By Martin Bronstein
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Demer Holleran comes to the end of her first year as US women’s team coach with a smile on her face. Four years ago the US finished in 18th position at the women’s world team championships; two years ago in Denmark they had climbed to 15th. In Amsterdam they came eighth out of 19 countries, a finish that will encourage everybody connected with squash in the USA.
Holleran was happy even before she left for the Netherlands. Having expected to be seeded 12, she found her team seeded 10 and in a Pool that gave a definite chance of a top-eight finish.
If there was a crucial point in the US 2004 campaign it came in the final pool match when the US faced Hong Kong to decide who took second place in Pool B, and hence enter the top eight for the quarterfinals. Up to that point things had gone as predicted; in their first match against England, Latasha Khan, Meredeth Quick and Louisa Hall lost comprehensively to the England team, which consisted of world top 10 players Cassie Jackman, Linda Elriani and Jenny Duncalf. “I’m glad we played them first; they’re so strong—our next matches will look easy,” said Khan, the USA No. 1, after that loss.
And so it proved to be. The next day Team USA beat Japan with the same ease that England had beaten the US: 3-0 in matches, 9-0 in games, 81-18 in points. In Pool play, Scotland should have been tougher but their number one Pamela Nimmo had pulled out sick at the last minute. Khan, Quick and Hall took comfortable 3-0 victories to set up the needle match with Hong Kong who had also beaten Japan and Scotland and had lost to England.
The Hong Kong team was small, quick and court-wise. Quick gave her team a solid start by beating Annie Au in 28 minutes, losing just eight points in the process. “I felt good and my confidence was up. I played my drop shots well and got rid of my nerves quickly,” Quick explained.
Khan was unable to keep the talented Rebecca Chiu behind her and paid the price, losing in straight games. With the match tied 1-1 it came down to the number threes: Joey Chan for Hong Kong got off to a tremendous start taking the first two games from Hall, who later admitted that nerves got to her and she was going for no-percentage shots. Things looked very bleak for Team USA but Hall, calmed by Holleran, then made probably the come-back of her life and took the next three games 3, 5, 4 to win one of the most important matches of her career. The USA was through to the quarterfinals and assured a top-eight finish.
Michelle Quibell was brought into action for the first time in the quarterfinals against New Zealand. After Khan had lost as expected to Shelley Kitchen, who was playing well above form, Quibell came on at third string and dominated Jaclyn Hawkes to win the first two games. But then Hawkes got stronger, moved up the court, volleyed and turned the match right around. Quibell, who had not had enough matches in the previous months (the university semester had yet to start) and who was suffering a slight hamstring problem, wilted under the pressure, and by the fifth game was completely demoralized.
Hall lost the best-of-three dead rubber to Tamsyn Leevey. Had Quibell won, who knows what motivation Hall would have found in a proper best-of-five? So dreams of a top four finish had to be put away for another two years. But could they finish in fifth after playoffs? Not if Netherlands played to their form—and they did.
Hall fought for 54 minutes against the young Karen Kronemeyer before losing in four. Vanessa Atkinson beat Khan to secure the victory, and Annelize Naude won the meaningless third string best-of-three match with a 2-0 scoreline over Quick.
All that was now left was to see if Team USA could beat Ireland for seventh place. Madeline Perry, Ireland’s No. 1, was also playing above form—she took Malaysia’s Nicol David to five, losing the fifth 10-9—and she was simply too good for Khan. Quick showed true grit in beating Aisling Blake, the Irish number two, 7, 10-8, 10-8 to set the decider once more in Hall’s hands. In top form Hall could have beaten Anna McGeever, but there were hints of fatigue about her and she kept playing to her opponent’s strengths to lose in three.
Holleran never saw Hall’s match—she had to rush off to the airport after Quick’s match in order to be back in New York for induction into the Squash Hall of Fame. It will be interesting to see what she can do in the next two years with the team.
(Read the 2004 Women's World Team Champs report here)
Photos of Team USA courtesy Karen Schmidt-Fellner
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