By Sosi Sengal, Staff Reporter

With a new coach and a fresh roster, the Tredyffrin-Easttown/Valley Forge Middle School girls’ squash team dominated their league, finishing their season undefeated and becoming the first public school team to win a U.S. Squash National Championship.

In recent years, the middle school girls’ squash team had not seen much success, with few girls interested and rotating coaches. This year, everything changed. Now coached by Jeremie Aissaoui-Fischer, a Berwyn Squash pro, the team is the only public school competing in the Division 1 Middle Atlantic Squash Association’s middle school league. The girls defeated last year’s champions Agnes Irwin Middle School 7-0 and ended the season leading the league 6-0. They won the U.S. Middle School Squash Championship 4-1, becoming the first public school to do so.

“For both boys and girls to be honest I think it’s just we have a good group with a good environment,” Aissaoui-Fischer said. “Everything makes it so that everyone feels good, so I just think it’s the vibe.”

Aissaoui-Fischer started playing squash 14 years ago, and growing up as an athlete, he knows hard work and sees it in every one of his players. He believes a good coach-to-athlete relationship is what makes the team so good compared to past years. Additionally, the dedication and love for the sport is what strengthens the team and aids them in competition.
Eighth grader and highest ranked player Minnie Kim agrees.

“We do a lot of workouts together. We hang out outside of the courts, and we just really love each other’s company,” Kim said. “We have a special team connection that I don’t think other schools have.”
This is only the first year the current players have all been on this team together and in a short amount of time, they have developed a tight bond.

One of the team’s strong suits is their close relationship, as a close team equates to a team that can work together to win. Kim and her teammates believe that the dominance they have shown over the other schools in the league is due to the prominent friendships between the teammates.

“We work so well together, it’s almost like we’re sisters.” Kim said.

Seventh grader Jiya Naik comments on going to nationals.

“It feels amazing. We are one of the only public schools in our division. Last year was our first year as a team and we have already gotten so far,” Naik said. “The wins are also amazing and surprising; at the beginning, we knew our team would be great. But to actually see it unfold is incredible.”

The highest level of competition for middle school squash teams is the U.S. Division 1 Middle School Squash Championship. Qualifying for and winning this competition brings a lot of recognition to the T/E girls’ squash programs. In addition, when these players move up to the high school, they will bring advanced skills and strategies with them, further improving the team.

“I have a really good feeling about the Conestoga girls’ squash team because a lot of these girls are training so hard.” Kim said. “I think in the future, we’re going to be really good.”

Sosi Sengal can be reached at [email protected].