Gregory wins first, Coll ninth squash title
- 8 hours ago
- 2 min read
Jena Gregory has claimed her first national title while Paull Coll has secured his ninth at the 2026 New Zealand Squash Championships in Tauranga.
Second seed Gregory from Hawke's Bay with a PSA ranking of 155 defeated top seed seed Ella Lash from Auckland with a ranking of 87 in the women’s final.
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Lash was solid from the outset, taking the ball early and fast to build her lead before hitting a beautiful boast to take the first game 8-11.
Gregory, 22 then found her length and accuracy, working the angles and staying composed to get the better of Lash in the second 11-8. It was more of the same in the next two games, Lash hitting a few unforced errors while Gregory remained composed to secure the win 8-11, 11-8, 11-9, 11-7.
“This means so much to me, I’ve had a pretty rough year this year so to be able to get this title is incredible and so special to me. I’ve come third twice so it’s pretty amazing,” said Gregory.
World No. 2 Coll then took on teenager Ollie Dunbar ranked 108 in the men’s final.
Dunbar initially stayed with Coll before the West Coaster then pulled away before taking the opener 11-7.
Coll pushed up in the second, taking the fight to Dunbar to force a few errors and claim a comfortable 11-4 win. The third was a cut copy of the previous game with Coll staying on the attack to win 11-4 and secure his ninth national title.
Freddie Jameson placed third in the men's division, while Shelley Kitchen took third place in the women's.
