Orange County (Orlando area) was dominant in the finals of the USTA Florida 18 & Over 3.0/4.0/5.0+ League Sectional Championships over the weekend, winning two of six titles and finishing runner-up in another division at the USTA National Campus in Orlando on Aug. 10-12, 2019.
Orange County teams won the women’s 4.0 (Ft. Gatlin Recreational Center, Orlando) and the men’s 5.0+ (Winter Park Racquet Club) divisions, and finished runner-up in the women’s 5.0+ division.
Other division winners were Duval County (San Jose C.C, Jacksonville) in the women’s 3.0 division, Leon County (Tom Brown Park, Tallahassee) in the men’s 3.0, Broward County (Weston Tennis Center) in the men’s 4.0, and Hillsborough County (Hillsborough Community College, Tampa) in the women’s 5.0+.
Leon County’s win in the men’s 3.0 division was their second straight sectionals championship and third in the last four years, and Broward won a second straight in the men’s 4.0.
In the men’s 5.0+ Orange County ended a two-season sectionals winning streak by Hillsborough County.
Broward County extended its lead by two titles in the race for the USTA Florida League Championship Cup, while Orange County’s two titles put it into a tie for second place with Duval and Hillsborough counties. The USTA Florida League Championship Cup is awarded at season’s end to the county that wins the most USTA Florida League Sectionals titles in 2019 (see standings below).
The event drew the top 18 & Over USTA League teams from throughout Florida, representing various clubs, parks, recreational departments and organizations that finished at the top of their local leagues. Teams consisting of two singles and three doubles lines competed in a non-elimination round-robin format, with flight winners advancing into a single-elimination semifinal followed by the final.
The championship teams next advance to represent the USTA Florida Section at the USTA 18 & Over League National Championships on Oct. 4-6 in Las Vegas for the 5.0+, Oct. 11-13 for the 3.0 in Oklahoma City, and Oct. 18-20 for the 4.0 in Las Vegas.
Division winners and finalists:
18 & Over 3.0 Women
Final: Duval County (San Jose C.C, Jacksonville) d. Collier County (Naples Grande) 3-2
Championship Match Results:
No. 1 Singles: Katie Farrar (Duval) d. Noelia Santos 6-2, 6-3
No. 2 Singles: Heather Riley (Duval) d. Marisa Fontana 6-3, 6-0
No. 1 Doubles: Nancy Hennessy/Paige Dilts (Duval) d. Gretchen Landolt/Sandy Perrino 6-3, 6-2
No. 2 Doubles: Jennifer Brown/Jennifer Dugan (Collier) d. Kerry Phillips/Kristin Fernandez 3-6, 4-1, retired
No. 3 Doubles: Shannon Drackett/Amanda Shaw (Collier) d. Phyllis Crabtree/Michelle Kalil 6-4, 6-1
Duval County Season Roster: Allison Wise (captain), Catherine Schaefer, Emily Katsikas, Kate Elliott, Martha Jakab, Paige Dilts, Katie Farrar, Stephanie Willis, Phyllis Crabtree, Michelle Kalil, Catarina Soares, Jessica Crews, Catherine Decunto, Amy Mitchell, Laurie Naugle, Natasha Eliz, Allyson Owens, Erica Hayman, Kerry Phillips, Kristin Fernandez, Lindsay Eyrick, Heather Riley, Margaret Samuels, Vicki Suhrer, Nancy Hennessy
18 & Over 3.0 Men
Final: Leon County (Tom Brown Park, Tallahassee) finished ahead of Broward County (Weston Tennis Center) 5-0 to 4-1 in round robin play
Leon County Season Roster: Sanjeev Jayaprakash (captain), Andri Randrianasolo, Gerald Henley, Thomas Curry, Muhammed Anzari Abubekkar, Ashutosh Kumar, David Bradford, Sumanth Gadde, Norman Feril, Jeffrey Banka, Tyler Allee, Manas Shinde
18 & Over 4.0 Women
Final: Orange County (Ft. Gatlin Recreational Center, Orlando) d. Broward County (Dillon Tennis Center, Oakland Park) 4-1
Championship Match Results:
No. 1 Singles: Rachel Holt (Orange) d. Veronica Buckingham 6-0, 6-0
No. 2 Singles: Rachel Halscott (Orange) d. Aneta Kamyczek 4-6, 7-5, 1-0
No. 1 Doubles: Marie Valdes/Lori Blum (Broward) d. Becky Cusick/Tammy Giaimo 6-3, 4-6, 1-0
No. 2 Doubles: Shannon Hurley/Brandi Holston (Orange) d. Lisa Forte/Theresa Caruso 6-3, 4-6, 1-0
No. 3 Doubles: Julie Fontaine/Teri Kinder (Orange) d. Kathy Koon/Jenine Raymond 6-4, 6-1
Orange County Season Roster: Misa Kawata (captain), Rachel Halscott, Shannon Hurley, Brandi Holston, Kathleen Cotton, Becky Cusick, Alejandra Maddox, Sarah Davey, Meredith Olavarria, Julie Fontaine, Teri Kinder, Colleen Allen, Rachel Holt, Tammy Giaimo, Hoang-Loan Nguyen
18 & Over 4.0 Men
Final: Broward County (Weston Tennis Center) d. Hillsborough County (Hillsborough Community College, Tampa) 4-1
Championship Match Results:
No. 1 Singles: Alvaro Fernandez (Broward) d. Jeff Huser 6-2, 6-0
No. 2 Singles: Carlos Miranda (Broward) d. Paul Lefebvre 6-0, 6-1
No. 1 Doubles: Jeffrey Hirsch/David King (Hillsborough) d. Alejandro Gonzalez/Andres Piske 7-5, 6-4
No. 2 Doubles: Omar Nieves/Julian Gil (Broward) d. Richard Helme/Tu Phan 6-3, 6-0
No. 3 Doubles: Boris Horna/Santiago Eslava (Broward) d. Elvin Vargas/Ian Church 6-4, 6-1
Broward County Season Roster: Jorge Evaristo (captain), Santiago Eslava, Omar Antonio, Crespo Nieves, Andres Piske, Luis Reveiz, Julian Gil, Alejandro Gonzalez, Alvaro Fernandez, Daniel Madrinan, Jorge Corrales, Diego Caniggia, Pedro Rodriguez, Gustavo Bencid, Enrique Penalver, Juan Marin, Nelson Laboy, Augusto Alizo, Boris Horna, Carlos Miranda
18 & Over 5.0+ Women
Final: Hillsborough County (Hillsborough Community College, Tampa) finished ahead of Orange County (USTA National Campus, Orlando) 3-1 to 3-1 in round robin play, with Hillsborough winning the tiebreaker
Hillsborough County Season Roster: Lisa Balsera (captain), Melissa Koning, Miranda Gutierrez, Gigi Fernandez, Aly Peterson, Melissa Pine, Jessica Sucupira, Andrea Lord, Paige Kensrue
18 & Over 5.0+ Men
Final: Orange County (Winter Park Racquet Club) finished ahead of Hillsborough County (East Lake Woodlands Country Club, Oldsmar) 4-1 to 3-2 in round robin play
Orange County Season Roster: Jamie Feagan (captain), Greg Heartt, Brandon Bayliss, Shane Harrison, Andrew Mazlin, Alamgir Wali, Blaze Schwartz, Marco Herrera, Neto Cacace, Richard Schmidt
2019 USTA FLORIDA LEAGUE
CHAMPIONSHIP CUP STANDINGS
The USTA Florida League Championship Cup is awarded to the county with the most league sectionals titles during the 2019 season (standings through Aug. 13, recent winners in bold):
1. Broward County (5 titles) — 65&Over-M8.0, X40&Over-9.0, 40&Over-M3.0,M3.5, 18&Over-M4.0
2T. Duval County (3) — 65&Over-W7.0, 55&Over-M4.5, 18&Over-W3.0
2T. Hillsborough County (3) — 55&Over-W4.5,40&Over-W3.0, 18&Over-W5.0+
2T. Orange County (3) — 40&Over-M4.0, 18&Over-W4.0,M5.0+
5T. Alachua County (2) — 55&Over-W3.5, 40&Over-W3.5
5T. Collier County (2) — 65&Over-W6.0, X40&Over-7.0
5T. Miami-Dade (2) — 55&Over-M3.5, 40&Over-M4.5+
5T. Pinellas County (2) — 65&Over-W8.0, 40&Over-W4.5+
5T. Sarasota County (2) — 55&Over-W4.0, X40&Over-8.0
10T. Clay County (1) — X40&Over-6.0
10T. Escambia County (1) — 55&Over-W3.0
10T. Leon County (1) — 18&Over-M3.0
10T. Marion County (1) — 65&Over-M7.0
10T. Martin County (1) — 40&Over-W4.0
10T. Palm Beach County (1) — 55&Over-M4.0
Note: County determined by location of team’s home club. Season-ending ties to be broken by teams’ 1st-4th place results at USTA League Nationals.
Next Sectionals: Aug. 17-19 — 18 & Over 2.5/3.5/4.5, USTA National Campus, Orlando
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.
For more information on USTA Florida Leagues go to www.ustaflorida.com/leagues.
