Tennis at Bridgwater College was a leisurely outdoor sport during the early 1900s. Students and faculty often played it recreationally. After football was discontinued in 1905, students and faculty created tennis tournaments and competed against each other. The tennis courts were flat dirt courts with a single net. By 1915, the college had a total of eight tennis courts that were separated by gender. The women had two tennis courts where Nininger Hall is now located, while the men's six tennis courts were located where Bowman, Heritage, and Wright Hall are now as well as along East College Street across from the modern Memorial Hall and Yount Hall.
In 1913, the Bridgewater College Women's Athletics Association sponsored a women's tennis club at Bridgewater College. In April 1916, Bridgewater College hosted its first intercollegiate men's tennis match against Eastern College. In that game, Bridgewater College won only one match out of three. Despite this 1916 match and later men's intercollegiate matches played, tennis was not recognized as an official Bridgewater College men's intercollegiate sport until 1928.
Professor Rudolf A. Glick, a former varsity tennis player, decided to assist the men's tennis team in 1938, becoming its first official coach recorded since the 1915-1916 session . Bridgewater College men's tennis teams played more than 50 matches between 1923 and 1946, winning only about 20 percent of them. Two notable BC tennis stars during the late 1930s and early 1940s were Cuban brothers Gerardo Portela and Mario Portela.
Interest in tennis as a Bridgewater College intercollegiate sport seemed to ebb and flow throughout the first part of the 20th century. The sport of tennis gained more traction from the 1950s to 1964. The men's team began to play more matches. They competed in approximately 150 games then, winning only about 18 percent.
A Bridgewater College women's tennis team may have played some intercollegiate matches in 1941. However, recognition of tennis as a Bridgewater College women's intercollegiate sport wouldn't come until 1952. From 1952 to 1964, the women's team won 60 percent of their matches in their 66 games.
From 1965 to 1980, the Bridgewater College men's team participated in 181 tennis matches, winning 40 percent. The men's team finished best in 1979, placing third in the Old Dominion Athletic Conference.
By 1980, Bridgewater College had seven all-weather tennis courts.
Coached by Laura S. Mapp, the women's tennis team became quite successful from 1965 to 1980. During this time, the women's team participated in 157 matches against 25 colleges and universities, winning 79 of the 157 matches with 2 of the matches ending in a tie. In addition, they placed 7th in the Virginia Federation of Intercollegiate Sports for Women tennis tournament in 1978, eighth in the State Division II tournament in 1980, and second in the Clinch Valley College Invitational Tournament in 1978.
By Alex Thompson, Special Collections Intern, 2024 and Stephanie S. Gardner
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