Stepping Off the Court: Assistant tennis coaches Robin Sutton and Susan Hallstrom are retiring from coaching after years of bonding with each other and players

Assistant tennis coaches Robin Sutton and Susan Hallstrom took the two-hour drive to Junction City for their fourth and final state tennis tournament together. As Sutton drove, the two discussed being moms, working in education and students’ mental health, all while Hallstrom graded chemistry labs.

Sutton, a social worker at Highlands Elementary, has coached East girls tennis for four years. Hallstrom, a chemistry teacher at East, has coached girls and boys tennis for six years. They’ve used their experience of working with kids to notice if players are unusually quiet or to give them advice on advanced classes and sports.

“It’s great to instill a love for the sport, and teach the strategy and technique of tennis,” Sutton said. “But what I love the most is being able to utilize my skills as a social worker to be there for the girls on the team. Just connecting with them on that human level first, and being a support in an informal process of, ‘Are you taking care of yourself?’”

Next year, Sutton is taking a break from coaching East Tennis to prioritize driving her seven-year-old son to his football, basketball and soccer practices. She hopes to continue coaching East tennis when her son is a teenager and able to stay home alone for a few hours.

“It’s really my first time that I’m totally out of the tennis community since I was five,” Sutton said. “It’s going to be a new normal, but I’m excited to spend more time with [my son].”

Similarly, Hallstrom looks forward to a lighter routine. Teaching six classes followed by daily tennis practices extends her school days to 12 to 14 hours. Without practices and long drives to tournaments, she’ll have more time to focus on teaching.

“I feel bittersweet [about leaving],” Hallstrom said. “I’m going to miss it terribly. It’s become part of who I am. I love the relationships that I get to build with the players, my fellow coaches, coaches from other schools and even players from other schools who you get to know. I hate leaving it, but it is time.”

Head coach Andrew Gibbs, Sutton and Hallstrom spend three to four hours a day coaching together during the girls tennis season. Working together to run tryouts for 150 girls and chatting about tennis and family after practices, the trio cares about each other’s personal and professional lives.

“They made an effort to get to know [my son] and my family,” Sutton said. “They would ask about how my day was and they got familiar with my job. Sometimes you just click with people. I felt like we automatically felt comfortable with each other, and it naturally worked.”

Gibbs is going to miss seeing Hallstrom and Sutton daily. He hopes Sutton will be able to return to East, and he’ll still text Hallstrom and visit her room weekly for advice on classes or to talk to a friend.

“I value the conversations that I get to have with [Hallstrom] that aren’t necessarily tennis conversations,” Gibbs said. “She’s the kind of colleague that makes me a better teacher. I hope I’ve been able to give that to her too.”

Senior Ishya Bhavsar, a four-year varsity player, has attended state three times. She recalls pep talks from Sutton at state and laughing with Hallstrom at trivia night while wearing black suits and sunglasses for their team “The CIA” (Chemistry Is Awesome).

Whenever Hallstrom is on the court with a smile on her face, it reminds Bhavsar that tennis is a game and shouldn’t be taken too seriously.

“I love them both so much,” Bhavsar said. “They always genuinely listened to me and wanted to get to know me in my life and not just my schoolwork and my tennis.”

In 2022, Hallstrom drove six girls back from state tennis in Wichita. On the three-hour drive, the girls blasted the Hamilton soundtrack and sang as loud as they could.

“I’ve never lost my voice after a concert, ever,” Bhavsar said. “I lost my voice after state my sophomore year. I literally could not speak.”

Sutton and Hallstrom plan to continue to attend matches and cheer and check on the players next season.

“The older I get, the simpler my philosophies are,” Hallstrom said. “And I truly believe that no young person has too many caring adults. So I try to be a caring adult and let my kids know that I do care about what’s best for them. It’s a pretty simple philosophy, and I think my players know that I mean it.”