Sarah Klearman, Sports Editor
@KlearmanCourant
When most people think of squash, they don’t think of a serious sport requiring commitment and passion. When Killian and Grayson Bubrosky think of squash, they think of nothing but. Both the Bubrosky twins are nationally ranked year-round squash players who have been staple players on the high school’s club team, and helped the team place third overall at division three nationals last year.
Killian started playing the sport for fun, but gradually became more involved with its competitive side. “I started mostly because our best friends from Greenwich had a court at their house, and it was always fun playing with them,” he said. “They were really talented players, and after playing with them for a while Grayson and I started getting better, and we decided to start playing in tournaments.”
Squash has since become a huge part of both Grayson and Killian’s lives. “The thing about squash is that even if you stop playing for only a week, you get noticeably worse,” Grayson said. “You have to keep working to maintain a consistent skill level, so we do tournaments year round.”
Killian described the vigourous training schedule that both his brother and he endure. “We try and have a lesson every Tuesday and Thursday, and then on the other days we train whenever we can,” he said. “There’s definitely an advantage to having a brother who also plays competitively, because we never stop challenging each other and helping the other to become a better player.”
Grayson is nationally ranked at number 28, and is committed to continue playing squash for the University of Virginia next year. “It can be hard to continue playing at such a consistently competitive level, especially in the middle of all the school work,” he said. “Now that I’m committed, it can be hard to motivate myself to keep getting better, but an important aspect of squash is continuing to work and keeping yourself disciplined.”
Killian, who is nationally ranked at 44, is also committed to the University of Virginia, meaning that the brothers will be continuing to play with each other at the collegiate level. “I think it’s a good thing that we will continue to play on the same team together because we motivate each other to continue improving,” said Killian. “We work really well together and we definitely coach each other during matches because we know each other’s game so well.”
The high school squash team is now looking to make its debut as a varsity sport. The team was founded in 2008 as a club sport by Elizabeth Schmidt, a parent of an NCHS alumni. Ms. Schmidt has since seen huge growth in the program. “The years that Killian and Grayson have been with us have been ones of incredible growth in the strength of our team,” she said. “We have a peer coaching system that we use, and having Killian and Grayson already well-versed in that system and being incredibly willing to watch all their teammates matches and help coach them in between games has been invaluable to our players.”
The squash program has maintained the highest ranking in its league for the past two years, and looks to continue improving with the help of Grayson and Killian. “We had a pretty strong team last year, and we came in third at division three nationals,” Grayson said. “We’ve only improved, so we could definitely win this year. We’re also looking to get funding from the school, so winning nationals could help with that.”
Senior Will Gruseke and Killian will be co-captains of the team this year. “Squash requires an incredible amount of commitment, and Killian, Grayson, myself and the rest of the seniors are trying to set an example for the team,” he said. “Having both Killian and Grayson on the team has done a lot for the program, and we definitely work to set that example for the team together.”
Ms. Schmidt says that over the three years the brothers have been on the team, she has seen growth both within the team itself and within Killian and Grayson’s personal abilities. “Killian and Grayson have trained together for so long that they have developed a unique discipline when it comes to practice, drills and competition,” she said. “They work incredibly well together and are a shining example of how hard work can pay off.”
