In a ceremony Saturday, the regional high school tennis courts were named after the coach for his 23 years of service. Mr. Fennessy retired following the 2013 season, after he helped the tennis team to its second straight division three state championship.
Spring sports at the regional high school are underway and lacrosse, track and field, tennis, sailing, baseball and softball all look to have promising seasons so far.
During the annual Martha’s Vineyard Community Tennis Fall Classic tournament in September, an all-ages competition, a curious thing happened on the way to the championships. Five young girls — all 12 or 13 years old — emerged as victors.
Vineyard Youth Tennis hosts a professional exhibition on Thursday, July 25, at 5:30 p.m. at the Youth Tennis Center located near the roundabout.
When Ned Fennessy began coaching the Vineyard boys’ tennis team in 1991, he often found himself working with athletes who were at a disadvantage. Some lacked racquets, others lacked proper shoes and nearly all lacked a tennis background.
“I was having to teach basic fundamentals — this is how you hold the racquet, this is how you follow through,” he said on Saturday, sitting on the team bus as the Vineyarders returned home from picking up their second straight state title.
Things have changed in the past two decades.
When people say that history repeats itself, they aren’t usually referring to high school tennis.
But in a match that lasted just under an hour and a half last Saturday afternoon, the Vineyard boys successfully defended their Massachusetts division three state championship title with a 4-1 win against Bromfield.
