Past Club Events

Abou's Cup Playoff - June 10, 2017 - The Heartbreakers Take Home the Cup
Our inaugural season of Abou’s Cup was a resounding success and ended on a particularly high note. In the Fall of 2016, Adham reached out to four of our members to captain a team for the season: Tomas Bruun (The Vikings), Mark Moore (Above the Tin), Bob Mulvena (The Nicks) and Ginny Wheeler (The Heartbreakers). After they graciously agreed to lead the teams, we encouraged as many members as possible to join this in-house league. For our first season, we had 35 members sign up and participate in at least one match. There were eleven matches throughout the season, some on Monday nights, some on Wednesday night and others on Saturday afternoon.
At the end of the season, The Vikings were in the lead by a slim margin. We had the playoffs on Saturday, June 10. The draw was set up so the #1 played #4 and #2 played #3. Each team gathered a group of 4. In the first round, The Vikings played The Nicks and The Heartbreakers played Above the Tin. The Vikings and The Nicks had a nail biter. The Nicks won by one game, 8 – 7.  In the #4 position Barrie Abrams (V) played Bob Mulvena (N). Bob won 3-1. Then in the #3 position, Robert Fitts (V) took on Craig Baron (N). Robert won in 4 games. At #2, David Mills (V) competed against Nicolo Abou Taleb (N). David won in 4. And in the first spot, Tomas Bruun (V) played against Anourag Shah (N). Anourag won in 3 games. The Nicks moved into the final and The Vikings played for #3. On the other side of the draw, The Heartbreakers took on Above the Tin. Mike Weinbach (H) beat Faissal Tahari (ATT), Mike McManus (H) beat Simon Kassabian (ATT), Ginny Wheeler (H) won against Mark Moore (ATT) and Sasha Capasso (H) prevailed against Mark Litvin (ATT).
The finals were determined, The Nicks against the Heartbreakers and there was some very good squash. As the spectators enjoyed some food and beverage, Sasha Capasso (H) played Bob Mulvena (N). Sasha prevailed, 3-1. Then, Ginny Wheeler (H) took on Craig Baron (N) and Ginny won, 3-1. Finally, the Nicks won a match when Niki competed against Mike McManus. There were many long and exciting points. The scores were, 5-11, 13-11, 11-5, 11-7. The final match was a marathon. Mike Weinbach took on Anourag Shah. Mike won the first two games, 11-6, 11-7. And then Anourag, figures out a better approach to Mike’s game and a way to put more pressure on him and he wins the next two games, 11-8 and 11-3. The last game fell to experience over youth and Mike pulled it out, 11-8. It was an exciting match to watch. Then the Heartbreakers were crowned victorious! The Nicks took 2nd place, the Vikings 3rd and Above the Tin, 4th. Above the Tin needs to be commended for the best attitude. Many of their matches were quite tough but they persevered with good spirits and great effort.
Thanks to all who participated this year and helped to make it a success. The other team members who played were: Heartbreakers – Adham Abou Taleb, Jaime Golden, Noelle Wheeler and Carl Finger; The Nicks – Sasha Dichter, Bilal Shafiq, Michael Luskin, Margaret Allen and Lydia Allen; Vikings – Karim Samy, Hadley Barr, Matthew Ratner, Finian Clement and Keith Hope; Above the Tin – Dennis Jones, Josh Rabina, Donald McLauchlan, Philip Spoerri and Andy Rosenburgh.   We are looking forward to an even more competitive season next year.

Abou's Cup
The Abou Cup got off to a great start on October 19 when The Vikings played Above the Tin and prevailed 3-1. The most exciting match was played between David Mills and Philip Spoerri. David had dominantly taken the first game but then Philip altered his game, slowed it down and won the next three games. There was also a great match between our new pro, Karim Samy, and up and coming youngster, Dennis Jones. Though Karim won in 3 games the points were long and the shots beautifully executed. It was a lesson learned by all.
On November 5th, The Vikings played The Heartbreakers with The Vikings prevailing 4-1. The most exciting match was played by Tomas Bruun and Jamie Golden. It was a long match with long points and a score that constantly swung back and forth. In the end, Tomas pulled through and won it in the 5th.  There was a great match between our Pro Karim Samy and Michael Weinbach. Though Karim won in 3 games, Michael’s hustle was as impressive as ever. It was a treat for all to watch.
On November 12th, The Nicks played Above the Tin and Above the Tin won with a close score of 3-2. Great squash was played on court 2 where Sasha Dichter played Philip Spoerri winning in three games but it was a very high quality of squash, specifically, the third game with a score of 15/13.
The 4th match of our Abou’s Cup League (in-house adult league) was played on Monday night, December 5th at 7:30 PM.  Above the Tin took on The Heartbreakers and the Heartbreakers lived up to their name and broke the hearts of Above the Tin, winning 4-1. It was a 5-0 sweep but the Heartbreakers had to forfeit a match for technical reasons - their total points assigned to each player exceeded the limit of 1400. Despite the scores, there was some good play. It was wonderful to see Adham get out on the court and display his skills and run Josh Rabina around the court just a little bit.
The 5th match of the Abou’s Cup League was played on Monday night, December 12th at 7:30 PM when the Vikings took on The Nicks. The Vikings were victorious 3-1 but the score belies the tight match. David Mills beat Nicolo Abou Taleb in 5 tough games. David started out strong, winning the 1st game. Then Niki got his stride and won the next two. But David started mixing up his game and won the final two games. In the next match, Tomas Brun won against Michael Luskin 3-1. Then there was another 5 gamer between Craig Baron and Keith Hope with Keith winning 3-2. In the last match, a new member, Bilal Shafiq showed great style and experience against one of our up and coming juniors, Matthew Ratner and won 3 – 0.
The 6th match of our Abou Cup League (in-house adult league) was played on Wednesday night, January 18th at 7:30 PM when the Nicks took on The Heartbreakers. The Nicks were victorious, 4-1, but the Heartbreakers did not go down without a fight. Unfortunately, The Heartbreakers, mainly because of injuries, were only able to field a team of two and the Nicks had a full team of 5. Due to the team sizes, The Nicks automatically won.
The two Heartbreakers played great matches. Mike Weinbach (Heartbreaker) took on Sasha Dichter in the #1 spot. It was a very competitive, fast paced game. Mike won, 3-0. The second match was Mike McManus (Heartbreaker) against Bilal Shafiq. Mike ran his heart out but Bilal’s short game gave him the edge and he won 3-0. Both matches were fun to watch and the club was busy with the Wednesday Adult Round Robin filling the remaining courts and the TOC playing on the TV in the background. After the official matches, the players continued to play and enjoy themselves.
On Wednesday, January 25th, The Vikings took on Above the Tin. The Vikings prevailed once again with a score of 3-2 but it was a close match. Above the Tin started at a disadvantage by giving the Vikings their first win for a forfeited game due to a lack of players. The first match was Captain Tomas Bruun of the Vikings against a fill in for Scott Mackesy - his son Coulter. Coulter won in three. In the second match, Finian Clement (Viking) won against Mark Litvin. The next match was The Vikings Keith Hope against Donald McLauchlan. The first game was tight but Keith won in three. The final match was the most exciting: David Mills (Viking) went down in 5 to Ricky Lapidus. It could have gone either way. 
On Monday February 27 the Vikings played against The Heartbreakers. The winner of the match was determined by number of games won because the match score was 2-2. The Heartbreakers won, 8 games to 7. It was a really tight battle, 3 out of the 4 matches went 4 games. Mike Weinbach defeated Matthew Ratner, 3-0 in the #1 position. The score is not representative of the great play ----- the points went on and on.  Then David Mills won against Mike McManus, 3-1 in the 2nd spot. Tomas Bruun got sweet victory in his rematch against Jaime Golden. He won 3-1. And in the 4th position, Ginny Wheeler won 3-1 against Keith Hope. It was all great to watch and then they all played around until well after 9:00.  The next match was on Monday, March 13. Above the Tin took on The Nicks. Above the Tin won by the number of games as well, 8-6. The matches were 2-2. Nicolo Abou Taleb (Nicks) had a nice match against Donald McLauchlan in the #1 position. Niki squeaked it out in the 5th. Andy Rosenburgh came ready to play for Above the Tin but unfortunately, The Nicks only had three players so he played with Karim for fun.  Craig Baron (Nicks) played against Captain of Above the Tin, Mark Moore and was victorious in the #3 position. Mark Litvin (Above) won against Margaret Allen. 
Another Abou Cup match was played on Monday April 3rd – Vikings against the Nicks. The winner of the match was determined by the number of points won because the match score was 2-2 and the game score was 7-7. The Nicks won, 122 points to 112 points. It was a fun night. Tomas Bruun took on the youngster, Anourag Shah in the #1 position. Tomas moved around the court very well but Anourag’s shot making was very sharp that night and he won the match for the Nick’s. Then Matthew Ratner took on Bilal Shafiq for the 2nd spot. This match went 4 games but Bilal’s consistency won the night for the Nick’s. In the 3rd spot David Mill’s took on Niki Abou Taleb. Despite David’s calf hurting him, he won decisively in 3 for the Vikings. And last but not least, Hadley Barr played Craig Baron. This match also went 4 games and there were some great rallies but Hadley prevailed for the Vikings. A second match occurred this month on Thursday April 6th – Above the Tin vs The Heartbreakers. The Heartbreakers were victorious – 3-0. They certainly lived up to their name. In the #1 position, Mike Weinbach took on Donald McLauchlan. Mike won in 3 decisive games. Ginny Wheeler defeated Faissal Tahiri in 3 games and then, the youngster,Sasha Cappasso,beat Mark Moore in three games as well. The season is now over except for the final playoff, the weekend of June 10 at 2:00 pm. 
Current results are as follows:
Team                                                   Ranking Totals
The Vikings                                                32
The Heartbreakers                                      24
The  Above the Tin                                 24
The Nicks                                                    23

Junior Club Championship (March 25, 2017)
First and foremost, thank you to all who participated in the Junior Club Championship this year! The fact that thirty-one juniors came out to compete is a wonderful tribute to our club. The strength of a club depends on vigorous participation of members in special events and this is a fabulous example.
Adham and Karim divided the players into A/B, C and D levels. Everyone played a full best of 5 match. The winners moved on and the rest played in the plate division. Anourag Shah is the Junior Club Champion for 2017 ----- congratulations. Justin Barr placed 2nd in the A/B level with Nicolo Abou Taleb 3rd and Matthew Ratner finished 4th. William Murphy defeated Hadley Barr in the plate draw. Sasha Capasso, Ben Korengold, Christine Song, Noelle Wheeler and Mark Wong rounded out the group in the top division.
In the C division, Katie Hennessey took home the top honors. Charlie Friedman took the number 2 spot with Aneesh Naresh taking 3rd spot and Elizabeth Murray in 4th. In the Plate division, brand new member, Leena Rouyer defeated Leila Tahiri. Thaddee Caze, Callie Hammond, Daniel Hochberg, Austin Kelly, Leo-Paul Leger and Katherine Murray filled out the rest of this draw.
The best match of the day occurred in the finals of the D division. Ronan Cheng-Slater won in 5 against Luke Chandra. At one point, Ronan had a match point against him but ultimately, he prevailed. What made this the best match is the sportsmanship displayed, the long points and the incredible energy displayed. What a great experience for both. Spencer Hammond took a third place and Danyal Naeem, 4th. Jonah Baron won the Plate division against Danny Abou Taleb. The rest of the participants were Tommy Abou Taleb, Eddie Chandra and Katie Chandra. Some special thanks goes to Nicolo Abou Taleb, Hadley Barr and Matthew Ratner for helping tremendously with the younger players. They helped to referee matches, encourage the players and set great examples for the juniors with less experience. And if the look on all the juniors faces, the pure joy of competition, is any indication of the time they all had ------ it was a wonderful day.
 

Adult Club Championship (March 4, 2017 - March 5, 2017)
On a cold, windy Saturday, thirteen of our adult members competed for the title of Club Champion. It was a great tournament with some very close matches. Josh Rabina is our new Club Champion and he had to fight all the way. He won three matches with a score of 3-2 and many of the games went beyond 11 points. The final was against Bilal Shafiq. The score was 11-9, 8-11, 9-11, 13-11, 12-10. There was an impressive display of fast footwork and steady nerves.
The ¾ playoff was between Mike McManus and Tomas Bruun. Adham feels this was probably the best match of the tournament. Tomas won, 9-11, 10-12, 11-7, 11-6, 12-10. It was a real nail biter.
The consolations were won by Sasha Capasso against Dana Emery in another 3-2 match.
There was terrific sportsmanship all around, a very good level of squash being played by everyone, and generally a wonderful atmosphere in the club all day.

2017 Handicap Tournament
On January 7, 2017 members of Westchester Squash Academy took to the courts to battle it out to be the Champion of the Handicap Tournament. In the main draw Mike Weinbach and Nicolo Abou Taleb made it to the finals and in the end Mike Weinbach took the title of Handicap Champion. In the consolation draw Finian Clement beat Sasha Capasso winning the consolation draw. Congratulations to all that participated. It was a great day at Westchester Squash Academy! 

 Club Championship - April 17, 2016
Congratulations to Mike Weinbach who was victorious over Ricky Lapidius in the 2016 Club Championship. 

 Handicap Tournament - January 9, 2016