Betty Constable (1924-2008)

Friday, September 19, 2008

Courtesy of the NY Times

Betty Constable, who used a powerful left-handed stroke to become the dominant woman squash player of the 1950s and went on to post a formidable record as Princeton’s first women’s squash coach, died on Sept. 9 in Skillman, N.J. She was 83.

The death was confirmed by her daughter Kacey Constable Nugent.

When the United States Squash Hall of Fame inducted Mrs. Constable in 2000, it called her a “central force behind the growth of women’s squash in the United States.”

Mrs. Constable was part of squash royalty. Her mother, Margaret Howe, who, in the custom of the day, played as Mrs. William Francis Howe, won the national title in 1929, 1932 and 1934.

Mrs. Constable’s twin sister, Peggy White, won the national title in 1952 and 1953 and lost three times in the finals.

Mrs. Constable won the national title in 1950, 1956, 1957, 1958 and 1959. She won three veterans’ singles titles for women over 40 and three veterans’ doubles titles.

The Howe Cup, a prestigious prize in American women’s squash, is named for the family. It began as an intercity competition of teams among New York, Philadelphia and Boston and expanded to include the rest of the United States and Canada.

After Princeton University admitted women as students, it included squash as one of six varsity sports for women that it introduced in the 1971-72 academic year, and appointed Mrs. Constable coach. Her teams had a record of 117-15 over all, and 73-11 in the Ivy League. Ten of her teams were undefeated.

Elizabeth Howe was born 20 minutes before Peggy in Natick, Mass., on Nov. 8, 1924. She graduated from the Brimmer and May School in Chestnut Hill, Mass. She worked as a nurse’s aide with the Red Cross during World War II rather than attending college. On May 20, 1950, she married Dr. William Pepper Constable Jr., who had been captain of Princeton’s 1935 football team.

Mrs. Constable learned to play squash in her 20s at the New Haven Lawn Club.

For more about Constable, head to the NY Times.