Hey tennis ladies:
When you saw Steve Fridella's email about the men's USTA team being
planned for Harvard this summer, did you wonder whether there will be
one for women? Wonder no more, the answer is yes! There will be a
women's 3.5 team as well, also coached by Mike Mercier, the Harvard
head tennis pro. I'll be captaining. Please email me directly at
whaley.24(a)osu.edu, not by replying to this email, if you think you
might be interested.
Here are the details, if you didn't read them before:
The USTA 3.5 level summer league runs from May to early August, with
matches on Thursday nights. The team matches include two singles and
three doubles matches, so eight people are needed for each match.
Teams with the best record in their division can qualify for district
(Eastern MA) and then section (New England) playoffs held in August,
and section winners then play at the USTA National Championships in
the fall.
USTA matches are timed and last no more than 90 minutes. Two sets are
played, with a ten-point match tiebreaker if the sets are split. The
USTA tries to group clubs into divisions based on proximity, and teams
are generally scheduled to play the same number of matches at their
home courts and away at other clubs. For our Harvard team, "home"
would be the Murr Center courts.
In order to play in a USTA league, a player needs to have a USTA
membership and an NTRP rating not higher than 3.5. If you aren't sure
that you're at the right level for the team, you should speak with
Mike Mercier (mercier(a)fas.harvard.edu; 978-273-6500). The costs
associated with the team are USTA membership, a $17 fee to the USTA to
sign up for the team, and a $15 charge for each match that you end up
playing in. We are also hoping to have a weekly practice coinciding
with Mike's current high performance clinic. Prices/times have not
been decided for the practice, but to give you an idea, Mike currently
charges $35 for the 90 minute high performance clinic.
USTA team tennis is a fun way to play competitive matches and make new
social connections. We are looking to have a team of around 12 people,
so each player can expect to get into about two-thirds of the team's
matches depending on availability and playing level. Once we determine
how many players are interested, we'll have a better idea of how often
everyone can expect to play. So if you are interested in playing, send
me an email (whaley.24(a)osu.edu) and let me know your level of
interest, whether you think you would like to attend practices, and
whether you prefer playing singles, doubles, or have no preference. If
you're not sure how much time you can commit, contact me anyway and we
can figure something out.
I look forward to hearing from you!
--Marika Whaley
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