Valrico (Fla.) Men Present Club with USTA League Plaque, Prepare for Nationals

Left to right: Front row holding team names plaque, Hank Marshall. Aubrey Wittiger, Gene Pike, Jay Bortner (captain), Richard Assing and Ralph Lennen; back row: Marshall Veatch (co-captain), Greg Jones, Jack Vandercook, Barry Shollenberger, Richard Scott, Ron Massey and Fred King

Ahead of their trip to USTA League Nationals, the USTA Florida League Sectionals-winning Adult 55 & Over 8.0 team out of Hillsborough County (Valrico, Fla.) last week presented their home club, Buckhorn Springs Tennis, with their winning placard and a list of team member’s names.

The presentation was made by the team to Buckhorn Springs Tennis Facility Director Greg Jones. Team captain Jay Bortner led the festivities for players, wives and friends, which included champagne and snacks, presenting along with co-captain Marshall Veatch.

Other members of the team on the season roster were Ralph Lennen, Richard Scott, Richard Assing, Fred King, Henry Marshall, Barry Shollenberger, James Whitaker, Jack Vandercook, Randy Chapman, Gene Pike, and Ronald Massey.

“I want to say how proud I am of these players,” said Local League Coordinator Barbara Jones. “They are not only active tennis players in the Tampa area but they show great sportsmanship and I know they will make Florida proud.”

In the final of the Adult 55 & Over 8.0 Sectional in Daytona Beach at the Florida Tennis Center in April the Valrico men defeated the team from Broward County (Woodmont Country Club, Tamarac) 3-0, winning two of the match in third-set super-tiebreaks.

The next stop for the Valrico men is the USTA League National Adult 55 & Over Championship, held Oct. 23-25, 2015 in Surprise, Ariz.