VCU news

By Mike Porter

More than 160 fourth and fifth graders from Richmond elementary schools will compete this week in the Virginia Commonwealth University Foundation 2011 Young Aces Open tennis tournament at the Mary and Frances Youth Center.

The tournament takes place from 11 a.m. until 4:30 p.m. on April 5 and is hosted by the VCU Center for Sport Leadership and the VCU Division of Community Engagement’s Lobs & Lessons program. Sports Leadership graduate students have developed, organized and planned the event as a project for their sport entertainment and event development class.

Each Richmond elementary school will send three boys and three girls to the event, which will feature mixed doubles play. With this format, there will be no elimination, allowing every child to play continuously and contribute to a team-centered experience.

"The Young Aces Open provides the perfect opportunity for young students to come to the VCU campus with a purpose to demonstrate their personal best -- in tennis and as part of their school team,” said Cathy Howard, Ph.D., vice provost for community engagement. “VCU gets to show them the excitement of college life, which we hope they will aspire to be a part of in the future, and they get the message that physical fitness activities are important to be healthy and successful.”

Opening speakers at the tournament include VCU Provost Beverly Warren, National Junior Tennis League National Manager Dan Limbago and Miss Virginia 2011 Laura Eilers. Mary and Frances Youth Center Co-Founders Mike and Elizabeth Frazier and Richmond City Public Schools Superintendent Yvonne Brandon will offer closing remarks.

Organizers said the speakers will pay homage to VCU’s successful run in the NCAA tournament to motivate the participants to always strive to do their best.

"Our keynote speakers will highlight that other sports, like basketball, offer an excellent opportunity to cross train for tennis. As the Siegel Center is our rain location, there is no better year for these students to participant in Young Aces Open and play tennis in their arena, a winning combination,” said Tina Carter, director of the Mary and Frances Youth Center.

Last year’s event was the largest-ever QuickStart tournament, and organizers said this year’s event will be even bigger, offering new experiences for the youth, as well as lunch and a tennis exhibition match involving four players from VCU's men's and women's tennis team. 

The Young Aces Open marks an ongoing partnership between Lobs & Lessons, the Richmond Tennis Association and Richmond elementary schools to provide QuickStart Tennis (QST) curriculum, equipment and training at every elementary school in the city. QST is a teaching format developed by the United States Tennis Association that allows more children the opportunity to experience the game. The format utilizes courts and equipment that are smaller so that the new players can feel confident while acquiring skills. 

The VCU Foundation is the title sponsor this year and United States Tennis Association/Virginia Tennis will support the event for the second year by providing Radio Disney and a prize court. Other sponsors include:  Martin’s, Escape Creative, the Richmond Raiders, the Richmond Tennis Association, McDonald’s, Wilson, Chick-fil-A and Allen, Allen, Allen & Allen.

Lobs & Lessons, founded in 2004, reaches out to underserved elementary and middle school youth by introducing the sport of tennis, teaching life skills and exposing youth to the merits of higher education. This is accomplished through after-school and summer enrichment programs at the Mary and Frances Youth Center.

Lobs & Lessons is a member of the United States Tennis Association (USTA) and is a National Junior Tennis and Learning (NJTL) chapter. There are a total of 555 NJTL chapters in the nation. Lobs & Lessons is one of 38 NJTL chapters in the nation offering the First Serve Life Skills curriculum.

The Center for Sport Leadership is a non-traditional sport leadership graduate program that focuses on experiential learning through hands-on experiences. With more than 400 graduates in the last decade, the Center for Sport Leadership has placed students in every area of the industry, including professional, intercollegiate, Olympic, nonprofit and grassroots organizations.