NYFACS 2025 Middle School Team
(Left to Right: Son, Gideon, Kresyna, Stephanie, Moussa)
StreetSquash is thrilled to announce that, for the first time in the program’s 25-year history, a group of middle school students will compete in the U.S. Middle School Team Squash Championships in Philadelphia, beginning January 31.
The five student-athletes—three boys and two girls—will represent the New York French American Charter School (NYFACS) in Harlem. We are proud to partner with Harrow Sports, which has generously agreed to provide new squash racquets for each competing student.
This historic middle school team follows in the footsteps of StreetSquash’s high school team from Thurgood Marshall Academy, which made headlines in 2023 as the first all-Black team to compete at the U.S. High School Squash Nationals where the team finished in second place.
The students themselves initiated the idea of competing in the Middle School Team Squash Championships.
“They came to me and said, ‘Coach, there’s this tournament we saw on Club Locker—U.S. Middle School Nationals,’” Joanne explained. “‘We want to play. Can we take a NYFACS team?’”
Joanne noted that the students were inspired by what their peers from Thurgood Marshall Academy achieved in February 2023.
“For them to see a team from their community and players they know competing at High School Nationals, they thought, ‘We can do this too,’” Joanne said.
These young athletes have been honing their skills at StreetSquash, where they have trained for over a year while participating in the program’s holistic youth development services.
“This year, we have a really large group of middle schoolers who are not only passionate about squash but also extremely talented,” said StreetSquash Squash Director Joanne Schickerling. “They’ve been working really hard.”
“I’m just really excited,” said Moussa, an 11-year-old StreetSquasher and one of the competing athletes. “I just hope we can do our best.”
For NYFACS, this milestone event is significant, as the school is not traditionally focused on athletics.
“This is NYFACS’ first-ever sports team and their first-ever tournament,” Moussa said. “I’m really excited about that.”
“While we don’t have an athletics program at our school, the fact that our students can participate in such a prestigious event shows what they’re capable of and speaks to the strength of our partnerships,” said Mamadou Ba, a NYFACS Middle School administrator. “It’s great to see them step into this new student-athlete role and represent us on a national level.”
Gideon, a 13-year-old teammate, shared his enthusiasm: “It will be an honor to play with my schoolmates on the squash court.”
Stephanie, another 13-year-old team member, expressed pride in representing her school and culture.
“I’m excited to give my school some attention,” Stephanie said. “My school represents my culture, so I’m excited to represent that too.”
Joanne acknowledged that Middle School Nationals will bring higher stakes than the bronze tournaments these students typically compete in.
“A team event can sometimes put more weight and pressure on kids because they’re not just playing for themselves,” Joanne explained. “They’re representing their school and StreetSquash. They’ll also be competing in a larger venue with bigger crowds and an opposing team cheering against them.”
To prepare, the team has been ramping up the intensity of their practices, engaging in more match play, and having conversations to ensure the players are ready for the challenges ahead.
“This will indeed be an inspiring experience for them, and it definitely will be a memory they’ll carry with them for years in the future,” Mr. Ba said.
We can’t wait to cheer on these trailblazing middle school student-athletes as they make history in Philadelphia this weekend!
Follow Tournament Results here
Watch the matches on US Squash’s YouTube Page here: Day 1 | Day 2 | Day 3
**The first match will take place on Jan. 31, 2025 on courts 13 & 14 beginning at 4:30pm**