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Darien Local Weather
DHS Squash
M Hauer
Darien, Connecticut
06820
 
  Welcome  
 

Welcome students & parents from Darien Schools!

We have expanded beyond just high school programs to include middle & elementary school clinics as well. There is even a class for moms to learn to play squash.

 This is currently the one place for all Darien squash information. Questions about programs for any age can be sent to the central email account DHSsquash@gmail.com.

 



Sunday, March 4
Spring Squash Club for DHS, MMS & ELEM Students

SPRING 2012 SEASON: Mon. March 5 - Sun. May 20 (not including school holidays 4/6-9 & 4/14-22) 

DHS STUDENTS 

This is a Club season that is open to all players beginner to advanced.

Once sign ups are well underway, we will confirm your time by email. You are not fully signed up until you receive this confirmation.

Monday, Wed., Fri.   3:15  - 4:00              $648*    (no 3/9)      

Mon.  & Wed.             7:45-8:30                $456*

Sun. (3/11-5/20)        5:30 - 6:15              $192* 

  

You must also have all DHS forms completed before you can play. Copy & Paste the links in your browser.

Coaches' Athletic Emergency Card signed by the DHS school nurse: http://www.darienps.org/dhs/pdfs/summail/DHSAthleticEmergencyForm.pdf. This must be redone every session.

Participation Fee/Eligibility Contract: every student must pay an annual fee of $100 to participate in any DHS sport or activity during the school year:  http://darienpaydeck.org/ Please print receipt as proof of payment

Impact Testing: all Freshmen (and other students who have not done this yet) are strongly encouraged to complete the online impact testing for concussion management.  Here is the link:  http://www.darienps.org/darienathletics/concussion_mgt.pdf

 

MMS STUDENTS 

Tues. & Th.               3:15 - 4:00              $480* 

Tues. & Th.               4:00 - 4:45              $480* 

Sat. (3/10-5/19)       3:15 – 4:00              $192*  

 

ELEMENTARY SCH STUDENTS

Wed.                        4:45 - 5:30           $240*

Tues. & Th.                           4:45 - 5:30           $480*

 

MMS & ELEM Students please also fill out the DHS Coaches' Emergency Athletic Form (no nurse's signature needed) and drop it off at Squash Alley with your check: 

http://www.darienps.org/dhs/pdfs/summail/DHSAthleticEmergencyForm.pdf

This is for the safety of your child in case of an emergency. 

 

TO SIGN UP: email Margie Hauer at DHSsquash@gmail.com. Once sign ups are well underway, we will confirm your time by email. You are not fully signed up until you receive this confirmation.

Bring your Checks payable to Squash Alley & Forms on or before the first day of your session once confirmed. And everyone must have the proper equipment (see below.) No refunds or makeups for missed classes.

 

FOR ALL STUDENT GROUPS

*25% discount off spring programs for Squash Alley members. New this spring – special membership offer for 10 or more school program players. Please contact Judy directly at 327-3131 for more information about membership or email her at squashalley@sbcglobal.net or visit www.squashalley.com.

LADIES PROGRAM MWF 9:30 - 10:30

Ladies, we have a program for you to this spring! Borrow your kid's racquet and goggles and give the game a try. Choose two or three days per week preferrably. Two three week mini sessions:

Session 1: March 7 - 23

Mon($68), Wed ($102) Fri. ($102)

Session 2: March 26 - April 13 (no 4/6 & 4/9)

Mon($68), Wed ($102) Fri. ($68) 

 

 

 



Wednesday, August 24
New website for Squash Alley

Squash Alley now has its own website www.squashalley.com. Please visit this site for membership information, directions, etc.

Monday, August 24
IMPORTANT REQUIREMENTS

REQUIRED FORMS (must turn these in at the start of each session to play)

These forms must be completed for all athletes to be eligible to participate in interscholastic sports  http://www.darienps.org/healthservices/grades11-12/grades11-12.htm

•  DHS Coaches Athletic Emergency Form - This form is available on the DHS website - go to Athletic Department page and click on health forms or use the link above.

• Sports Participation Health Record - All students who plan to tryout, practice, and play at any level of interscholastic athletics must have a documented physical examination in order to participate. This physical exam must be updated every thirteen months, and kept on file with the school nurse. Note: this form is required only for Varsity and JV squash not Fall and Spring Club sessions.

 

DHS students must pay the annual extracurricular participation fee and sign the contract for conduct.

REQUIRED EQUIPMENT
You will need to buy a squash racquet and protective eyewear. These can be purchased at Squash Alley or other sporting goods stores. Also, non-marking sneakers (tennis sneakers are fine) are required and they must be a pair used for squash only and not worn outside of the courts. Anyone with dirty or gritty soles will not be allowed to play since it will ruin the floor of the court. Regular T-shirts and exercise shorts are fine -- you will get quite a workout on the court!

LOCATION  Squash Alley is located just over the border of Darien in Stamford. Click on locations on the menu at left for address, phone and map.  

 



Saturday, October 1
A note about US Squash Tournaments

How and Why to Play Individual US Squash Tournaments (by Simon Gill)
A great way to improve your squash game is to enter local junior tournaments. If you want to get better, you have to play tournaments. Don’t worry about losing matches. The key is to get started as soon as you can, and you will find that your results will improve quickly.A full listing of such tournaments can be found on the US Squash website, www.ussquash.com/ssm/pages/tournaments/tournament_list.asp. 

By participating in US Squash sanctioned tournaments, you will be eligible for an official 'Rating' and a 'Ranking' in your age division (Boys and Girls U19, 17, 15, 13, 11). You will have a national ranking (pretty neat!) after playing in just three events.Note that tournaments listed as 'Bronze' are more appropriate for less experienced players (click on the ‘Event Type’ menu and then click on ‘Junior Bronze’). Once a player gets more experience, and has won a match or two in a Bronze event, he/sheshould play ‘Silver’ tournaments also.While the experience of playing, watching and refereeing matches is certain to improve your game, you should note that entering tournaments is a major weekend time commitment. You have no control over your match times from the Friday 4 pm tournament start to the final games on Sunday early afternoon.

Also, some thoughts on entering your first tournament. Many kids and (and their parents) are intimidated by the prospect of playing in an official squash tournament, thinking that they are not yet good enough, and as a result they delay this critical step toward improving their game. My view is that if you have been on the court just a few times, you are ready for a Bronze event. Don't worry about your first results. They don't matter! They key is to take the first step.To prove the point, guess what Roger Federer's result was in the first local junior tennis tournament he entered in Switzerland? He lost 0-6, 0-6!!! Same also for my four children, who are now all good players. In their first couple of tournaments, they barely won a point, let alone a game or a match.Please think about entering some upcoming tournaments. Remember: the earlier you start the game, the more you play, and the more you learn to play the right way … the better you will be. 


Thursday, February 24
Hansford the hero as Wave squash goes to No. 1 public school in USA

 

Wave squash player Dominic Hansford’s performance at the U.S. High School Championships was endemic of the top status among public school squads Darien earned at the tournament played in the state this month.

And with squash a game of contradictions, being easy enough to learn, but impossible to master, it can seem to be like playing chess at 100 mph., while moving all of your pieces at once.

Or, it can seem like a marathon race, as sophomore Hansford discovered, as he, held it all together for a final fifth game, when the match was tied 2-2, and DHS locked up 3-3.

The victory cemented DHS’s remarkable rise to become the No. 1 ranked public school team in the nation, at the event played at Yale and Trinity among other venues the second week of Feb.

DHS was also the school with the most teams in the tournament. For the first time, Blue Wave girls were represented, adding to the three coed teams that competed in the boys division.

“We are thrilled with the growth of public school squash, a sport that has historically been the domain of private schools,” U.S. Squash Junior Development officer Conor O’Malley said. “Darien High School has become one of the leading models for other such programs in the country.”

And as far as history goes, Darien High’s making that in instant fashion, not having been long on the varsity scene in the sport.

 

“They have depth, as evidenced by four teams in the Championship,” O’Malley said. “And their A team is already competitive with the top private schools.”

The girls team is led by captains Aastha Narula, Holly Gordon and Jena Fritts. Sophomore Fritts went unbeaten and won all four of her matches.

 

Blue Wave squash 2011, US national champs.

The coed B team saw strong performances by Kincade Webster and Jack Johnston, each taking two matches. Team captains are Chris Losito and Robbie Florian.

 

Senior Florian’s last match went to five games. Although he lost the fifth, he entertained the crowd with a dramatic, even theatrical, performance.

It was Florian’s curtain call, but it only set the stage for Hansford’s closing act.

Darien’s third coed team, led by Jamie Hauer, saw a couple of good wins by Jack Sparkman, and the team played well all weekend.

The varsity A coed team, led by senior captains, twins, Leslie and Madeleine Gill — also star field hockey players for four-time champ DHS — competed at the highest level and came away with a 2-2 record against top-ranked squash schools.

Their final match against Packer Collegiate from Brooklyn was expected to be a close and hard-fought battle.

It was that and then some.

Wave No. 1 Jonathan Gill, ranked fifth in the U.S. for U17 boys, was matched against the top ranked junior player in the U.S.

Leslie Gill, at No. 2 for Darien, had to face a player who has represented the U.S. Junior national team. Neither was expected to win.

In the end, they both had close matches, but it was too much to ask.

And so, Darien was left with another tall order. The Wave had to win four out of its remaining five matches.

Seniors Malcolm Willis and Doug Wells came through with critical wins, the first signs of what was on the cards.

Madeleine Gill, playing at the three spot, faced a hard-hitting opponent and went down 2-1.

As she and Leslie have done since leading the team as freshmen three years ago, Madeleine shrugged off the fact that she had to compete against the boys.

 

The boys could not shrug off facing Gill quite so easily.

 

Her crushing backhand matched the power and speed of her male opponent, and she came away with an unexpected 3-2 win that kept Darien’s hopes alive.

Now it was High Noon, Hansford the last to step on the court for the Wave.

All the other matches were done, and the teams were tied 3-3. Action began and no one looked away.

Coming back from a 2-1 deficit, Hansford pulled even to 2-2.

The outcome for both teams now came down to the deciding fifth game.

Both players exhausted, they knew what was at stake, reminded by the cheering of one side or the other, shot for shot, that followed each and every point.

It’s a team sport, but players still stand alone.

And players live for this moment, it is all about the fifth and deciding game.

The winner is the one who can find the elusive balance between intensity and calmness, aggression and thinking, taking risks and playing it safe.

Hansford found the balance.

His opponent lay flat and exhausted on the court after the final point was played in the Wave’s favor, as the Darien contingent clapped politely before erupting into applause for the win.

Blue Wave players and fans flooded on to the court to congratulate Hansford, hero of the day, and of the season, for the top public school team in the USA. 

 



Thursday, August 30
Article on the history of squash

Sunday, December 3
Darien News Review article 11.30.06

   
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