Published on May 21, 2020
Article by Morissa Lindsay
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Barbados’ most decorated female squash player is now a two-time All-American.
Meagan Best continues to stamp her authority in squash not only locally and regionally but also internationally. She has earned All-American status for the second consecutive year. This particular achievement goes to outstanding players who have reached a certain level of achievement in the sport.
In order to be eligible for such recognition, players need to be a citizen or a United States resident. Players must be enrolled in high school and play for a high school varsity team in the Scholastic Squash Programme or have national junior ranking in the Under-17 and 19 divisions for both girls and boys teams.
A seven-time junior and two-time senior Caribbean Area Squash Association (CASA) champion, Best will graduate virtually at the end of this month from Choate Rosemary Hall in Wallingford, Connecticut, after what she has described as being the best two years of her life.
The outstanding 17-year-old student-athlete admitted that she had no idea what being an All-American meant until she received such recognition the first time. Best expressed that it was such a joy to come from a small island like Barbados and being classed among some of the world’s most talented student-athletes.
“I was told you got into the school for your sport, train hard, do the best you can to represent your country and school well, and that is what I did every time I stepped on the court. And this is the reward I am given and for which I am grateful and honoured,” she said.
This is Best’s final week of class as a senior of Choate Rosemary and her time spent abroad as a student-athlete speaks for itself. She was successful in making it on to the Dean’s list after acquiring a 3.57 GPA.
Despite not being sure what major she wants to pursue, Best noted that she was leaning towards business and psychology or economics and statistics studies.
Speaking about her journey and experiences while at Choate Rosemary, Best said: “Going to Choate was definitely a very different experience from Barbados. I wasn’t sure what to expect but being there with a whole new structure, the academic system in terms of a new schedule and having to become more independent, just having to do things on my own was new to me but surprisingly I adjusted pretty quickly.
“The hardest thing for me was the academics in terms of having to participate more in class because it is a smaller group of children. So, they grade you on participation which I wasn’t taught here in a class of 30 at St. Michael School. It was new to me having to discuss or share my own ideas.
“So that helped me in terms of becoming more confident in my expression. Being there taught me how to be more independent overall. These last two years shaped me and have prepared me for my next chapter which is college.”
Best, who will be part of the University of Virginia family when the new semester begins late August had several goals in mind she wanted to achieve including defending her Under-19 junior championship in Hamilton, Bermuda and retaining her senior women’s title at the Caribbean Area Squash Association Championship in Jamaica.
However, she will have to wait another year as those championships have been suspended until 2021 because of the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.
But the national number one women’s champion intends to use this time to work on her academics because she knows the importance of balancing out her work as a student-athlete.
“I was having difficulties transitioning last year but this year is a lot better and it was reflected in my grades because I got on the Dean’s list this year which is really huge for me. It is something I heard about and was definitely aiming for and was glad to achieve that. I’m just glad that the training pays off, all the effort I put into academics pays off and I am just grateful it was recognized in that way,” Best said.
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