The 2018 junior season finished with a bang as 60 juniors, 12 coaches, one bus and dozens of parents and fans descended on Andover, Mass. to take part in the largest junior tournament in the world. With thanks to title sponsors Mortgage Company of Canada and The Hazelton Hotel, as well as our 5 pillar corporate partners (Equity Builders, Jesters of Ontario, Slaight Music, Sprott Resources, and YDC Pro) and countless other sponsors and individual donors, Squash Ontario was able to subsidize the mission and provide world class support staff to our amazing group of young athletes.
On the courts, the star of the show was Erica McGillicuddy in the Girls U17 who entered the event as a 9/12 seed and proceeded to score upset win after win en route to the finals. Backed by her 60 teammates that made up a crowd larger than her American opponent, Erica finally succumbed 3-1 in an amazing performance that saw her trademark grit and determination simply outwork a world class field all weekend.
Erica led a Team O that showed off incredible depth across all divisions with multiple round of 16 appearances and deep consolation runs. Highlights include Harvard's George Crowne (7th), Charlotte Orcutt (11th), James Flynn, Nikhil Ismail, Sydney Maxwell, Jacob Marrison, and Kent Rawlins all placing 13th, Molly Chadwick (17th), Brianna Jefferson (18th), Rishab Seth (21st), Amal Izhar (Consolation Champion), Alex Felesky (Plate 2 Champion), Hannah Guthrie (Plate Finalist), Alessia Ferris (Plate 3 Champion) and Syan Singh (Consolation Semi-finalist). Last but not least, Isaiah Miller of Urban Squash Toronto won the coaches sportsmanship award!
Special thanks to Team Ontario's coaching staff of Marci Sier, Samantha Cornett, Lauren Sachvie, Graeme Williams, Ahad Raza, Matt Serediak, Rob Brooks, Jonathan Hill, Jamie Nicholls, Brent Adamson, Jackson Kay and Derek Baldwin who worked around the clock at four different venues with no complaints. The coaches genuinely loved being a part of the event and supporting our amazing group of athletes - they will all get some much needed rest before gearing up for an even more successful 2019.
