A quartet of former area high school squash standouts are now playing at Princeton University. Pictured after a recent victory over Yale are (from left) Olivia Fiechter, Tara Harrington, Libbie Maine, and Isabel Hirshberg. (Photo by Tom Utescher)

by Tom Utescher

Want to check up on how area squash standouts are doing in college? You could do some one-stop shopping by taking in a match at Princeton University, whose women’s team roster lists no fewer than four young women who played for Northwest Philadelphia high school squads.

Penn Charter has provided senior Tara Harrington and freshman Isabel Hirshberg for the current Tigers team. Another senior, Libbie Maine, came from the old Springside School (now Springside Chestnut Hill Academy), and Olivia Fiechter, a sophomore from Germantown Friends, has played in the number one spot for Princeton since she arrived on campus a year ago.

Last Saturday, all four local ladies won their matches as Princeton preserved its number three national ranking in the College Squash Association’s Dunlop national poll, just behind Ivy League rivals Harvard and Penn. The host Tigers turned away fourth-ranked Yale by a 7-2 tally, with two of the former area stars participating in the top nine matches that produce the official team score.

In the top spot Fiechter prevailed, 3-1, over fellow sophomore Jenny Scherl out of Lawrenceville School, while number eight Harrington went past her opponent in three straight games. Hirshberg, who has played among the top nine this season and occupied the eighth spot at one stage, was engaged in the top exhibition match last Saturday as Princeton’s number 10. She breezed through her bout, as did Maine, who was playing at number 13.

All four players chose Princeton partly because of its proximity to their homes, and the seniors, in particular, had strong family ties to the university. Both of Maine’s parents were Princeton athletes, and her older sister, Emery, was a squash standout for the Tigers (Class of 2010) and also played a little lacrosse. Harrington’s older brother, Steve, was a Princeton senior when she arrived on campus, and he had successful college careers in both squash and baseball.

Fiechter lacked those familial links, but pointed out “Tara’s been one of my best friends since I was little and I’ve known Libbie since I was four or five. When you go off to college you’re moving to a new place and suddenly doing a lot of things on your own away from your parents, so it was great to have the two of them around when I started here. I hope we’ve made Izzy feel the same way.”

Hirshberg had been ranked as high as second in the country in juniors tournament squash, but there were still some adjustments to be made as she shifted to the college game. To begin with, she would have many more challenging matches during the season than she’d faced as the number one player on Penn Charter’s high school team.

“In college, no matter who you play, the squash is always at a high level,” she said. “The depth of the team is much greater, and that’s true of the other teams, too. In general, everyone’s much fitter and more skilled and the games are much longer.

“You have to have more patience to win a point,” she continued. “That’s something I’m working on; you have to really get into a point and you can’t try to end it too early.”

The freshman expects to address a number of small details relating to her technique during the offseason, when there will be more time to deal with the fine points of the game.

“Since this is my first year, our coach is getting to see me play a lot for the first time,” the former PC Quaker said. “I’m sure she’ll figure out some things for us to work on.”

Even for the highly-decorated Fiechter, who played for the United States in several Junior World Championship Tournaments, there was a period of adjustment, especially since she was immediately thrust into the limelight as Princeton’s new number one player.

“I had to get used to playing in front of a crowd most of the time,” she explained. “A lot of people turn out when we have a big home match, and even more so when it’s an Ivy League match. I had to work on settling my nerves and not getting too emotional. I actually started working with a sports psychologist and that has really helped me. Also, our coach, Gail Ramsay, has our training really well organized and we cover a lot of different bases.”

Two years older, Harrington found that as she moved through her career, “A lot of it boils down to being comfortable with your own game and trusting yourself. Everyone that comes to a team at this level has been playing squash for 10 or 12 years. You know how to hit the ball, and now the rest of it is mostly mental. I’m working on eliminating little lapses in focus that I sometimes have and treating every point like it's a game point or match point.”

Both Harrington and Maine are psychology majors. Maine will graduate with a certification in neuroscience and is considering medical school, while Harrington has been engaged by various aspects of social interaction and the relationship between mental and physical health.

Discussing the study of psychology, the Penn Charter grad remarked “I find it relevant to almost everything I do, sports included. One area I’m leaning toward after college is marketing, and it would definitely have an application there.”

Maine’s experience has been a little different from that of the other Northwest Philly Princetonians. She was admitted entirely through the regular admissions process, and was a walk-on with the squash team.

Although she slipped into the Tigers’ top nine briefly, she related “I’ve usually been around the number 11 or 12 range, so I just push the team from the bottom and try to make sure the girls deserve the spots they have above me. I’d love to play in the top nine, but it’s nice to be able to watch the other girls’ matches and be there for them and help coach them.”

Her dedication and positive attitude have not gone unnoticed; she was elected team captain for the 2015-16 campaign.

“I’m lucky that they voted for me, and as captain I’ve got a number of sort of mother duck roles,” she said. “I get to handle a lot of logistics; there are team dinners and many other fun events that I enjoy organizing.”

Except for the relatively short trip to Penn, most “away” matches involve long bus rides to New York State or New England, so being part of the team involves a significant time commitment. Like many collegiate athletes, Maine has found that having a full schedule helps her to budget her time efficiently.

“I actually tend to do better in school when we’re in season,” she revealed. “You learn to manage your time and fit everything in, and I try and get school work done during the day between classes. It’s important to stay healthy and get as much sleep as you can, even on the road. Personally, I don’t do much school work on the road, but some of the girls do, especially the ones who have some classes together.”

Hirshberg, the freshman, hasn’t had to home in on an academic major just yet, but Fiechter will have to decide soon. Up to now, she’s enjoyed sampling the diverse offerings at Princeton. Among her favorite courses have been one she called History of the Monarchies, and another that involved field work interacting with individuals with autism.

The GFS grad was named Ivy League Rookie of the Year in 2014-15, and the player right behind her at Princeton, junior number two Maria Elena Ubina, earned that honor the previous season. Before Fiechter entered college, the two had already played against one another in many juniors tournaments, and alongside one another for the U.S. Junior Worlds Team.

“It’s great to have her keeping me on my toes,” Fiechter said. “We push each other, and one thing about the college level is that even everyday practices can be intense. After seeing so many of the same people on the juniors circuit, it's a refreshing thing in college to go up against great players who are new to me and come from a lot of different backgrounds.”

Fiechter said she’s been fine-tuning her game by working on her defense in pressure situations, and by making fine adjustments to her forehand stroke and her footwork.

Harrington agreed with Fiechter’s feelings about juniors tournament squash, and added “there seemed to be a good deal of individual interest within the Juniors and a lot of pressure in that way, but here it’s really about the team. I feel that I’m part of something larger than myself, knowing that the girl on the next court is fighting just as hard as I am and we’re doing it for each other.”

Hirshberg is also happy to be part of this close-knit community.

“I felt lucky to have those three familiar faces when I first got here,” she explained, “and the other girls also made me feel part of the team very quickly. Everybody supports each other, on and off the court.”

Maine recalled that since she was quite young, “I was always coming to Princeton with my parents for reunions and things, and then later on I came to watch my sister play. Going to school here myself, I now fully realize what they loved about it. It was definitely the right choice for me, and I’m a little sad to be leaving soon.”