Del Val’s new tennis club originally started in the fall of 2022, with student Claire Parsons coming to Mrs. Miceli with interest. The last time tennis club was running was in 1997, and it only lasted for about five years, led by now retired James Kasenga.
When the club first started, it was slow and flew below the radar, but with the pickup of the club and increased interest in the sport, there has been a drive from advisor, Tracy Miceli, and the club members to create a tennis team.
“I have student interest in the tennis club, but also I think students play tennis and have played tennis and would love to have it as a sport here,” Miceli said. “I understand there’s a lot of logistics behind starting a team from scratch. The great thing is that we already have existing facilities. They just have to be updated and repaired.”
When trying to start a sports team, there are many considerations to be taken into account. For the facilities, schools need a minimum of three courts, which Del Val has, and proper netting. The tennis club has been in contact with a “court guy” and the estimate was around 30 thousand dollars to refurbish the existing courts. Fundraising and sponsorships will be a definite need moving forward. Miceli has been in contact with the Courtside Racquet Club, and they are willing to send out coaches and to help fund the team. Other community members have also reached out wanting to help.
“The hardest thing is getting the word out, that this is something being considered and gaining community support and seeing who in the community wants to help,” Miceli said.
Another requirement is that at least seven students are needed for both a boys team and a girls team. The boys would play in the spring and the girls in the fall. Miceli is passionate and wants more students to be interested about the idea of a team. She used to co-advise the Del Val National Honors Society, but she is now exclusively focused on supporting the students of the tennis club and helping them grow it.
“If anyone is interested in joining the club, feel free to come see me in the Commons, or if there are any community members who want to help out either financially or with tennis expertise [contact me],” Miceli said.
When creating a new team, interest and financial help is a necessity. Athletic director Lance Jacobs has some great input on how this team can come into fruition.
“The information about the club and participants would have to be provided to me, the superintendent, and the board of education from Mrs. Miceli,” Jacobs said. “There is a process by which you get new sports included. They would have to take that, analyze it, and see if that would be feasible, because there is some policy when we have new sports added.”
Once all the requirements have been met, the process of getting the sport included as a team can begin. There is also thought about sustainability in the years moving forward. There needs to be continuous interest throughout the years to keep the tennis program running.
“To get something going takes a lot [of work], and what you don’t want to see is that over the next few years it dissipates in interest, and now it can’t be sustained,” Jacobs said. “That’s where Mrs. Miceli has the leg up. She has shown that Del Val has an interest that can be sustained.”
Moving forward, the tennis club first needs to think about fundraising to meet all the necessary requirements for the NJSIAA and then make sure that the team can be sustained.
If you are interested in joining or helping out in any way, please contact Mrs. Miceli or the club officers.
