In a state where sports is generally all things UConn, a team has been racking up an impressive record with little fanfare and acknowledgements limited to highway signs.    The Trinity College Bantams squash team has won 12 consecutive NCAA championships under the leadership of their coach, Paul Assaiante.

I came to know Coach Assaiante a few years back when I won some squash lessons from him at a charity auction.  I’d played racquetball and was familiar with Trinity’s successes, but had no idea how to play squash until I learned from the master.

While squash is certainly important, I’ve learned more from the coach’s new book, “Run to the Roar.”   It’s an autobiography with some valuable life lessons.   Here’s a man who is a father figure to scores of men from all over the world who have played squash under his tutelage.    Yet in the book, he says he “failed his own son.”     Assaiante talks candidly about his son’s battle with drugs.

“Run to the Roar” is in bookstores this weekend and is a must read for parents, (especially those juggling careers) sports fans, and for those who just want to learn more about one of Hartford’s greatest assets.   

Here is the interview with Coach Paul Assaiante from Face the State.

http://www.wfsb.com/local-video/index.html?grabnetworks={videoid:4439533}