GUILDERLAND — The high school tennis courts here are in disrepair and unsafe, according to a half-dozen parents of tennis players who wrote to the school board this month.

The parents wrote of “uneven surfaces and worn areas” that pose “a serious risk of injury to student athletes and others who utilize these facilities.”

Parents also advocated for more courts to “alleviate schedule pressures,” to allow Guilderland to host tournaments, and to let more students participate.

Daneille Fontaine, the mother of a ninth-grader on the varsity tennis team, said that her daughter, Brooklyn Savio, fell on the court while playing a doubles match and twisted her ankle.

“The cause of her fall was due to the unlevel surface and divots that had been created over time,” she wrote.

Evanka Bauer, who also has a daughter on the varsity team, wrote, “Tennis courts one through four are sitting on top of a marsh. Water pools to the surface. There are cracks, divots, and holes in the surface, which could cause injuries.” She wrote that the school district could get sued for its negligence.

“We’ve already had some minor injuries this year,” Bauer went on, “and have had major injuries in previous years due to poor conditions of the courts, which are just worsening year after year.”

She also noted that the two sets of courts “are separated by a big parking lot,” making it difficult for the coaches who are already burdened with leaf-blowing and blowing out puddles of water.

The high school has eight courts, configured in two sets of four courts.

Board views

“It is a severe need as a safety issue,” said board member Nina Kaplan at the board’s Sept. 9 meeting.

Superintendent Daniel Maybery said a company was scheduled to look at the courts “and do whatever they can.”

He also said that to permanently fix the courts “would require them to be completely replaced.”

School board President Blanca Gonzalez-Parker said there have been complaints about the courts for “a good 10 years.” She went on, “I don’t think it was ever given the priority; it even surpassed the turf field,” she said.

The $2.5 million synthetic turf field, replacing a grass field at the high school, was passed by school district voters in 2021.

This past May, voters approved a $57 million capital project with 71 percent of the vote. The project includes upgrades to all seven school buildings to improve safety, infrastructure, and technology; it also includes an addition to the high school for the music program.

Gonzalez-Parker said tennis courts did not come up as the Future-Ready Committee developed plans for the current capital project.

“There were other priorities, but I think we really need to look at them,” said Gonzalez-Parker of the courts. “I have seen kids sprain their ankles and they keep playing.”

Paarth Sarecha, the newly-appointed student representative to the board, said he had played on both the varsity and junior-varsity teams.

“Whenever it rains, that water is not going away, no matter how sunny it gets afterward,” he said, noting that a game had to be canceled because “we didn’t have enough courts to keep the match going.”

Gonzalez-Parker also said that the board should look at assistant coaches. “The players themselves are responsible for determining whether a ball is out or not,” she said. “There are no referees. We’re talking about teenagers so sometimes there is conflict and there’s no adult around.”

She also said, “We have students that go to our school that really do depend on athleticism to help them get to that next level in life. They depend on those scholarships. They’re invested; their families have invested.”

Board member Kim Blasiak recommended that the board look at the athletic program as a whole, mentioning that the girls’ golf team has only a varsity program while the boys have a junior-varsity team as well.

A parent, Amanda Hand, wrote to the board, asking that a freshman volleyball team be added to the district’s programs since there is such interest.

Hand said that over 30 girls tried out for junior varsity, including her daughter who was cut “despite being recognized as a very talented player with excellent natural hands for a setter.”

She went on, “Many of these girls dedicate themselves to academics within the school and participate in travel volleyball outside of school, all in hopes of making a team. My daughter Gemini has aspirations of playing at the collegiate level.”

“Instead of piecemeal it, I’d like to hear a full report,” said Blasiak. I’d like to hear from the parents of all the teams. I’d like to hear from the actual coaches. I’d like to hear from Dave Austin,” she said of the district’s athletic director.

Board member Peter Stapleton asked, “With the information that has come forward tonight from these parents, do we have any legal responsibility to not allow them to use these courts anymore if they are a risk to them?”

Superintendent Mayberry responded, “I don’t know that a firm evaluation has been done as to whether they’re a safety risk, to the point that they have to be closed or not.”

“We’ve been notified it’s an issue,” said Stapleton. “And so, if we continue to allow usage of these tennis courts, are we leaving ourselves vulnerable?”

“We open the doors every day,” responded Mayberry. “We’re vulnerable every day. So, to a certain degree, the answer is ‘yes’ to that question.”