Battle of the Borders #1 seeds..

GU13 - Gabriela Martin (USA) beat Danica Deverill 13-11, 11-5, 11-5
BU13 - Willy Ezratty (USA) beat James Flynn 12-10, 11-7, 11-8

GU15 -Amy Commisso beat Lindsay Stanley (USA)11-8, 13-11, 10-12, 11-8
BU15 - Akasham Rajagopaul beat Harrison Gill (USA) 2-11, 11-8, 9-11, 11-7, 11-9

GU17 - Isabel Hirshberg (USA) beat Allison Richmond 11-5, 8-11, 11-8, 11-8
BU17 - James Watson (USA) beat Carter Robitaille 11-7, 11-9, 6-11, 2-11, 11-6

Team USA seal a 21-3 victory!! A great way to finish a fantastic week at White Oaks, some extremely close matches today and a packed house was here to watch. A huge thanks must go to Mark Sachvie who as always was a great host, and the members of U.S. Squash that made this special occasion possible.

Team USA are departing White Oaks at 1pm, hoping to get in to Newark at around 8pm. Please see the blog for travel updates for Boston and Newark.

From White Oaks, until next time.

Results continued...

GU13 - Elisabeth Ross (USA) beat Patricia Nandi Ndebele 11-2, 11-7, 11-3
BU13 - Ayush Menon (USA) beat Taran Baleraj 11-9, 11-7, 11-6

GU15 -Sumrin Mudgil (USA) beat Nicole Kendall 11-9, 11-8, 9-11, 11-4
BU15 - Salim Khan (USA) beat Jackson Kay 11-4, 11-4, 11-0

GU17 - Casey Wong (USA) beat Madlen O'Connor 11-5, 10-12, 11-4, 8-11, 11-9
BU17 -Alexi Gosset beat Jonathon Zeitels (USA) 11-5, 8-11, 11-4, 9-11, 11-8

Team USA leading 16-2 and have sealed victory in the 2013 Battle of the Borders! #1 seeds to come..

Results as they come in...

GU13 - Avni Anand (USA) beat Marlow Benson 11-4, 11-4, 11-6
BU13 - Daelum Mawji (USA) beat Neel Ismail 11-4, 11-8, 12-10

GU15 - Scarlett Bergam (USA) beat Mariam Mansoor 11-13, 11-1, 11-3, 7-11, 11-4
BU15 - Sam Scherl (USA) beat Ravi Seth 11-13, 11-5, 11-4, 11-3

GU17 - Sophie Mehta beat Morgan Steelman (USA)
BU17 - Bransten Ming (USA) beat Stefan Houbtchev 12-10-, 11-7, 11-4

Team USA leading 11-1 as we move in to the #2 seeds..

The Battle of the Border

The Battle is under way, early results as follows:

GU13 - Prianca Patel (USA) beat Erica McGillicudy 11-2, 11-1, 11-0
BU13 - David Rubin (USA) beat Dylan Deverill 11-7, 11-4, 12-10

GU15 - Emme Leonard (USA) beat Reah Dhar 7-11, 11-7, 11-6, 11-9
BU15 - Luke Park (USA) beat Justin Ghaeli 13-11, 11-6, 12-10

GU17 - Samantha Chai (USA) beat Sarah Hopton 11-5, 11-7, 11-7
BU17 - Timmy Brownell (USA) beat David Mill 11-9, 12-10, 11-3

Niagara Falls Trip

The night before the Battle of the Borders provided the perfect opportunity for the players to get away from the squash courts and enjoy the amazing opportunity of being able to see the Niagara Falls. There was definitely some nervous excitement about today's matches, especially for those taking part in the event for the first time. We do however have a team of coaches that all experienced representing their countries at various levels. Being the top juniors in the U.S provides a unique opportunity and there is no doubt the players will give 100% when they wear the red, white and blue today.

Check out the blog for updates throughout the day on the Battle of the Border. Team Ontario want this just as much as we do - let the best team win!!

We present you Team USA in Canada!

Team USA at White Oaks Resort, Niagara-on-the-Lake, preparing for the Battle of the Border 2013. Enjoy our video blog!

Team USA ready for battle..

Team USA's last day of training before the 'Battle of the Border' has been a success as the players played Round Robin matches against the three Team Ontario players they will not be competing against on Sunday. The U.S players are taking a lot of confidence in to tomorrow's match with some fine performances this morning but will be taking nothing for granted.

The atmosphere in the camp is really positive, the team are focused on the job in hand and using every opportunity to work together in this training squad environment.

The players are about to start their final session before they can turn their full attention to tomorrow. Team USA and Team Ontario will train together with both sets of coaches leading the practice. The girls will train first, followed by the boys before we visit Niagara Falls for what should be an unforgettable experience.

Morale is high and the coaches have stressed the importance of stretching and recovery in order to play their best in the 'Battle' tomorrow. Check in later today for an update on our trip to Niagara Falls, plus you will hear some of the players thoughts as they begin thinking about representing the USA!!.

Team Training and Evening Activities

Team USA's afternoon session was one of both high intensity and quality. The coaches discussed a theme that they felt was most relevant after watching the Reverse Test Matches this morning. Applying pressure by moving higher up the court, looking to volley more and not being afraid to attack in to space were just some of the things the coaches were asking the players to attempt. It was a great success and a pleasure to see USA's best players come together to train and improve one another after competing so well against each other throughout the season.

 

 After the 90-minute session the players were afforded some down time while Team Ontario trained so they made the most of the amazing facilities on offer at White Oaks Resort. Some players took to the swimming pool, others played ping pong but it was a deserved break.

The evening provided the first chance for Team USA and Team Ontario to interact socially as we hosted a dinner in a close by park and had some fun activities running. It was great to see both teams put the competition aside for an evening at least.

The players have had a long day and an early night is going to help them recover in order to be most prepared for Saturday's Round Robin's and some light team training before the 'Battle of the Borders' on Sunday. Check in again tomorrow to see more on Team USA's trip to White Oaks!!

Team USA off to a great start..

Friday morning saw the Team USA players and Team Ontario meet for the first time before getting play under way with some Offense/Defense - always a fan favorite - and then the Reverse Test Matches. The Reverse Test Matches sees the Team USA #1 play the Team Ontario #2 and vice versa. The same also happens with the Team USA #3 playing the Team Ontario #4 and vice versa.

Team USA approached the Reverse Test Matches like they would the Battle of the Borders on Sunday. For a lot of the players it is the first time they have been able to say they're playing for their country and the commitment levels were there for all to see this morning. The coaches have been really impressed with the quality of play on Day 1 as they stress getting on to the ball early, playing tactically aggressive and being fully committed to each session.

Team training to come this afternoon where the coaches will continue to put the players through their paces and keep the tempo high in preparation for the Battle on Sunday. The players have all done team warm ups and cool downs to ensure peak condition for the big match.

Team USA ready for action!

Back row (left to right) Alex Stait, Graham Bassett, Fernanda Rocha, Prianca Patel, Samantha Chai, Emme Leonard, Isabel Hirshberg, Casey Wong, Morgan Steelman, Lindsey Stanley, Gabriela Martin, Amy Gross, Gilly Lane, Simba Muhwati
Middle row (left to right) Salim Khan, David Rubin, Bransten Ming, Timmy Brownell, James Watson, Sam Scherl, Luke Park, Jonathan Zeitels, Harrison Gill
Front row (left to right) Avni Anand, Elisabeth Ross, Ayush Menon, Daelum Mawji, Willy Ezratty, Scarlett Bergam, Sumrin Mudgil

Team USA arrives at White Oaks!

After a long day of travel, the 24 members of Team USA arrived safely at White Oaks, Niagara-on-the-Lake, for the Ontario American Challenge 2013. The players had some time to settle in to their rooms before meeting for a team dinner where the coaches set the tone for the weekend. The players seemed to need very little motivation as they are all excited to represent the red, white and blue!

After dinner the players made their way to the fantastic squash facilities the team will have on offer over the course of the weekend. Senior National Team player and Junior Men's Assistant National Coach Gilly Lane roused the team with some personal experiences of his time playing for Team USA before the team were put through a rigorous warm up to get the traveling out of the system, and a light hit with drills and conditioned games.

There has been a lot of laughs and smiles so far, something we hope to keep up for the duration of the trip. The hard work however is right around the corner. Building a positive team dynamic is one of our many goals this weekend and with the blend of players and coaches that we have we hope to create a good training environment plus the opportunity to wear USA on their backs.

Friday morning sees the players receive their uniforms which is creating a lot of buzz, before meeting the Ontario team and playing the Reverse Test Matches.