By Dale DeSouza
Ryerson player/coach Don Lee put on an Anthony Robbins motivational seminar for his players last weekend at Queen’s by winning two of his three matches.
But despite Lee’s efforts, the men’s team failed to come up with any more wins.
Lee played down his individual success at the tournament. “I played well against Shabir from McGill and Ted Fleming [hometown Queen’s favourite], but that last one with Patrick Riding was a tough one,” he said.
The game against U of T’s Riding, ranked in the top 12 in Canada, went to 8-6 in the third game before Lee lost.
While Lee is one of Ryerson’s best athletes, he prefers to focus on the development of his players instead of his own personal success.
“Overall, I’m pretty happy with our progression despite the losses,” he said. “All of the matches were pretty close — not like getting blown off the court like last year.”
Desmond Brown, a second-year squash player, agrees with Lee’s assessment. “We got our butts kicked, but we’re very encouraged. The guys played hard,” said Brown. “Believe it or not we’ve improved overall, even though the scores don’t show it.”
While the team hasn’t been scoring many victories, Lee is impressed with the dedication of his players. “They’re all balancing school and squash well and still practising three times a week on top of tournaments and schedules practices,” he said.
If the men’s team continues to improve, Lee believes Ryerson could send three representatives to the OUAA individual final in February.
Leave a Reply