The Florida Tennis Center in Daytona Beach is beginning to look familiar to a number of Pasco players.
Many are making a second trip to the state association headquarters' courts this weekend to compete in the USA Tennis Florida Super Senior Championships.
Earlier this month, many of the same players competed in the senior tournament.
Westin Innisbrook Resort's 3.5 super senior women will attempt to defend their title against seven challengers. The Phil Green Tennis Academy's 3.5 super senior men will compete with 10 teams with hopes of defending their crown.
"We are definitely excited about going," Innisbrook captain Phyllis Gary said. Innisbrook lost just two positions all season, but Gary said the state tournament is different.
"All through the season, we mixed and matched players according to who's available and who's not injured," Gary said. "As we get a little older, more injuries creep in."
Recovering from recent knee surgery, Gary will be the non-playing captain this weekend.
"The nice thing about this team is that they are so good and cooperative, it's easy for me to be the captain, whether or not I'm playing," Gary said. The women begin competition today in a flight among four teams, including Jacksonville, Lakeland and Ormond Beach. The top team in the flight will battle with the top team in a second flight for the state championship.
Joining Gary will be Reme Johnson, Jean McKenzie, Kay Fitzpatrick, Diane Galemmo, Joan Holland, Bonny Boosales, Sue Luidens, Nancy Kraemer, Maureen Sternberg and Shirl Ahrens.
On the men's side, competing at this level is nothing new to Joe Gari.
"We're hoping for a three-peat," Gari said. "When we first started competing at state, we would face teams that had a strong No. 1 team, but players of less ability in No. 2 and No. 3," he said. "That was to our advantage then because we had good depth. Now, though, more teams are doing the same thing and coming in with more depth on their teams."
Although the PGTA will have its work cut out for it, Gari feels confident.
Prepared to challenge teams from Tallahassee, Lakeland, Vero Beach and New Smyrna Beach in its flight round-robin are Gari, Dick Lashley, Glenn Merrer, Carlo Mugavero, Willie Coquelet, Ken Hogle, Fred Elflein, Richard Hough, John Kuhn, Woody Woodbury and Bob Anderson.
The team with the best overall record among the five will play the corresponding team in a second flight for the state title.
Competition for men's and women's 3.0, 3.5 and 4.0 begins today with championships determined by Sunday. In all, there are 19 women's teams and 26 men's.
NET SHOTS: Alejandrina Goff of Wesley Chapel won her second consecutive girls 16-and-under singles title in last weekend's Memories in Clearwater state-sanctioned event. Goff beat Wesley Chapel's Andrea Nevarez 6-0, 6-1 in the final. Other Pasco winners included Naoaki Enomot in the boys 14 and Diego Ferraez in boys 10. Finalists were Nathaniel Palombo in the boys 12 and Miguel Muguruza in boys 14.
The Aces defended their Advantage Ladies League title by scoring 133 points, nine more than second-place Dunedin, in the nine-team league.
Nearly 200 players competed in men's, women's and mixed doubles in the 13th Annual Morton Plant Mease Benefit Tournament in Oldsmar. Among the finalists was New Port Richey's Maureen Sternberg, who teamed with Palm Harbor's Carolyn Speckman in the women's 3.5. Paul Doucette and Robert Coffin won the men's 3.5 consolation draw.
COMING UP: The Summer Classic for junior singles players is June 7-9 at the Phil Green Tennis Academy in Safety Harbor. The state-sanctioned competition includes a consolation draw for first-round losers. Call Green at (727) 724-7729 before June 4.
