Orange Park 1st, Winter Park 3rd at USTA League 40 & Over Tennis Nationals

USTA Florida League tennis teams won a national championship and finished third over the weekend at the 2016 USTA League 40 & Over 3.5 & 4.5 National Championships, held Oct. 21-23 in Rancho Mirage (3.5) and La Quinta (4.5) in California.

The Florida 40 & Over Women’s 3.5 team from Clay County (Eagle Landing Country Club, Orange Park) were crowned USTA League National Champions on Sunday when they defeated a team from USTA Southwest (Surprise, Ariz.) 4-1 in the final.

The Orange Park women advanced to the final by defeating a team from USTA Midwest (Indianapolis, Ind.) 3-2 in the semifinals. They advanced to the semis by winning their round robin flight on Friday and Saturday in Rancho Mirage.

Their season roster was comprised of Sharel Grissett-Macon (captain), Stacie Lamoureux, Beatrice Plummer, Laura Drake, Timothe Romani, Sue Newman, Arlene Muehl, Ronda Allen, Renee Lewis, Kaya Frechette, Carol Rynne, Angela Johnson, Judibelle Roman, Jody Cabrera, Kim Barelare, and Brenda Sy.

“It feels awesome. These kids are the best!” said the captain Grissett-Macon. “I have a bunch of beautiful ladies and we stuck together and we won as a team. I’m so proud of them!”

At the La Quinta Resort the Florida 40 & Over Women’s 4.5+ team from Orange/Seminole counties (Azalea Tennis Center, Winter Park) finished in 3rd place after defeating a team from USTA Middle States (Newton Square, Pa.) in the 3rd/4th place playoff.

Earlier in the semifinals the Winter Park women were edged 3-2 by USTA New England (Natick, Mass.), who went on to lose in the final to USTA Southern (Raleigh, N.C.) 3-2.

The Winter Park women’s season roster was Kerry Sproles (captain), Christine Alfert, Lisa Becket, Allegra Campos, Anne-Marie Miller, Ligia Bottinelli, Lisa Balsera, Kristine Dionne, Angela Robinson, Rita Gladstone, Christina Ninci, Alana O’Hern, Stacey Williams, Katherine Foulk, Stacy Girdley, and and Stephanie Gilcrease.

About USTA League
Established in 1980, USTA League has grown from 13,000 participants in a few parts of the country in its first year to more than 904,000 players across the nation today, making it the world’s largest recreational tennis league. The league groups players by using six National Tennis Rating Program (NTRP) levels, ranging from 2.5 (entry) to 5.0 (advanced). USTA League is open to any USTA member 18 years of age or older. The 2016 USTA League season is the fourth season with an updated structure and format that offers four age categories (Adult 18 & Over, Adult 40 & Over and Adult 55 & Over and Mixed 18 & Over) to better align participants with players their own age. A fifth age division, the Mixed 40 & Over, was added in 2014.

To learn more about USTA Leagues in Florida go to www.ustaflorida.com/leagues.

For more info on USTA League Nationals go to www.usta.com/Adult-Tennis/USTA-League/National-Championships/usta_league_national_championships_results.