Mount Holyoke Announces Hiring of Two Head Coaches

SOUTH HADLEY, Mass. -- Mount Holyoke College Chair of Physical Education and Director of Athletics Laurie Priest recently announced the appointment of two head coaches. Peer Nasseir will assume the position of head volleyball coach and lecturer in physical education starting July 1st, 2005, while interim squash coach Pamela Saunders has been rehired as the head squash coach and lecturer in physical education.

Peer Nasseir comes to Mount Holyoke from Springfield College, where he served as assistant coach to the men's and women's volleyball teams while pursuing a PhD in exercise physiology. Prior to Springfield, Nasseir was the assistant volleyball coach at Smith College, where he obtained his Master of Science degree in exercise and sport studies in 2004. He also helped coach the national men's volleyball team and the junior national teams at Trinity College in his native country of Trinidad and Tobago. As a player, Nasseir was captain of his team at the University of the West Indies, and practiced with the national team of Trinidad and Tobago for three years.

Pamela Saunders served as interim squash coach at Mount Holyoke this past year, and has proven herself more than capable of directing the squash program. Saunders assumed the interim position soon after her graduation from Trinity College in 2004, where she was a standout in the squash world. She was a four-time All-American, two-time national champion, and two-time national champion finalist while at Trinity, where she also helped coach members of the Trinity Squash Club. She also represented her native country of Zimbabwe at several international tournaments before entering college. Saunders had a successful first season as a head coach at Mount Holyoke. Despite a young team, she was able to train several novice players to successfully compete within the top-nine ladder positions, and led MHC to the D division title at the Howe Cup Team Championships in February.

Both coaches' have an excellent combination of playing, teaching, and coaching experience, which should greatly benefit these two varsity teams, as well as the physical education department at Mount Holyoke.