Posts tagged tennis
Macie Elliott, Memorial Tigers tennis team seek trip to state
Apr 3rd
Smart and disciplined, Memorial High School sophomore Macie Elliott has everything it takes to make another drive to the girls’ state tennis tournament. This year, however, she hopes to bring her Tigers’ teammates along for the ride.
Elliott will be joined by freshman Jasmine Lee, who will move into the No. 2 singles slot. Junior Liz Wilm, who played No. 1 singles two years ago, will return at No. 1 doubles.
Elliott and Wilm helped lead Memorial to their eighth Southern Indiana Athletic Conference title in a row last year and a semistate berth.
“It’s great to have Jasmine Lee; she’ll be a great addition,” Elliott said.
Elliott said she plays with Lee nearly every day, in or out of season.
“She’s a really consistent baseliner,” Elliott said. “She’s really a good player. She’s consistent and still aggressive.”
They hope to spark Memorial to a berth in the team state finals.
“That would be a great accomplishment since we weren’t able to get there last year,” Elliott said.
Individually, she lost in last year’s state semifinals, then won the third-place match to finish 25-2.
“I’ve always been really competitive,” Elliott said. “That’s what really drives me to stay focused to be the best. I try to get better every single day on the court.”
Ray Trapp, who came out of retirement to coach Memorial’s boys last fall, is also coaching the Tigers’ girls this spring. Trapp, who coached North’s boys for 18 years and the Huskies girls for eight before retiring in 2006, said there are some major differences in boys’ and girls’ players.
“Girls are very interested in having a nice uniform and sometimes the boys aren’t real interested in their uniform,” he said. “I have to get them to wear their team uniform.”
Another difference is the weather is usually hot or mild in the fall while it can be cold and nasty in the spring. But he said his girls rarely complain.
As far as Elliott is concerned, Trapp said she has improved her serve and has a complete game.
“She just needs to keep playing at the level she’s playing,” he said. “She needs to continue to work hard. She could be right back at the state finals, I think.”
Memorial will open its season in the 32-team Deco Turf Tournament, featuring teams from Indiana, Kentucky, Ohio and Tennessee, at several sites in Louisville, Ky.
The Tigers’ first match will be against Fort Thomas (Ky.) Highlands at 4:30 p.m. CDT on Friday at Louisville St. Xavier.
While Trapp is not settled on his entire lineup, he said sophomore Rachel Swartwood will play No. 3 singles in the season-opening tourney.
After losing Jessica Huhnke to graduation, Castle hopes Rachel Bottorff will be a top contender as she moves from No. 2 to No. 1 singles.
From www.courierpress.com
HS boys’ tennis preview: SIA lineup issues make it anybody’s race
Apr 2nd
Advance All-Star Eric Brinzenskiy leads Staten Island Academy into a new tennis season. – (Staten Island Advance photo by Hilton Flores)
Like a koala clinging to a eucalyptus tree, Staten Island Academy is holding tight to its slipping Staten Island High School Tennis League championship chances.
And the three-time defending kings may long for those halcyon days of the past four years when the 2011 season gets under way Monday as the Tigers put their 44-match winning streak out there at St. Joseph by-the-Sea.
SIA was thrown a curve in the preseason when league officials decided that the Tigers could not use elementary school students in their lineup.
Last year then seventh- grader Chris Auteri posted a 20-0 match record. He and seventh-grader Tyler Pasko have been ruled ineligible for SIHSTL matches but will play behind Advance All-Star Eric Brinzenskiy in the school’s ACIS matches.
To add to coach Brian Manske’s Maalox moments is the current wrist injury to Brinzenskiy which could throw his singles lineup — he has no returning doubles starters — into disarray.
Manske is more unsure than a teenager on his first date.
“I don’t know how we’ll stack up,” Manske said. “We lost nine seniors. I can’t make any predictions. We need time to establish ourselves. We could finish anywhere.”
If Brinzenskiy is ready to tango, newcomers Joseph D’Arco and Victor Barbosa will get crash courses in singles. If the Tiger junior is a no go, all bets are off and it’s wide open.
Once-upon-a-time champion (2006) Monsignor Farrell has the best shot at netting its 16th title since 1979. The Lions have a potent singles group in Ryan Amberger, Eddie Esposito, and Rob Pinto.
Sea will be stronger with the addition of Advance All-Star defensive end Nick Altieri, along with returnee Austin Kapetanakis and improved sophomores Anthony Sayed and Nick Doherty.
St. Peter’s Ryan Villarruel, a four-year starter at first singles, will be the next best to Brinzenskiy, and former Wagner College mentor Ed Perpetua will make his high school coaching debut with the inexperienced SIA Gold squad.
From highschoolsports.silive.com
EKU Women’s Tennis Falls to Jacksonville State, 4-3
Apr 2nd
RICHMOND, Ky. – The Eastern Kentucky University women’s tennis team completed its 2011 home schedule with a tough 4-3 loss to Jacksonville State Saturday. The Colonels (10-10, 2-3 OVC) play their final three regular season matches on the road.
Eastern opened the match by taking the doubles point, but Jacksonville State (7-10, 4-1) rallied to win four of the six singles contests. JSU’s Ralphaela Lima clinched the win by defeating freshman Milena Poffo at No. 4 singles, 6-2, 4-6, 6-2.
Sophomore Jessica Albuquerque picked up her fifth straight win with a straight-set victory at No. 1 singles.
Four of EKU’s five OVC matches have ended with a score of 4-3.
Eastern Kentucky is back in action on Tuesday, April 5 at Morehead State.
Jacksonville State 4, Eastern Kentucky 3
Singles
1. Jessica Albuquerque (EKU) def. Viviane Marani (JSU) 6-3, 6-2
2. Martina Dessbesell (JSU) def. Myriem Mhirit (EKU) 7-6, 6-2
3. Raisa Guasti (JSU) def. Anouk Faure (EKU) 7-6, 6-3
4. Ralphaela Lima (JSU) def. Milena Poffo (EKU) 6-2, 4-6, 6-2
5. Saioa Oscoz (EKU) def. Juliana Renesto (JSU) 4-6, 7-6, 6-3
6. Rafaela Wenzel (JSU) def. Sophie O’Neill (EKU) 6-2, 6-3
Doubles
1. Albuquerque/Oscoz (EKU) def. Dessbesell/Marani (JSU) 9-7
2. Guasti/Lima (JSU) def. Faure/O’Neill (EKU) 8-4
3. Mhirit/Poffo (EKU) def. Renesto/Wenzel (JSU) 8-4
Match Notes: Eastern Kentucky (10-10, 2-3 OVC); Jacksonville State (7-10, 4-1 OVC)
Order of Finish: Doubles (3, 2, 1); Singles (1, 6, 3, 2, 4*, 5)
From www.ekusports.com
Transylvania Nips Rose-Hulman Men’s Tennis;
Apr 2nd
David Becerra won at No. 2 singles for the Engineers. TERRE HAUTE, IND. — Transylvania University narrowly extended its streak of victories against Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference competition to 43 matches with a 5-4 men’s tennis win over Rose-Hulman on Saturday.
The Engineers return to action against Manchester at 4 p.m. today.
Sophomore Devon Fritz (Lakeside, Calif./West Hills) led the Engineers with a win at No. 4 singles and by teaming with senior Alex Gumz (Palatine, Ill./William Fremd) for a No. 2 doubles victory.
Other winners included senior David Becerra (Brownsburg) at No. 2 singles and Seth Hendrickson (Crawfordsville) at the No. 5 singles position.
Rose-Hulman stands 5-5 overall and returns to action this afternoon.
From www.rose-hulman.edu
Men’s Tennis Downs Duke
Apr 2nd
Virginia men’s tennis, ranked #1 in the country, returned to Charlottesville for the first time in a month and a half and delivered a resounding 6-1 victory over ACC rival Duke. With the win over #10 Duke, Virginia extended their conference win streak to 69 straight, an ACC record. It was Duke’s first conference loss of the year.
“I was pleased with our overall performance today,” said head coach Brian Boland. “Duke is a great team and gave a great effort and we knew we were going to have to rise to that challenge today. We need to keep working hard and continue to improve as we have another tough match Sunday against North Carolina.
Full match results below the fold. As noted by Coach Boland, Virginia returns to action on Sunday against #17 UNC. Virginia and North Carolina are the only remaining undefeated teams in the ACC.
#1 Virginia 6, #10 Duke 1
Doubles
1. #2 Shabaz/Courtney (UVa) def. #6 Cunha/Carleton (Duke) 8-6
2. Singh/Jenkins (UVa) def. Holland/Mengel (Duke) 8-5
3. Hammond/Wietoska (Duke) def. Domijan/Rooda (UVa) 8-6
Singles
1. #6 Henrique Cunha (Duke) def. #5 Michael Shabaz (UVa) 7-6(7), 6-3
2. #2 Alex Domijan (UVa) def. #8 Reid Carleton (Duke) 6-2, 6-2
3. #25 Sanam Singh (UVa) def. #123 Chris Mengel (Duke) 6-2, 6-1
4. #44 Jarmere Jenkins (UVa) def. Fred Saba (Duke) 4-6, 6-4, 7-6(3)
5. #37 Drew Courtney (UVa) def. Torsten Wietoska (Duke) 7-5, 6-3
6. Justin Shane (UVa) def. Luke Marchese (Duke) 6-4, 5-7, 6-2
Order of Finish
Doubles: 3,2,1
Singles: 3,2,5,1,6,4
From www.streakingthelawn.com
Rocky tennis finishes 3rd at tourney
Apr 2nd
DENVER – Cara Cromwell won the No. 1 singles title, and Rocky Mountain High School girls tennis players played for championships at three other positions Friday to lead the Lobos to a third-place finish in an eight-team tournament hosted by George Washington.
Cromwell, a junior, beat players from Greeley West and Legacy to reach the title match, where she downed Centaurus’ Glenna Gee-Taylor 6-1, 6-4.
Peak to Peak, a charter school in Lafayette, won the team title with 42 points. Greeley West was second with 37 and Rocky Mountain third with 35.
Rocky Mountain’s Nicole Leinhart finished second at No. 2 singles, losing in the final to a player from Greeley West after defeating players from Legacy and Centaurus in earlier rounds.
The Lobos’ No. 3 doubles team of Heather Raney and Nicole Garza and the No. 4 team of Jocelyn Gentry and Aubrey Davis also finished second, while No. 3 singles player Natalie House and the No. 1 doubles team of Brianna Garza and Sarah Hite placed third.
FOSSIL RIDGE 5, STEAMBOAT SPRINGS 2 – At Steamboat Springs, Fossil Ridge swept the doubles matches and also got a win from No. 2 singles player Sarah Brown to hand host Steamboat Springs its first loss in five matches this season.
The Fossil Ridge doubles teams of Mikayla Bladow and Meghan O’Donnell at No. 1, Rachel Fernandez and Lea Johnson at No. 2, Shelby Mavis and Kaitlyn Motley at No. 3 and Andrea Motley and Lauren Rhoda at No. 4 all won their matches in straight sets.
Brown also was a straight-sets winner, dispatching Rachel Steck 7-5, 6-2.
Steamboat Springs’ Christi Valicenti beat Kori Combs 6-2, 6-3 at No. 1 singles, and Claire Parsons downed Fossil Ridge’s Sarah Franch 7-5, 6-2 at No. 3 singles.
BASEBALL
HERITAGE CHRISTIAN 13, DAYSPRING CHRISTIAN 12 - Eli Smith hit a grand slam during a six-run fourth inning to put Heritage Christian (3-3) in front and T.J. Frasco picked up the victory with 4 2/3 strong innings of relief work to lift the Eagles past Dayspring Christian at Fossil Creek Park.
David Merkley had a triple for Heritage Christian, which managed to win despite committing eight fielding errors.
Smith, Frasco and Derek Isabelle had two hits apiece for the Eagles.
From www.coloradoan.com
Fort Scott tennis plays at Indy
Apr 2nd
INDEPENDENCE, Kan. — Fort Scott High School’s tennis team faced tough competition at a five-team round-robin tournament here Thursday and finished in fourth place.
All of the Tigers’ victories came against Labette County. Independence, Parsons and Arkansas City each swept Fort Scott.
“We knew this would be a tough match considering the opponents we would be facing,” Fort Scott head coach Lynn Barr said, “and knew it would be even tougher since we would be without our normal No. 1 singles, 2 Singles and 1 doubles team. They were unable to play due to a conflict with field trip by another school group. But I thought the kids we took down there did a nice job of competing. For four of them, it was their first ever varsity action and this gave them a chance to see what they will need to do to compete at a higher level.”
Barr used different combinations against each opponent. Bryce Daly played No. 1 singles against Ark City and Indy and Austin Sather played in that spot against LCHS and Parsons.
Daly lost to Alex Behrens of Ark City, 8-1, and Nick Romans of Independence, 8-0. Sather defeated LC’s Joshua Mathes, 8-2, and lost to Parsons’ Payton Hayes, 8-0.
Brett Allen played No. 2 singles against Ark City’s Rett Posey, who won 8-3. Matt Hull was there against Indy’s Skylar Stacy, who took an 8-1 decision. Wyatt Hulbert defeated LC’s Dakota Lewis in his match, 8-5. Kyle Kelly lost to Parsons’ Corentin Prevot, 8-2.
“I was pleased with the effort of all of the singles players today,” Barr said. “Bryce played pretty well in his two matches, but was up against some very good competition. Austin played a nice match against LCHS and had some good points against and excellent player from Parsons in his other match. Wyatt hung on to (win) his first varsity match against LCHS. Matt, Brett and Kyle all played hard but were just facing some strong opponents.”
Kelly and Davis Drake played the first two matches in No. 1 doubles. Macen Vargas/John Rohr of Arkansas City won 8-1 and Gavin Webster/Tyler Posch of Independence won 8-0. Drake and Daly paired up against Labette County’s Andy Emerson/Conner Traxson and won 8-1. That combination later lost to Parker Robinson/John Paul Hurley of Parsons, 8-1.
Hull and Hulbert were paired for two No. 2 doubles matches, losing to Jake Hull/Jake Sillman of Ark City, 8-2, and Alex Jack/Alex Jacquinot of Parsons, 8-3. Sather and Allen lost 8-3 to Indy’s Joel Simwinga/Aidan Goodrich. Kelly and Allen shut out LC’s Cody Fought/Michael Banowetz.
“Much like in singles, we were just facing some really tough competition for most of the evening,” Barr said. “Davis played with both Kyle and Bryce today and both combinations played pretty well at times and struggled at times. We are still trying to sort out who will be on the second doubles team and these three are all very close right now. ”
Independence and Parsons tied for the team title with 14 points each. Indy’s No. 1 singles and doubles entries won their divisions and Parsons’ No. 2 singles and doubles won theirs.
Fort Scott plays at 3 p.m. Tuesday in Spring Hill, Kan.
From www.fstribune.com
Eagles Fall to Dolphins in Women’s Tennis Dual
Apr 2nd
Friday, April 01, 2011 Print Email RSS Share
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Returning to Atlantic Sun Conference action in Jacksonville, Fla., the FGCU women’s tennis team fell to Jacksonville, 5-2, on Friday. Freshman Bettina Botha (Cape Town, South Africa/De Kuilen HS) and sophomore Bibiana Almeida (Porto, Portugal/Schiller International School) each recorded singles wins in the dual contest.
The loss dropped the Eagles’ record to 9-8 (4-5 A-Sun) while the Dolphins improved their mark to 14-4 (5-3 A-Sun).
In the afternoon doubles action, Jacksonville recorded the opening point by taking two of the three matches. Preventing the sweep of the paired competitions, Almeida and junior Jen Evans (Fort Myers, Fla./Evangelical Christian HS) battled in the No. 3 contest to grab a 9-7 victory over Virginia Iwinski and Veronique Spence.
FGCU scored its two points in the day’s singles play with victories in the No. 4 and No. 6 positions. Botha turned away Natalie Melibeu, 6-3, 7-6, at No. 4, and Almeida continued her success from doubles play with a 7-5, 6-4 win over Spence in the No. 6 singles spot.
The Eagles will return to the courts on Saturday for the final dual contest of the 2011 spring season. UNF will play host to the Blue and Green beginning at 10 a.m. The Ospreys (11-4, 6-2 A-Sun) had their five-match winning streak snapped with a 4-3 loss to Stetson on Friday.
Results and recaps from the spring finale with UNF will be available at www.FGCUAthletics.com following the match.
Doubles Results
1. Eve Castaing/Gabriela Bartos (JU) def. Iris Rendon/Bettina Botha (FGCU), 8-6
2. Flavia Nagayama/Natalia Melibeu (JU) def. Morgan Bechtel/Gyanna Mandic (FGCU), 8-6
3. Bibiana Almeida/Jen Evans (FGCU) def. Virginia Iwinski/Veronique Spencer (JU), 9-7
Singles Results
1. Eve Castaing (JU) def. Morgan Bechtel (FGCU), 6-2, 6-2
2. Gabriela Bartos (JU) def. Iris Rendon (FGCU), 6-2, 6-2
3. Flavia Nagayama (JU) def. Jen Evans (FGCU), 6-2, 6-0
4. Bettina Botha (FGCU) def. Natalia Melibeu (JU), 6-3, 7-6
5. Virginia Iwinski (JU) def. Gyanna Mandic (FGCU), 6-4, 6-3
6. Bibiana Almeida (FGCU) def. Veronique Spencer (JU), 7-5, 6-4
From www.fgcuathletics.com
Big tennis tourney begins today
Apr 1st
Big tennis tourney begins today Published 6:55pm Friday, April 1, 2011
The Bainbridge Leisure Services Department is sponsoring the four-day Georgia-Florida State Junior Open Tennis Championships, which get underway today at two local sites.
Matches in the tournament, which is a United States Tennis Association (USTA) sanctioned event, will be played today, Sunday, Monday and Tuesday at Bill Reynolds Tennis Center and the Carole Simpson Floyd Tennis Complex.
Tournament seeds are determined by using a modified all factors method with consideration given to national and sectional standings.
Leisure Services tennis professional Tim Thompson reports that 175 Georgia and Florida junior players ranging in age from 10 years old and under to 18 years old will be taking part in the tournament. There will be both singles and doubles play.
“Tennis tournaments like the one we are having this weekend and the first of next week inject a lot of tourism dollars into the community,” Thompson said.
“We always want to put our best foot forward, so if anyone sees people from out of town who are looking for directions, a place to eat, or other places in town, give them a smile and a helping hand,” Thompson said.
Thompson said local folks are always welcome to come and watch the matches. At the end of the tournament, they will be giving a male sportsmanship award and a female sportsmanship award.
While matches are being played at the Reynolds and Floyd courts, players will be practicing at the new Bainbridge High School courts, the Potter Street courts and the Cass Kirbo Tennis Center Courts at the Bainbridge-Decatur County YMCA.
Today’s tentative opening-round action will include first-round doubles followed by two rounds of main draw singles and first-round consolation competition.
The tentative Sunday schedule calls for one round of doubles, two rounds of consolation singles, one round of main draw singles and a qualifying doubles round.
Monday will feature the semifinal doubles round along with two rounds of consolation singles and two rounds of draw singles.
Action on the final day of tournament competition Tuesday tentatively calls for consolation play through the semi finals.
The consolation round will be played through the semi finals unless draw sizes are smaller than expected.
From www.thepostsearchlight.com
Chandler Prep tennis player Elena Shaw mature ‘beyond her years’
Apr 1st
College is roughly five months away, but Chandler Prep senior tennis player Elena Shaw is all set to tackle that new chapter of her life.
“I know theoretically how to live on my own, pay the bills, do my own grocery shopping,” the 18-year-old singles player said.
Shaw is equipped with these life skills because she’s been practicing them for the past two years while attending Chandler Prep. With her mother living in China and her father in Washington state, Shaw has been studying and competing in Chandler.
“It’s definitely made me a lot more independent,” she said. “I feel a lot better about myself and more confident. It’s a lot easier for me to go off into the adult world and go to college.”
Shaw was born in Indiana but moved to China when she was 2 years old. Early on, her parents decided that they wanted Shaw to get part of her education in China and part of it in the United States. The plan was to stay in China to get a solid foundation in math and then move to America for middle school and high school to focus on analytical thinking, Shaw said.
When she was 12 years old, Shaw moved to the U.S. and relocated all over the West. She spent a year and a half in California, lived in Arizona for the next two years, jumped up to Washington for the next year and finally came back to Arizona for her last two years of high school.
While Shaw has been in Chandler for the past two years, her dad has remained in Washington where he’s a professor at Evergreen State College. Her mom is still in China with Shaw’s 12-year-old sister. There her mom owns a company that helps foreign businesses transition into the Chinese market. Shaw’s parents are still married, but living apart is a lifestyle that isn’t unusual for the family.
“I don’t really remember a time when both my parents were always together in the same house just because when we were in China, my dad was always traveling around China as an exchange professor,” Shaw explained.
Shaw had been living with a host family in Chandler, but the family recently moved to Kansas. Since then, Shaw has taken up residence with her grandmother in Sun Lakes. The maturity she’s gained from not living with her parents has helped her as an athlete.
“She acts beyond her years,” coach Patrick McGlone said. “She plays beyond her years.”
So far this season, Shaw is undefeated in singles play. She went undefeated last year as well except for one match against a male player.
“What I see a lot in tennis is not so much the technique and the stroke, it’s the mental match toughness and she has a lot of that,” McGlone said. “When she falls a little bit behind, she just hunkers down and figures out what she needs to do. So she’s got the ability to self-correct her issues in the match.”
Shaw, who carries a 4.0 GPA, applied to 16 colleges including Stanford and Dartmouth. She plans to pursue a career in neuroscience, but hasn’t picked a school yet.
“She’ll have it all figured out as far as the things that they go through in terms of rooms and dorms and off-campus housing,” McGlone said. “She’s been going through all those motions in high school not to mention the curriculum at Chandler Prep, which is extremely advanced.”
In addition to tennis and a heavy school load, Shaw is involved in drama activities, the philosophy club and the school’s music program. Bearing that type of load comes naturally, Shaw said, and McGlone credits that to her parents.
“Even though they’re not here,” McGlone said, “they’ve done a lot to mold her.”
From www.azcentral.com
