Pat Cosquer
Patrick Lee "Pat" Cosquer (born November 21, 1975) is an American college and university head squash coach and athlete. He is currently the Head Squash coach of the Hobart College Statesmen and the William Smith College Herons. In his first season at Hobart and William Smith, Cosquer was the recipient of the 2020 Liberty League Conference Coach of the Year award. The Hobart Statesmen finished as runners-up in the Liberty League Conference Tournament and the William Smith Herons won the Liberty League Championship for the first time since 2006.
Prior to HWS, Cosquer spent 11 years as the head coach of Bates men's and women's squash teams. In his time in Lewiston, Maine, he guided the Bates squash teams to a combined record of 309–200. Cosquer mentored eight All-Americans, a two-time College Squash Association Individual Champion, five NESCAC Players of the Year, three NESCAC Rookies of the Year, and 51 All-NESCAC performers. He was named the NESCAC's men's coach of the year twice (2010 and 2016) and the women's coach of the year once (2010). At the CSA Team National Championships, Cosquer guided the Bates men's team to a championship in the Summers Cup (C Division) in 2016 and the women's team to championships in 2016, 2018 and 2019 in the Walker Cup (C Division).
Prior to his time at Bates, Cosquer served as the Director of Squash Programs and Community Service at StreetSquash. StreetSquash is an after-school enrichment program in Harlem, N.Y., which combines academic tutoring, community service and mentoring and college preparation with squash instruction. Over his four years with StreetSquash, Cosquer coached the four-time Girls Under 17/19 National Urban Team Champions, the three-time Boys Under 17/19 National Urban Individual Champion, the 2008 Boys Under 17/19 National Urban Team Champion and several nationally ranked juniors while helping to increase his teams' academic average by 10 points. He also served as an assistant squash professional at The Chatham Club and was a clinic director at Montclair YMCA.
In addition, Cosquer has spent time at Portsmouth Abbey School as an assistant coach and with Newport Squash Club as an assistant professional. During the 1998–99 season, he served as the head coach for Northwestern University. Cosquer guided the Wildcats to the Chaffee Trophy (E Division) Championship.
Cosquer graduated from Bates College in 1997 with a bachelor's degree in sociology. Cosquer amassed a 60-22 individual record while playing varsity squash and was team captain and team MVP as a senior. He was also a member of the varsity baseball team. Cosquer won the 1997 Bates Squash Coaches Award in his senior season.
Early life
Cosquer was born in Edison, New Jersey, the son of Dolores (née O'Connor), a high school language teacher in New Jersey, and Armand, a high school administrator and language teacher in New York City.
Cosquer spent his preschool years in Rahway, New Jersey. Then his parents moved the family to Westfield, New Jersey, where he attended public schools and graduated from Westfield High School in 1993.[1] While in Westfield, Cosquer competed in soccer, baseball and ski racing, and picked up the game of squash early on in high school at The Chatham Club from Coach Geoff Mitchell.
Cosquer graduated from Bates College in 1997 with a Bachelor of Arts in Sociology and as Varsity Team Captain of the Bates Men's Squash Team, earned 4 Letter Awards, NIRSA Player of the Week (1996), Coaches Award (1997) and Most Valuable Player (1997) during his college squash career, having played for coaches George Wigton and Paul Gastonguay. He also played shortstop on the varsity baseball team for legendary coach, Bob Flynn, while at Bates.
Career
As a high school student, Cosquer gave ski lessons and worked as a squash instructor, however, Cosquer started his professional career with a marketing and events planning internship with Nike in 1996, and upon graduation from Bates, led the Northwestern University's Men's Squash Team to the Chaffee Trophy as Head Coach in the 1998–1999 season, while working in a sales position for Arpin Associates in Chicago. Cosquer also worked in the Admissions and Development Offices at Portsmouth Abbey School in Portsmouth, Rhode Island. Following these developmental experiences, Cosquer was Squash Director at StreetSquash, an afterschool enrichment program in Harlem, NYC. Many of his former StreetSquash students have followed Cosquer and now play squash for him at Bates College.
From 2001 to 2008, Cosquer has been a squash professional and coach at several camps and organizations, including
- Institute for International Sport (Rhode Island)
- Bates College Alumni in Admissions and Volunteer Assistant Squash Coach (Maine)
- Fit Bodies Touring Squash Professional (Jamaica)
- Bowdoin College Squash Camp (Maine)
- Chatham Elite Squash Camp (New Jersey)
- Brown University Squash Camp (Rhode Island)
- Newport Squash Club Assistant Squash Professional (Rhode Island)
- Portsmouth Abbey School Assistant Squash Coach (Rhode Island)
- Wayne YM-YWHA Squash Clinics Director (New Jersey)
- Montclair YMCA Squash Clinics Director (New Jersey)
- The Chatham Club Assistant Squash Professional (New Jersey)
- Street Squash Squash Director (NYC)
- Squash and Beyond World Tour Leader (International) Italy 2009, Netherlands/France 2010, New Zealand 2011, and,
- International Squash Academy Squash Camp Director (Connecticut)
Cosquer served on the Rankings Committee of the Women's College Squash Association and has served as the Secretary of the Men's College Squash Association Executive Committee since 2009 Cosquer has often been categorized as a “player’s coach.”
References
- Staff. "Campus Notes" Archived 2014-04-07 at the Wayback Machine, Westfield Record, November 23, 1995. Accessed July 7, 2013. "Patrick L. Cosquer of Westfield is serving this year as a junior adviser at Bates College. Mr. Cosqueris the son of Armand and Dolores Cosquer of Westfield. A member of the men's squash and baseball teams, Mr. Cosquer is a 1993 graduate of Westfield Senior High School."