PHILADELPHIA – The University of Pennsylvania men's squash team's 2018-19 season will go down as one of the best in program history. With Penn's win over Rochester on Sunday, the Quakers finished in third place in the Potter Cup and recorded 14 wins this season – both of which are program records.  

 "I couldn't be more proud of this team," said head coach Gilly Lane C'07 who finished his third season. "This year we focused on the process and being together. They bought into the philosophy from day one and created a culture that was contagious. They sacrificed, persevered, and battled each day throughout the season and represented the school with class. To win 14 times and finish third in the country is a remarkable achievement. They will go down as one of the best teams in the history of Penn Squash."

Playing the 2018-19 season at the Kline and Specter Squash Center at Drexel due to the renovations of the new Martin and Julie Franklin Squash Courts, the Quakers faced a unique challenge throughout the year. That didn't seem to faze them, however, as the Red and Blue began the season by defending their Pennsylvania State Classic title against No. 17 Franklin & Marshall and No. 11 Drexel. Those two wins were the first of eight straight to begin the year for the Red and Blue. The 8-0 start marked Penn's best since 1985-86 when it started 10-0.

During the eight-match winning streak, the Quakers – ranked sixth at the time – took down No. 5 Rochester and No. 4 St. Lawrence on the road. The 6-3 victory at Rochester was the first in program history and helped move Penn up to No. 4 in the nation headed into the new year.

The key to Penn's early-season success was the emergence of its freshman class: Aly Abou Eleinen, James Flynn and Michael Mehl. The trio of freshmen provided consistency in the middle of the Penn lineup as they won each of their first eight matches. The Quakers were 10-0 this season when all three recorded victories and 12-0 when two came away with wins.

Not only did the freshmen step up, but others in the lineup did as well. Karim Hussein began the year with nine straight wins before a 3-2 loss at Princeton. Co-captain Jonathan Zeitels was just one of two players for the Quakers with at least five Ivy League wins and one loss.

After the team's trip to Europe over winter break, the Quakers returned unbeaten and ready for Ivy League play. To start off the Ivy season, Penn would travel to Yale where it hadn't won since coach Lane was a senior at Penn in 2007. The Red and Blue lost just two matches against the Bulldogs to win, 7-2. With its fourth top-10 win of the season, the Quakers ascended to the top of the College Squash Association rankings for the first time in program history.
 
Penn lost its first match of the season against No. 4 Trinity, 6-3, but bounced back the following week against No. 8 Princeton, 5-4. Abou Eleinen clinched that match for the Quakers at the number two spot, 3-2, winning 11-6 in the fifth. The win over the Tigers meant that for the first time since 1973-74, Penn defeated both Yale and Princeton on the road in the same season.
 
The Quakers lost two of three to end the regular season, including a heartbreaker against Harvard, but still finished second in the Ivy League behind The Crimson. Penn's five Ivy wins are a program record and its second-place finish is its highest since 1986-87.

After completing a memorable regular season, the Red and Blue looked to finish strong in their sixth straight Potter Cup appearance which took place this year at Yale.

In its opening match, Penn defeated the host Bulldogs for the second time this season, winning 8-1. With the victory, the Quakers went from having not defeated Yale on the road since 2006-07 to doing so twice in the same season.

After a loss to Harvard in the semifinal round, the Red and Blue faced another familiar opponent in No. 2 Rochester in the third-place match. Sophomore Yash Bhargava won, 3-1, at number seven to put the Quakers up 5-2, clinching the match against the Yellow Jackets that secured the third-place finish, the best in program history, and Penn's first top-5 finish since 2015.
 
As a team, the men are finished for the 2018-19 season, but the Quakers will head to Providence, Rhode Island for the CSA Individual Championships, March 1-3.