Game of the Week: Basketball defeated by Smith College
Student athletes discuss the physical and mental benefits of playing sports
New ‘POOL’ exhibit illuminates history of segregated swimming in US
For Cheryl Anderson Chaney, swimming at Fairmount Water Works Pool in Philadelphia was a source of joy. As a teenager growing up in the 1960s, she learned to swim from her father, who worked for the water department, according to an article published by WHYY PBS. Chaney, who is Black, grew up during racial segregation, when restrictive laws made it challenging for communities of color to access adequate public services — including swimming pools.
Fencing competes in Big One tournament
Four foilists and four épéeists from Mount Holyoke Fencing represented the College at the New England Intercollegiate Fencing Conference Big One tournament on Saturday, Nov. 7. The competition, which was hosted by Vassar College, featured over 10 teams belonging to various NCAA athletic divisions, including Smith College, Dartmouth College and the University of Massachusetts Amherst.
International Handball Federation updates women’s handball dress code
Female handball players are no longer required to wear bikini bottoms and sports bras in competition, according to a rule the International Handball Federation changed on Oct. 3. As reported by The New York Times, the rule originally stated that female athletes must wear bikini bottoms “with a close fit and cut on an upward angle toward the top of the leg,” with sides that could not measure more than four inches.
Game of the Week: Field Hockey and Soccer conclude their seasons
Field Hockey
Mount Holyoke Field Hockey defeated New England Women’s and Men’s Athletic Conference rival Wheaton College 1-0 last Friday evening at home in their final game of the season.
Soccer
Mount Holyoke College Soccer finished their 2021 regular season in a 0-0 draw with Wellesley College after two overtimes, totaling 110 minutes of game play, at a NEWMAC game on Saturday, Oct. 30.
Game of the Week: Cross Country runs in NEWMAC Championships; Volleyball ends season at home
Cross Country
Mount Holyoke College Cross Country continued their season on Saturday, Oct. 30 in the New England Women and Men’s Athletic Conference Championships at the Nehoiden Golf Club in Wellesley, Massachusetts.
Volleyball
Mount Holyoke College Volleyball finished off their season on Saturday, Oct. 30 with a 3-0 shutout loss to Emerson College at home. The set scores were 25-22, 25-16 and 25-19.
NCAA to add four teams to women’s basketball championship bracket
In a unanimous vote on Thursday, Oct. 14, the National Collegiate Athletic Association Division I Women’s Basketball Committee and Women’s Basketball Oversight Committee approved a proposal to expand the Division I Women’s Basketball Championship bracket by four teams. Beginning in 2022, the proposal would allow 68 teams to compete in the tournament instead of the previous 64. The same change was approved for the NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball Championship in 2011.
Game of the Week: Rowing takes on Head of the Charles; Volleyball travels for tournament
Rowing
The Mount Holyoke rowing team made their way to Boston for the Head of the Charles Regatta last weekend. The Head of the Charles Regatta is one of the oldest head races in the country and has been running since 1965. The Regatta draws more than 11,000 competitors and thousands of spectators.
Volleyball
Mount Holyoke Volleyball traveled to Amherst College and Smith College on Saturday, Oct. 23, to compete against Westfield State University and Bates College in the Volleyball Hall of Fame Tournament.
Over 500 athletes speak out in favor of reproductive rights
On Sept. 20, over 500 current and former athletes and coaches submitted an amicus brief to the U.S. Supreme Court. These amici, described as "current and former athletes who are, or were at some point, able to become pregnant — regardless of gender identity" urged the protection of abortion rights for the first time in history.
According to WBUR, the brief was filed in light of Mississippi’s recent efforts to overturn a ruling by the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals that blocked the state from imposing an abortion ban after 15 weeks of pregnancy. The ban was in conflict with Roe v. Wade, the landmark decision that ensured people the right to an abortion . On Dec. 1, 2021, the state will be heard by the Supreme Court in an attempt to overturn Roe v. Wade.
Game of the Week: Tennis and Riding travel for competition
Tennis
Mount Holyoke’s tennis team traveled to Brunswick, Maine, where Bowdoin College hosted the Intercollegiate Tennis Association Northeast Regional Championships this past weekend. It was the team’s first tournament since the pandemic halted sports in March 2020.
Riding
Mount Holyoke Riding tied for first place with University of Massachusetts Amherst for the High Point Title at last weekend’s Muddy Brook Farm Show, hosted by Smith College. The Lyons snagged 15 of the 20 classes and amassed 36 total points.
Game of the Week: Mount Holyoke Volleyball hosts trimatch
Last weekend, Mount Holyoke Volleyball hosted their third trimatch of the season against Bay Path University and nationally ranked Babson College. The Lyons were shut out in the first match with 3-0 sets by the Babson Beavers. Sarah Bishop ’22 had a team best of eight kills for Mount Holyoke. The Beavers then took on Bay Path and swept the court in 3-0 sets against the Wildcats.
Maia Chaka becomes first Black female NFL referee
The National Football League kicked off its regular season this September with a new “first” for women in sports. After starting out in the NFL’s Officiating Development Program, Maia Chaka recently became the first Black female NFL referee. Originally from Rochester, NY, Chaka was a line judge for the first Sunday Night Football game of the season on Sept. 12 between the Carolina Panthers and the New York Jets.
Mount Holyoke Tennis and Rowing start their competitive seasons
Tennis
Mount Holyoke Tennis opened their competition season at home against College of the Holy Cross on Sept. 16. Annissa Aamoum ’22 beat the competition in the No. 3 singles match with scores of 6-2 and 6-1.
The Lyons fell to Holy Cross in the rest of the singles and all of the doubles matches. The Lyons’ doubles pairings were Aamoum and Annika Chai ’25, Shweta Kiran Cavale ’23 and Vy Hoang ’24 and Hannah Middleton ’22 and Nikki Cheng ’22.
Amherst College faces lawsuit by former lacrosse head coach
Over the summer, Amherst College received a wrongful termination lawsuit from former men’s lacrosse Head Coach Rashad Devoe. According to the Boston Globe, Devoe was fired one year into his three-year contract because he “verbally mistreated” the lacrosse athletes. The alleged verbal mistreatment occurred after athletes reportedly held a practice outside on an Amherst College green, in violation of the college’s COVID-19 rules. But Devoe, a Black man, felt there was more to the story.
Game of the Week: Mount Holyoke Cross Country, Field Hockey, Soccer and Volleyball
Road to Tokyo Olympics: Sha’Carri Richardson suspended; Laurel Hubbard breaks boundaries
Mary Mazzio ’83 discusses documentary ‘A Most Beautiful Thing’
On April 6, 2021, filmmaker and former Mount Holyoke rower Mary Mazzio ’83 spoke at a panel to discuss her 2020 documentary “A Most Beautiful Thing” alongside Arshay Cooper, who wrote the memoir that inspired the film. The documentary is about the first African American high school rowing team from the west side of Chicago, which Cooper joined and eventually led. Facilitators of the panel included current Mount Holyoke rowers Jaya Nagarajan-Swenson ’22, Claire Gabel ’22 and Casey Roepke ’21. Former Mount Holyoke rower, Cynthia Thornton ’83, was another panelist.
Mount Holyoke Athletics celebrates Division III Week
Last week, the Mount Holyoke athletics department participated in the NCAA’s Division III Week with its own spirit week. According to the NCAA, the purpose of Division III Week is to “celebrate the impact of athletics and of student-athletes on the campus and surrounding community.” National Student-Athlete Day took place during Division III Week on April 6.