JMU Club Tennis
During my first semester at JMU in Spring 2023, I made a promise to myself to get more involved, both to stay active and to find a sense of community. Joining the club tennis team turned out to be one of the best decisions I’ve made. What started as a simple goal quickly became something much more meaningful. The friendships I’ve built and the memories I’ve made through the team have truly shaped my experience at JMU and made it feel like home. Learn more about my experience below.
Tennis!
I’ve always been an athlete. Growing up, I played just about every sport imaginable, except tennis. Staying active and competing has always been a big part of who I am. In high school, I focused on long-distance running. While I enjoyed it, I eventually felt like I was not fully tapping into my strengths.
That changed during the spring of my junior year when the pandemic hit. A friend and I started playing tennis just for fun, and something immediately clicked. I realized how much I missed the hand-eye coordination, the quick reactions, and the adrenaline of intense, fast-paced moments, things I had not been getting from running. By my senior year, I decided to take a chance and try out for the tennis team instead of running track.
After high school, though, I lost that sense of momentum. I stopped being active, felt unmotivated, and missed the energy that competition brought into my life. Joining club tennis at JMU helped me rediscover that spark. It gave me a way to compete again without overwhelming pressure and reminded me how much I love being active. More than that, it has helped me stay both physically and mentally balanced, bringing a sense of joy and purpose back into my daily life.
Friends!
After a quiet freshman year at VCU and a lonely semester at home, I came to JMU knowing I needed to step outside my comfort zone and find my people. In a last-minute burst of courage, I showed up to Club Tennis tryouts during my very first week on campus. I didn’t know what to expect, but I was immediately met with kindness. The executive board at the time was incredibly welcoming, and what began as a “why not?” moment quickly turned into something I deeply wanted.
When I made the team, everything changed. My group of new members bonded almost instantly, we went to practices together, showed up to social events side by side, and built friendships that only grew stronger over time. Now, four years later, those same people are the ones I travel with and lean on, the ones who made JMU feel like home. I’m endlessly grateful for that last-minute decision, it gave me not just a team, but lifelong friends.
