Girls Tennis: The New Hit Sport

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Delanee Dickerson, Reporter

Are more people finally joining sports or is the girls tennis team just having a spectacular season? Having such a large team at twenty seven, this was one of the only years that cuts took place. With half of the team being seniors it makes this year very sentimental and very important. After getting fourth in conference last year both the girls and coaches want to improve that placement. Our team this year shows great promise in doing just that! I was able to get an interview with the coaches and get their opinion on the growth in numbers and how the season is going. Martha Rathbun and Marci Oldani, have been coaching both boys and girls tennis for the past two years.“Since we have come out of COVID protocol, I anticipated higher numbers, but not twice as many.” This was Rathbun’s response to if she expected to have such a large team this year. A very understanding point of view considering how much life has changed with Covid. Back in 2020 the team only had twenty four people which may seem like a lot but compared to other sports it’s quite small. When asked about last year’s performance compared to this year’s performance coach Rathbun stated that, “This year we are doing well, very similar to last year’s performance.” “Having a large team is both easier and harder.” It’s easier for the practice portion that we are able to do match play and other activities but harder in the way that not all teams have the same amount of people so accommodations have to be made. This is an issue only some sports have but tennis has a smart and creative way of solving it. Rathbun told me that, “During practice players compete by doing challenge matches and that decides rank and position for the games,” is their main way to create the line up but also allows everyone a good amount of play time. While quite a lot of people are returning to the team there are quite a few players that are brand new to tennis. I thought I’d get some of their opinions as well as the coaches as to why people should try out for the tennis team. Why should people try out for tennis? “Tennis is a fun and enjoyable sport, and can be played throughout a person’s lifetime”, Martha Rathbun, Tennis coach “OH because it’s fun and always has a positive energy”, A junior “Everyone is so uplifting and…. A great way to make friends”, A sophomore “You should join tennis because it’s a good time to get out and also you feel way more connected with people,” a sophomore With conference coming up in two weeks the girls tennis team can use all of your support. So come out and watch a match and next year maybe you can try out too.