On Thursday, February 1, Middle Tennessee State University (MTSU) will cut the ribbon on their brand-new $7.1 million outdoor tennis complex. The new complex is part of the university’s “Build Blue” campaign to update the facilities and infrastructure of all 17 of its athletic programs to championship level. This new facility will replace the Buck Bouldin Tennis Courts, which were in great need of repair and updating.
“…Our tennis student-athletes will be able to practice and play in a facility that ranks among the very best in the region, while enhancing the footprint in the northwest side of our campus,” noted MTSU President Dr. Sydney A. McPhee in a press release.”
“This facility has been a dream of mine since I took the job in 2010,” said MTSU Men’s Head Tennis Coach Jimmy Borendame in a press release. “It will be an amazing new home for the tennis teams, our fans, and the tennis community.”
The new state of the art tennis facility will serve as the on-campus home of both the MTSU’s men’s and women’s tennis programs. It will feature new locker rooms, spectator facilities for 250 fans, eight upgraded tennis courts, the latest technology, and new coaches’ offices, among many other amenities.
Tayo Bailey-Duvall, MTSU Women’s Head Tennis Coach, is excited about what the new facilities will bring to the tennis program. When the new tennis complex is added with the new $66 million Student-Athlete Performance Center, Bailey-Duvall believes it will be a giant step forward for her program. Better facilities draw better athletes. The three-story, 85,500-square-foot performance center building will contain new athletic training, weightlifting and nutrition areas.
The Blue Raider men’s tennis program won its fourth-straight Conference USA title in 2022, while the women’s tennis program earned the Intercollegiate Tennis Associations’ All-Academic Team award for the fifth consecutive year in 2022 and went undefeated at home.
Director of Athletics Chris Massaro said of the new facilities in a press release, “This new complex will be the catalyst to move our tennis programs forward and improve the great success they have already displayed, including [last] spring with the fourth men’s conference championship in a row.”
There are still sponsorship opportunities available. “A gift of $10,000 or more will be recognized with a plaque on a locker in either of the locker rooms,” explained Bailey-Duvall. “Gifts of $60,000 or more provided will be recognized for a court. There are two courts left needing sponsors.”
The ribbon cutting event will take place at 2650 Middle Tennessee Boulevard. It will begin at 1:00 p.m. and end about 3:00 p.m. Rutherford County Chamber of Commerce will host the event. For additional information, click here.
