BSS Young Alumnae Getting Involved
by catherine marostica
Girls at The Bishop Strachan School are faced with an often overwhelming number of choices when it comes to extracurricular activities. One can participate in the folk choir, a mainstage production, intramural sports, or clubs ranging from Fashion and Sewing, to Girls in Science and Fair Trade. For some of our graduates, making the leap from secondary school to university is challenging enough; some opt to focus on their studies alone, leaving extracurricular activities behind. Others, like Nicole KESTERIS ’10, must work hard to find a balance between their athletic and academic commitments. Nicole is a first year Economics student and goalie for the University of Toronto Varsity Blues. A demanding school and training schedule notwithstanding, Nicole was named athlete of the week in November 2010 by the Ontario University Athletics (OUA), and made a member of the 2010/11 OUA All Rookie team.
For recent graduates Joanne ARCHIBALD ’10, Alexandra SISAM ’10, Haley HATCHDINEL ’09 and Emma KRAUSE ’08, staying involved in the life of their school is an essential part of their university experience. Joanne and Alexandra joined The Queen’s Bands this past September at Queen’s University. The Queen’s Bands is Canada’s largest and oldest university marching band, performing pre-game and half time shows at all Golden Gael football games. When the Gaels play at home, Joanne, Alexandra and their bandmates (which includes a pipe band, drum corps, brass band, and Highland dancers) march crowds of football fans from the main campus to the football stadium. Former Games Captain Joanne is a flag bearing member of the Colour Guard, which leads the Bands respective units. Alexandra, former Service Learning Prefect, is a member of the Cheerleaders, which requires some serious fitness in addition to being comfortable wearing a short, pleated skirt and sleeveless vest in frigid temperatures. No gleeful ‘cheerios’ here the whole ensemble works together to generate spirit and support of the Golden Alexandra SiSam ’10, Cheerleading at a 2010 Golden Gael football game. Alex is a member of the 2010/11 Queen’s Bands. Photo Courtesy oF JEFF CHAN, © JEFF CHAN 2010
Joannne Archibald ’10, proudly bearing a flag as a member of the Colour Guard in the 2010/11 Queen’s Bands Gaels. Much to the delight of their proud family members, both girls appeared alongside their bandmates in Toronto’s Santa Claus Parade on November 21, 2010. Positions in the Queen’s Band do not come by easily; there is an audition process, and this year over 40 candidates auditioned for two spots on the Colour Guard. When asked why she chose to try out for the Colour Guard, Joanne replied “I joined because my Dad told me to, and because I wanted to get involved,” a true testament to the fact that a parent’s influence can never be diminished. She adds, “It seemed like a lot of fun and it is a lot of fun!”
Haley HATCHDINEL ’09, currently studying Theology at McGill University, also opted to join a club this past September, although the club she joined has far more recent roots than the Queen’s Band. Haley, a self-identified Harry Potter fanatic, joined the McGill quidditch team, now in its third year of existence. For those of you not familiar with J.K. Rowling’s fictional series, quidditch is a sport played by wizards and witches on broomsticks. It was first adapted to ‘muggles’ (non magical people) seven years ago at Middlebury College in New England. More than 200 universities are now affiated with the International Quidditch Association, including McGill University and Emerson College, where Old Girl Emma KRAUSE ’08 majoring in Communication Studies not only plays for her college team, she is the Commissioner of the Emerson College Quidditch Association (ECQ). As Commissioner, Emma helps manage an organization that includes five house league teams, a World Cup team, media and equipment departments, and over 250 members.
What does this mean? It means Haley and Emma run around a soccer pitch on a broomstick, chasing after a ball. While this may sound quaint, rest assured, quidditch for muggles is very much a contact sport. In fact, Haley was called for ‘cobbing’ or excessive elbowing in a recent game and Emma injured her tailbone at the 2009 Quidditch World Cup, by falling on her broom. It happens. Quidditch is a combination of a number of different muggle sports, most closely resembling rugby with basketball thrown in for good measure. It is a demanding game. As Emma points out, “Playing quidditch requires athleticism: running, handeye coordination, the ability to shoot, catch and pass a ball. [An] understanding of field space and ball movement is also most helpful.”
Both Haley and Emma participated in the fourth annual Quidditch World Cup in Hell’s Kitchen, New York, November 13–14, 2010. Yes, you read that correctly: the Quidditch World Cup. With over fortysix teams and seven hundred athletes, the Quidditch World Cup is a legitimate and ever growing sporting event. Although Vermont’s Middlebury College took the Cup, McGill placed a respectable twelfth overall and was the top ranked Canadian school. Emerson College fared even better, making it to the quarter final round, ultimately losing to second place Tufts University. Although Haley and Emma did not play against one another, they have each made significant contributions to ensuring the legitimacy of quidditch as a real sport. “What I love about quidditch is that it melds the fantastical with athletic elements,” says Emma. “Everyone is running around on brooms and there is a person dressed in yellow with a tennis ball in a sock sticking out the back of their pants (the snitch). I love that the sport can both be serious and goofy at the same time. So many sports are about competition and ego and while quidditch does have those elements, it is also self effacing due to its fantastical nature.”
It would seem that girls truly can do anything they set their minds to, including helping to establish a sport previously only seen on the pages of a J.K. Rowling novel. Congratulations to all our Old Girl athletes for the effort they put forth.
