Mom, at 41, Returns to Compete on Montana State’s Tennis Team

When Vicki Cutler decided to try out for the Montana State University tennis team the first thing she did was ask permission from her 8-year-old son. He agreed, and two years later she is still playing tennis for the Bobcats.

At 41, the divorced mother of two is believed to be the oldest active competitor in NCAA athletics this year.

“When I got married, it was stay at home, be a housewife and put the children through school,” Cutler said. “Now that the children are older, I’m going back and doing the things that most people do when they’re younger.

“I’m just glad I’ve been able to maintain my athletics this long, be active and not become sedentary.”

In addition to playing No. 6 singles for the Bobcats, Cutler is a full-time art student and part-time employee at MSU and full-time mother for her son, Ian, now 10, and her daughter, Michelle, 15.

“It’s really tough,” she conceded. “I have to be very organized, and I can’t let one thing slip or get behind.”

Cutler said she sought Ian’s permission before going out for tennis because she worried he might be “neglected a little bit.”

“I make sure to make time for him, like going skiing together every weekend, so it hasn’t been too bad for him,” she said.

One reason her family was so understanding was that her children and ex-husband, Jim, an MSU microbiology professor, are top-ranked tennis players as well.

Cutler was top-ranked in her age group in Montana when she returned to school two years ago, and she asked Bobcat Coach Jerry Peach if she could try out.

“I knew I had four years of eligibility, and I thought it would be kinda fun to play on a team,” she said. “I made the team and lettered. I thought that was pretty neat at age 39.”

She compiled a 14-5 record her rookie season and finished fourth in the conference championships. She didn’t play on the team last year because of lack of time, but with some scholarship aid and more organization, she’s getting everything done this year.