Colleen McGlothlin

I was one of those girly girls who was always picked last for any sports team. In 1978, when I moved to Evansville as a young single woman, my mother talked me into taking tennis lessons. She thought it would be a great way to relieve stress as well as to meet people. I actually listened to her advice and the rest, as they say, is history!

Since 1978, I have played tennis year-round and have made so many special friends and had so much fun! I have hardly ever missed a day of work due to illness, which I directly contribute to being active. I even played tennis while I was pregnant.

When I started having children, I hoped that they too, would enjoy tennis as much as I did. My daughter started showing an interest in the sport when she was 11-years-old. At that time, I started volunteering my time to organize a junior tennis league, known as “Patrons.” We had about 25 students sign up to play organized matches once a week.

In 2001, I happened to meet Julie Mastromarino of Berks Regional Tennis Association. She was looking for someone to bring the game of ralleyball to Evansville. Ralleyball is the game of tennis without the serve and regular scoring, which are the two most difficult parts of the game. I decided to join forces with her and started this “little league” for tennis players.

Ralleyball runs for six weeks. Each session lasts 1 ½ hours. You can put as many as 12-14 students on a court at a time and still teach them tennis and have fun. The first 45 minutes of the session, we practice and the last 45 minutes of the session, we play “matches.” There are four levels of play and each level has slightly different rules because slowly start to introduce serving and regular scoring.

The first season, we had about 75 players sign up. Now ralleyball is held twice a year – 6 weeks in the fall, right after Labor Day, and six weeks in the spring, right after spring break. We have four levels of play; Level 4 players actually play the game of tennis. I have had as many as 240 registrants during some seasons. An estimated 2,600 players have gone through our ralleyball programs.

I am a registered nurse by profession and I truly believe in the importance of lifetime sports. Healthy people tend to have many interests and exercise regularly. To me, playing tennis is so much fun that I don’t even consider it exercise. I hope to impart this philosophy to others so they can discover that playing the game can keep them healthy, as well.

My daughter is now 23. She helped me with ralleyball for many years as a coach and a site director. She had a great time on her high school team at Harrison. Interestingly, she tried out when she was a freshman and got rejected. However, she practiced and took lessons and tried out again as a sophomore. She secured a spot on the team and became captain in her senior year. She really enjoyed the entire experience. This is proof that if at first you don’t succeed, try, try again.

Now I am often called “The Tennis Lady” when I run into my students and parents in the community. I feel honored to have that title. I encourage all age groups to at least try ralleyball. I say you are never too old. I know someone who took the game up at age 60 and loved it! It is a great way to stay young.

Organizing and coaching tennis for this many participants are not always easy. However, the rewards are many and I am currently planning for the fall season of 2008!