“Pat was completely overconfident that he would beat us again,” Patterson said. “He thought he was going to crush us. Last year slipped out of our hands, and we figured we would take nothing for granted this year.”

A little additional motivation came from the size and nature of the crowd.

“My dad was videotaping the match, and I would have thrown away the tape if we had lost,” Patterson said. “Both Pete’s and my parents were there, and a lot of people were in the audience.”

This championship marks the second victory on the national front for the Harvard pair. Two years ago, the Crimson won the USSRA Five-Man Championship.

With a busy schedule of three matches in 10 days starting Jan. 24, the team trained in Jamaica for a week over the break. Harvard sponsors an overseas trip for the team once every four years.

The coaches refused to lighten up in the vacation-type surroundings, cutting off the air-conditioning for practices and yoga sessions in preparation for the much-anticipated Trinity match on Feb. 2. The Bantam lineup features several players from warm climates, and their court is notoriously hot.

“No one could breathe inside,” Karlen said. “We trained for about five hours every day, and people just slept when we had breaks.”

During their stay, the Crimson also defeated the Jamaican national team, with No. 2 James Bullock, who hails from Kingston, treated as the favorite son.

“He’s a hero to Jamaican squash,” Patterson said. “The girls love him down there.”

The Harvard men next face Williams on Jan. 24 and Dartmouth on Jan. 30. Both teams have tough players at the top of their line-ups, but the Crimson expects to prevail.

“We have superior depth,” Karlen said. “I expect to win those matches 8-1 or 9-0.”