AMHERST - The Tufts University men's squash team opened its 2017-18 season with a 9-0 loss at Amherst College in a NESCAC match played on Friday night. It was the team's first action under new head coach Joe Raho.
The host Mammoths are ranked 24th in the College Squash Association preseason poll and the Jumbos were at #28. Two of Friday's nine matches went to four games, while the seven others were swept in three by the hosts.
In the #1 match, Amherst's Terrence Wang defeated Jumbo sophomore Raghav Kumar in four. The Mammoth had a 2-0 lead before Raghav won the third set 11-6. Wang sealed the match with an 11-5 score in the fourth game. The #6 match also went four with Amherst's Reginald Brewster defeating Tufts junior Aidan Porges. An 11-3 win by Porges in the second game had tied the match at 1-1, but Brewster took 11-9 and 11-3 wins in the third and fourth games for the victory.
Tufts junior Cameron Ewan was very competitive in his #7 match against Amherst's Mateen Mills. Though he lost in three, Ewan won 25 points with 11-6, 12-10, and 11-9 scores. After an 11-4 loss in his first game of the ninth match, Tufts freshman Daniel Hutt challenged Amherst's Arnav Parikh to 12-10 and 11-7 scores in the next two games. Jumbo sophomore Connor Wind scored 20 points in his loss to Cameron Bahadori at #4 (8,3,9).
The Jumbos will have an opportunity to overcome the opening loss when they continue a busy weekend with another conference match versus Hamilton College tomorrow at Belmont Hill School starting at 5 p.m.
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