Teacher Drew making the grade on court

Maria Drew knows how to transfer the patience she has learned in the classroom to her matches on the court.

The patience enhances her baseline style of play. Last weekend, Drew won a singles championship in the state-sanctioned Spring Fling at Clearwater's Royal Racquet Club. "Basically, I was lucky in my baseline game," Drew said. "I'm pretty much a counter-

puncher -- not as aggressive as I should be -- but I am pretty consistent and patient."

Drew defeated Rachel Molina of Tampa 6-1, 6-3 in an open semifinal match, then beat Tampa's Rachael Sanchez by the same score in the final.

Drew and her husband, Don, moved to St. Petersburg from Atlanta in August. "There's so much tennis to play here," Drew said, "how could you not play it?"

Drew hadn't played much as an adult after learning the game at age 9 when she tagged along with her older sister, who continues to play competitively. Growing up in Nashville, Drew preferred individual sports, such as tennis, because she liked being able to control her results better than in a team sport.

"When I got out of college, I had some injuries, including knee surgery, and felt I probably shouldn't play," Drew said. "So for some years, I didn't play, until I met my husband-to-be on the racquetball court.

"When we played racquetball, he couldn't understand why it was somewhat easy for me," she said. "When I told him about my tennis growing up, we played some tennis, then we continued to play."

Drew has taught in the public school system eight years -- seven at the high school level -- and is in her first year at the middle school level at Tyrone Middle.

Balancing teaching requirements and tennis limits Drew's court time. But when it's time to play, she's ready. "I love playing, more than I ever did before. It's more social now. I guess as an adult it's more fun."

MIXED PLAY: Royal Racquet Club defeated Bardmoor Golf and Tennis Club 2-1 in a senior 7.5 doubles playoff Sunday, earning a state tournament berth. Sue Michelman and Jim Foster (No. 1) scored Bardmoor's only point in a third-set tie-breaker. A one-match playoff is scheduled March 24 for the two Bardmoor teams.

SUPER SENIOR LEAGUE: Ruth Eichler and Joann Huebner scored Bardmoor's only point in its matchup with Westin Innisbrook Resort in the USA League Tennis 3.5 division. Eichler and Huebner survived a first-set loss in the No. 1 slot to win 4-6, 6-0, 6-4. Prior to this week's matches, Bardmoor and Innisbrook were tied for first with a 3-1 record in the four-team division. Shipwatch Tennis Club extended its winning streak to six in the south division with its 3-0 decision over Treasure Island Tennis and Yacht Club last week. Winning for Shipwatch were Henry Van Drunen and Evan Odden (No. 1), Billy Oliver and Rod Rodriguez (No. 2) and Bill Nelligar and Bill Grammp (No. 3). The St. Petersburg Tennis Center raised its mark to 5-1 with a 3-0 victory over Bardmoor. SPTC points were scored by Fred DeJohn and Horst Brinkman (No. 1), Allen Kline and Tom Clark (No. 2) and Nick Karamessinis and Jim McDonald (No. 3). The top two squads in the south will face the top two in the super senior northMarch 26, with the final scheduled for April 2.

ADULT LEAGUE: The Renaissance Vinoy scored its second victory in the 2-week-old USA League Tennis 3.5 men's season with a 5-0 decision over the Racquet Club of St. Petersburg. Richard Knipe and Terry Brett won the No. 1 and No. 2 singles, respectively, in straight sets. Gottlieb Keller and Paul Haggar took No. 1 doubles, and David Brett and David Calametti won at No. 2. Jeff Szilage and Joe Dudek overcame a second-set loss to win the No. 3 position, 6-4, 6-7, 7-5. In the 3.0 competition, Feather Sound defeated Countryside Country Club 4-1 with a No. 1 singles win from Peter Paulin and three doubles victories. Straight-set winners were Greg Miller and Roger Rogers (No. 1) and George Ditzel and Dan Diloreto (No. 2). John Smith and Tom Schultz (No. 3) won for Feather Sound in three sets.

NET NOTES: Gewan Maharaj, a tennis professional at the Vinoy, survived a three-set singles final in the 50-and-over division to finish first in the Spring Fling at Royal Racquet Club last weekend. Maharaj teamed with Carolyn Franca to win the 35 mixed doubles title. Andres Molina, a former tennis pro in St. Petersburg who's working in Tampa, defended his 40 top seeding with a three-set victory for the title. Rob Perry was a finalist in men's 30.

Morgan Frank and Evangelina Soriano won the women's open doubles crown in the Spring Adult Classic at East Lake Woodlands. Soriano was a semifinalist in open singles. Frank reached the quarterfinal round.

South Pinellas Ladies Doubles completes its spring session today. In the 3.0-3.5 division, Shipwatch B has 15 points. It's followed by Shipwatch C, 11. There are eight squads in the league.

There is a tie in the nine-team South Pinellas 3.5-4.0 division among the St. Petersburg Country Club Aces, SPCC Smashers, Treasure Island Recreation and Shipwatch. Today, the Aces play Shipwatch and the Smashers face TI Rec.

Friday is the final match of the Suncoast Women's Singles League. St. Petersburg hosts Bardmoor, and Vinoy I plays Vinoy II. East Lake (32 points) is in first, followed by Bardmoor (31), Vinoy II (23), Vinoy I (16) and SPCC (12).

COMING UP: Sarmiento's Annual Championships, for juniors, is March 23-25 at St. Petersburg Tennis Center. Call Al Sarmiento, 360-2643. ... The Fun N' Sun Easter Classic is March 29-31 at Clearwater's McMullen Tennis Center. Call Tomas Ollestad, 669-1919.

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