Here is what some of the Smith Squash Team are doing/saying about what they will be doing on Squash 2016 Day:
Joanne Poon: “I’ll be playing squash in Washington, DC!” **Update at 15:32 EST: “I played for like two hours! Maybe ill play more later today. BACKWALL!!!”
Alice Reznickova: (I paraphrase since we communicate in Alice’s native Czech language) “Can you ask her for a a poster of her signed? I think she would be complimentary to the poster of Nathalie Grainger that Meg stole for our summer house as an inspiration :]”
Jessica Kaplan: (Having just hit on Vermont’s outdoor squash court – Jessica is a Smith College first-year who picked up squash for the first time at the end of the semester and is coming out for the team in the fall – she has some talent) “We just hit on it with our tennis rackets, any word on the squash racket order or should I just buy them local?”
Now completing her Ph.D. at Princeton University, Kanta Murali ‘99 returns to Smith to visit her classmates on the occasion of Smith College’s 131st Graduation. Kanta, winner of the Collge Squash Association’s Ann Wetzel Award (goes to best player who started at college) had the chance to hit and chat with senior Jessica MacLeod, herself a nominee for the award this year. Jess will be in the Teach for America program in New York City following her graduation tomorrow.
This video clip also features the father and son of the MacLeod clan playing some British Racketball and squash respectively, against Sophomore Jasmine Wallas and sister (respectively:). Also in the clip, Coach Tim Bacon has a message for alums who have not been playing squash:)
On the occasion of Smith College’s 131st Graduation Ceremony, the Smith College Squash team will be hosting its 15th annual Alumnae Round Robin – for those Alums who are back on campus – and for any other members of the Smith College Community: this Saturday, May 16th from 3-5 pm at the Squash Courts in Ainsworth Gym.
Both Squash and British Racketball (less adept friends and family members) will be featured. Informal, drop-in format – come and stay as long as you like! This might be your best chance of beating Coach Tim Bacon on his new six-month old hip (but he doubts very much you will be able to;).
**Ainsworth Gym may be officially CLOSED at this time, so we will leave the BACK DOOR (by the parking lot) to the courts open for you access – call Tim’s cell if you have a problem: 413-330-8222.
Here is the link to the Ainsworth Gym schedule for this week.
Here is a clip from our 2007 “very exciting” alum round robin! Hope to see you there!
Mimi Zhang played volleyball and squash when she was at Smith College. She started playing squash in her second year at Smith College and rose to the #4 spot by her senior year. One of the first students to graduate from Smith College’s world-renowned program in Engineering, Mimi kept playing squash when she moved to Stanford to complete her Master’s in Bioengineering. Like many Smith College Squash Alums, she continues the Smith College tradition of giving back after her college years. In an e-mail to Head Coach of Squash Tim Bacon, Mimi writes from San Francisco:
“Dear friends and family,
In
just 3 weeks I will again be taking one week off to ride my bike from
SF to Los Angeles to raise money and awareness for AIDS. Because of
your support last year, the SF AIDS Foundation was able to bring hope
to HIV patients and services to their unmet needs. Because of the
incredible return on your investment that I’ve seen personally through
working with the HIV+ community, I am asking for your help again for
Erin Robson, a graduate of the Smith College M.Sc. Program in Coaching, has coached at both William’s College (Tennis & Squash) and Amherst College. This year the Smith College Squash team was lucky enough to have Erin step in and replace Head Coach Tim Bacon during his mid-season hip replacement recovery.
Erin worked with Tim as the team’s assistant coach during the 1998 season – while she was eight months pregnant! Erin got rave reviews, and in this video clip Tim and the team thank Erin before their final match of the season against friendly arch rivals Haverford College.
One of the great things about a women’s college, as opposed to a co-ed college is that all the leadership positions are filled by women – so a great opportunity to develop valuable leadership schools for the real world. Many of the world’s top female leaders had a girls only education.
One of the special qualities of the Smith College squash program is that it eschews typical athletic team hierarchies which can lead to various negative outcomes (e.g., hazing of freshmen). The Smith College Squash team has a long history of allowing juniors and even sophomores to take on the leadership position of captain on the team.
Current co-captain Alice Reznickova was voted a sophomore captain last season (2007-08) due to her sensibility, communication and caring about her teammates. It was also only her second year even playing squash! Here is a clip of her chasing down a boast and putting in her own drop (her strength as a player).
In a strange postmodern conflux of squash, pop, and small town life (America’s #1 Small Arts Town) , one of the top female groups of all time, the Bangles, is coming to the Calvin Theatre in downtown Northampton, MA, on May 29th, just several hundred yards from Smith College. In addition to being one of the most vibrant and fun towns, Northampton is also one of the safest College towns in America!
Isn’t it interesting that just as the Egyptian Women climb to the top of the world squash rankings, the Bangles will be playing their hit song “…Like an Egyptian” almost next to the Smith College Squash Courts!
The Vision we have established for the Smith College Squash Team – most of whom have not played before college is – at the end of four years of development and improvement on the team:
“To be able to walk into any squash club in the world, and have a “good” game with any club member that the squash professional sets up”.
Here is a communication we received yesterday from New York City that supports that Vision:
Dear College Squash Coach/Club Team Captain,
I wanted to reach out to you before the end of the academic school year because I know many of your players will be moving to New York City and the surrounding areas this summer either for internships or for full time employment. On behalf of the Metropolitan Squash Racquets Association (the “MSRA”), the squash governing body for New York City as well many of the surrounding areas we want to invite your players to continue playing squash in the post collegiate lives, either through our leagues or tournaments. The MSRA is a local squash racquet association and works in conjunction with U.S. Squash. There are currently more than 2000 MSRA members and many of them play on one of our 63 league teams or in one of our tournaments.
The MSRA Squash League is a weekly competitive and social squash league played at clubs throughout Manhattan and Brooklyn . The league runs from November through April with weekly matches. In addition, the MSRA holds two amateur tournaments each year, The Grand and The Hyder. Each tournament drew more than 200 participants in 2009. The Grand is run the same weekend as the J.P.Morgan Tournament of Champions. The Hyder tournament also has a pro draw component with many top pros competing including David Palmer, Shahier Razik, John White and Julian Illingworth among others this year. To see Hyder tournament information please visit http://www.hydersquash.com/.
Please direct your players to our website, www.msra.net, to sign up for membership with the MSRA/U.S. Squash which enables the player to play in the MSRA League or Tournaments. The website also contains further information about our leagues, tournaments, social events and places to play. If you have any questions please feel free to reach out to me at jonathan.reifler@msra.net.
It is no secret that Smith College is actively encouraging applications from young women high school students from the Middle East, Muslim countries, as well as nations with a variety of religions such as India and Pakistan.
As the nation’s largest women’s post secondary institution, Smith College is an ideal space for a safe (amongst the lowest campus/town violent crime statistics in America), respectful education for those that value the advantages that a female-only environment offers. In addition to welcoming female students from abroad, Smith College encourages its American students to widen their horizons in places such as the Midle East through study abroad activities and campus organizations.
The Smith College Squash Team is not only one of the most academically successful teams at Smith, but is also one of the most diverse, with a historically high percentage of international students (including those from the Middle East and Asia) from countries such as Pakistan, Egypt, India, Kuwait, Malaysia, etc. – you can take a peek at the current internationally flavored roster here. Jumana Dalal ‘98 is a Smith Sqush Alum, now a lawyer currently posted to Malyasia; Kanta Murali ‘99 is doing her Ph.D. in Economics at Princeton (she won the College Squash Association’s Ann Wetzel Award which goes to the best female college player who started her squash career at college).
In 1996 Smith College Squash Head Coach visited Iran for three weeks as part of a Canadian mission to educate Iran’s National Coaches in the Coaching Association of Canada’s National Coaching Certification Program (which Canada had just sold to Iran). As a Canadian (with both a British and Irish passport) he is aware of the cultural sensitivities necessary when working with female athletes of various cultures. In 2003 he visited Cairo to present on the topic of “Coaching Women” at the World Squash Federation’s Coaching Conference – held simultaneously with the Junior Women’s World Championships.
There is a place at Smith College for the growing number of young women who have taken up squash as their sport!
Maybe ill play more later today. BACKWALL!!!”
Posted by Tim Bacon 
Posted by Tim Bacon 
Posted by Tim Bacon 
