UWO SQUASH AND THE U.S. COLLEGIATE SQUASH CHAMPIONSHIPS

  This post is about the University of Western Ontario (now known as "Western University") and squash, the sport not the gourd. It is also a tribute to the coach of the squash teams at that University, Jack Fairs, who passed away in August, 2021. 

   Over the years, the men’s squash teams at UWO/Western were very good and still are. They have won every Ontario University Athletics Men’s Championship over the last forty years. In the recent one in February, they won again without dropping a match. They also play in the “Big Leagues” which is what this post is about. It is a rare thing for any Canadian university to compete against U.S. universities and to do so regularly and at the highest level. That Western has done so and won, is unique. Just how unique the accomplishment is, was noted in a Globe & Mail article back in 1994, where this is found (the source is provided at the end of this post):

“ IMAGINE the hoopla that would surround a Canadian university basketball team if it reached the Final Four of the NCAA championships. Or if a football team crushed all its Canadian opponents consistently for more than a decade and then headed south each year for a bowl game.
Preposterous?
   Perhaps, but the University of Western Ontario's men's squash team has been doing the equivalent of just that and more for the past 20 years. And doing it more quietly and with less recognition than you'd expect from such an accomplishment.”

U.S. Intercollegiate Squash

   The “Ivy League” universities are generally found high in the academic rankings, but typically do not do so well in the athletic ones. That is not the case with squash. Until around the turn of this century, when Trinity College began recruiting aggressively and globally, the Ivies dominated in the collegiate squash rankings. Over many years you will find variations of a statement indicating the supremacy of the Ivies in collegiate squash competitions. In an article in 2011 about the arrival of Trinity, Paul Wachter notes in, “Squashing the Ivies” that, “no school outside the Ivy League had won the Potter Cup, given to the men’s national champion in college squash, since the U.S. Naval Academy’s surprise victory in 1967.” Another Ivy (Penn) just won that national championship in 2024 and this statement was made: “For the first time in program history, the University of Pennsylvania are crowned National Champions (Potter Cup)! There have only been five Potter Cup champions in the CSA, Harvard University, Princeton University, Trinity College, United States Naval Academy and Yale University.”  A similar statement is found on the website of the College Squash Association and it is provided below. Apparently everyone agrees that prior to the arrival of Trinity, the Naval Academy was the only non-Ivy to win the collegiate national title in squash. I disagree. UWO won the title twice. 

Where’s Western/UWO?

  I recall reading the 2011 article by Wachter which appeared in the New York Times Magazine and remember thinking that an egregious error had been made. Two, in fact. Apart from the Naval Academy, the very non-Ivy league University of Western Ontario has won the U.S. national squash title twice - in 1977 and 1980. When I quickly went searching for proof I found that the author, Paul Wachter, likely supported his claim by using the CSA data, where, in fact, UWO is not listed among the national champions. I then went looking for a list which I remembered and which may have been provided by  the National Intercollegiate Squash Racquets Association (NISRA) the precursor of the CSA and could not find it and have not found it on the Internet Archive or elsewhere. But, I did finally find UWO somewhere. UWO is listed under "Six-Man Trophy", under "Past Champions" on the website of the College Squash Association. 

   My memory is not good and I will declare an interest in that I knew Jack Fairs and sometimes sold squash rackets out of my office, to help him raise gas money to go play with the Ivies (and Trinity) in New England and elsewhere. I am not incorrect, however, in writing that UWO won two U.S. national titles in squash.

   At first I thought that UWO might have been erased because having another non-Ivy name spoiled the symmetry of the squash rankings. Plus, in a “national” championship, perhaps such an exclusion can be justified because the school is from another nation. Apparently, however, a new distinction developed based on the number of players on the team and one will find UWO listed twice as the winner of the “Six-Man Team Trophy” on the CSA website. I remain confused about the relationship between the size of the teams and the national title, but will provide the information you need to sort it all out. I don't think there were two national champions in 1977 or 1980, based on team size. UWO won the title in both years. 
   After typing all of that I realized that there is a simpler solution which explains why UWO does not appear as the national champion. According to the CSA, prior to 1989, the national champion was the team with the best record, not the winner of the National Team Championship. Simply put, UWO won the National Team Championships in 1977 and 1980, but the national champions were Princeton and Harvard, both of whom were beaten by UWO. 

Sources:

   You were likely not reassured by the last few sentences and are also confused. For those reasons I will follow the usual format of this blog and provide information from those less confused and more knowledgeable. I will begin with the College Squash Association description and their list and a simulated one provided by me, which I think is not totally inaccurate. I then offer original sources in support of the assertion that the University of Western Ontario won two US intercollegiate squash championships, in 1977 and 1980. Additional information about UWO squash and Coach Fairs follows.

                             Potter Cup (A Division/National Championship)

 "The top eight teams in the nation compete in the “A” division of the men’s National Team Championships for the national title and the Potter Cup. The Potter Cup is named for Art Potter, the United States Naval Academy’s longtime coach. Potter, who started coaching at Navy in 1950, coached the midshipmen to national team titles in 1957, 1959, and 1967. Until Trinity won its first title in 1998, Navy was the only non-Ivy League school to win a national nine-player team championship. Potter was inducted into the College Squash Hall of Fame in 1990.
   The records below list the national nine-player team champions. From 1942 to 1988, the title was based on dual-match records, with the team with the best record becoming the national champion. Since 1989, the title has been based on performance in the National Team Championships, with the team winning the “A” division becoming the national champion." [ the information above is from the CSA and a link provided. The table on the right below is my fabrication.]

      NATIONAL TEAM CHAMPIONS/POTTER CUP WINNERS (COACH): 1967-1997

College Squash Association (CSA) List              Revised List From a Canadian Perspective

1967: United States Naval Academy (Art Potter)  1967: United States Naval Academy (Art Potter)
1968: Harvard University (Jack Barnaby).            1968: Harvard University (Jack Barnaby)
1969: Harvard University (Jack Barnaby).            1969: Harvard University (Jack Barnaby)
1970: Harvard University (Jack Barnaby)             1970: Harvard University (Jack Barnaby)
1971: Harvard University (Jack Barnaby).            1971: Harvard University (Jack Barnaby)
1972: Harvard University (Jack Barnaby).            1972: Harvard University (Jack Barnaby)
1973: Harvard University (Jack Barnaby).            1973: Harvard University (Jack Barnaby)
1974: Princeton University (Bill Summers).         1974: Princeton University (Bill Summers)
1975: Princeton University (David Benjamin).     1975: Princeton University (David Benjamin)
1976: Harvard University (Jack Barnaby).            1976: Harvard University (Jack Barnaby)
1977: Princeton University (David Benjamin).     1977: University of Western Ontario (J. Fairs)
1978: Princeton University (David Benjamin).     1978: Princeton University (David Benjamin)
1979: Princeton University (Norm Peck).             1979: Princeton University (Norm Peck)
1980: Harvard University (Dave Fish).                 1980: University of Western Ontario (J. Fairs)
1981: Princeton University (Norm Peck).             1981: Princeton University (Norm Peck)
1982: Princeton University (Bob Callahan).         1982: Princeton University (Bob Callahan)
1983: Harvard University (Dave Fish).                 1983: Harvard University (Dave Fish)
1984: Harvard University (Dave Fish).                 1984: Harvard University (Dave Fish)
1985: Harvard University (Dave Fish).                 1985: Harvard University (Dave Fish)
1986: Harvard University (Dave Fish).                 1986: Harvard University (Dave Fish)
1987: Harvard University (Dave Fish).                 1987: Harvard University (Dave Fish)
1988: Harvard University (Dave Fish).                 1988: Harvard University (Dave Fish)
1989: Yale University (David Talbott).                 1989: Yale University (David Talbott)
1990: Yale University (David Talbott).                 1990: Yale University (David Talbott)  
1991: Harvard University (Steve Piltch).              1991: Harvard University (Steve Piltch) 
1992: Harvard University (Steve Piltch).              1992: Harvard University (Steve Piltch)
1993: Princeton University (Bob Callahan).         1993: Princeton University (Bob Callahan)
1994: Harvard University (Bill Doyle).                1994: Harvard University (Bill Doyle)  
1995: Harvard University (Bill Doyle).                1995: Harvard University (Bill Doyle)
1996: Harvard University (Bill Doyle).                1996: Harvard University (Bill Doyle)
1997: Harvard University (Bill Doyle).                1997: Harvard University (Bill Doyle

                                        1977

1977 - UWO Wins U.S. Intercollegiate Squash Championship

"Squash Team Captures U.S. College Title"

   A screen shot of the article in Western News about UWO's capture of the U.S. Intercollegiate Squash Racquets Championship in 1977 is provided below. Western News has been digitized and the article can be read by clicking on this link: Western News, March 10, 1977, p.2.

"U.S. Collegiate Squash Champs!"

   That is the headline in The Gazette on March 11,1977 (p.16.) A screen shot of the issue is provided below. Unfortunately, The Gazette has not been digitized. The poor picture is from my printed copy of The Gazette. 

    The article is a long one with considerable detail about all of the matches. I will provide here the first three paragraphs and the concluding two:

   "The United States Naval Academy located in historic Annapolis, Maryland was the site of the 1976-77 United States Intercollegiate Squash Racquets Championship. 

   It was the twenty-eighth holding of this peerless display of intercollegiate squash, with the quality of play consistent with the team rosters, which was headed by top United States ranked, Princeton, perennially tough Harvard, powerful University of Pennsylvania, Pacific Coach [sic] champion University of California (Berkley) [sic] and the No. 1 Canadian team -- the University of Western Ontario Mustangs.

   The Intercollegiate team tournament format can be confusing. Essentially there are "A", "B", and "C" classifications, producing, of course, six finalists. Each team is permitted two entries in each of the classifications and scores a point for each victory attained by one of its team members. In addition, all first round losers play in a consolation tournament with each match worth a half-point to victory. The institution winning the most points is declared the Tournament Team Champion and receives the Potter Trophy.

   When the dust was settled, Western was in first place with 25 points. Princeton second with 22, Penn third with 20 and Harvard fourth with 18 1/2. It was the first time that a Canadian university won the Potter Trophy since the 1950 inception of the event....

   [ the conclusion]

   When the hostilities subsided on Sunday, Western had 25 points and the National Intercollegiate Squash Championship. Coach Fairs described the victory as "a total team effort. No one can be singled out for special distinction -- to win everyone had to turn in a creditable performance. It is a victory that all of us will savour forever."

   Although highly regarded, Western was only generally regarded as an outsider to win behind Princeton, Penn and Harvard." (The Gazette, March 11, 1977, p.16.)

"Western Ontario Wins Squash Title" 

  (Special to The Washington Post)

   ANNAPOLIS, March 6 - "Western Ontario University of London, Ontario, won the team championship today at the National Intercollegiate Squash Racquets tournament at the U.S. Naval Academy. Mike DeSaulnier [sic] of Harvard won the individual title, defeating defending champion Phil Mohtadi of Western Ontario, 3-0." (The Washington Post, March 7, 1977.)

   Desaulniers, from Montreal, was an exceptional player. As the article above indicates, however, Mohtadi was the top player in the U.S. in 1976. Here is a portion of an article about Mohtadi's win. UWO finished in third place in 1976.

 "Western Player Wins U.S. College Crown," 

"Phil Mohtadi, 19-year-old University of Western Ontario freshman, won his first U.S. intercollegiate squash-racquets singles title at the Williams College courts yesterday.

  Seeded second, Mohtadi defeated third-ranked Tom Page, a 19-year-old Princeton University freshman from Philadelphia, 15-8, 15-6, 15-8....

   The six-member-team title went to Princeton with 29 points followed by Penn, 27 and Western 25." (The Globe and Mail, March 9, 1976, p. 34.

                                         1980

1980 - UWO Wins U.S. Intercollegiate Squash Championship

“Western Ontario Wins Six-Man Team Title"

Squash News, April, 1980, p.18. The entire article is reproduced below.

     Western Ontario's coach Jack Fairs carried the six-man team trophy for the Intercollegiate Squash Championship north of the border. They ended the host Penn team 30-28. The favored teams, Princeton and Harvard, finished third and fourth with 24 and 22 points respectively. Yale and Navy tied for fifth with 18 ½ points.

Western Ontario also won in 1977. Other than that, the trophy which was started in 1956, has been kept between Harvard, Princeton, Yale, Penn and Williams.

Team totals are compiled by scoring one point for each entrant, one point for each match won, and half a point for each consolation win. If a player draws a bye and wins the next match he gains two points. If he draws a bye and then loses, he gets no points. 

Western Ontario’s strength was that all the entrants reached at least the quarterfinals. Number one, John Lennard, lost in the quarterfinals to Jim Huebner; 

Number two Gajenera Singh, lost in the quarterfinals to Michael Desaulniers; number three, Murray Shaw, won the B tournament; number four, Fred Reid, lost in the B semifinal; number five Dennis Hisey and number six David Cox, both reached the C semifinal.

The runner-up Penn team had number five, Pat Murray, and number six, Eben Hardie, both in the C final, as well as number one, Ned Edwards in the A final.

A record 32 teams participated, which attests to the growth of squash in colleges.

     The intercollegiate association in their annual meeting exclusively endorsed Manta racquets and Manta in return is funding an effort by the intercollegiate association to promote squash in colleges which do not have a team.

Six-Man Team Totals

1. Western Ontario        30
2. Penn                          28
3. Princeton                   24
4. Harvard                      22
5. Yale                           18 1/2
     Navy
7. Stony Brook               17 1/2
8. Washington                16
9. Trinity                         15 1/2
10. Tufts                         15
       California
       Army
13. Dartmouth                13 1/2
14. Williams                    13
15. Fordham                   12 1/2
16 Columbia                    11
17. Franklin & Marshall.  11
18. Wesleyan                  10 1/2
19. Amherst                     10 1/2
20. Toronto                       9 1/2
21. M.I.T.                          9
22. Bowdoin                     8 1/2
      Vassar
       Lehigh
25. Rochester                   8
26. Cornell                        7 1/2
27. Hobart                         7
28. Colgate                       6
      Stevens
30. George Washington.   3
31. Stanford                       2 1/2
32. Michigan                      1 1/2

   The caption of the poor photograph above reads: " The Victorious Six Man Team from the University of Western Ontario: #6 Dave Cox, #5 Dennis Hisey, #4 Fred Reid, #3 Murray Shawl, #2 Gajenera Singh, #1 John Lennard" (left to right.)
   The same issue of Squash News contains, on the cover page, a picture of John Lennard, the winner of the "Skillman Sportsmanship Trophy," Coach Fairs of the winning team and Murray Shaw, the B winner. The title of the article: "Desaulniers Defeats Edward To Take Intercollegiate Crown," (Vol.3, No.1, April, 1980.)

   "Western Squash Team Wins U.S. Crown"

   As you will see from the picture below, that is the title of an article found in The Gazette on March 11,1980. The piece, a long and thorough one, is unsigned. The first two paragraphs and the last one are provided below.

PHILADELPHIA -- A battalion of 185 aspirants from 32 North American universities hustled into Philadelphia, The City of Brotherly Love, to do battle for the six-man team championship of the United States and for the coveted Commander E.M. Potter Trophy that is awarded to the winner of the prestigious event. Playing their best squash of the year the underdog Western Mustangs stunned the packed galleries that thronged the expansive Ringe Squash Complex at the University of Pennsylvania by wrestling from the squash powers of Princeton, Harvard, and Yale, the most aspired-after title in the intercollegiate squash competition. Western's win kept their unbeaten 1979-80 tournament record intact having previously won the Ontario Open Team Championship, the Ontario Open Singles, the OUAA Championship and the Canadian Open Singles. 
   The record of the Mustangs in the U.S. Intercollegiates is an enviable one. In addition to this year's title victory, the Mustangs were second in 1976, champions in 1977 and third in 1978 and 1979. The 1980 Mustang Championship Team was comprised of John Lennard, Gajendra Singh, Murray Shaw, Fred Reid, Dennis Hisey and Dave Cox....

   In an interview with The Gazette, Coach Fairs saw the victory this way: The win was one of the most gratifying of my coaching career. It was an uphill struggle all the way. Our personnel entered the tournament with a high resoluteness which resulted in a very energetic brand of attacking play. This helped to lower the stress that is so prominent in such a national championship. Particularly high demands were made on the two freshman members of the team, Fred Reid and Murray Shaw -- and they more than rose to the occasion. In addition, it was particularly rewarding that John Lennard was the first recipient of the John Skillman Sportsmanship Award. The victory is a major landmark in Western squash history. Traditions live on. The outstanding victory will undoubtedly influence the further course of Western squash in a positive way. 

Post Script:

  Unfortunately things did not develop in a positive way. The squash team did not have courts on campus on which to play and the financial support was limited. In 2002, this letter is found in the London Free Press, June 1.:

“Squash at Western Deserves Better Fate.”

   "In reading the stories on Western’s restructuring of its men’s

And women’s athletic teams, I was shocked to see one item.

  Men’s squash –Category 3, (self-funded, limited services.)

  Category 3 – not even second-class citizens!

   Certainly coach Jack Fairs and the young men who have represented

Western so well, both in Canada and the U.S., deserve a much

better fate. A look at the records would explain why.

   Of the last 32 OUA squash championships, the Mustangs have won

28 of them, including the last 19 in a row.

   The Mustangs have twice won the U.S. intercollegiate squash

championships (1977,1980).

   Two of the Mustangs, Phil Mohtadi in 1976 and Scott Dumage in 1989, 

were crowned singles champion at the U.S. intercollegiate championships.

   A four-time All-American, Mohtadi was inducted into the U.S. intercollegiate

squash hall of fame in 1999.

   Retired from Western’s faculty of kinesiology in 1989, Fairs has continued as 

the Mustang’s highly successful squash coach. It’s an impressive record, one 

that will be difficult to match and one that should not be ignored." 

Bob Gage  London

(Bob "Scoop" Gage was a London journalist who died in 2009. For a profile, see this Western essay.)

  Even with limited resources, the team plays on and after winning the OUA championship, travelled to the U.S. one in Philadelphia last week. The current coach, Chris Hanebury, was named OUA "Coach of the Year." Congratulations to the coach and the team. 

The 1994 Globe and Mail article is this one: “Western Thrives Without Fanfare: SQUASH DYNASTY / One Canadian University Consistently Succeeds Against the Best U.S. Schools,” Mark Kearney, The Globe and Mail, Dec. 29, 1994, P.C7

Jack Fairs - much has been written about him.

For obituaries see: "Remembering Beloved Coach Jack Fairs," Western Communications, August 20, 2021 and "John Fairs", London Free Press, Sept. 4, 2021.  

"In Memoriam - Jack Fairs," Squash Canada, Sept. 1, 2021.
In it you will find links to the Canadian Squash Hall of Fame and the Ontario Squash Hall of Fame and a few others.

"Legendary Coach Jack Fairs Passes Away at 98," College Squash Association, Aug. 31, 2021.