News
September 30, 2019
Stefanoni, Dussourd Claim Professional Squash Titles in Charlottetown
American wins first ever pro event on PEI.
Professional Squash was the headliner in
Charlottetown for a 2nd straight year during the 2019 Aspin Cup
tournament, one of the newest events on the PSA Challenge Tour calendar. The
inaugural pro event in 2018 featured 24 male athletes, and this year, the host
committee jumped at the opportunity to offer both a male and female
division. 32 Athletes from 12 countries participated in the 4 day
event at UPEI with $12,000 in prize money up for grabs. The Aspin
Cup remains PEI’s longest running squash tournament, serving as an amateur
event for Maritime athletes for decades prior to becoming a sanctioned PSA
Challenge Tour event in 2018.
It was a thrilling best of five in the Women’s
Final on Saturday afternoon between Marina Stefanoni (USA) and Hana Moataz
(Egypt) which went the full distance. Moataz had a fantastic start with full
court control jumping off to a 6-1 run to start and 9-3 to role on to a 11-5
win in the first. Moataz momentum carried over to kick off the 2nd and
it looked for a while like she might jump out to a quick 2-0 lead, but the
young Stefanoni bounced back and capitalized on a few errors to take the 2nd by
score of 11-8, and then took full control of the 3rd to win,
putting her one game away from what would be her 3rd PSA Title
at just 16 years of age. The 4th needed overtime and had so
many back-and-forth opportunities, but it would be a 17-15 win by Moataz to
force a fifth and deciding game. In that deciding game, Stefanoni
did not allow the disappointing missed opportunity in the 4th stop
her momentum and came away with a close 11-9 win to be named the first female
professional champion of the Aspin Cup Tournament. “She started off really strong”
Stefanoni spoke of Moataz. “She was taking everything when I gave her an
opportunity. So, I had to just try to not leave anything in the middle for her.
Once I did that, the point was over next shot.”
Stefanoni and Moataz were determined opponents during
the first ever Aspin Cup PSA Women’s Final on Saturday, but they will be
teammates in the very near future at Harvard University where Moataz currently
plays as a second year player and Stefanoni has committed to join following
high school.
On the Men’s side, long time top ranked Canadian
Shawn DeLierre gave a courageous effort to win a PSA event on home soil, but it
wasn’t meant to be for the 37-year-old Montreal veteran as Auguste Dussourd
from France put in an absolutely dominant performance to take the match 3-0
(11-3,11-5,11-7). This was Dussourd’s 2nd PSA
Championship title win this month in Canada, fresh off winning the Nash Cup the
previous week in London, Ontario. In a post-match interview,
Dussourd claimed he was very nervous during the match, but to all spectators in
attendance, it was a shocking declaration as he appeared confident and in
complete control during the Championship Match on Saturday
afternoon. Next up for this 23-year-old up and coming star is the
World Championships, which he and Stefanoni have both qualified for later this
year in Egypt as Wild Card entrants which was a major feature available to the
winners of this event. “I have a tournament in the United States before that
and I will also prepare myself as much as I can for (the) World Championships,”
said Dussourd.
The calibre of this event was nothing short of
phenomenal. Lester Jinks, Past President at Squash PEI and long-time
enthusiast of the sport, was truly impressed with the athletes attending and
their desire to help us grow this event. “Being able to see this calibre of men
and women, you may be seeing history unfolding as you’re watching young players
moving on up,” recognized Jinks. “An excellent example is our female champion
(16 year old American Marina Stefanoni) who is destined to be a world top 10
contender in a few years time. It is great to be part of watching this
history!”
The 2019 Aspin Cup also showcased three local
players as Wild Card entries in this unique format. Mitch Chaisson,
Nathan Phillips and Liam Jinks are all former Squash PEI recipients of the Male
Athlete of the Year distinction. All three competed in the opening
round of the male event on Wednesday. While coming up unsuccessful,
they were all appreciative of the opportunity to experience professional squash
on home soil and be apart of a fantastic event. “It’s a great opportunity for
people to watch and to play and to really help grow the sport” Chaisson
recognized prior to the event.
The Aspin Cup is scheduled to return to Charlottetown
in fall 2020. Date and details to be announced in early 2020.