One year ago, the Greenfield High School boys tennis team didn’t have enough players to fill out a full lineup.
This year, they have so many players they don’t have enough jerseys.
The Green Wave more than doubled its roster size from a season ago, seeing the team grow from six players to 14 (including one injured player). The program entered the season with only 10 jerseys, which means that not every member currently has one. While only seven players play in a match on any given day, coach Andrew Varnon still wants every member to always feel like they are part of the team.
“That’s not right,” he explained of the lack of uniforms. “I really want to celebrate the fact that we had 13 players sign up for the team and I want them all to feel like they are part of the team.”
In order to rectify the problem, Varnon is holding a fundraiser to help pay for T-shirts for the team. The Green Wave tennis team is selling bicycle-style water bottles for $5 apiece to help offset the cost. The water bottles say “Greenfield Tennis, Rise Up.” Each T-shirt will have a Green Wave logo on the front and the player’s name on the back. Players will get to keep the shirts after the season.
Varnon is not entirely sure why the program has lost jerseys, but attributes it to attrition as players likely have not returned jerseys at the end of the season, which can take place following graduation. The team is scheduled to get new jerseys next spring (the girls program got jerseys this spring) according to Varnon, but this is a way for the entire team to have their own shirt.
The growth of the program has been a bit unexpected, although Varnon said he has sought out middle school students, even going to the school last year to play tennis four square with the kids.
“Reaching out to the middle school has made a difference,” he said. “I think we’ve also been a little lucky.”
Greenfield is off to a strong start to its 2019 campaign. The Wave sit at 6-2 overall, 5-1 in the Tri-County League, and next play on Tuesday against Chicopee Comp.
Anyone interested in purchasing a water bottle to help with the fundraiser should email Varnon at avarnon@yahoo.com or call 413-774-5639.