This season, the Lower Merion/Harriton Squash team looks to continue its reign as one of the top programs in the country. The boys' team finished 35th in the nation in '09-10 while the girls finished 21st.
"We graduated four from the boys' side, but this should be our strongest girls' team ever," opined head coach Shane Coleman, before adding that the boys wouldn't be down for long.
"Our (boys') middle school team is seventh nationally and we'll be getting them in soon enough," Coleman said.
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Coleman, a former squash pro at the Kimmel Club who's been with the team since 2004, said the boys will be led by Matt Cooper and Josh Marks, while the girls strongest two are Jennie Shulkin and Emely Levyn.
These are not subjective designations. A squash meet is a 9 on 9 event, arranged so the best player on each team faces off, then the second, then the third, and so forth. It's an individual event masquerading as a team sport.
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"Squash is a very individual sport," concedes Coleman, "but we try to make it a team thing. Our philosophy is all for one, one for all. It takes all 9 to win."
The sport, individual or team notwithstanding, is spreading fast in the states.
"It's the fastest growing racquet sport in the world, the only growing racquet sport," explained Coleman. "The college system here has really embraced it. Squash is played by 90 percent of the world. So its just a natural progression coming here."
It's caught on particularly well locally. According to Coleman, Philadelphia is the biggest squash hub in the northeast corridor and Lower Merion/Harriton is the oldest public school squash program in the country.
And it's still going strong.
"We had 72 kids try out this year," added Coleman.
The competitive Coleman is hopeful his kids build more than just a winning record this season. To him, sport is about relationships.
"It's about competition, what you learn about yourself when you're out there, but it's also about bonding with your teammates. Learning to trust them, getting them to trust you."
