Aptly named Tennis for Fun program starts at Longboat Key Public Tennis Center

Three kids batted at balls and kicked up dust on the clay courts of the Longboat Key Public Tennis Center on April 23. Though it was only their first tennis lesson — ever — the coaches of the newly established Tennis for Fun program were soon chasing after plenty of well-hit balls. 

“Bryanna (Schmidt) was really looking forward to this day because her sister is a tennis pro,” mom Rossanna Schmidt said. “We bought her a racquet about a year ago and she didn’t get a chance to use it, so she was so excited today.” 

After a few minutes of practice, Bryanna was getting some experience on her brand-new racquet, thanks to Coach Chris Goodwin. Nico Moschini arced balls high into the air and over the net, quickly getting the hang of a well-struck forehand. Meanwhile, Emily Paulsen worked with multiple coaches, mostly happy to be meeting new people, she said. 

The tennis program is a branch of Special Olympics and is a free program for athletes with special needs. Tennis for Fun was started by a Tampa-based Jesuit High School student in 2000, and after a short time, it grew to more than 200 athletes. Now, the LBK Public Tennis Center is the only certified site for the program in Sarasota County. 

“Bryanna has epilepsy, so it’s difficult for her to find activities she can do,” Rossanna said. “But Special Olympics worked with her and were very accommodating.” 

Special Olympics director Stanley Sylverain has been helping Coach Brenda Terihay get the program set up and provide volunteers the program may need. On the first day, she was helped by tennis center director Kay Thayer, as well as Ron Schields, Tamara Wright and Goodwin.

“I’ve coached so many things,” Terihay said. “I just love being with the kids and I’m fortunate because I’m surrounded by these great volunteers who are also so talented.”

After volunteering with the Special Olympics since 2015, Terihay is getting more involved now and is certified as a coach. She coached a pair of identical twins earlier in her Tennis for Fun days, and the brothers wound up beginning to seriously compete and head to sectionals. Terihay is a longtime tennis player, and sharing the sport with the Tennis For Fun athletes is important to her. As long as they’re having fun and getting exercise, Terihay is happy. 

“It’s no different from when I started playing at 50,” Terihay said. “Just to see how they grow, that’s pretty darn exciting.” 

Each athlete was already making strides in tennis technique. Schmidt had picked up on the importance of moving to the ball, which Terihay praised and started to encourage.

“I like exercise and that I get to get out of the house and have fun,” Bryanna said. “I’m already better than I was.” 

For Moschini, the Tennis for Fun lessons are a big upgrade from his at-home tennis set-up, which mom April Spagnuolo-Moschini said involves hitting balls on the driveway against the garage door. The family heard about the tennis program through Manasota Buds, a group for families with Down syndrome, and Spagnuolo-Moschini appreciates that the program is a low-risk way for kids with special needs to try something new. For now, it seems like Moschini has found a good fit. 

“After the first time he came home and said, ‘I’m really good at this,’” Spagnuolo-Moschini said. “He just beamed.”

By the end of the second day, Moschini had started with Schields on overheads and learning serves.

For now, they’ll run the program on a trial basis through the rest of spring, then break for the summer months before starting up the tennis season again in November. For the time being, all three athletes who’ve started plan to keep on coming. 

“I like to do it for fun and all the people here,” Paulsen said.