GFS number three Satya Butler (right) prepares to hit a forehand shot during his match against fellow senior Jack Prochniak of Springside Chestnut Hill. (Photo by Tom Utescher)

by Tom Utescher

In the last boys squash match for both schools before the holiday break, Springside Chestnut Hill Academy paid a visit to the Germantown Cricket Club last Thursday afternoon, when the Germantown Friends School Tigers hosted the non-league contest.

SCH sent down its varsity “B” team, made up of the second group of nine players in the upper school program, and although GFS to forfeit the number nine match, the Tigers won comfortably, 6-3.

Last year, when SCH’s varsity “A” team was one of the strongest in the nation, the Blue Devils “B” group could hold its own against many regular varsity outfits. The loss of last year’s strong senior class has not only affected this year’s first nine, but also the varsity “B” team, which slipped to 0-3 with Thursday’s setback.

GFS, meanwhile, improved to 3-1 on the season. Previously, the Tigers had knocked off Conestoga High School and nearby Penn Charter, while succumbing to Episcopal Academy.

The regular number two player for Germantown, sophomore Jack Lentz, was out sick for Thursday’s match. Moving into that spot was varsity veteran Ben Caraballo, a senior who had recently learned that he’s been officially accepted at Brown University. He won at number two against SCH junior Eric Dolente, 11-3, 11-1, 11-4.

The other two seniors in the GFS line-up were twins Anand and Satya Butler. Satya is still mulling over his college choice, while Anand is headed for Williams College. Playing number four, Anand dropped the first game, 9-11, to fellow senior Mac McHugh of the Blue Devils. The Tigers senior came back to capture the match with three straight wins, 11-4, 11-9, 11-3.

Satya Butler was also squaring off against an SCH senior, Jack Prochniak. Prochniak is bound for Bucknell University, which has plans to elevate its squash program from club status to an intercollegiate sport. Satya Butler won this meeting at number three, 11-6, 11-4, 11-6. In the middle of the line-up, GFS junior number five Felipe Sanz was an 11-8, 11-5, 11-9 winner over Blue Devils freshman Joe Fabiani.

Springside Chestnut Hill experienced success at the lower reaches of the team ladder. First off, the host Tigers did not have an official entry at number nine, so visiting sophomore Kyle Scholl accepted a forfeit.

One rung up at number eight, Charlie Randall of the Blue Devils won a bout between freshmen, topping Germantown’s Eli Eisenstein, 11-7, 11-8, 11-1. An eighth-grader for SCH, James Mazzerelli, secured an 11-3, 11-1, 11-2 victory at number seven over his sophomore host, Jake Schwartz.

The number six spot, however, belonged to Germantown Friends, with junior Silas Shah putting up scores of 11-4, 11-3, 11-8 against visiting freshman Finley Blake.

Last winter, Tigers sophomore Calvin McCafferty stepped into the number one position vacated by his older brother Max, who is now a sophomore at New York University. Calvin is back in the top spot as a GFS junior this season, and last Thursday he knocked off another 11th-grader, Billy Harris of the Blue Devils, 11-3, 11-3, 11-1.

After the holiday hiatus, the racquetmen from both schools will return to action in road matches on January 6, when GFS will visit the combo team of Harriton and Lower Merion High School, while the SCH “A” team will call on Episcopal. SCH “B” will host Conestoga on January 8.