July 24th, 2018
Ormond Beach, Miami Teams Win Florida JTT Sectionals, Advance to National Championships
The Miami Chihuahuas and The Shack out of Ormond Beach will represent the USTA Florida Section at the USTA Junior Team Tennis National Championships after winning the 18-Under and 14-Under divisions over the weekend at the USTA Florida Junior Team Tennis Sectional Championships, held July 20-22, 2018 at Sanlando Park in Altamonte Springs.
Teams competed against each other in singles, doubles and mixed doubles.
“I just want to thank all team captains, players and parents,” says USTA Florida Team Tennis Coordinator Liz Coates. “We are very excited to have these two teams represent Florida. Not only are they great players but they all also exhibit great sportsmanship. We should be very proud as a section.”
Kara Borromeo captained her co-ed Miami team to JTT Nationals for a second straight year as her Miami Chihuahuas won the 18-Under Intermediate division, finishing ahead of the Space Coast Sun-Sets, captained by Christine Zimmerman out of Merritt Island.
The Miami Chihuahuas are comprised of players Franz Emmanuelle Bagayas, Ana Castillo, Javier Cordova, Jaime Duran Perez, Joseph Glidden, Genie Hernandez, Maanya Pradeep, Reubin Williams and Zihan Zhao. The Space Coast Sun-Sets included Nicholas Buster, Tim Buster, Anthony Buster, Samantha Clifford, Isabella Hartmann, Justin Phillips, Cameron Rye and Rachel Zimmerman.
[row] [column md=”6″]
The Shack out of Ormond Beach, captained by Andrea Kwetkus, won the 14-Under Intermediate division, finishing ahead of the finalist NJTA Ace Breakers, captained by Heather Diegan out of the St. Johns/Jacksonville area.
Players on The Shack are Tessa Carlisi, Nia Duncan, Duane Headley, Leo Kwetkus, Joshua Thorpe and Marcella Warner. The NJTA Ace Breakers were comprised of Jackson Carnaghi, Manish Kota, Paramahansa Kummathi, Kayla McLaughlin, Olivia Nelson, Anshusree Pokuru and Taylor Reid.
[row] [column md=”6″]
The USTA National Campus in Orlando will host the JTT National Championships on Nov. 1-4 for the 14-Under divisions and on Nov. 8-11 for the 18-Under divisions. For additional information go to www.usta.com/jttnationals.
https://www.facebook.com/ustaflorida/posts/10156424875923197
Established in 1991, USTA Junior Team Tennis provides youth ages 6-18 with all of the health and social benefits of tennis in a coed, fun and competitive team environment — all while allowing participants to compete with and against individuals of similar ages and skill levels. With more than 85,000 players competing nationwide, USTA Junior Team Tennis brings players together to enjoy camaraderie and teamwork, providing a fun environment for kids to learn that succeeding is really more about how they play the game — win or lose.
For more information on USTA Junior Team Tennis in Florida go to www.ustaflorida.com/JTT.
