WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass. — The sixth-ranked Columbia men's squash team finished off the calendar year with a 9-0 sweep over No. 16 Williams College. The match took place late Saturday afternoon on the campus of the Ephs.
 
Despite the 9-0 result, Columbia (5-1) had to battle hard through some close matches to walk out on top. Three of the nine scoring matches went to five games and Columbia won just one of the nine matches in three.

"They just came in with the right mindset and ready to compete," Columbia interim head coach Joanne Schickerling said. "There was a pretty good crowd at Williams and I thought the guys did well to stay composed and fight. They competed really well and whenever it got close they managed to keep their composure and come out on top."
 
The Lions were coming off their first defeat of the season on Sunday against Cornell. Harold Castiaux, Chaitanya Shah and Ryan Chen all bounced back to win after falling in their matches against the Big Red.
 
"It's definitely tough to pick yourself up after such a close loss to Cornell," Schickerling added. "It's an opportunity to learn and all week they've been really focused on training harder and focusing more. It was quite a long trip and I'm really proud of them for their performances today."
 
Shah, Adam Goad and Aditya Kankariya won the first round of matches Sunday afternoon. Goad took his in three games, while Shah and Kankariya battled through four to give Columbia the early 3-0 advantage.
 
The next round of matches saw Harold Castiaux and Ryan Chen pull out wins in five games, while Zach Nam earned a four-game victory at the No. 8 spot. Castiaux and Chen each led 2-1 in the respective matches before dropping the fourth game to go to a fifth. Castiaux took a thriller, 13-11, while Chen won his fifth game, 11-8.
 
The Lions polished off the sweep with a three-game win by James Wyatt at No. 1, a four-game win from Rutvik Rau at No. 5 and another close five-game decision by Justin Ghaeli at the No. 7. Ghaeli rallied from 2-1 down in the match to win his last two games.
 
The Lions return after the New Year, traveling to Lewiston, Maine on Jan. 11 to take on Bates College.
 
For the latest on the Columbia squash programs, be sure to follow the teams on Twitter and Instagram (@CULionsSquash), on Facebook (Facebook.com/ColumbiaSquash), or by visiting GoColumbiaLions.com.

#6 Columbia 9, #16 Williams 0
(1) James Wyatt (COL) def. Jacob Bassil (WIL): 3-0 (11-9, 13-11, 11-4)
(2) Harold Castiaux (COL) def. Udai Pal (WIL): 3-2 (9-11, 11-9, 11-5, 7-11, 13-11)
(3) Chaitanya Shah (COL) def. Wyatt Khosrowshahi (WIL): 3-1 (11-9, 9-11, 11-1, 11-8)
(4) Adam Goad (COL) def. William Evans (WIL): 3-0 (11-5, 11-4, 13-11)
(5) Rutvik Rau (COL) def. Cameron Darnell (WIL): 3-1 (12-10, 6-11, 11-9, 11-5)
(6) Ryan Chen (COL) def. A.J. Solecki (WIL): 3-2 (11-13, 11-5, 11-7, 8-11, 11-8)
(7) Justin Ghaeli (COL) def. Andrew Minnis (WIL): 3-2 (11-5, 4-11, 11-13, 12-10, 11-8)
(8) Zach Nam (COL) def. Pierce Henderson (WIL): 3-1 (9-11, 11-7, 11-7, 14-12)
(9) Aditya Kankariya (COL) def. Charles Merrill (WIL): 3-1 (8-11, 11-5, 12-10, 13-11)
(10) Gonzalo de la Mora (COL) def. Andrew Lee (WIL): 3-0 (11-7, 11-8, 11-1)
 
Order of finish, 3, 4, 9, 8, 2, 6, 1, 5, 7