Sally and Sharon jumped out to an early 3-1 lead, but true to form Jayme and Meg climbed right back in it, and took the lead at 4-3. Sally and Sharon then kicked it into high gear, winning 12 of the next 13 points to claim the first set 6-4. They jumped out to an early lead again in the second set, and although they fought valiantly, taking a number of games to multiple deuces, Jayme and Meg just couldn’t overcome Sally’s aggressive net play and Sharon’s consistency in the back court. The final set was 6-1.
In the Men’s Court Crashers, Tom VanWyk and Manny Lima took advantage of a slow start by Peter Malen and Tony Cupaiuolo to seize the opening set 6-1. Tom and Manny appeared to be on their way to a quick second set as well when they went up a break for 4-2. However, Peter and Tony didn’t get to the finals by giving up. They went on a three-game run to go up 5-4, but Tom and Manny would not be denied. They held serve twice to reach the tiebreak, and didn’t look back, winning the tiebreak 7-1.
The Men’s and Women’s Ball Bashers finals were not the competitive affairs that we expected. In the men’s final, Maxwell Thompson and John Hess put on a dominant display winning 6-2, 6-1 over Bill Wright and Tim Jones. Maxwell’s net patrol and ferocious forehand more than complemented John’s penetrating groundstrokes, and they both covered the court extremely well.
Bill and Tim had been dominant in their previous matches, playing aggressively and taking the match to their opponents. In the final, they appeared less aggressive, but it looked as though Maxwell and John got the aggressive jump on Bill and Tim and it was a bit much to overcome.
In the women’s final, the story was much the same. Lili Canfield and Judy Wilson came out as though their opponents, Lee Tice and Mary Harrington, had done them a disservice. Effective aggression would be an apt characterization of Lili and Judy’s play throughout the match, and it was punctuated by the ace Judy served up on match point. It was hard to determine whether it was the Champions’ play, the breezy weather and/or the big moment that influenced Mary and Lee’s play, but they never seemed to get their games going well enough to throw Lili and Judy off stride.
By the time the Men’s and Women’s All Aces rolled around at 1pm, a crowd of approximately 100 family members, friends, and other interested parties had gathered…and they were not disappointed. In the men’s event, All Aces Singles Club Champion Chip Graddy and Finalist Geoff Negin battled Alan Canfield and Arnie Wohl for bragging rights. In the women’s event, All Aces Club Champion Jemin Martinsen and Kathy Lanzalotta faced Carole Shapiro and Jane Heck for the honors.
The Champions and Finalists all gave the crowd something to cheer about. Case in point: At set point in the first set of the Men’s match, an up-and-back, side-to-side, to-and-fro affair that ended with a spectacular shot from Alan. The spectators erupted in delight. The women provided similar high-level entertainment, with players running down balls that appeared to be winners to keep points alive.
Early in the men’s final, there were murmurs in the crowd as Alan and Arnie brought their AA-games to the court and took the first set 6-2. It appeared as though Alan and Arnie would pull off their second upset in a row. It was not to be. As in their semifinal match, Chip and Geoff stormed back from the first set loss to take the next two 6-3, 6-1.
There was a similar buzz at the beginning of the women’s final as Carole and Jane jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the first set. Jemin and Kathy were unfazed by the deficit and ripped off the next five games. Carole and Jane made a momentary stand, breaking Kathy and Jemin as they served for the set at 5-3, but couldn’t hold serve to even the set, losing it 4-6.
Jemin and Kathy held the lead throughout the first half of the second set, but Carole and Jane came back from 1-3 to go ahead 4-3. Jemin and Kathy were resolute despite losing the lead and fought back from 4-5 and 5-6 to force and win the final set tiebreak.
It was a fitting end to a terrific weekend of tennis. The result of the final matches of the weekend means that there are four players with an opportunity to win all three phases of the Tennis Club Championships: Singles, Doubles, and Mixed Doubles. Maxwell and Judy have won both the singles and doubles in the Ball Bashers division, and Chip and Jemin claimed both events in the All Aces division. All four plan to play mixed doubles, so the mixed ought to be a true climax of the Club Championship season.
As for this weekend, there were winners and losers according to the score, but although the matches were competitive, the event was characterized by great sportsmanship and even camaraderie amongst many of the opponents. It truly was as close as a club could come to the true spirit of a club championship.
Although special congratulations must go out to those who prevailed and are now Champions, kudos must also go out to all of the competitors who braved the conditions and gave it their all regardless of their statuses as favorites or underdogs. We truly are lucky to work with as great a group of members as any tennis pro is likely to encounter anywhere.
By the way, before we get to the Mixed Doubles event, let's not forget that the David and Goliath showdown is next Saturday and the Memorial Foundation event is the following Saturday. If you're looking for tennis, you don't have far to go. Until soon, game, set, match...
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