Middlebury honors assistant coach with tournament

Author: Alex Lovett-Woodsum and Peter Baumann

This past weekend the women's tennis team competed in the second annual Gail Smith Doubles tournament on the Proctor courts. Gail Smith, who is retiring next year, has been a part of the Middlebury community for 29 years, serving as the assistant women's tennis and lacrosse coach from 1977-1983, the head women's tennis coach and track and field coach from 1983-1987 and coaching both men's and women's tennis from 1987-2000. Because it was not an official tournament, the Panthers used the weekend to try new things on the court. "This tournament gave us an opportunity to try different combinations and gain confidence with new pairings," said co-captain Elizabeth Stone '09. "Doubles teams that work balance their playing styles and have great chemistry; I think we are one step closer to finding those duos." Some highlights for the Panthers were Stone and partner Elizabeth Emery '09 advancing inf their bracket, and the pairing of Victoria Aiello '12 and Anna Burke '12 playing their way into the quarterfinals.