Senior Nationals round-up

The National Mens 45′s was arguably the strongest ever and players have expressed how exciting all the matches were. In the quarter-finals, Goodspeed/Todd defeated Griffey/Higgins; Mott/Pierce defeated Mangan/Heath; McAvoy/Stefanik defeated Palmer/Harlow; and, Gillespie/Kaufman defeated Hallett/Katz. In the semi-finals, Goodspeed/Todd defeated Mott/Pierce, and McAvoy/Stefanik Defeated Gillespie/Kaufman.

The final was unbelievable. In the first set tie-breaker 9 set points were saved finishing with a 15-13 to Goodspeed/Todd. The final set saw Goodspeed and Todd at their best winning 6-0.

The National Mens 55′s had another powerhouse draw. In the semi’s, Baird/Irvine defeated Nycum/Estes and Adams/Hayes defeated Brooke/Dyminski.

The final saw four greats with many years history between them. Adams/Hayes had to take an injury time-out during the finals 20 years previous leading with a set and 4-1 against Baird/Meyer. On the very same court 20 years later Adams/Hayes battled through a grueling three-setter finishing with a 6-3, 4-6, 6-2 against Baird/Irvine.

The National Mens 65′s experienced some of the greats battling through some very tough matches. The semis saw Dey/Spears defeat Beech/Marvin and, on the other side, Childs/Lombard defeated Lynch/Lockwood. In the finals, Dey and Spears overcame tough opponents to win the coveted 65′s National Championship.

On January 10, Fox Meadow Tennis Club again hosted the Women’s 50+ and 70+ National Tournament. Seventeen teams entered the 50′s and a record eight teams entered the 70′s.

In the 50+ tournament, Chris Ford from Atlanta and Christi Hays from Pittsburgh made their trip to New York a successful one as they knocked off last year’s champions Louise Cash and Ruth Ann Connors in the semi-final and went on to win 6-3, 6-4 against last year’s finalists, Tricia Bloom and Deirdre Redden, 3-6, 6-2, 6-2.

In the 70+ tournament, Sharon Hummers successfully defended her title, this year with Anne Mariani. In a very close final, they beat Nancy Libby and Gail Moskow, 7-6, 7-5.

The 2007 Women’s 40+ Championships and 60+ Championships were held at Canoe Brook Country Club on Wednesday and Thursday, February 7th and 8th. The full 32 draw for the 40s continues to get stronger each year.

This year, participants came from as far away as Minnesota, Ohio and Delaware. The weather was very cold but clear and everyone had a fun time, on and off the court. The draw held true and provided two excellent semi-final matches, pitting Andrea Noyes and Sheri Shea against Bobo Delaney and Judy Takach, and Cynthia Dardis and Amy Shay against Cindy Prendergast and Tonia Mangan. Both matches were three-setters and brought great excitement to those watching.

On Thursday morning, Andrea and Sheri were once again victorious in this event with a straight set win over Cynthia and Amy. They also won the gold in 2004 and 2006. The Consolation bracket was won by Acosta/ Mackell. Arden/ Reach won the Reprieve against Day/ Perry; and Mead/ Dowd were the winners of the Consolation Reprieve, beating Brucia/ Mullaney.

The 60+ tournament was short on participants, but long on talent and enthusiasm. Marjorie Hodson, the “draw master,” worked out a way for 10 teams to get in three matches each and still crown a champion. An early upset of Winnie Hatch and Sharon Hummers led the way for new finalists Mary Sturgis and Mary Fenton. Helen Garrett and Sandy Simmers proved too much for the newcomers in the final as they once again received the gold medals of victory.

Source: Platform Tennis Magazine, Vol. 8, Issue 5, April 2007