By Peter Glenn, Contributing Writer
Westborough – The Westborough High School Girls’ Varsity Tennis Team recently spent an afternoon learning how to string tennis racquets as part of a community service initiative to benefit Tenacity of Worcester. The girls participated in a private instructional clinic April 2 at Boston Ski & Tennis in Westborough. The team will be collecting used racquets and equipment which will be donated to Tenacity of Worcester, a nonprofit organization that provides summer tennis and literacy programs free of charge to underserved youth in Worcester.
Team Captain Alexa Conlin, a three-year varsity player and part-time employee at Boston Ski & Tennis, helped coordinate the event with the store’s manager, Tony Aguiar.
Led by enthusiastic professionals from Boston Ski & Tennis, the girls learned firsthand how the stringing equipment operates, and were able to participate in the entire stringing process. Members of the staff explained and broke down in detail each of the various components that go into stringing a racquet, and what role each of those components plays in the racquets overall feel and response. The team chose their strings, tension and grip, and they were on their way.
Coach Mary Schwartz explained that community service initiatives are important to the team, and participation is a central component of each season.
“Our team has always had a strong commitment to community service,” she said.
Last year the MIAA (Massachusetts Interscholastic Athletic Association) honored the Westborough High School Girls Varsity Tennis team with the first-ever Educational Athletics Achievement Award for their contributions in community service. And, in 2012, they were the only high school team, along
with several college teams, selected by the U.S. Tennis Association to assist in providing instructional clinics to over 400 Worcester school children at the Fed Cup’s Kids Fest Day, an event attended by Governor Deval Patrick, Serena and Venus Williams, and some of the top female tennis players in the world.
In the weeks to follow, the team will be collecting used racquets and Boston Ski & Tennis will be donating new strings so that these newly restored racquets may be donated to Tenacity. Throughout the course of the season, with their newfound skills and knowledge, members of the team will be offered the opportunity to use the in-store stringing equipment.
Tenacity of Worcester will have the opportunity this summer to work with roughly 500 local youth between the ages of 6 and 16. The organization gives its younger participants an opportunity to learn the game and discover the enjoyment of tennis, while older participants will have an opportunity to hone their skills and participate in competitive play. To learn more about Tenacity or make a donation, visit www.tenacity.org.
