NorthWood’s girls tennis team practices Monday in its new tennis complex, which is yet to be finished, but available for practice. The team has been without a tennis home for nearly a year. (Photos by Mike Deak)

NAPPANEE – For almost a full year, NorthWood tennis has been the traveling gypsies of the area tennis circuit. Without a home court since last year’s boys state tournament, the tennis program has had to call wherever an open court laid as its residence for a day.

The flying carpet can finally come back to earth.

The ‘almost’ finished new home to NorthWood tennis was opened this past week on the still-disrupted grounds of the high school campus. While the complex likely won’t be done-done until sometime this summer, NorthWood head coach Tif Schwartz was more than happy to see her girls tennis team take to the blue courts east of the high school this past week. The courts sit perpendicular to the old courts that ran parallel to Andrews Field, the old grounds now construction layover which will soon be an access road to connect the courts to the main parking lot.

“We’ve had a plan for a while on what we would like in a tennis complex, and to finally see it come together is really exciting for everyone,” Schwartz said Monday, standing in the new facility. “The big picture is for this to be totally done for the boys season in the fall. We are really hoping the parking lot will be done as well.”

The tennis complex feature five courts on both sides of the observation area, which will have spectator bleachers put in the middle with viewpoints for both sides of court action. Schwartz noted lights will soon be installed, as will an observation tower. One of the neat perks to the new courts will be magnetic scoreboards that will allow fans to see the scores in real time on a readable board on the north and south fences, rather than the old PVC flip cards that sometimes flip in the wind and often are hard to see head-on.

A look at the new NorthWood tennis courts.

Schwartz noted the athletic building that sits between the school and the courts is also being renovated, and will house restrooms for spectators, as well as indoor practice space along with needed shelter when weather dictates.

In a boys season that had its tournament run impacted by construction, as well as the entire offseason out of boys and into the girls calendar, and NorthWood having to play its ‘home’ girls matches at Goshen College or at the opponent’s place, Schwartz is glad to see the project finally come together. Her team practiced for this week’s Goshen Sectional matchup with Bethany Christian on the newly opened courts. The team tried on a pair of occasions to get a home meet in this spring, including Monday with Triton, but safety concerns with the construction prohibited those matches from taking place.

“We tried really hard to get a home match this spring, and it didn’t work out. But the kids are really excited and happy to have a place to call their own again,” Schwartz said. “Anytime you can get something new and different, there’s always an excitement that comes with that.”

Schwartz noted the addition of the lights, as well as the 10 court format to what was before a nine-court ‘landing strip’ that had lights only able to illuminate six of those courts at a time, as a blessing. The total package puts NorthWood now in the mix to host the Northern Lakes Conference Championships as well as potentially hosting sectionals, an obvious perk the tennis program would love to oversee.

“When the school was first built, they just built courts until the ran out of room,” said Schwartz, who has been involved with NorthWood tennis for the past 17 years. “Back in 1969, 1970, nine courts was a lot. As time has evolved, we’ve ran into things like you need 10 courts. You need lights. We’ve lost a sectional because we didn’t have those things.”

Construction will continue on the areas around the courts, as well as the lighting and electrical fixtures in the complex. Schwartz noted once completed, the public will be permitted to use the courts in the summer. A second entry point, which currently there is only a carousel gate to enter through the west side, is in conversation to be added to allow for wheelchair and handicap access.