Featured photo by Savion Davis
Story by Conner Smith
MURFREESBORO, TN- Middle Tennessee State University and the Blue Raider Athletic Association officially opened its new state-of-the-art tennis facility right outside of the historic Murphy Center.
“We’ve been pushing for a new facility pretty much the entire time I’ve been here,” MTSU head men’s tennis coach Jimmy Borendame said. “When Chris (Massaro) and I started talking numbers, it was originally about $1.5 million. And now with some added features and inflation, it’s quite a bit more, but it looks amazing, and I can’t wait to use it.”
The complex cost the university $8 million but with all the features, along with the championship pedigree of the men’s tennis program, it was well worth it. The new outdoor tennis facility comes with new locker rooms, coaches offices, stands that seat 250 fans and eight tennis courts.
“This is an elite facility and one that our student-athletes, alumni and fans will take great pride in,” MTSU athletic director Chris Massaro said. “This will be a catalyst to move our tennis programs forward and improve on the great success we have already displayed. It is transformational and will be one of the best venues in the country.”
Members of the tennis team are here mainly for the culture and wins, but the new facility is something they look at as well.
“One of the reasons I came here was because Coach Tayo Bailey-Duvall told me about what was coming, and I wanted a piece of that,” MTSU women’s tennis player Lena Peyer said. “I believe that with this, we will be able to recruit at an even higher level and take the next step as a program.”
The construction for this project started Sept. 15, 2022, but the process began over a year before finally making the decision. Massaro consulted coaches Bailey-Duvall and Borendame to get their opinions and ideas on what needed to go into it.
“AD Massaro consulted Jimmy (Borendame) and me before finally breaking ground, we really looked at the budget and other complexes around the country and modeled it similarly to those.” Bailey-Duvall said.
The men’s tennis team is eyeing its fifth straight CUSA championship and the women’s team boasts a 19-7 record at home over the last three seasons. So, this facility was overdue considering the amount of success these programs have had, but it’s here now so the program has every amenity a player would want.
MTSU hosts the 2024 CUSA tournament April 20-21, and has more opportunities to host tournaments and other sporting activities.
“At the end of the day, we’re proud to call this new facility our home and I know that we won’t disappoint the school.” MTSU men’s tennis player Ondrej Horak said. “We have been competing at a championship level but having this, we will be able to be even better.”
Conner Smith is a sportswriter for MTSU Sidelines. If you have information for a story, you can email him at [email protected].
