ITHACA, N.Y. — Senior Sivasangari Subramaniam was named the recipient of the 2023 Betty Richey Award, the College Squash Association announced Wednesday night during its annual Senior Serve ceremony.

Subramaniam is the first Cornellian player to receive the Betty Richey Award, which is given to "a senior player who, in her play, exemplifies the ideals of squash, and her love and devotion for the game, her strong sense of fairness, and a high-level of play," David Poolman, the CSA League commissioner said on Wednesday night.

Members of the Cornell squash program praised Subramaniam in a video introducing her as one of the three finalists, joined by Princeton's Andrea Toth and Drexel's Alina Bushma.

"Siva is one of the best players in the world, and easily the best player I've ever had the privilege of sharing the court with on match day," fellow senior Lily Zelov said. "She plays with poise, grace, and humility, no matter the circumstances. No matter the outcome, she wins and loses with grace."

"Since the moment Siva joined Cornell squash, she has inspired us all," assistant coach Mark Burke added. "We all know that she's one of the best squash players in the world, but her capacity as a leader and a role model, that's been impressive to watch over the last four years. Siva came back from adversity in recovering from a serious accident. To play for us in the spring, and help us make the top eight teams, has shown immense courage, but also team loyalty, and she really wanted to make that sacrifice in coming back for us."

After missing the fall semester due to her recovery from the accident, Subramaniam posted an impressive 11-1 record, competing exclusively at the No. 1 position for Cornell. She opened the season with 10 straight victories before falling to Columbia's Farida Mohamed in the consolation semifinals of the Howe Cup. Dating back to the 2018-19 season, Subramaniam had won 28 consecutive matches.

"Siva's four years at Cornell have been amazing from the first day," said David Palmer, the James Broadhead '57 Head Coach of Cornell Squash. "She's had a huge impact on the team. Her record speaks for itself. I couldn't think of anyone more worthy of winning the Betty Richey Award. The impact she's had on the team, and our program, has been amazing."

Over her tenure with Cornell, Subramaniam posted an overall record of 50-3, while making three appearances in the championship match of the Ramsay Cup — the pinnacle of the CSA Individual Championships.

Subramaniam won the national championship in 2022 after defeating Harvard's Hana Moataz, who was last year's Betty Richey Award winner, in five games.

Along with being a three-time national finalist, Subramaniam was named to the CSA All-America First Team and All-Ivy League First Team on three occasions. She was unanimously selected as the Ivy League Player of the Year each of the last two seasons.

"I feel happy," Subramaniam said after finding out she was the winner of the Betty Richey Award, as voted on by the college squash head coaches. "College squash — especially coming to U.S. — was never my plan. But since I'm here, and winning this award, it means a lot to me to close out my college squash career."

Along with receiving the Betty Richey Award, Subramaniam credited the Cornell community for helping her succeed during her time on East Hill.

"This all goes to the Cornell community," she said. "Of course, they've helped me out a lot. As an international student, it's never easy to be so far away from home and balancing both sports and studies. It's good for me, it's also good for people around Cornell."