April 21, 2008

     Staples grad Anne-Claire Roesch can split her athletic career, and more specifically, her basketball career into two portions: before surgery and after surgery.
     "I was in so much pain, that I could not touch my toes," recalled Roesch, a four year player for Amherst College. "I tried to play through the pain, but it simply did not work. I was limping around campus at times. After the surgery, I felt better almost immediately."
     It showed on the court immediately. The freshman and sophomore player that was held down by medical issues as much as other teams, was suddenly a steady starter on a good team. But, her senior year surpassed even the accomplishments of her first three years.
     The 5-foot-11 senior finished her season with 212 points and 99 rebounds, respective averages of 7.1 and 3.3 per game. In addition, she had 48 assists, 26 steals and 12 blocked shots. As a senior, she nailed 79-of-207 field goals and 15 free throws. She was more proficient from beyond the arc than any time during her career as she hit 39 treys. Amherst made it to the third round of the NCAA Division III Tournament before being ousted by DePauw University.
     "There were so many great moments this year," said Roesch, who helped her team finish 27-3 overall and 7-2 in the New England Small College Athletic Association this year. "There were so many firsts and they were all good. Beating Williams College for the first time in 14 games and winning the NESCAC title will always stand out."
     She finished her career with 364 points, 256 rebounds, 73 assists, 42 steals and 30 blocked shots. She hit 140-of-410 field goals and 26-of-51 free throws. She also had 58 treys during her career. She earned the NESCAC all-sportsmanship award and was named a captain during her senior season.      The daughter of Bernard and Dorothy Roesch of Westport is working toward a double major. She is scheduled to graduate in May. One of her majors will be in law, juris prudence and social thought. The other will be in French. For her work in the classroom, the NESCAC selected her to their all-academic team.
     "My mom's side of the family is tremendously athletic," said Roesch. My grandfather (Joe Curran) was a great coach at Canisus College. I remember my mom driving me an hour to AAU practice twice per week. She did it so I could be on the best teams. She is my number one fan. My coaches in AAU (Joe Ticotsky) and Staples (Ed Huydick) taught me so much as well.