Hillsborough County Crowned Florida’s 3rd USTA Adult League National Champion of Year; Other Top Finishers

The 2024 USTA Adult League National Championships began on October 18 and concluded on November 10 with various divisions and age groups in play. The competition took place in Arizona, California, and Florida as teams traveled to battle the best in the country. 

In the October Nationals, USTA Florida had two National Champions and for the November tournaments, USTA Florida has another champion, once again coming out of Hillsborough County. 

Let’s take a look at how the Sunshine State did in the second half of Nationals as the section has a National Champion and many top finishers.  

Adult 18 & Over 4.5 Men’s Championship – Hillsborough County 

Hillsborough County won the Adult 18 & Over 4.5 Men’s Championship!

Trying to stay hot from their Sectionals showing, Hillsborough County from the Sandra W Freedman Tennis Complex were locked in as their Nationals run began. Everything started off on script, with their pool play matches being dominated and going undefeated. This locked them into the semifinals against USTA Souther California. 

With the clash of two powerhouse sections, this was one of the best matches of the tournament. USTA Florida struck first, winning both singles lines and grabbing the early 2-0 lead, needing only one of the doubles to go their way. Southern California answered back though, winning the top line. But, the duo of Jordan Monosky and Paul Birdsong had the team on their back, winning Line No. 2 and close out a 3-2 series win.  

That win put them in the championship against USTA Midwest, the top seed. Unlike the semifinals, these two teams split the opening singles lines, setting up an intense round of doubles. However, USTA Florida came out and dominated, as the duos won all three lines and locked in the 4-1 win to become USTA Adult League National Champions! 

Ryan Gelhaus, the team’s captain was proud of everyone as they were able to achieve this together. “Our tennis team’s national championship victory really does reflect the unselfish and dedicated spirit of every player we had on the team since the season started back in January,” he said. “Each of the 18 players contributed positively throughout our local, sectional, and national matches, consistently prioritizing the team’s success over individual accolades. This championship holds special significance for me, as it reflects not only the talent on our roster but also the incredible character of the individuals who made up our team.”

Finals: USTA Florida (Sandra W Freedman Tennis Complex) defeated USTA Midwest 4-1 

No. 1 Singles: Jordan Monosky (Florida) d. Justin Collins 6-3, 6-1 

No. 2 Singles: Brian Nguyen (Midwest) d. Matthew Schnell 7-6, 6-3 

No. 1 Doubles: Mike Moenter/Paul Birdsong (Florida) d. Elijah Wisser/Daniel Huan 6-3, 6-4 

No. 2 Doubles: Arseniy Sklyarov/Justin Work (Florida) d. Jason Chen/Connor Stafford 6-3, 6-3 

No. 3 Doubles: Patrick Chang/Alexandre Bourdiaux (Florida) d. John Spina/Matthew Prigorac 5-7, 3-1 RET. 

Hillsborough County Championship Roster: Ryan Gelhaus (Captain), Mike Moenter (Captain), Dennis Barlotta, Scott Schuhriemen, Paul Birdsong, Bruno Alves, Arseniy Sklyarov, Kevin Tran, Patrick Chang, Michael Dixon, Jordan Monosky, Ben Tucker, Justin Work, Alexandre Bourdiaux, Manuel Alvarez, Matthew Schnell, Ignacio Molina, Adam Sandusky 

OTHER TOP FINISHERS 

Mixed 18 & Over 9.0 Championship – Pinellas County 

Pinellas County came in second place at the Mixed 18 & Over 9.0 National Championships.

Representing Florida and the Bardmoor Golf Tennis Club, the Pinellas County squad was amazing. They won every line in pool play and were the top seed going into playoffs. There, they took down USTA New England in a close 2-1, setting them up with Mid-Atlantic in the finals. 

The championship match was extremely close, as the teams split the first two lines. However, Mid-Atlantic was able to take the third line, meaning that Pinellas would finish second at Nationals. 

Pinellas County Season Roster: Danielle Nickerson (Captain) Paul Birdsong, Maria Stand, Jordan Monosky, Jamie Hamilton, Heather Walton, Mike Moenter, Stephen Felman, Ashlen Dicicco, Megan Smith, Kaitlynn Groves, Josh Melton, Courage Okungbow 

Adult 55 & Over 6.0 Women’s Championship – Escambia County  

Escambia County came in third place at the Adult 55 & Over 6.0 National Championships.

Coming out of Escambia County, hopes were high and rightfully so. The squad came out firing, winning three of their pool play games and earned the second seed for playoffs. The Florida team fell to USTA Northern California, but bounced back against USTA Caribbean and finished in third place at Nationals. 

Nena Haigler, the captain of the team shared they are all extremely proud to represent Escambia County and the state of Florida and overcome many obstacles. “As a team with the fewest participants at Nationals 55+ 6.0 adult women, seven, we played A LOT of tennis,” she said. “Coming from an extremely humid climate in Pensacola, to an extremely dry one, took some adjustment. As far as team accomplishments go, we finished second at Sectionals three times. I built my strongest team to-date, and we finally took first to make Nationals. It’s been a dream of my players to attend Nationals once in my life before I die and this time, it happened. We were truly gunning for the title, but fell short at third. Upon returning home, our facility director gave us all kind of love and put up a sign of our finish at and we were added to the Wall of Fame.”

Escambia County Season Roster: Nena Haigler (Captain), Tonya Chase, Trish Kington, Carol Essex, Klara Szalai, Kaye Whittenberger, Judy Harrington, Sharon Powell 

Adult 55 & Over 9.0 Women’s Championship – Orange County 

The Florida section came in third place in the Adult 55 & Over 9.0 League National Championship at the Scottsdale Ranch Park and Tennis Center in Scottsdale, Arizona.

The Orange County team from Winter Park Tennis Center had been playing some great tennis heading into Nationals. In pool play, they went undefeated and were the top seed in the playoffs. They dropped a tough match in the quarterfinals, but bounced back to take third place! 

Orange County Season Roster: Lisa Becket (Captain), Kristine Dionne, Christine Alfert, Kerry Sproles, Kristee Garrity, Anna Svaetichin, Susan Wright, Gail Gibson, Pamela Saffran, Rita Gladstone, Janet Lower, Tammy Giaimo, Elizabeth Burdick, Elena Escamilla 

Mixed 18 & Over 6.0 Championship – Miami-Dade County 

Miami-Dade County came in third place at the Mixed 18 & Over 6.0 National Championships.

Hailing from Crandon Park Tennis Center, the Miami team was one to look out for at Nationals, and they lived up to the hype. In pool play, they dominated, going undefeated and locking in the top seed for the championship bracket. They matched up against the Middle States and it was intense. Ultimately, Middle States took the match in a close 2-1.  

However, the Florida team wasn’t discouraged. They battled back in their final match to take down USTA Southwest and secure third place at Nationals! 

Miami-Dade County Season Roster: Schubert Sengupta (Captain), Ana Pastorino, Jennifer Roque, Ernesto Roque, Leonor Etchart, Lisette Trimble, Carlos Nicolopulos, Edward Ng, Schubert Sengupta, Jennifer Korth, Balagopal Menon, Rodrigo Villamarin, Courtney Fallon, Alejandra Gil, Freddy Caceres, Paulette Janice Snag 

Mixed 40 & Over 9.0 Championship – Hillsborough County 

The Florida section came in fourth place in the Mixed 40 & Over 9.0 League National Championship at the USTA National Campus in Orlando, Florida.

Coming out of HCC Tennis Complex, this group was amazing all season long. They were impressive in pool play, going 3-1 and securing the second seed for the playoffs. They lost a close quarterfinal to USTA Eastern 2-1, and ended Nationals in fourth place! 

Hillsborough County Season Roster: Joe Orsini (Captain), Gail Gibson, Stephanie Means, Maki Smith, Lilivette Arroyo, Jeffrey Stern, Stephanie Wager, Manuel Alvarez, Gerardo Cuevas, Anthony Hatori, Amy Lyons, Edwin Jagger, Ignacio Molina, Christina Dorothy, Scott Schuhriemen