MONTICELLO — Monticello High School recently finished the construction of their brand-new outdoor tennis courts. The athletic director, members of the school board, Monticello’s tennis team, and members of the local community all came together for the ribbon cutting ceremony on Wednesday afternoon. 

The courts were approved by the community in 2015, but the approved amount was insufficient to fully fund the courts back then. Extra costs for the tennis courts were included in the 2018 capital improvement project, again approved by voters.

A capital improvement project will be on the ballot during the annual budget vote on May 21. If approved, it will include significant improvements to the athletic facilities, including an all-new track and football field, 1,000 seat grandstand, a press box and more.

The almost 10-year wait was certainly worth it with these beautiful and state of the art additions to Monticello’s athletic department.

When asked about the new improvements, Monticello School Superintendent Matthew Evans had this to say, “It’s a wonderful facility for our students and community, and we are grateful for the community support in approving these tennis courts and other facilities. We are also grateful to the school board’s commitment to guiding this process and giving attention to our athletics. We hope our students and our community utilize these courts to their fullest extent and enjoyment for years to come.”

For the tennis team, the new court was a long time coming and is much appreciated. Senior Caleb Joyce took the inaugural serve on the new court and shared his thoughts on the new facilities. “In past years it’s been rough for our tennis team, we’ve had to travel a lot and even getting to practice used to take a while. But now we can just walk from our classes right to these beautiful new courts. We are all very thankful and I hope we have a great season on our new home courts.”

The team was supposed to play their first game of the season after the ribbon cutting but sadly it was canceled due to rain. However, Coach Andrew DiCerbo was too optimistic to let the cancellation ruin his good spirits. 

“For years we’ve had to take buses and play at the local park or at other local facilities just to practice. Now we have these courts so close to the school and parents can finally come watch their children play on our own home court. This has been in the works for years and it means the world to our entire team,” commented Coach DiCerbo. 

When asked about the future of this season Coach DiCerbo said this, “I’m looking forward to my players growing as individuals and players. We don’t get many experienced players on the team and for many it’s their first year trying tennis or even any sport so my goal is to get them to understand the game and learn some life lessons along the way. I’m also looking forward to the growth of our tennis program as a whole. With these new courts we’ll have greater visibility and hopefully more students will get involved.”