NORTHAMPTON, Mass. – The Smith College Department of Athletics and Recreation has announced a recent decision to transition the squash team to a club sport beginning this fall.

Once officially chartered as a club sport by Smith, the team will be funded by the Student Government Association (SGA) and will be able to maintain its same competitive schedule. During the transition, the athletic department will provide funding for the team until the team is chartered.

The Smith squash team will become the 13^th club team to compete in the College Squash Association (CSA), joining the likes of Boston College, Johns Hopkins University, Boston University, Northwestern University and New York University.

In 1996, squash was one of the nine original sports placed on the first emerging sports for women list. NCAA regulations require that emerging sports for women gain championship status within 10 years, needing 40 institutions to sponsor the sport at a varsity level in order to secure an NCAA Championship for the given sport. After the number of institutions sponsoring squash as a varsity program hovered around 30 for most of the 2000s, squash was removed as an emerging sport in 2010.

With squash's growth at a standstill at the national level, the Smith team is often comprised of people playing competitive squash for the first time.

"Club sports traditionally provide a more welcoming environment for beginners," said Director of Athletics and Recreation Lynn Oberbillig. "Our squash club will better meet the needs of those students."

In addition, as a club sport squash will have the opportunity to self-govern and will continue to receive coaching.