Back in 1995, junior tennis in Albuquerque struggled to gain traction, and local high school programs felt the impact because few children participated unless they grew up playing at tennis clubs. Sue Jollensten, drawing from her own background as a standout junior player in the 1960s who never had the chance to represent her school, decided to change the landscape.
Founding and Growth of the League
The following year, Jollensten partnered with La Cueva High School coach Dick Johnson, club professional Gary Stansifer, and other members of the local tennis community to establish the Northern New Mexico Middle-School Tennis League. Cee Ann Vaughan, the northern New Mexico representative for the United States Tennis Association, noted that Jollensten refused to accept rejection and pushed forward with getting the children to play tennis.
Jollensten and her supporters will celebrate the organization’s 30th anniversary this weekend during the 2026 New Mexico Middle School Tournament, which will take place across three city tennis facilities. The league has expanded from its initial season featuring six teams and roughly 100 children into a program that currently reaches more than 300 students, incorporating teams from Belen, Santa Fe, and Los Alamos.
Reflecting on the initiative, Jollensten explained in a phone interview that she wanted middle schoolers to build connections with fellow students and their schools because that stage of life can be a difficult and transitional period. Throughout the years, the program has welcomed both players who grew up playing the game and children who had never held a racket before.
Structuring for All Players
Early on, the league faced imbalances where certain schools had significantly more boys than girls, while others experienced the exact opposite. To address this, Jollensten created the Coed Mix-and-Match Division, allowing players to compete based on strength regardless of gender so everyone could represent their schools.
Operating independently from the New Mexico Athletic Association, which manages state scholastic sports, the league holds its season in the autumn while high school tennis takes place in the spring. Although the competition was not designed specifically as a feeder system for high schools, the prep level immediately profited from its existence.
Early participants like Delila Baldonado and Loryn Erikkson went on to play for Cibola and Albuquerque Academy, respectively. Vaughan highlighted another former participant, Kessick Blech, who competed for Eldorado in 2002-03 and now serves as a coach within the middle-school league.
While establishing the league in the 1990s, Jollensten continued playing the sport herself, with both her and Vaughan emphasizing the goal that pre-teens transition into teenagers and adults who continue playing. Vaughan described the program as a wonderful pathway to introduce children to what is now recognized as the world’s healthiest sport.
