Potter Division)
Round of 32 lost to Supreet Singh (Trinity), 1-9, 9-4, 9-7, 9-7
Consolation/ Rd of 16 def. Jake Gross (Tufts), 1-9, 9-3, 6-9, 9-0, 9-5
Consolation/ Quarters lost to Randy Lim (Trinity), 9-3, 9-0, 9-3

Nils Mattsson (Molloy Division)
Round of 64 def. Alexander Salton (Haverford), 9-4, 9-5, 9-2
Round of 32 def. Peter Sopher (Princeton), 9-0, 9-1, 9-6
Round of 16 lost to Frederick Reid (Rochester), 9-7, 9-2, 9-0
3rd Consolation/ Quarters lost to Kush Mahan (Bates), 9-7, 10-8, 9-3

Jeff Sawin (Molloy Division)
Round of 64 def. Alexander Lavoie (Harvard), 9-1, 9-0, 9-5
Round of 32 lost to Ethan Buchsbaum (Williams), 5-9, 9-4, 9-3, 3-9, 10-8
2nd Consolation/ Rd of 16 def. Brendan Bascom (Princeton), 9-4, 9-4, 9-5
2nd Consolation/ Quarters def. Edward Newhouse (Dartmouth), 9-5, 9-7, 9-5
2nd Consolation/ Semifinals def. Philip Sopher (Princeton), 9-0, 9-2, 10-8
2nd Consolation/ Finals def. Peter Sopher (Princeton), 10-9, 9-3, 9-0

Allan Lutz (Molloy Division)
Round of 64 lost to Brendan Bascom (Princeton), 9-5, 9-3, 9-5
Consolation/ Rd 16 def. Stephen Preefer (Dartmouth), 10-8, 9-1, 9-0
Consolation/ Quarters def. Alex Gross (Tufts), 9-7, 9-7, 9-5
Consolation/ Semifinals def. John Paul Sardi (Middlebury), 9-5, 9-6, 9-7
Consolation/ Finals def. Will Gruner (Williams), 9-3, 4-9, 8-10, 9-5, 9-1