Mar 19, 2021 | SPORTS | By Abbey Russell | Photos by Isaac Yee
Colorado College athletics has an exciting new addition: club tennis. CC has had both men’s and women’s varsity tennis teams for many years, but recently some students noticed an interest in lower pressure, less time-consuming, and more accessible tennis. The club, founded by Tess Rubin ’21, Lily Schmachtenberger ’23, and Noah Kahler ’23, had its first practices last week and already has 36 participating members.
Already, it seems obvious that the founders were right: club tennis is plugging a previously undiscovered hole in the CC community.
“I started the club because there are a lot of students who love playing tennis or have an interest in learning how to play, but do not know where to start,” Rubin explained.
Rubin also spoke to the financial advantages of a club team for interested students. “Tennis is not a cheap sport, and there are many students who I’m sure have an interest in learning how to play, but do not have the financial means necessary. If we get funding from CCSGA, we will be able to provide that opportunity for those students.”
“Given it’s more of a ‘country club’ sport, I’d need to pay to join a tennis club in order to continue playing,” Kahler said on the financial barriers of the sport. Ultimately, Rubin’s goal for the team is a tennis club that will invite students from all backgrounds.
Eventually, the founders want to see the club become an official club team that competes regionally. To kick start this longer-term goal, they plan to play some matches this spring against the UCCS club team.
“My goal is to be able to field a team of both guys and girls that we can travel with to other schools in the area and compete against,” Kahler said. “This means that we need maybe seven or more of both guys and girls, but at this stage we just need people that are passionate about playing tennis in a low-key environment.”
In conjunction with the tennis playing, club members are encouraged to “attend club-sponsored events, some of which will be open to the entire campus community,” Rubin said. In this sense, it sounds like club tennis will have it all: fun social events and competitive athletics.
This magic combination seems to be the driving force behind a lot of CC’s most infamous groups: rugby, IM hockey, broomball, the list goes on.
From that perspective it seems as though the club tennis team is en route to being a staple of the CC community, bringing more community, activity and good times in the shadow of Pikes.
All in all, the founders “plan to cultivate a fun, energetic environment that encourages students to play tennis recreationally and competitively.”
Contact Tess Rubin at t_rubin@coloradocollege.edu if you’re interested in joining!