Broward, O/S/L Dominate at Adult 40 & Over 2.5W/3.5/4.5 Sectionals

Broward and Orange/Seminole/Lake each collected two titles, while Marion County took home the remaining one up for grabs at the USTA Florida Adult 40 & Over 2.5W/3.5/4.5 Sectional Championships, held July 24-26 at the USTA National Campus.

A total of only five teams – Alachua, Brevard, Hillsborough, Marion, and Orange/Seminole/Lake – battled for the women’s 2.5 crown, making it the only division that was strictly round-robin play. The squads from Alachua (Hawkstone Golf & Tennis Club, Gainesville) and Marion (Fort King Tennis Center, Ocala) counties set themselves apart from the competition and both finished with identical team scores of 3-1 and individual scores of 8 wins and 4 losses. The determining factor came down to a decisive dual in which Marion bested Alachua by a 2-1 margin, putting Marion on top of the standings with the tiebreaking going in their favor.

Both women’s 3.5 and 4.5 divisions were dominated by Orange/Seminole/Lake teams. In the 3.5, the squad representing the USTA National Campus exited Flight 2 with a perfect 4-0 record, while the crew from Orlando’s Lake Cane Tennis Center also went 4-0 to finish atop Flight 1. Both teams then went on to sweep their semifinal matchups, producing an all-Orange County championship dual. The National Campus squad proved to be a force to be reckoned with, capturing the singles line and the first two doubles spots. Lake Cane’s solid effort on court three got the team on the board, but it wasn’t enough to starve the National Campus team of the title.

In the women’s 4.5, Orange/Seminole/Lake (Azalea Center, Winter Park) cruised through Flight 1 with victories in all four dual matches, only dropping just three courts along the way. They went head-to-head with Flight 2 winner Broward County (Frank Veltri Tennis Center, Plantation) in the championship match, and despite putting up a strong challenge, Broward just couldn’t stop Orange/Seminole/Lake. The Azalea Center squad claimed the singles position and doubles court three, while the remaining two doubles lines were decided in a match tiebreak that ultimately went to Orange/Seminole/Lake.

While Broward County may not have taken home a women’s title, they delivered in the men’s 3.5 and 4.5 divisions. In the men’s 3.5, Broward (Weston Tennis Center, Weston) was the wild card entrant into the semifinals after finishing second in Flight 3. The semifinals pitted Broward against the previously unbeaten Orange/Seminole/Lake squad (USTA National Campus, Orlando) in a dual that was ultimately decided by the total number of games won after each team claimed two courts. With the title at stake, Broward commanded the championship matchup against Polk County (Lakeland Yacht & Country Club, Lakeland), clinching the team win with a 4-0 record. The 3.5 men’s crown returns to Broward after Brevard County broke Broward’s 3-year streak in the division in 2020.

Finally in the men’s 4.5, the final came down to neighboring counties Broward (Parkland Tennis Center, Parkland) and Miami-Dade (Kendall Tennis Training Center, Miami). All four courts ended in straight sets, with Broward conquering singles plus doubles courts two and three to clinch the title. Miami-Dade prevailed at line one, as Ricardo Matos Casas and Julio Moran finished with a 6-4, 6-2 record to set the final margin at 3-1 in Broward’s favor.

The competing teams represented various clubs, parks, recreational departments and organizations, and finished at the top of their local leagues during the 2021 season to advance to the USTA Florida Adult 40 & Over 2.5/3.5/4.5 Sectional Championships.

Final results:

40 & Over Women’s 2.5

Final: Marion County (Fort King Tennis Center, Ocala) finished ahead of Alachua County (Hawkstone Golf & Tennis Club, Gainesville) 3-1, 3-1 in round-robin play

Marion County Season Roster: Laura Roberson (Captain), Melissa Lozano, Georgina Bumpas, Cindy Hinton, Nancy Tuten, Beth Arms, Monique Foster, Nancy Godiska, Oksana Velis

40 & Over Men’s 3.5

Final: Broward County (Weston Tennis Center, Weston) d. Polk County (Lakeland Yacht & Country Club, Lakeland) 4-0

Championship Match Results:
No. 1 Singles: Marcelo Kuhn (Broward) d. Jonathan Trohn 6-3, 6-3
No. 1 Doubles: Jorge Nieto Castellanos/Juan Macias (Broward) d. Alan Harris/Robert Cleghorn (retired) 4-6, 5-2 
No. 2 Doubles: Franco De Andreis/Roberto Palma (Broward) d. Sal Campisi/Paul Colee 6-2, 6-4
No. 3 Doubles: Jorge Cortes/Alejandro Araya (Broward) d. Michael Strickland/Cory Petcoff 6-3, 6-4

Broward County Season Roster: Jack Vargas (Captain), Juan Macias, Francisco Garcia, Andres Varela, Marcelo Kuhn, Nicolo Safina, Junior Carrasquero, Roberto Palma, Alejandro Araya, Juan Gonzalez, Franco De Andreis, Gianfranco Bacigalupo, Jorge Nieto Castellanos, Bruno Marsili, Jorge Cortes

40 & Over Women’s 3.5

Final: Orange County (USTA National Campus, Orlando) d. Orange County (Lake Cane Tennis Center, Orlando) 3-1

Championship Match Results:
No. 1 Singles: Alisa Wolfe (Orange/USTA) d. Michelle Long 6-2, 6-1
No. 1 Doubles: Natalia Bonavia/Fabricia Funes (Orange/USTA) d. Grace Stewart/Kellye Hug 6-1, 6-2
No. 2 Doubles: Natalie Beavers/Amanda Barritt (Orange/USTA) d. Terri Haddock/Emily Sakol 6-1, 6-2
No. 3 Doubles: Jamie Roedig/Angela Tuckerman (Orange/LC) d. Pamela Collins/Gaby Hansen 6-2, 6-0

Orange County (USTA) Season Roster: Amanda Barritt (Captain), Leslie Hartog, Leslie Weeks, Natalie Beavers, Katie Wu, Jillian Baptiste, Gaby Hansen, Cheryl Tolentino-Bernabe, Kathleen Sipio, Pamela Collins, Natalia Bonavia, Alisa Wolfe, Natasha Holland-Lobova, Fabricia Funes, Victoria Karen

40 & Over Men’s 4.5

Final: Broward County (Parkland Tennis Center, Parkland) d. Miami-Dade County (Kendall Tennis Training Center, Miami) 3-1

Championship Match Results:
No. 1 Singles: Robert Nickels (Broward) d. Rick Guevara 6-4, 6-4
No. 1 Doubles: Ricardo Matos Casas/Julio Moran (Miami-Dade) d. Victor Albo/Atif Raoof 6-4, 6-2
No. 2 Doubles: Alejandro Cadena/Jay Graff (Broward) d. Marcos Lopez/Eddy Leal 6-3, 6-3
No. 3 Doubles: T. Dienes/Giovanni Guido (Broward) d. Ramon Hudec/G. Emerson Fales 6-3, 7-6

Broward County Season Roster: Les Liese (Captain), Giovanni Guido, Evan David, Robert Nickels, Jay Graff, Victor Albo, Brett Kurtz, David Spohn, Bruce Kurtz, Ed Ellman, T Dienes, Alejandro Caden, Nicolas Lahaye, Atif Raoof

40 & Over Women’s 4.5

Final: Orange County (Azalea Center, Winter Park) d. Broward County (Frank Veltri Tennis Center, Plantation) 4-0

Championship Match Results:
No. 1 Singles: JoAnn Mokris (Orange) d. Jill Gioeli 6-2, 6-4
No. 1 Doubles: Kristine Dionne/Kerry Sproles (Orange) d. Gabriela Castanon/Alaina Fotiu-Wojtowicz 6-2, 3-6, 1-0
No. 2 Doubles: Anne-Marie Miller/Tami Florin (Orange) d. Natalia Moll/Laura Di Lauro 3-6, 6-4, 1-0
No. 3 Doubles: Lindsay Puder/Pamela Saffran (Orange) d. Denise Rapetti/Kumiko Currie 6-3, 6-1

Orange County Season Roster: Anne-Marie Miller (Captain), Kristine Dionne, JoAnn Mokris, Pamela Saffran, Kerry Sproles, Julie Humphreys, Tami Florin, Maura Trubman Weiner, Terri Thomson, Janet Lower, Christine Alfert, Elena Escamilla, Kim Frilot, Becky Cusick, Lindsay Puder