Timothy Brownell is the best men’s squash player in the United States. Born in New Hampshire, the 26-year-old lefty is currently ranked number 37 in the world and plays in professional tournaments from Egypt to England to Edmonton.
Spencer Lovejoy is right behind Brownell. The Connecticut native is currently ranked number 66 in the world after captaining the Yale University team, where he was the number one player for four years.
On Saturday, May 25, both will head to Maspeth Squash in Queens to demonstrate their skills on the country’s only outdoor, steel court.
Brownell and Lovejoy will actually be on the same team, the Hamburgers, along with Alina Bushma, a Ukrainian who’s currently number 76 on the women’s tour. Starting at about noon, they’ll match talent with the Hot Dogs: Matias Knudsen (Colombia, number 92); Matias Lecroix (a rising star from Chile); and Nicole Bunyan, a Canadian racquet woman with a number 47 ranking.
Thanks in large part to Maspeth Welding‘s sponsorship, the winning trio gets $6,000, while the losing squad receives $3,500. The MVP, as determined by Referee Alwyn Callender, takes home an extra $500.
Attendance is free, and Ottomanelli hamburgers and hot dogs (real ones, not the squash team names) will be served. Plus, attendees will be invited to play with the pros after they finish their matches.
Located at 59-30 54th St., Maspeth Squash’s viewing area has space for about 50 spectators while many more can gather in the BBQ area. The venue is not easy via public transportation, but there is on-site parking.
This sounds like a wonderful afternoon. But what is this?
Invented in a London prison in the 19th century, squash is a racquet sport somewhat comparable to racquetball. It involves hitting a small rubber ball with a racquet and chasing it inside a four-walled court.
Maspeth Welding is a private construction firm that specializes in structural steel and miscellaneous metals. The private company’s campus is nestled a stone’s throw from the Entenmann‘s distribution center, UPS warehouse, and Amazon overnight parking facility in Maspeth’s Industrial Business Zone. President Jeff Anschlowar and his best buddy, Robert Gibralter, are huge squash enthusiasts. They are the forces behind the tournament and the court, which is next to the business.
Consider it their field of dreams.
Anschlowar and Gibralter might be onto something. Here are some testimonials.
“I think you should be shouting about it from the rooftops,” states Nathan Lake, an England-born, Chicago-based pro who’s number 29 in the world. “The floor is another unique part…it’s lasted numerous New York winters and is still grippy, sprung and able to be playable pretty quickly after rainfall.”
According to architect Rand Elliott, FAIA, principal at Rand Elliott Architects in Oklahoma City: “This is a piece of art…It’s truly inspiring. If you were going to teach a class about what is possible, there’s a realization that even a squash court can be a piece of art. It’s beautifully detailed and says something about its purpose and use. Even the proportions and scale are right.”
Squash and Education Alliance Executive Director Tim Wyant adds: “The artful attention to detail and blend of natural and industrial design are striking. And it’s simply surreal to feel the breeze and see the sky while playing a game we’ve always thought of as being for the indoors. Visiting Maspeth is to expand your conceptions about what’s possible for squash.”
Images: Maspeth Squash