Hatfield Rally House establishes clubhouse for tennis, pickleball

The Hatfield Rally House for tennis and pickleball is located at 255 West St. in Hatfield.
Reminder Publishing photos by Trent Levakis

HATFIELD — The Hatfield Rally House, located just off exit 30 on Interstate 91, is a new home base for tennis and pickleball players looking to hone their skills.

Born from a lifelong love of tennis and the desire to create a welcoming space where players of both sports can play in harmony, the house is a facility that features a community of supportive instructors and players of all ages.

Married owners Ashley Schaffer and Pat Roche are both former tennis players who built this new endeavor together. Roche said opening the Rally House was the couple’s dream, but Schaffer’s mission.

“I’m more of a ‘head in the clouds’ kind of guy, and she can do both. She can see it and make it happen,” said Roche.

Originally a multi-generation family farm, the site of Hatfield Rally House has long been a place for people to come together, and now Schafer said she is proud to continue carrying the tradition forward as they bring the regional community together for fun, fitness and friendly competition. The 60,000-square-foot facility has devoted spaces to both tennis and pickleball, with four total tennis courts and eight pickleball courts on each side of the building.

Originally from Texas, Schaffer moved to the area in 2001 for graduate school. Fast forward about 15-plus years, and she found herself playing tennis alongside Roche.

“I’ve been playing tennis my whole life; it began as something I did with my family. Both my parents played, so I spent a lot of time just hanging around the court with my sister, just playing with ants on the court, that kind of thing,” said Schaffer.

The couple met in 2012 and would bond over their love for tennis and the fact that both had fallen out of actively playing the sport. Roche played tennis in college and coached some afterwards, while Schaffer had not actively played since she was younger.

“I immediately fell back in love with it, and we eventually started to talk about maybe we should open a tennis place. Ashley wanted to have a nice club for tennis, as most of the places to play tennis in the area currently are not clubs but more so spaces with courts,” said Roche.

With their reignited passions for the sport, the two began brainstorming to see if opening a tennis club would be a worthwhile endeavor.

“I would go home a few times a year [in Texas], and I’d look at the clubs there, and they’re really nice,” said Schaffer. “But then I’d come back here, and there was nothing.”

Roche said the plans to open a tennis-only club were eventually put on the back burner because it would likely be a challenge to open a dedicated clubhouse to just tennis in the area. Luckily for the two, the popularity of pickleball skyrocketed and created a new angle to achieving their goal.

“After the pandemic, when pickleball really took off around here, we started to think maybe we can have both. Pickleball people can help float the tennis side, and maybe we can bring the two communities together,” added Roche.

He said that while people are attracted to the more “social vibes” of pickleball, he has also seen pickleball players looking to make the jump to tennis. Roche said they want the Rally House to feature players of all ages and experiences between the two sports.

“There’s so many of our tennis friends who are 50-plus [years old] playing tennis. Once you get below that age range, the number of players is not as robust, so we’ve been trying to get those numbers up. And pickleball has been the same way,” he added.

The Hatfield Rally House officially opened in December. Aside from featuring the four full tennis courts and eight full pickleball courts, there is also an emphasis on establishing a clubhouse-style space.

Hatfield Rally House Director of Operations Keshawn Dodds gave Reminder Publishing a tour of the space and spoke about the efforts going into making the space a clubhouse for the community. Dodds was the executive director for the Springfield Boys & Girls Club prior to changing roles.

“Our goal is to make this more of a community, not just a place where you come in to play pickleball, tennis, and leave. We’re trying to call our members our family members. We want people to come in, enjoy our grab-and-go café or the lounge where they can sit and relax.”

Before approaching the courts inside the Rally House, visitors will notice a café space that features plenty of tables, a bar space, televisions and Wi-Fi accessibility. All members will have access to free coffee, tea or hot chocolate, along with a microwave and fridge.

There is food and drink for sale inside the Rally House, provided by Prospect Meadow Farms and Berkshire Naturals.

“We’re trying to keep it all local and build upon what we have, and making sure that people know that one, we’re not a franchise. We’re family-owned. And number two, we’re here to stay and make sure there’s going to be good traffic coming through and great revenue coming to the city,” Dodds said.

Past the café space is the current pro shop, with items from either sport available for purchase. In this area is the lounge space, which sits between the two courts. Above this lounge space is the house’s mezzanine, which has views from above of both courts.

The space also features new locker rooms, showers and a stretching area.

“It’s the wow factor, but it’s also comfort,” added Dodds. “Some will just come sit and watch. It’s all about making people feel comfortable, and it’s not like you’re obligated to just come in, keep your head down and go to the court. You can actually come and feel like you’re part of a family. It’s a second home. That’s been the biggest response so far, and it’s a good sign.”

Plans are to host tournaments and regularly scheduled programming for both sports. Dodds also noted that the Rally House will utilize its outdoor space on the property when the weather improves. The plan is to invite food truck vendors and introduce outdoor volleyball and bocce options.

Schaffer said she is thankful the “guinea pig project” that is the Hatfield Rally House has been made a reality. She hopes that it will serve as an example of what is possible for local athletics clubs.

“We hope that having more options here will appeal to a wider range, and we’ll get people who maybe wouldn’t think of trying the other sport, giving it a chance,” Roche said.

To learn more about membership options or more about the Hatfield Rally House in general, visit hatfieldrallyhouse.com.