Mission Edges Los Gatos in Inaugural Northern California High School Team Championship by Kim Clearkin
Nueva HS
March 30, 2015
- This weekend the inaugural NorCal HS Team Championships took place at
Bay Club Santa Clara in Northern California. 12 school teams
participated in an action packed weekend of squash culminating in a
final that was very closely fought between teams from Los Gatos Squash
Club and Mission High School. Mission HS won by 4 matches to 3.
It has been a long road to put together a school based event in
Northern California. No school in NorCal has their own squash courts
and so school teams rely on private clubs to support their school
program initiatives. 8 of the teams comprised players from one school,
4 teams were club based.
Nueva School was the standout pure High School Team finishing 4th of
12. Nueva team captain, Juliette Love, explained that to get from a
group of mostly just curious beginners who had never seen a squash
court before to a successful squash team in just two years has been an
interesting and rewarding experience. Nueva is the only School in
Northern California to incorporate squash into their school program and
they were excited to see the rewards today as they finished first of
the true High School Teams.
Mission HS
Mission High School, who are the first actual winners of the event, are
also excited as thy are not normally associated with sporting
success. They are now hoping that this championship will breed a
full High School Team next season. Seniors Palak and Purvi Goel, who
both will attend Brown next year, are proud that they can leave the
school knowing that the success of this weekend will mean that a squash
club is now viable at their school.
Next season NorCal squash hope to grow the School Program and create a
fully sanctioned HS league with a view to sending school teams to the
HS Nationals. This is a very real possibility if the participation and
enthusiasm of this weekend can be harnessed.
Thanks to Bay Club Squash Directors, Jon Perry and Gareth Webber for organizing this event and to NorCal Squash for sponsoring.
We are now looking forward to building on this success and to making 2015 even better.
