Lewiston, ME — Last season, the Bates women matched their strong 2008-2009 performance and improved upon their national ranking. This season, they look to move forward into the top ten.
Leading the Bobcats’ charge will be NESCAC Rookie of the Year and 1st Team All-NESCAC selection Cheri-Ann Parris. Parris went undefeated in her last ten team matches of the season, capping the year with a key five-game win over Mount Holyoke’s Vidushi Gurunada at the Women’s National Team Championships (Howe Cup). Parris carried that success into the summer, earning a bronze medal for Barbados in the Central American & Caribbean Games in Colombia in July.
The Bobcats’ number 2 and number 3 players from last season, co-captains Hannah Laverty and Whitney Roller, have graduated, along with number 9 Morgan Maciewicz. But the rest of the team will be back in action, along with four first-year players who should add depth to the Bobcats’ roster: Ashley Brooks, Rakey Drammeh, Samantha Matos, and Jane Meyer. Seniors Stephanie Cabot and Anna Hogeland and junior Mimi Neal will lead the team as tri-captains. Hogeland was named to the 2010 NESCAC All-Academic team and was also a CSA Scholar Athlete. She isn’t the only Bobcat to earn academic honors: sophomore Liza Dorison was nominated to be a Dana Scholar. Dana Scholars are recognized for their academic excellence and promise, their leadership potential, and their service to Bates and the community, and are nominated by faculty and other students.
The Bobcats will have their work cut out for them if they want to make it into the top 10. Only Parris won a match against the team sitting at number 10, Brown, when the two squads met in the Kurtz Cup semifinals. Bates never faced ninth-ranked Dartmouth last season, and they were blanked twice by Williams, the number 8 team. But with more depth, Bates should be able to close the gap and push the teams ahead of them.
According to Pat Cosquer, the 2010 NESCAC Coach of the Year, the “Bobkittens” will have a busy season. They’ll hike Mt. Katahdin in the fall, travel to New York to watch the Tournament of Champions, and head west to train at Stanford during winter break. They will also continue their community service work. Last season Bates was involved with the Aspirations Squash Enrichment Program, which supports under-served Somali and Sudanese school-aged children in Lewiston by providing academic tutoring, squash instruction, conflict resolution skills, and mentoring. They also participated in a clothing drive and holiday gift-giving program, as well as a squash clinic at the Portland YMCA.
2009-2010 SEASON RECAP
Season Record: 19-8
Final Ranking: 11
Team Championships/Conference: 11th Over All; 3rd in Kurtz Cup (B Division); 3rd in NESCAC Conference
2010-2011 SEASON PREVIEW
Program Status: Varsity
Head Coach: Pat Cosquer (Bates ’97)
Returning Players from Team Championships: Ali Bragg (5); Stephanie Cabot (6); Liza Dorison (8); Anna Hogeland (7); Mimi Neal (4); Cheri-Ann Parris (1; 1st Team All-NESCAC; NESCAC Rookie of the Year); Emily Russell (10);
Graduates on Last Season’s Team Championships Roster: Hannah Laverty (2; 1st Team All-NESCAC; 2009-2010 Captain); Morgan Maciewicz (9); Whitney Roller (3; 2009-2010 Captain)
Additions to the 2010-2011 Roster:
- Expected to compete for the 4 to 6 ladder positions: Ashley Brooks, Samantha Matos
- Expected to compete for the 7 to 9 ladder positions: Rakey Drammeh, Jane Mayer
Captains: Stephanie Cabot, Anna Hogeland, and Mimi Neal
Team Goals: Finish in the top 10 in the CSA Rankings and the top 2 in the NESCAC conference
Key Matches: Williams
To read other team previews, please visit the 2010 – 2011 College Squash Preview Page.
