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Letter to the editor

Two local teams win USTA state titles

By NANCY MORGAN, Tennis
Published January 16, 2008

Ten local teams competed in last weekend's 2007 BMW Combo Sectional Championships. Two returned with state titles, two more were runnersup and one reached the semifinals.

The three-day statewide competition was USTA Florida's largest league event, with about 1,000 players on 94 teams. In all, there were 73 adult and 21 senior teams competing at three different sites.

Claiming state titles were St. Petersburg Tennis Center's 7.5 senior women's squad and McMullen's 8.5 adult men's team. Treasure Bay's 6.5 senior men finished second, as did McMullen's senior 7.5 men. Countryside's 7.5 adult men's team played to the semifinal round.

Other local adult teams' placements included Eastlake 6.5 women, second in flight competition; Countryside 7.5 women, fifth in flight play; Royal Racquet 8.5, second in flight, and Countryside 6.5 men, fourth overall. Two-time defending champ Treasure Island Tennis and Yacht Club senior 6.5 women's team finished sixth overall.

"It was a real team effort, and the team did a good job," SPTC 7.5 senior team captain Susan Hobbs said. "We played pretty much with the same players through the season, and that helped keep us together."

SPTC rebounded from a first-match loss to Sarasota to beat Ocala 3-0, both Gainesville and Polk County with 2-1 scores, and Lee/Charlotte 3-0.

Once the McMullen 8.5 adult men's team beat South Miami 2-1 in its fourth match of the weekend, captain Ron Massey felt pretty confident about the team's chances.

"South Miami was a pretty good team, and our win against them came down to Paul Reilly and Lance Cohen winning No. 2 in the third-set tiebreaker," Massey said.

Rounding out the McMullen squad were Michael Erbe, Michael Rothberg, Ron Wiser, Rob Tenney, Kevin Hayslett, Steve Talner, John Beda, Terry Payton, Zachary Payne and Reinaldo Valor.

NET SHOTS: Nicholas Litsky survived a three-set battle to win the boys 12-and-under singles title in the Local Junior Championships at the St. Petersburg Tennis Center.

- St. Pete Beach's Vikas Molleti won the boys 10 singles title in last weekend's Winter Junior Rookie at Countryside Country Club. Joining Molleti in the winners' circle were top seed Carly Speorl (girls 10), Erin Grebenev (girls 12), top seed Rebecca Wehling (girls 14) and Martynas Lukosiunas (boys 12).

THIS WEEKEND: The sixth annual Tournament of Champions, the Suncoast Tennis Foundation's signature fundraising event, begins Friday at Eastlake Woodlands Country Club. For information about the three-day doubles event, call STF executive director Judy Foster at 725-3681.

COMING UP: The Treasure Bay Rookie Doubles Tournament begins Saturday at Treasure Bay. Call 547-4575. ... The Clearwater Adult NTRP Kickoff begins Jan. 25 at the McMullen Tennis Complex. Call 669-1919.

[Last modified January 15, 2008, 22:41:46]