FEMALE ATHLETE/ROOKIE OF THE YEAR: Gemmell Perfect in First Crimson Season

How does an athlete manage to climb to the top of the national rankings, post an undefeated record, and claim the individual national title—all in her first season?

If you’re Laura Gemmell, you make it look easy.

In her rookie season, Gemmell compiled a spotless 16-0 overall record at the No. 1 position on the Harvard women’s squash team. She also won the CSA individual championships in a drawn-out five-game match.

Then, in the aftermath of the season, she picked up numerous awards and accolades, including Ivy League Player of the Year.

“She’s a great leader on the court,” freshman Natasha Kingshott said. “She brings a new level to the game.”

Before considering her athletic skill, impressive alone is the fact that Gemmell started in the top slot for the Crimson. As a result, her matches often pitted her against upperclassmen.

“It can be really frightening as a freshman to face off against a senior who’s been playing for four years,” co-captain Johanna Snyder said.

But Gemmell’s experience in the junior national circuit—she came to Cambridge with 21 national-championship titles under her belt—helped allay any fears she may have had in preseason.

“I was more excited to play No. 1 on the Harvard team [than nervous],” Gemmell said.

Gemmell first took to the courts against Williams in the squad’s second match of the season. Her opponent was senior Toby Eyre, a three-time All-American and one of the three players ranked above Gemmell at the start of the season.

Three games later, Gemmell had the first win of her collegiate career. The sweep, coming with scores of 11-6, 11-7, 11-8, was the first of many.

“She’s so confident in her squash,” Snyder said. “In a freshman, you don’t find that very often.”

Later in the season, with six victories to her name, Gemmell was set to face Penn’s Kristen Lange—another three-time All-American who was ranked above Gemmell coming into the season.

Gemmell, though, was unfazed; Lange fell, 11-3, 11-9, 11-7, as the Crimson defeated the Quakers, 8-1.

“She’s one of the most dedicated players that I’ve ever seen,” Kingshott said. “I had great respect for her before Harvard...She has the perfect balance of being serious about the sport and also being able to take a step back.”

Gemmell, though, is quick to credit her coaches for her success.

“My coaches were really helpful to me,” she said. “I think my game developed a lot since last year...Working hard and the coaching I received helped me play some solid squash, especially at nationals.”

Gemmell’s first national exposure as a member of a college team was at the CSA National Championships in New Haven, Conn. En route to Harvard’s victory, Gemmell again took out the broom, sweeping Williams’ Eyre and Penn’s Lange. In the second of the three matches, she also swept Yale’s Logan Greer.

Then, a week later, Gemmell returned to Yale’s courts for the CSA Individual Championships, where she hoped to fulfill her goal of becoming a national champion.

After making it to the quarterfinals, Gemmell encountered a rather unexpected opponent—her teammate Alisha Mashruwala, the captain for the 2010-11 season.

But Gemmell was unaffected by this matchup; she swept Mashruwala and then Yale’s Greer for a second time to make it to the finals.

In between Gemmell and the Ramsay Cup was Trinity’s Pamela Hathway.

Hathway, a junior, had uprooted the Bantams’ Nour Bahgat from her No. 1 position—an impressive feat considering Bahgat was the defending national champion.

The match was the closest of Gemmell’s season. After capturing the first game, Gemmell dropped the next two to Hathway. It was then do-or-die for the rookie.

The freshman snagged an 11-8 win in the fourth game, setting up the tiebreaker.

Deep into the fifth, the athletes were tied at nine apiece.

Gemmell then won the next two points to become the national champion.

“I had a tough five-game match in the final,” Gemmell recalled. “My coach definitely pulled me through.”

Yet, as national champion, Ivy League Rookie and Player of the Year, CSA All-American, member of the All-Ivy team, and team MVP, Gemmell is still looking to improve.

“I’m going to focus on squash this summer,” Gemmell said. “I’m going to Australia to compete in the World University Games… I have to get my strength and conditioning up.”

—Staff writer Molly E. Kelly can be reached at mkelly@college.harvard.edu.