Tennis on Campus Fall Invite Coming Virtually

Due to COVID-19, USTA Tennis on Campus has had to suspend events for the 2020 fall season. The 2020 Tennis on Campus Fall Invitation has gone virtual instead! 

Two local universities, Washington University in St. Louis (Wash U) and Saint Louis University (SLU) have had to get creative to partake in tennis this season. 

 At Wash U, all formal athletics are suspended due to the virus. However, according to Nick Charlton-Perrin, Washington University Club Tennis Co-President, the team has been able to play the game they love on their own time in courts around the community. 

The club is taking part in the virtual Fall Invitational. The invite consists of a bevy of virtual challenges, with players taking video of themselves participating. The best part? They do not have to be on campus to do it. 

The challenges focus on varying skills - from tennis trick shots to athleticism. Teams then submit video entries of each challenge, using different members going live on Facebook and including their school name in the caption. 

“The virtual fall invitational consists of club tennis teams sending in live videos of them doing various tennis challenges including alley rallies, tweener totals, target practice and more -  socially distanced of course,” Charlton-Perrin said.

Sounds fun, right? Well, there are some stakes involved. The winner receives an automatic invite to the 2021 Tennis on Campus National Championship. Winners of smaller brackets and challenges receive grants.

At SLU, the restrictions on club sports are fewer. The team has been able to work out together outdoors. PJ Panesar, SLU Club Tennis President, said the team has been working hard to adhere to guidelines set forth by the CDC and the USTA.

“The place where we practice has guidelines which we follow, such as four people per courts, wearing masks when not on the court,” Panesar said. “Thankfully tennis is a socially distant sport so we were able to operate near normal circumstances.” 

Panesar said the practice sessions are going well thus far. He said around 28 players practice each session and the team is able to space out drink breaks so they can properly social distance. 

The team at Wash U has had to get a little more creative to get to know one another. Since the club has not yet been able to have formal practices, nor have any official club meetings, the team has had virtual dinners. Additionally, a spreadsheet gives information on when each team member is available to play individually.

“While we can't meet as a team, we are still trying to work as a team this semester,” Charlton-Perrin said. “Competitively, we are competing in the virtual fall invitational. To keep up with tennis, we have created a spreadsheet where people can easily find others to hit with individually. Socially, we have held a couple of virtual dinners and we will do more of those in the future.”

Learn more about the Tennis on Campus Virtual Fall Invitational.