Squashing It

 

Western's Men's Squash Team Wins the OUA Championship AGAIN
   They have done so for forty-two years in a row. That is, since 1982 when the war being fought was farther away, in the Falkland Islands. I thought I would call this to your attention again this year since again it will go almost unnoticed. I suppose that even if we, like everyone else now, were not living in a local news desert, it might not have been reported on, since it is rather boring, having been repeated over and over for forty-two years.
   Here is some information about the performance of the men's team as reported by the OUA:
  "Western capped off another dominant season on Sunday, defeating the University of Toronto 7-0 in the gold medal final to claim the 2026 OUA Men’s Squash Championship.
   The Mustangs controlled the tournament from the opening matches, finishing atop the standings with a perfect 5-0 record while compiling a remarkable 34-1 individual match record.
   Head coach Chris Hanebury credited the team’s lineup strength as a major contributor to the championship run....
  The victory marks Western’s 42nd straight OUA title, continuing one of the most impressive dynasties in Canadian university athletics. Veteran Antonio Mendes spoke to the challenge that comes with maintaining such a streak.
  “It feels amazing. Every year we come out here, obviously we have a lot of pressure on our backs from having that streak, but I think the guys really live up to it every year,” Mendes said.

  The Western's Women's Squash Team also won - for the second year in a row. Here is some information about their victories, as reported on the Ontario University Athletics Website.
   "Western University completed a dominant weekend at the OUA Squash Championship, defeating Queen’s 6-1 in the gold medal match to secure the women’s banner and finish the tournament undefeated.
   The Mustangs closed the championship with a perfect 5-0 record while pacing the field with 28 individual match victories, an 87-19 games record, and an impressive 1113-590 points differential....
   Straight-game victories from Caitlin Ng, Katie Boulanger, and Sophie Pinfold helped swing momentum, while Sienna Grossi secured the championship point with a four-game win.  Queen’s lone victory came from Gabby Waite at the top of the ladder.
   Head coach Tom Panabaker praised his group following the championship result.“It feels awesome. The girls do all the hard work. They plan, work all year, and train hard. We’ve got a fantastic group of girls,” said Panabaker.
  For the players, the moment reflected years of preparation and commitment to the program.
“Back-to-back gold, this is something we’ve been working for a long time… winning with the boys too makes it so much better,” said Western’s Madison Draayer and Sophie Pinfold.
  The championship also highlighted several standout individual performances. Western rookie Caitlin Ng was named Rookie of the Year after a flawless 5-0 weekend without dropping a game...."
  
   If you happened to look at the Western University website, the victories of the two teams were reported. See, for example: "Mustangs Men's Squash dynasty continues for 42nd consecutive year," Mustang Sports Information, 2/9/2026 and, "Trio of Western Mustangs Teams Crowned Champions: Men's and women's squash teams win gold provincially, cheerleading squad earns national title," By Mustangs Communications, Special to Western News, February 11, 2026.
  Note that the Western Cheerleading Squad won the national title.

Things Are Tougher South of the Border
   The Western's Men's Squash Team also competes against the best U.S. Collegiate Teams and has done so for years. The College Squash Association National Team Championships are from March 5-8 in Philadelphia. I hope the Western guys are given some money for gas and can attend. 
   You may have noticed the dominance of the Western teams at the OUA event. It is often the case in squash that very good players and teams are squashed by even better players and teams. Here is a look at Western's results in the U.S. on the eve of the championship.

  Western is currently ranked 18th in the U.S. and I will report back about what happens in Philadelphia, if no one else does.  The teams Western played above are among the top ones in the U.S. Penn won the national title last year.