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Greetings!
The purpose of this letter is to provide a brief introduction to the Blair Academy girls’ tennis program. Girls’ tennis has been a popular sport at Blair, and we have had much success over the last decade throughout the state of New Jersey. Blair won the Prep B-Division State Championships in 1997 and then moved up to the Prep A Division. The Blair team ended the 2001 season with a winning 12-3 record for the second year in a row, and a respectable third place finish in the Mid-Atlantic Prep League (MAPL). In 2004, the team posted a 13-3 record, and three varsity players earned All-State honors. Over the past few years, the team has established itself as a force to be reckoned with, which has allowed us to build a tremendous schedule in which we face some of the toughest teams throughout the state.
Among those teams are Newark Academy, Montclair Kimberley Academy, The Hun School, Lawrenceville, The Peddie School and Princeton Day School. We are playing 18 dual matches this year in addition to the New Jersey State Prep Tournament.
Our season begins with a rigorous but fun pre-season camp at the end of August. All varsity candidates arrive at Blair one week before other students and embark on a practice regimen aimed at getting athletes into shape and building a sense of team unity. Regular season practices last for approximately two hours after school and include conditioning, drills, use of a ball machine, videotaping of strokes, and match play. Blair’s tennis complex consists of nine Deco-Turf II hard tennis courts (same surface as the U.S. Open).
An additional highlight of the Blair tennis tradition is the fact that we are the founding school and host of the New England Mid-Atlantic Tennis Invitational (NEMA’s). The tournament, sponsored by Asics, Head Penn Tennis and Coca Cola, has gained a reputation as one of the premier high school boys’ tennis tournaments in the country. Sixteen teams from seven different states participated in the event last season. The tournament is entering its ninth year and the competition is stronger each year. The NEMA’s have heightened Blair’s reputation on the local and national level among colleges and universities. Recent Blair graduates have gone on to play tennis at Smith College, Kenyon College, Lafayette College, Lehigh University and Brown University.
Blair also sent one of its graduates to play tennis at Dickinson College! A three-year varsity tennis player at Blair and a four-year varsity tennis player at Dickinson, I returned to Blair in 2002 to serve as head girls’ tennis coach and assistant boys’ tennis coach. In addition, I am the tournament director for the NEMA’s. Before returning to Blair, I coached tennis and taught history for one year at Wyoming Seminary in Kingston, Penn. After teaching U.S. History and European History for three years at Blair, I moved to the position of associate dean of admissions and also serve as a class monitor for the 11th grade. Our assistant coach, Kate Sykes, is a graduate of Penn State and brings a tremendous amount of enthusiasm to the program. Coach Sykes also runs the largest girls’ dorm on campus and is a most effective and popular art teacher.
Our assistant coach, Kate Sykes, is a graduate of Penn State and brings a tremendous amount of enthusiasm to the program. Coach Sykes also runs the largest girls’ dorm on campus and is a most effective and popular art teacher.
Thank you for your interest in the Blair girls’ tennis program! If you have any further questions, please feel free to contact me via e-mail at goodra@blair.edu.
Best regards,
Ashley Goodrich-Mahoney
Head Girls’ Tennis Coach
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Introduction
Girls’ Tennis Team Moves to New Courts 