Heights High is excited to welcome Lauren Smith as the new head boys’ tennis coach. Smith, who has three sons who are student-athletes in the district, has been coaching girls’ tennis at Beaumont for the past four years.

When she learned that the coaching position at Heights was vacant, it felt like a natural fit for her to step in. “My middle son plays [tennis] at Roxboro and I would hate for him to not have a quality program when he gets to the high school.”

Because her oldest is on the varsity soccer team, he brought along a number of his soccer teammates to join tennis. The many soccer, hockey and lacrosse players now picking up tennis racquets are aided by their innate athleticism.

With twenty boys currently on the team, Heights has enough to field both a JV and a varsity squad. Since only seven compete in each match, some players manage to play on the lacrosse team as well.

“The team has a wide range,” said Smith, with some who’ve played for a long time and many who are just learning the basics. “They’re all eager to learn and are all willing to take direction.”

Smith acknowledges that the GCC is “very challenging” and hopes to add more non-conference matches next year so the team can be more competitive. She welcomes anyone interested in tennis, whether they’re experienced or totally new to the sport, to join the team next spring. She can be reached at lauren_smith@ chuh.org.