Issue link: http://catalog.e-digitaleditions.com/i/292926
Dear Crusaders, In our ongoing efforts to engage the loyal fan base of Holy Cross Athletics, we partnered with Holy Cross Magazine to bring this special issue of Crusader Nation directly to your mailbox. I hope you enjoy the news and spotlights on our programs and our student-athletes — stories that I trust make you as thrilled as I am about the future of Holy Cross Athletics. As you know, there is great excitement on campus surrounding the arrival of Nathan Pine, our new director of Athletics. If you follow him on Twitter (@Nate_ Pine), you will see that he is already actively immersed in life on the Hill, and is a regular presence at games both on the road and at Hart. Nathan brings substantial experience to Holy Cross from his work at Oregon State, Cal Berkeley, West Point and Maryland, and his energy, commitment and ideas will help shape a new era for Holy Cross Athletics. In the last issue of Crusader Nation, I conveyed my optimism about institutional and Board of Trustees commitment to elevate our Athletics programs and to achieve excellence. I am pleased to tell you that we are moving forward on plans for facilities and programs that will help us accomplish these goals. You will be hearing more about these plans in the coming months and I encourage you to step forward to help where you can. We have ambitious goals and Holy Cross deserves our support. Over the next several months, a series of events will allow our alumni, parents, and friends the opportunity to meet Nathan and to hear more about the College's plans for supporting our student-athletes, our varsity sports program and our facilities. Stay tuned for announcements about events near you! Finally, for those of you who may not receive Crusader Nation on a regular basis, but would like to be added to the mailing list so that you can follow our progress, please register online at www.holycross.edu/CrusaderNation or return the enclosed card. Thank you for your continued support of Holy Cross and our Athletics programs. Bill Doran '77 Chair, Athletics Committee, Board of Trustees WELCOME » to our readers THE START OF A NEW ERA CRUSADER NATION CONGRATULATIONS to the Holy Cross women's basketball team on advancing to the Patriot League Championship! Co-editors: Heather Palmer, Asso- ciate Director of Annual Athletics Fundraising and Jennifer Whipple, Athletics Fundraising Coordinator Assistant Editors: Joyce O'Connor Davidson, Director of Campaign Marketing; Richard Phelps, Associate Director of Public Affairs/Publications Designer: Robin Drew Photographers: Rob Carlin, Peter Cooke, Christopher Navin, Gil Talbot, Holy Cross Media Relations Office Crusader Nation Office of Development and Alumni Relations One College Street Worcester, MA 01610-2395 Phone: (508) 793-2415 Email: crusaderathletics@holycross.edu Website: www.GoHolyCross.com E X A M I N A T I O N C R O S S 2 » Crusader Nation Spring 2014 ALEX SMITH '14 Senior guard Alex Smith (Delran, N.J.) has been named one of the 30 candidates for the Senior CLASS Award for Division I women's basketball. The Senior CLASS Award recognizes NCAA student-athletes who have notable achievements in four areas of excellence — community, classroom, character and competition. Smith has been one of the key factors to the success of the women's basketball team over the past few seasons. Named first-team All-Patriot League the last three years, she has helped lead the Crusaders to the Patriot League Championship game three seasons in a row. Crusader Nation sat down with Smith to talk about her nomination. This was one of my proudest moments and I feel extremely blessed to be nominated for such a prestigious honor. The other candidates are all amazing student-athletes, so to be in their company feels amazing. How does it feel to be listed among an elite group of student-athletes for the CLASS award? Q: A: As a little kid, my grandmother, aunt, and uncle took my siblings and me to hand out Christmas baskets to people in need, and this instilled in me the desire to help out in the community. Throughout high school at Peddie School, I was active with our annual community service day. Children from the local community would come to our campus and we would set up games, arts and crafts, and sports for the day. The theme of giving back continued at Holy Cross with my coach, Bill Gibbons. He does so much for the community and inspired me to work with the Mercy Centre, children of Worcester, food banks and other organizations. He always reminded us we were women for others and we should give back. What was your inspiration for becoming so involved in the Worcester community? Q: A: Balancing athletics, school and volunteering is extremely hard and time management is key. Coming from boarding school with an extremely heavy athletic and academic load, I had a lot of preparation in managing my schedule. Without the ability to go home to my parents during high school, I was forced to grow up and take responsibility for completing all my commitments. How do you find time to juggle school work, basketball and volunteering? Q: A: I have been interested in the Deaf community since elementary school, where I had a classmate with an interpreter, which fascinated me. This and the fact that my former teammate, Alexis Nicholas '13, an American Sign Language minor, contributed to my passion for the language. I have loved working with the Deaf community and learning a new language. It has been extremely gratifying. How did you decide to minor in American Sign Language? Q: A: COVER Nathan Pine was introduced as the new director of Athletics at Holy Cross during a Dec. 17 press conference in the Hogan Campus Center.