Tennis camp shows kids the basics
Published 12:05 am Friday, August 11, 2017
Campers Mary Morgan, Iyanna Wingate, Instructor Devan Corpening and Isaiah Blackwell warm up by dribbling the tennis balls in place. Jon C. Lakey/Salisbury Post
Jalisa Gladden and Mary Morgan pick out a tennis racket to use as they take part in the tennis camp. Jon C. Lakey/Salisbury Post
Mary Morgan walks across the court while balancing the tennis ball in the center of the racket during warm-up exercises. Jon C. Lakey/Salisbury Post
Jaiden Solbert (left) watches Isaiah Blackwell serve the ball during tennis camp. Jon C. Lakey/Salisbury Post
Iyanna Wingate draws back to serve the ball over the net. Salisbury's Quentin Woodward is happy with the handful of youths that took advantage of a week long summer tennis camp for 8-15-year-olds. Jon C. Lakey/Salisbury Post
Staff report
SALISBURY — During the summer months, parents are challenged to find meaningful activities to occupy their children’s time, says Quentin Woodward Jr.
Often, cost prevents kids from taking advantage of constructive and rewarding summer activities.
This week, Woodward has been filling that void with a free tennis camp he organized at Salisbury High School for boys and girls ages 8 to 15.
He calls it the first annual Unmatchables Tennis Camp — indicating that he’s already planning to do it again next summer.
Woodward lined up accomplished players as instructors, starting with Devan Corpening, a former tennis stalwart at East Rowan High School and a recent graduate of Winston-Salem State University.
Assisting is Sadie Hawkins Rice, who will be inducted into the Rowan-Salisbury Sports Hall of Fame on Sunday. Rice was a basketball star at J.C. Price High School in the late 1950s and early 1960s. She was also an outstanding tennis player.
“The intent of the camp is to provide basic skills and fundamentals of tennis,” Woodward said.
Each day was structured to allow participants to work at their own pace, he said.
He capped enrollment at 15.
Because of a donation from a local business, Woodward said, the program was able to purchase equipment and refreshments. Participants will gather for a cookout at the conclusion of the camp Friday.
“We plan to utilize the resources of the (United States Tennis Association) to explore how the camp can be improved, expanded and whether grant funding is available,” he said. “We look forward to becoming acquainted with the game of tennis during the camp and develop a love for the sport.”
