Game, Set, Match: How Tennis Players Connect Daily with Laurel Springs

Student Athletes

Student Life

06/05/2025

A young tennis player wakes up in a hotel room. Tournament match in six hours. She opens her laptop. Her teacher’s email arrived overnight: “Good luck today. Let’s discuss your history project when you’re back.”

This isn’t education that pauses during tournaments. This is Laurel Springs.

For tennis players, the traditional school calendar fails them.
Tournaments run December through March without breaks.
Success means weeks on the road. Something’s gotta give.

Traditional school fails many student athletes.

But not at Laurel Springs. Here, education moves with the athlete. Our teachers engage with tennis players daily, whether they’re at home or halfway across the world.

This unique approach to education is exactly what Alex Gruskin, Editor-in-Chief of
Cracked Racquets, explored in a recent podcast with three of our teachers. Their conversation,
‘The Advantages of Online Schooling’, reveals the daily engagement that makes Laurel Springs the preferred choice for serious tennis players.

Click Here to Watch the Interview

The Tennis Schedule vs. Traditional School

Tennis demands more than talent. It requires time. Morning training. Afternoon drills. Weekend tournaments. The fixed schedule of traditional schools becomes the enemy of athletic development.

“Inevitably, should you find success, you might be on the road for
three weeks consecutively,” notes Alex Gruskin, host of Cracked Racquets podcast.

This schedule creates impossible choices. Skip tournaments for school? Miss school for tennis? Neither works.

Dueling Schedules: Traditional School vs Typical Tennis Schedule

Daily Engagement: The Laurel Springs Difference

What separates Laurel Springs isn’t just flexibility. It’s the constant, meaningful engagement between teachers and students.

“We all track our students and we know where they are in the course,” explains Dr. Elizabeth Contreras, Social Studies teacher. “We will bother them like bees to a flower when they are falling behind.”

This daily contact happens through:

Regular email check-ins
Personal phone calls
Customized pacing schedules
Feedback on each assignment
Weekly workshops and office hours

Dr. Contreras stays connected even during tournaments: “I send them like, ‘Hey, I saw this funny YouTube video. What do you think about it?’ so that we are interacting with each other.”

These aren’t just academic check-ins. Teachers build real relationships with students.

“I’m like, ‘Send me pictures of your tournaments. What’s going on?'” says Dr. Contreras. “I would love to know about tennis. They become my teachers.”

This approach creates teachers who can talk tennis “like I’m really good at it,” despite never playing seriously themselves.

Real Connections in a Virtual World

“The biggest misconception is that there’s no social interaction,” Dr. Contreras explains. “That kids are isolated from each other.”

Reality looks different. Teachers actively build relationships from day one.

“I always send welcome emails,” Dr. Contreras shares. “Then a getting-to-know-you email with information about me, fun facts like that I like Minecraft.”

This personal touch extends to academic support. When students fall behind during tournaments, teachers don’t punish. They help.

“The goal is I want them to feel supported, not disciplined,” says Dr. Kelly Sperduto, English teacher. “I want to be like, ‘Okay, life’s throwing you a curveball right now. Let’s figure out how we can help you re-engage.'”

For kindergarten teacher Colleen Francisco, building connections means engaging both students and parents.

“It’s really important at all grade levels to build relationships with our students, but not just with our students – also with our families,” she explains. “My kindergarteners are not emailing me back.”

One-to-One: Education Built for Tennis Players

Traditional classrooms move at one pace. Twenty-five students march together regardless of individual needs or outside commitments.

Laurel Springs follows a different model.

“Our ratio really feels like one-to-one,” says Mrs. Francisco. “We are working with students exactly where they’re at.”

This personal attention creates accountability. No hiding in the back row.

“It is much more challenging to be phony when it’s just you and the teacher,” Dr. Sperduto points out. “It’s not like you can hide behind that kid in the class that answers all the questions.”

The one-to-one approach allows teachers to spot strengths and adapt accordingly. Some students excel in math but struggle with writing. The pacing adjusts to match.

“I do have kindergarteners that really love math and don’t love other subjects,” shares Mrs. Francisco. “That’s the beauty of this program. It is okay to work ahead in things that you’re passionate about.”

Athletes Supporting Athletes

Teacher connections only tell part of the story. Student-to-student engagement thrives as well.

Dr. Contreras describes a student who created his own study group: “One in particular set up an AP U.S. History study group on his own. It’s on a Google chat. He’s leading reviews with kids on his own time.”

These connections span the globe. Tennis players form study groups across time zones. They share tournament experiences. They build a community of peers who understand their unique challenges.

“They have a whole community that’s all across the world that they are engaged with each other,” Dr. Contreras notes.

For young athletes who may miss school dances or football games, these connections matter. They aren’t just classmates. They’re fellow competitors who understand the athletic journey.

Getting Back on Track After Tournaments

At Laurel Springs, student athletes don’t need to choose between their passion and their education.

Tournament season hits hard. Three weeks on the road means work piles up. How does Laurel Springs keep students from drowning?

The approach starts with clear planning.

“We do a lot of pace checking with students,” explains Dr. Contreras. “I’ll say, ‘Do you want a pacing schedule?’ They tell me when they want to finish, and I say, ‘Okay, you have this many assignments. You need to get this many done in a week.'”

Some students front-load work before tournaments. Others catch up after. The system bends to fit the athlete’s needs.

When students fall behind, multiple support systems activate:

Teachers reach out with specific action plans
Advisors check in on overall progress
Counselors provide additional support
Workshops offer targeted help

This network ensures no tennis player faces academic challenges alone.

“We have a whole network of support for our students, especially our student-athletes,” Dr. Sperduto explains. “We know they have training, they have travel, they have tournaments.”

Beyond Academics: Building Complete Athletes

Tennis players develop more than forehands at Laurel Springs. They build independence. Self-discipline. Time management. Skills that transfer directly to the court.

“Our students learn that they have to step up and own what they are doing,” Dr. Sperduto notes. “They can’t hide behind someone or expect someone else to do it for them.”

This ownership creates athletes who manage their entire development – not just tennis techniques but academic progress, recovery schedules, and mental preparation.

Parents see the difference. They watch their children grow more responsible. More confident. More capable of navigating complex demands.

“It allows parents the ability to see how their students learn, what they like, what they don’t like,” Mrs. Francisco explains.

The Journey Continues

A tennis career evolves constantly. Junior tournaments give way to college recruitment. Professional aspirations emerge. Through each phase, educational needs change.

Laurel Springs evolves with the athlete. Elementary students receive different support than high schoolers. The constants remain: daily engagement, personal connections, and education that moves with the player.

Some teachers work with students across multiple years, creating deep relationships that span tournaments, growth spurts, and changing goals.

“That’s a really special thing about Laurel Springs,” says Dr. Contreras. “You can have the same teacher in the upper school for four years. I’ve worked with one student for four years now, which is just super fun.”

These lasting connections provide stability amid the constant travel and competition of tennis. They remind players that they’re more than their last match result.

Your Next Move

Tennis demands bold decisions. So does education.

If tournament schedules disrupt school, if academic stress affects match performance, if your player needs teachers who understand the athletic journey – consider Laurel Springs.

Our teachers engage with tennis players daily. Not just about assignments. About life. Their matches. Their goals. Their struggles.

Ready to explore how Laurel Springs can support your tennis journey? Visit our
Cracked Racquets partnership page to learn about exclusive benefits for Cracked Racquets community members.

This isn’t education that competes with tennis. This is education that completes the athlete.

Game. Set. Match.