Last season, New Hope tennis played just two home matches, forced even to play on the road during the playoffs.
Playing at Lake Lowndes State Park, owned and operated by the Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries and Parks, the Trojans worked on the state’s schedule instead of having courts on campus.
The courts themselves were rundown to the bare concrete, with black mold growing on the surface.
Change was needed, and after discussions with the school district and state department, New Hope found a way to have the courts resurfaced before the start of the 2023 season, bringing with it excitement and the hope of continued growth.
“I took over the program last year, and those courts literally hadn’t been resurfaced for decades,” New Hope head coach David Grady said. “It was basically just a black mold growing on the concrete. We thought it was the remnants of a surface. … It was so bad that a lot of our opponents didn’t want to play us at our place.”
The tennis program didn’t have the money to fund the upgrades or even match any of the United States Tennis Association grants it might have applied for.
“It was a miraculous thing that it happened so quickly,” Grady said. “Usually, you can get United State Tennis Association (USTA) matching grants, which a lot of people suggested we should do. But the problem was, however much money they give you, you had to match that. We didn’t have a nickel to match with it.”
Luckily, the MDWFP stepped in thanks to the help of the Mississippi legislature, which allotted additional funds for the 2023 fiscal year to parks across the state, including Lake Lowndes.
Lake Lowndes park manager Penny Wyers, someone who grew up going to the park, had advocated for the refurbishment of the courts previously, but didn’t have enough funding until more was allocated in 2022.
“I just decided to take it out of my actual yearly budget so the kids could have something the could be proud to play on,” Wyers said.
Court resurfacing took place in the fall 2022 at a cost of about $45,000 and was finished in plenty of time for the 2023 season. Seemingly overnight, teams across the region wanted to head to Lake Lowndes for matches.
The Trojans went from hosting two home matches a season ago to seven home matches scheduled for 2023, and the initial response from players and coaches alike was unanimously positive.
“I would say it was definitely more of a challenge playing on the old surface because the mold, it basically covered the whole thing,” said sophomore Jackson Grady, the Trojans’ No. 1 boys singles player. “You couldn’t see the lines. The ball would sometimes bounce in cracks and go every which way. This new court, it makes calls a lot easier. It makes knowing where the ball is a lot easier. Your court vision is upgraded.”
The new surface has now eradicated those issues and as a result, interest in the sport within New Hope has grown, with a record-high number of students trying out.
“For me as a captain, as a leader on the team, it’s easier to teach the new players how to make calls and judge where a ball lands, in or out,” senior mixed doubles player Tradarius Robinson said. “It’s just better as a whole to have a nice court for teaching and calling purposes. Tennis is an honest sport and it just makes the whole game easier.”
Along with upgrades to the court, team benches and new netting was also upgraded prior to the season, as well as the installation of a concession stand near the courts.
These are long-overdue for a program that is nearing a breakthrough. The Trojans sit at 4-4 this season and 1-0 in district play, but with newfound excitement, Grady and the program hope more sustained success will come with it.
“I see us moving in a direction to where we’re a sought-after program,” Grady said. “We can get kids in tennis camps in elementary school and grow them to the point where they can make the team in middle and high school. Also, getting more kids to play at the next level with college scholarships offered to varsity players.”
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