Tennis balls pinged and ponged off a line of metal chairs set up in the middle of the Jackson Street Community Center Tuesday during the second day of Tennis in the Park. The spring break tennis camp, sponsored by the City of Vicksburg, was forced inside the gym due to cloudy skies and rainy conditions in Warren County Monday and Tuesday, but the inclement weather didn’t stop the action. Around 30 kids ranging from elementary school to high school ran drills and hit balls inside the community center in the second day of the five-day camp.

“Usually we are on the tennis courts, but since the weather’s not permitting us we have to come here,” sophomore Alcorn State tennis player Niachay Rawl said. “The main challenge is the surface. It’s more closed. You have open room out there.”

Rawl and his teammates will serve as the camp’s instructors this week, with their trip culminating in a game against South Dakota State at Halls Ferry Park Saturday.

Due to the bad weather, Rawl and his fellow instructors invented some unconventional ways to teach the game they love to the camp kids. While participants eight and under spent the day playing tennis games and learning how to play close to the net, older students served tennis balls on the gym floor over a makeshift net of fold-up chairs.

“I get to meet new people and get to learn more about tennis,” participant Madison Benbry said. “Maybe I’ll even do it when I’m older.”

Benbry and the rest of her new friends sprinted across the floor during a drill, laughing and enjoying the exercise and week-long break from school.

“It’s really fun,” fellow camp participant Charli VanNorman said. “I got to meet new friends. I get to learn new things and get better and better.”

The camp won’t be inside all week, as conditions look to improve by Thursday morning. But even if it is forced inside for the remainder of the period, the Alcorn State team is prepared to teach their passion without the cooperation of Mother Nature.

“It’s pretty good. They enjoy it. We can have more games inside,” Rawl said. “That’s what the kids enjoy. We can have more fun here so that they can actually feel comfortable and come back again. It’s obviously a good experience and a good job.”