St. Pete 2nd, Clearwater 3rd, Fleming 4th at USTA League 55 & Over Tennis Nationals

USTA Florida League tennis teams placed in three of the four men’s and women’s divisions over the weekend at the USTA League 55 & Over 6.0 & 8.0 National Championships in Surprise, Ariz., finishing in 2nd, 3rd and 4th place.

The Florida 55 & Over 8.0 women from Pinellas County (St. Pete Tennis Center) were edged 2-1 in the national championship final by the team from USTA Intermountain (Sun Valley, Idaho) at the Surprise Tennis & Racquet Complex.

Earlier in the day the St. Pete women in the semifinals defeated a team from USTA Southern California (Redondo Beach) 2-1. They advanced to the semis by winning their round robin flight contested on Friday and Saturday.

Their season roster was comprised of Janet Matthews (captain), Mary Paul, Kay Caldwell, Clara Reynolds, Lynn O’Brien, Charlene Knetsch, Sandy Trail, and Rhonda Smiechewicz.

Finishing in third place were the Florida 55 & Over 8.0 men from Pinellas County (McMullen Tennis Center, Clearwater). They defeated USTA Middle States (Harrisburg, Penn.) 3-0 in the 3rd/4th place playoff match. Earlier in the semifinals they lost 3-0 to the team from USTA Southern California (San Gabriel Valley, Calif.), which went on to win the championship, in the final defeating USTA Midwest (Milwaukee, Wisc.) 3-0.

The Clearwater men’s season roster was comprised of Ronald Massey (captain), John Eifert, Mark Wolfson, David Biren, Tim Jennings, Jay Bortner, Brian Kenney, Terry Tetzlaff, Barry Shollenberger, Tom Keller, Rick Meriwether, Albert Alhadeff, Daniel Olds, and Roland Klieve.

Finishing in fourth place were the Florida 55 & Over 6.0 women from Clay County (Eagle Harbor Country Club, Fleming Island), who lost their 3rd/4th place playoff match 2-1 to USTA New England (Simsbury, Conn.).

Earlier in the semifinals the Fleming Island women were edged 2-1 by USTA Pacific Northwest (Coeur d’Alene, Idaho), which went on to lose in the final against USTA Southern (Nashville, Tenn.) 2-1.

The Fleming Island women’s season roster was led by captain Jenise Whitmire with fellow players Alice Coats, Elizabeth Britt, Nancy White, Sherri Bair, Rosemary Howard, Tamera Lowe, Mary Nesbitt, Kerry Reardon, and Danielle Sourbeer.

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.