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St. Raymond student helps U.S. squash team beat Canada

F. Gabriel Morgan, a member of the U.S. National Junior Squash Team, helped Team USA defeat Team Canada at the Ontario-American Challenge held Aug. 13-15 at the White Oaks resort in Ontario, Canada.

The annual competition, the "Battle of the Border," pits top-ranked U.S. boys and girls against Canada's top squash players.

Gabriel, a seventh-grader at St. Raymond School, is the son of Reynolds and Wendy Morgan of Menlo Park. He has been playing squash seriously since he was 9. His first sport was ice hockey, but after suffering a concussion, his parents said no more contact sports, according to Kim McNair, spokesperson for St. Raymond School.

Gabriel, the U.S. No 1-ranked junior player in the boys under-13 division, was undefeated through the weekend and won each match 3-0 in best of five games. In the final game, Gabriel defeated his opponent, Canada's No. 1-ranked under-13 boy, to help Team USA to a 19-5 victory in team match play.

This summer Gabriel made two other trips to Canada to train and play squash, including a week in Vancouver and a two-week stint in Toronto.

During the 2010-2011 season, Gabriel will have a heavy travel schedule to play in weekend tournaments, many in Eastern cities. "I do a lot of homework on the plane and in hotels, but that's OK because I have a ton of fun and I love playing squash," he says.