Long Island Tennis Magazine • November/December 2009
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NEW NEW PROGRAM PROGRAM Tennis Performance Evaluation Conducted by Steve Kaplan and Frank Dolan, owner of All Sports & Fitness and Consultant to The New York Yankees. Two Hour session will focus on improving movement efficiency for performance and to reduce injury potential, as well as core strength for dynamic stability and balance. Each player will receive a functional movement screen assessment and stroke production mechanical analysis.
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Come Come hear hear Steve Steve Kaplan Kaplan and and Frank Frank Dolan Dolan speak speak at at the the Long Long Island Island Tennis Tennis Expo. Expo.
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Availability is limited please call 516-777-1358 to reserve a spot. Long Island Tennis Magazine • November/December 2009
Farmingdale State College • Roosevelt Hall (Expo Room and Auditorium) 2350 Broadhollow Road • Farmingdale, NY 11735 (Melville Rd. Entrance #2 at Rt. 110, FREE PARKING in Lot #9)
Special thank you to our Exhibitors and the following sponsors:
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November/December 2009 Volume 1, Number 6
Cover story 12 2009 U.S. Open Leaves Its Mark A look back at the 2009 U.S. Open’s stars, drama, upstarts and Cinderella comebacks from the area’s annual event.
Long Island Tennis Magazine 1220 Wantagh Avenue • Wantagh, NY 11793-2202 Phone: (516) 409-4444 • Fax: (516) 409-4600 Web site: www.litennismag.com
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Features 3
Reflections on the Open By Alan Fleischman Alan Fleischman takes a look back at how the sport of tennis has changed over the years and has evolved into what it has become today.
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Steve Kaplan offers tips on how to maximize your training time and take your game to the next level. By Eric Dietsche Eric Dietsche chronicles his move from high school senior at St. John the Baptist to a spot on the Men’s Varsity Team at Williams College.
20 Long Island Tennis Magazine’s Holiday Gift Guide Shopping tips and gift ideas from some of the area’s top local pro shops and manufacturers, including Advantage Tennis, Bionic Gloves, Carefree Racquet Club, Cruise Control, Louisville Slugger and Sportime.
22 Jimmy Connors Makes a Special Appearance at the Alan King Pro-Am Tennis Tournament By Peter Fishbach Peter Fishbach recaps many of the sport’s top legends who paid a visit for the benefit of the Wheelchair Sports Federation.
23 A Look Back at the Maverick Labor Day ProSet Challenge By Stephen G. Sombrotto Stephen G. Sombrotto recaps Maverick Tennis’ event held this past Labor Day.
30 A Look Back at the Beach Tennis USA National Championships in Long Beach Beach Tennis USA held their National Championship in Long Beach in early September and Long Island Tennis Magazine was there for the recap.
35 Summer Junior Team Tennis Recap By Steve Abbondondelo A look at the 2009 USTA Eastern Summer Junior Team Tennis season as told by Steve Abbondondelo.
37 Tennis Travel Directory As the cold of winter sets in, we provide a guide for some of the world’s top tennis destinations.
41 Coaching the Person, Not the Talent By Parsa Samii Former pro Parsa Samii takes a look at the qualities a junior player should look in when seeking out that ideal coach.
55 Tennis: Truly the Sport of a Lifetime By Steve Haar Steve Haar chronicles the life of tennis player Charlie Hurme, 97-years-old and still going strong on and off the court.
56 A Look Back at Long Island Tennis Summer Camps: Summer of ‘09
Columns 7
College Tennis Spotlight: How Did That Child Get Into College!? By Ricky Becker Ricky Becker details how a jump in a junior’s rankings can open more door in the collegiate world.
18 My Opinion: What’s the Story With the Money Professional Tennis Players Make? By Eric Meditz Eric Meditz shatters the perspective that all professional tennis players are millionaires, and shows why one bad match or tournament can impact their wallet.
28 Adult League Wrap-Up Bruce Lindenman and Marty Marmorale review the Long Island Men’s 3.5 team and their trip to Las Vegas for the Nationals, and Ignacio (Nacho) Arenas recaps the Men’s 4.0 Team from Carefree Racquet Club who were crowned Men’s 4.0 National Champions.
34 Long Island Tennis Magazine’s Literary Corner By Brent Shearer Brent Shearer takes a look at Rene Stauffer’s biography, The Roger Federer Story: Quest for Perfection, documenting the rise to fame of the sport’s top star.
36 College Tennis Advice: Getting a “Read” on a College Coach By Clark D. Ruiz II Clark D. Ruiz II takes a look at the symbiotic relationship between a junior player’s coach, teammates and academics as they search for their higher learning destination.
59 Long Island Tennis Club Directory 60 Long Island Rankings
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Sunny Fishkind raises awareness that although the Open may have left for the year, there is still some great top notch tennis action available on Long Island’s collegiate courts.
43 Be Humble and Have a Backup Plan By Lonnie Mitchel
63 USTA/Long Island Region 2009 Tournament Schedule
News Briefs
26 Eastern Juniors Honored at U.S. Open Awards Gala
Lonnie Mitchel explains why having a strong contingency plan is key to a successful future in the sport of tennis.
38 Nassau County Rally Day Brings Tennis to the Kids at Tully Park
47 Where to Go on Long Island for Your Tennis Apparel Needs
40 Long Island Corporate Challenge Provides a Great Time for
48 A Look at the Girl’s High School Tennis Season at the Halfway Point
Long Island Tennis Magazine takes a look at the progress of Mia Vecchio; the determination of Jericho High School’s Amanda Hyman; and thoughts on single and doubles play from Edward Wolfarth.
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Edward Wolfarth explains effective drills and techniques.
16 A Year in Review: A Year of Transition and Change
Check out local stores Topspin Tennis & Fitness and Grand Slam Tennis for all the latest popular tennis apparel.
Long Island Tennis Magazine is published bi-monthly by United Sports Publications Ltd. Copyright © 2009 United Sports Publications Ltd.
54 What’s New is Old, Again … By Edward Wolfarth
The Challenges of Long Islanders By Steve Kaplan
42 Matches on Par With the Pros By Sunny Fishkind Statements of fact and opinion in Long Island Tennis Magazine are the responsibility of the authors alone and do not imply an opinion on the part of United Sports Publications Ltd. Long Island Tennis Magazine reserves the right to edit, reject and/or postpone the publication of any articles, information or data.
A recap of this past September’s Third Annual Stony Brook Women’s Invitational.
What Now? By Alanna Broderick Alanna Broderick describes why so many tennis players have a difficult time traveling life’s many paths.
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52 Houghton Captures Women’s Division I One-on-One Doubles and Rockin’ Blues Title at Stony Brook
50 Local Pros Brent and Harrison Take Home Silver at the 55 USTA National Grass Court Championship
By Jonathan Klee Jonathan Klee looks at two local pros, in the USTA National Grass Court Championship finals.
Long Island Tennis Magazine • November/December 2009
Local Businesses
42 Woodbury Tennis Takes Home North Shore Men’s Tennis League 2009 Crown
44 USTA Tournament Photo Gallery Photos by Franklyn Higgs
46 Orange Crush Wins Fantasy Baseball League Championship 51 Prince Hosts EXO3bition in Central Park 54 Congrats to Men’s 4.0 National Champs From Long Island
By Alan Fleischman I have been watching the U.S. Open for a long time. As a former high school teacher, it was the alarm bell that meant summer was over. No more tennis games on weekdays, followed by hamburgers and cold beer, only time for lesson plans and parent conferences. Over the years, I have seen men’s tennis shorts go from short and white, to long and black, while women’s styles went from Tracy Austin’s gingham to pearl ruffles designed by Stella McCartney (her father, Paul, attended this year’s matches). From grass to clay to hard court, from Forest Hills to Flushing, from Chrissie to Martina, from Steffi to Monica … it has always been an “educational” experience. Here I am, for the first time in a long time, watching the entire event in high definition. Bud Collins (who often dresses as if he was first in line for a fire sale at Three Mile Island) once described a tennis match as “Gladiators in short pants,” was a color commentator, and John and Patrick McEnroe were providing point-by-point coverage. Martina Navratilova was eclectic and Brad Gilbert was speaking English as a second language (“He is serving unbelievable,” what happened to the “ly” in an adverb?). I particularly enjoy Cliff Drysdale, because he has seen it all. He played against the likes of Rod Laver, Arthur Ashe and Ken Rosewall. He was there before tennis could make you a millionaire by the age of 30. Indeed, he wore a glove before Michael Jackson. Every Open has its drama. The unknown who is either a flash in the pan or the next great player, the journeymen who slug it out on Court 746 with their parents, friends and practically no one else watching. One year, when a friend of mine was playing doubles on an outer court with about a dozen spec-
tators, I was asked, “Is he your son?” “No,” I responded, but I would be proud if he were. This year was no different. If all the world is a stage, this year qualified as a multiplex. Melanie Oudin played the part of David, slaying Goliaths left and right, until she ran into a backboard named Caroline Wozniacki. And then there was Roger Federer, impeccable and implacable as he marched toward an anticipated meeting against Rafael Nadal, like Sherman marching on Atlanta. And then IT happened. The Serena Slam. There has been so much talk about old school versus new school brands of tennis. We have heard endless comparisons of how Rod Laver would have done against Pete Sampras, or how serve and volley is dead. Racquet technology and different string combinations, coupled with serious weight and cardio training, has made any comparisons impossible. In the 30-plus years I have been watching this sport, it has evolved in many directions. There really is no way to compare the generations. Even a few years ago, who would have predicted that the
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2009 U.S. Open Champion would be considerably over six-feet tall. Back in the day, Stan Smith seemed to tower over his opponents, and the little fellows seemed to be the mammals that scurried between the legs of dinosaurs. Memory is life as it should have been, not how it is, and I promise no more tales about the good old days. Some of them were good, all of them are old. I remember the 1979 Ilie Nastasi-John McEnroe circus that broke out while a tennis match was supposed to be taking place. I remember Frank Hammond, a competent referee, having a legitimate ruling rescinded. It was not exactly a shining moment for the sport of tennis. This year, tennis got it right. In the woman’s semis, deep into a second set, a linesperson made a call. It led to an outburst by one of the sports’ premier players and drawing card, Serena Williams. There has been a great deal of discussion over whether the linesperson should have made such a call at such a crucial time. This is absurd. I have no way of ascertaincontinued on page 5
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By Alanna Broderick Over the past couple of years, I have noticed that a lot of my fellow tennis players, many of whom I have competed against, are still involved in tennis in some form or another. Either, they are coaching at a university, working for a tennis club or coaching part-time somewhere. I found this common thread intriguing and wondered why so many tennis players apparently find it difficult to travel a different path in life. Why is it so hard for ex-tennis players to separate themselves from the sport? Is it a question of identity? Having immersed oneself in a daily sport for many, many hours over many, many years, it would seem challenging to find an-
other such passion or is it a question of lack of preparation for life after tennis? Apparently, the sport of tennis does not have a monopoly on this syndrome, as it appears to be the same story with other professionals who regularly call press conferences announcing their retirement only to re-announce shortly afterwards that they are staging a comeback. Sometimes they haven’t even had the time to get rusty. What is it about sports that an athlete just cannot happily let go? Michael Jordan is claiming he will be on the court at the age of 50. Justine Henin has announced her comeback on the heels of the admittedly hugely successful return of Kim Clijsters and let us not even mention NFL quarterback Brett Favre. In tennis, this predicament
does not only affect ex-professionals, but also the very competitive junior who, more often than not, after trying their hardest to make it often at the expense of other things, has come to the realization that they will never play at the U.S. Open. Although many may go on to college and receive a degree, you will more than likely find this college graduate coaching at the local club. Is it because the love of the game is so great that they need to be involved in it in some way? Have these tennis players been conditioned to hit a tennis ball every day of their life that they just cannot imagine doing anything else? Perhaps they never stopped to think of the possibility of there actually being life after tennis. Perhaps they did not go to that career fair continued on page 6
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REFLECTIONS ON THE OPEN continued from page 3 ing if the call was factually correct and Ms. Williams foot-faulted, but rules are rules. How would you feel if, late in a set, your opponent hit a ball that was one millimeter out and the ball was called good because it was “late in the second set” of an exciting match? Tennis got it right this time, and supported those who try their best to enforce the rules. This is “professional” tennis, and as such, there is an obligation to act in a professional manner. Serena’s outburst may have been in the heat of the moment, and forgivable for that, but taking nearly two days to actually say the magic words “I apologize” is unconscionable. She has given an immense amount of energy and passion to this sport, which, in turn, has made her a millionaire several times over. I would prefer to remember the days when players let their racquets speak for them. One of the reasons the players earn as much as they do is because people, thanks to television, ARE watching. Our players owe the worldwide tennis community more than slashing forehands and topspin backhands. Like it or not, they are role models whenever the camera is on them. I prefer to remember this Open as one in which Rafael Nadal fought gamely to overcome injuries and, after a straight set loss, still took time to thank the crowd. I prefer to remember the graciousness of Federer in defeat and Juan Martin Del Potro in victory and, above all, I look forward to seeing it all happen again next year. Alan Fleishman has been a devoted fan of tennis since 1969. He won the Town of Hempstead tennis tournament at Newbridge Road Park in 1972 and was runner-up in 1974. He worked as an assistant to the tennis professional in the summer program at Lutheran High School in the early 1970s. While teaching social studies at John F. Kennedy High School in Bellmore, N.Y., he was fortunate to have coached some talented players, but more importantly, some wonderful young men and women during his last seven years at the school. He may be reached by e-mail at gamesetmatch76@aol.com.
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W H AT N O W ?
continued from page 4
at their university like the rest of their classmates. Maybe they did not join that Spanish club, student government or debating society. Did they miss that career fair due to athletic responsibilities, or was it that they did not feel there was a need to go? Were they too focused on Saturday’s match instead of thinking about graduation day? Whatever the reason, they did themselves a disservice by not learning which companies were hiring, how to interview effectively, how to write a proper resume or the importance of networking. Just as you prepare yourself for practice or for that “big match” against your school’s rival, mapping out your life after tennis requires goal setting, planning and hard work. Use all the resources that are available to you. Reach out to academic advisors, inquire about available internships in the summer, and most importantly, find a mentor. Someone who has actually experienced what you are going through is the greatest ally you could have.
Also, get involved in extra curricular activities. You may think that I am crazy to ask you to use the little free time that you have available, but not so. I know that you have tennis practice to attend, classes to sleep through, study hall to show up for and we cannot forget about those all important social outings with your friends to the bar or club using your older brother or sister’s ID (parents disregard this activity please!). All these things are a part of college life, and as a student-athlete, your plate is even more full than the regular student. This having been said, it is vital to identify yourself as something more than just a “tennis player.” Most of these extracurricular organizations meet at night, facilitating your schedule, and it will definitely be an added positive on that resume when you are interviewing for jobs that may actually involve a business suit. The wonderful sport of tennis can help you get into a school and afford you opportunities that you otherwise would not have experienced. It will allow you to stand out from the crowd,
keep your body fit and to acquire discipline and determination. Commit to managing your time effectively and to becoming a well-rounded individual. It is okay to have a hobby or to network with non-athletes at your school. Do not forget that you were someone before you became a tennis player and you will be someone after your career is over. And of course, tennis is a sport that can be recreationally enjoyed throughout one’s life. Becoming a tennis pro is also a fun and fulfilling occupation, but it is always nice to have options. Find yourself during the journey so as never having to have to ask yourself, “What now?” Alanna Broderick is an independent tennis pro on Long Island and the director of Girls 4 Girlz Tennis Camps. She competed on the pro tour from 2002, after graduating from the University of Miami, where she received her BBA in marketing and Spanish. She is a USPTA certified coach and can be reached at g4gtennis@hotmail.com.
Trigger Point Therapy and Muscle Pain and Tightness Ever wonder what can be done to help headaches, neck stiffness, carpal tunnel type symptoms, frozen shoulder, back pain, low back stiffness, shin splints?
Trigger points are not visible with traditional medical testing such as MRI or X-ray. When trigger points are not treated, they will create satellite trigger points in the affected area. For instance, a trigger point in the trapezius may cause a trigger point to appear in the temple. The trigger point in the temple then may cause a trigger point to appear in the jaw. And, viola - a case of TMJ.
Trigger points are accumulations of waste products around a nerve receptor. Trigger points form in muscles which have been overused or injured due to an accident or surgery. They can present themselves as sharp pain, dull ache, tingling, pins and needles, etc.
Trigger point massage is not a relaxing, "fluff and buff" technique. It requires the participation of the client to communicate the presence and intensity of pain and discomfort. The therapist and client work together as a team to maximize the effectiveness of the treatment.
Active trigger points are those which cause discomfort. Latent trigger points wait silently in the muscle for a future stress to activate them. It is common to attribute this discomfort to other conditions, instead of our tight muscles which harbor trigger points.
It is common to find great improvement after one treatment. Repeated treatment may be necessary for those with chronic trigger points. If you have any questions regarding Trigger Point Therapy or Massage Therapy, please contact Marla Kaplan-Pelle, LMT, Director Hands On HealthCare Massage Therapy, P.C., 208 Commack Road, Commack 631-462-HAND.
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How Did That Child Get Into That College!? By Ricky Becker Do you get expelled from college if you get tennis elbow? Is your major going to be “Rocks for Jocks?” I used to get mocked by my friends about that all the time. I was fortunate enough to get admitted to a college (Stanford University) that rejected some of the smartest kids from my high school (Roslyn High School). I wasn’t a moron, but by my own admission, I didn’t have the standard academic profile Stanford usually looks for. I had earned a high enough national tennis ranking that the tennis team was very interested in having me attend and contribute to the Stanford program. I was admitted (with a partial scholarship nonetheless) because in the admissions department’s eyes, there was a contribution (tennis) that could be made to the school by the applicant. It is has been widely reported that college admissions today is as tough as it has ever been. While the current economy may play a factor in a family’s college decision, admissions requirements remain very high. Many well-intentioned high school students run around after school chasing the extracurricular activities. Most of these clubs, teams and organizations, make a contribution to the school and community. However, how much does it contribute to your college application resume? Through my own personal experience and as a current professional in the college admissions field, it is clearly apparent that colleges, now more than ever, want that “hook.” The size of the hook grows exponentially, when the high school applicant
can take an experience or skill and actually apply it on the university level. I would highly suggest that when your child is in middle school, take a look at his/her abilities. Is there one that, if pursued, can be that hook to your child’s dream college? Does your child have the potential to play on a collegiate tennis team? Does your child have the potential to take part in the college’s music program? Does your child have the potential to win awards? Will your child publicly reflect well on a college and contribute to a university’s prestige? I am similar to most families on Long Island. At the end of the day, academics are more important than sports in most cases. It is for this reason, that, as the consultant for many families of junior tennis players, I recommend that the child view their tennis training as importantly as they do their homework. A major jump in a sports ranking is going
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to open more collegiate doors than a slight jump in academics. What I am suggesting to you is that you not dispose of your child’s special ability so easily as they get older. Speak to someone with experience in college admissions in conjunction with your child’s specialty to see if there is “hook” potential. If possible, try to obtain guidance from someone without a vested interest in which route you take (i.e., more money from you if you stick with their specialty). And, no, my academic standing was not affected by any injuries and ”Rocks for Jocks” was a myth as well. Ricky Becker is the founder of JuniorTennisConsulting LLC, which offers off-court college guidance services to junior tennis players. He can be reached by phone at (516) 605-0420, e-mail rbecker06@yahoo.com or visit JuniorTennisConsulting.com.
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7
The Challenges of Long Islanders By Steve Kaplan In the last issue of Long Island Tennis Magazine, I, along with several other local tennis professionals, was asked “What are the advantages and disadvantages of being a Long Islander at nationals?” In response to this question, a few parents have remarked about their concerns with the daunting economic reality of supporting a developing player on Long Island. That is, the weather necessitates that much of the training be indoors. Aspiring players need a lot of indoor court time and it is very expensive. As a club owner, I am well aware of the economic limitations of families, as well as facilities, and believe me, both are a challenge. The simple economics for upcoming players and clubs is similar. The way to make a small fortune in tennis is to start with a large one! Given these circumstances, I have composed several suggestions for
players as to how they can make the most effective and efficient use of their time in order to train, learn and improve optimally. 1. Be ready to play To play your best tennis, your body needs to be physically ready to play before you hit a ball. Specifically, your respiration and core body temperature levels should be elevated and your stabilizing core muscles need to be activated and firing. You don’t want to waste valuable court time to achieve this readiness state. Furthermore, if you do try to accomplish these goals by playing, your initial movements will be compromised and you risk a poor performance, as well as an injury. A routine of movement preparation and core activation is a more effective and efficient way to ready yourself than hitting tennis balls.
2. Be a student of the game Perhaps the best way to learn to master the intricacies of the game is through actual competition, but it is not the only way. Education about tennis theory is a valuable and low cost way to improve. Watch the best players and study their stroke mechanics, court movement, match tactics and court demeanor. Go to the Dartfish slow motion video analysis on USTA.com to learn a step-by-step visual breakdown of the best strokes in the sport. Read books and articles on sports performance, tennis technique, mental training and nutrition. Read the autobiographies of great athletes to learn their methods and motivations for success. By the way, studying the performance records of the top 200 players on Tennisrecruiting.net is not going to further your game! continued on page 10
Do you aspire to play college tennis at a Division I, II or III level? Finding a school with the right tennis program and well balanced academics that fit your needs does not have to be an overwhelming experience. Let Advantage Tennis Strategies help. We will work with you to navigate through the college selection process both realistically and efficiently. ATS will help you make the right choice. The process of selecting a college is a huge step towards your future. Take that step with an advantage, Advantage Tennis Strategies.
Visit us at www.AdvantageTennisStrategies.com or call us at 917.991.0088 "The best four years of your life? Possibly. Friends for a lifetime? Definitely. Networking for your future? Absolutely. Your college experience should be wonderful and life preparing. Deciding what college you attend is a process. Many factors including location, finances, interests, environment, size, cultural attributions, academics and specific professors are involved. As a tennis player more variables are involved including coaches, teammates, conference and facility. You should know what you want from your college... you should pick a college that 'fits' you and your needs." Tom Clear USTA National Coach, Director, Brooklyn Tennis Academy, Clear/Adams Tennis Consulting
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Long Island Tennis Magazine • November/December 2009
R E S COURT T 7 A U R A N SMOOTHIE T & BAR
C H A L L E N G E S O F L O N G I S L A N D E R S continued from page 8 3. Be fit Tennis is becoming increasingly athletic and fitness-intensive as speed and power become the dominating factors for success. The best players in the world are tremendously fit and well-conditioned. The benefits of strength, stability, flexibility, balance and high aerobic threshold are significant for performance and injury reduction at every level. The good news is that huge gains in these areas are achievable off-court safely and inexpensively. I recommend a functional movement screen evaluation to the players I work with to identify weak links in movement patterns. From this “snap shot” of dynamic movement patterns a program which includes a movement preparation routine, speed training program, power, strength, mobility, and conditioning workout and recovery support program can be
designed. Such a program can be followed by players at home when given outside guidance and motivation as well as internal self-discipline.
4. Be a hard worker You don’t improve on the court by osmosis, you develop your game by getting work done. Given the limitations of court time, it will likely be the quality, intensity and focus of your practice that will lead to gains, rather than the quantity of your training. Practice with passion, purpose and a plan. In warmer weather climates like Florida and California, efficient practice habits are an asset for national caliber players. Top Long Islanders and others in cool weather areas with finite court time resources, however, must learn to optimize training opportunities to compete suc-
cessfully. While these habits require effort, discipline and desire, they are accessible and achievable. Steven Kaplan has guided many touring professionals in the U.S. Open and Wimbledon, and has coached more than 350 nationally-ranked junior players. Steve’s background combines a rare blend of competitive and scholastic achievement. In 1979, Steve won the Big East Conference Singles Championship. In 1983, he received his Master’s Degree in Physiology. Steve developed the games of both Keith Kambourian and two-time NCAA Singles Champion Sandra Birch, from the 12-year olds through the pro tour. Most recently, Steve’s longtime student, Bryan Koniecko has achieved the number one ranking in Men’s NCAA tennis.
Inwood Country Club congratulates our friend and Head Pro David Brent on winning a Silver Ball at the 2009 55 USTA National Grass Court Championships and invites you to enjoy great tennis + magnificent beach club + fun parties, all included in the new, very affordable Introductory Tennis Membership at $4,200 per year: • 10 Har Tru courts • All levels of play from 2.5 to 5.0 • Weekly clinics for women and children • Tennis traveling team • Seasonal beach parties and club dinners geared towards families and couples • Fully equipped Fitness Center • Classically elegant Clubhouse • Historic U.S. Open golf course. For details contact Heidi Chriest, Membership Director 516-239-2800 x. 186 or membership@inwoodcc.org.
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Long Island Tennis Magazine • November/December 2009
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Farmingdale State College • Roosevelt Hall (Expo Room and Auditorium) 2350 Broadhollow Road • Farmingdale, NY 11735 (Melville Rd. Entrance #2 at Rt. 110, FREE PARKING in Lot #9)
PROGRAM OF EVENTS (11:00 a.m.-4:30 p.m.) SILVER SPONSORS ADVANTAGE TENNIS
CE Interactiv e activity NTER COU R a Quick 11:00 a.m.-Noon Start Ten rea for all ages in T cludin nis b mat desig Presentations in the Auditorium ned to b y USTA: An excit g: ring kids ages and in Tennis Performance Evaluation into the g g new play forsize. a V m irtual Te Presented by Steve Kaplan and Frank Dolan e tailored nnis by to all (consultant to the New York Yankees) friend to D a v e & Bus a Learn how to improve movement efficiently m a t t c er h Assor for performance ted Vide playing as profes ’s: Challenge yo o ur s G ion Discover new ways to reduce injury ames an and prize d Prize W al players w h potential e e l. Tennis H h Discover how to build core strength for Training ave fun and win. eel: Video game s E v agility an aluation dynamic stability and balance d b g y e C t a h r e l Barnet Speed lpful tips Mental Training: The Pathway From t: Test yo se fr ur Dartfis rve by Sportime om top trainers Ordinary to Extraordinary Play in : See how h Video Competition A fas na serve sta Presented by Bob Litwin, Mental Fitness cks up to lysis by Sportim t your serve is t e: See h op-ranke Coach, ranked number one in the world ow your d pros. in the 55-and-Over Division, 15-time USTA National Champion
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Panel Discussion: The Road to College Tennis and College Tennis Scholarships Panel Leader: Lawrence Kleger, Executive Director of Tennis Sportime Clubs of New York During this discussion, you can listen to top experts and professionals with experience in all levels of tennis who will walk you through the various steps necessary to reach your goal of playing college tennis. Invited panelists include: Ken Flach, former professional player, U.S. Olympic Gold Medal winner and winner of four Grand Slam titles Butch Seewagon, NCAA All-American at Rice University (1967-68), runner-up to the 1968 NCAA singles championships, and head tennis coach at Columbia University (1970-79) Joe Arias, USTA High Performance Coach, national Quick Start specialist Eric Meditz, two year captain at Penn State, ranked top 100 nationally as a junior player USTA Training Test Presented by Carl Barnett Carl Barnett will discuss the USTA training techniques that will be taught complimentary inside the Expo.
Noon-4:30 p.m. Expo Hall Open for Exhibits and Center Court Activity Area
Free raffles and door prizes. Refreshments available.
Come meet with Long Island’s top tennis vendors in the Expo Hall. Take advantage of the opportunity to sample and purchase products right from the sport’s top exhibitors.
Long Island Tennis Magazine • November/December 2009
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Drama, upstarts and Cinderella comebacks highlight annual event ach year, the U.S. Open brings us incredible entertainment, excitement and non-stop storylines right here in our own backyard. The 2009 U.S. Open was no different and it did not disappoint. As expected, the competitors came through and delivered two weeks worth of high intensity drama, upsets, Cinderella stories, hard-fought comebacks, introduced us to new stars in the making, and in the end, two new champions were crowned.
E
The champions Juan Martin del Potro On the men’s side Juan Martin del Potro came in poised for a breakthrough, but not many expected he would run through the gauntlet of Rafael Nadal in the semis and then Roger Federer in the finals to win his first Grand Slam title. It was quite an impressive feat for anyone, especially for a 19-year-old Argentinian who, coming into the U.S. Open, had never played in a major final and yet was victorious. Del Potro’s victory came in the form of an epic five-set battle against fivetime defending champion Roger Federer in the finals that served as the perfect ending to a fantastic 2009 U.S. Open tournament. Kim Clijsters On the women’s side, has there ever been a story quite like Kim Clijsters? Having spent two years in retirement, she returned to the tour only a month before the 2009 Open, the new mother to 12
an 18-month-old daughter, and then proceeded to take out both Venus and Serena Williams en route to claiming her second U.S. Open title. Her last U.S. Open title was in 2005, which was the last time she played the event. Clijsters, who was granted a wild card into the Open and was unseeded, now is back in the top 20 in the WTT’s rankings.
America’s newest sweetheart Melanie Oudin Coming into the tournament, Melanie Oudin was ranked 70th in the world. Her first round victory over Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova was a nice win. What followed, however, quickly made her nothing short of the Cinderella story of the 2009 Open, with wins over number four-seeded Elena Dementieva, 2006 champion Maria Sharapova, and the number 13 seed, Nadia Petrova. The clock finally struck midnight in the quarterfinals, however, as Oudin was defeated in her first night match on Ashe Stadium Court by ninth seeded Caroline Wozniacki of Denmark, who went on to advance to the finals. Oudin certainly made a name for herself and will be looking to build upon her 2009 Open performance heading into 2010.
in the match at 5-6, 15-30, she was called for a foot fault on her second serve which handed Kim Clijsters two match points. Visibly upset over the call, Serena stepped to the line to serve and then decided to have some choice words with the official who made the call. The outburst led to a point penalty being assessed, which, because it was already match point against her, resulted in Williams being defaulted out of the match entirely. This was probably one of the strangest endings to a tennis match in history, but to have it happen in a Grand Slam semifinal match made it all the more stranger and that much more memorable.
The field of American women Other than the previously mentioned Serena Williams and Melanie Oudin, there were a few other American women in the field. Of course there is Venus Williams who came in as one of the top threats to win the Open title. She had a disappointing tournament for her standards as she fell in the fourth round to eventual champion Kim Clijsters. Young Americans Vania King, Bethanie Mattuk-Sands and Shenay Perry advanced to the second round, while Americans Alexa Glatch, Gail Brodsky, Meghan Shaughnessey and Mallory Cecil all bowed out in the first round.
“The incident”
On the American men’s side …
Serena Williams Heading into the women’s semifinal, Serena Williams was the odds on favorite to pull through and advance to the final where she would have overtaken Dinara Safina for the world’s number one ranking, however, one ugly incident changed everything. Serving to stay
During the early rounds of the tournament, things were looking up for the Americans. Andy Roddick, James Blake, John Isner, Sam Querrey, and dark horses Taylor Dent and Jesse Witten, were still alive and seemed to be headed in the right direction. By round four, all who remained was Isner, after he upset top-seeded American Andy Roddick in five sets. Isner could advance
Long Island Tennis Magazine • November/December 2009
no further as he lost a four-set match to 10th seeded Spaniard Fernando Verdasco. His loss ensured that, for the first time in the history of the U.S. Open (dating all the way back to 1881), that no American male player reached the quarterfinal round. This was a huge disappointment for the United States. The hope is that this is shown to be an aberration, rather than a trend.
The next generation
Vania King: Defeated Anastasiya Yakimova in the first round before losing to 15th-seeded Samantha Stosur in the second round.
Long Island Tennis Magazine chose the following six players as players to watch before the U.S. Open. Here’s how they fared: John Isner: Upset Andy Roddick in the third round before falling to Fernando Verdasco in the fourth round.
Alexa Glatch: Received a tough draw and lost in the opening night match to Serena Williams 6-4, 6-1
On the local front Scott Lipsky Scott Lipsky of Merrick, N.Y. played in this year’s men’s doubles draw. Lipsky, along with his partner, Eric Butorac, got a tough draw, having to face the fifthseeded team of Max Mirnyi and Andy Ram of Belarus in the first round. Lipsky and Butorac put up a good fight before falling 6-3, 6-1.
Robert Kendrick: Lost a tough second round match to Tommy Haas after defeating Martin Vassallo Arguello in the first round. Sam Querrey: Beat two Americans, Michael Yani and Kevin Kim, before being defeated by 12th-seeded Robin Soderling in the third round.
Melanie Oudin: The Cinderella story of the tournament. Melanie advanced all the way to the quarterfinals, before losing to eventual finalist Caroline Wozniacki of Denmark. Along the way, Oudin defeated Elena Dementieva, Maria Sharapova and Nadia Petrova to reach the quarters.
Coming In January Distribution scheduled for 1/1/10 This edition will feature: • Guide to Long Island Tennis Clubs • Girls High School Recap • A Look Back at Long Island Tennis Expo • 2010 Pro Tennis Preview
Don’t miss the advertising and editorial opportunities in the next edition of Long Island Tennis Magazine January/February 2010. Submissions for both advertising and editorial are due by December 1st. For more information, please call (516) 409-4444 or e-mail Advertise@LITennisMag.com.
Distribution across Long Island at:
• indoor tennis clubs • country clubs • tennis camps • retail stores • supermarkets • gyms • and many more Long Island Tennis Magazine • November/December 2009
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Scenes From the
2009 U.S. Open The crowd gathers outside Arthur Ashe Stadium prior to the evening matches
Andy Murray in action on Ashe Stadium Court
Dinara Safina delivers a serve in a daytime match at Louis Armstrong Court
Coach Darren Cahill with Daniela Hantuchova during a practice session
Melainie Oudin pauses during her doubles match
Lleyton Hewitt on the Grandstand
Juan del Potro delivers a serve at Louis Armstrong Court
Jesse Witten celebrates after his upset of Maximo Gonzalez
James Blake delivers an overhead smash on Armstrong Court
American player Sam Querrey ready for action
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By Eric Dietsche This year has certainly been one of the more stressful in my life, not to mention one of the most exciting and scary. All in one year, I have gone from a high school senior, at the top of my game in my high school both academically and athletically … to a graduated high school student anxiously awaiting the beginning of a new chapter in his life, to a green, wet-behind-theears college student without much knowledge as to how things would work in this new place. One week after I arrived at college, I found out that my maternal grandmother had been hospitalized. She had heart surgery six years earlier, and now, her valve was being replaced,
since it had basically disintegrated within her heart. I didn’t know exactly what to do. For the 14 years that she lived with my family, I had been her “sidekick.” I was always there for her, and she was always there for me. Now, I felt like I was breaking the deal. All of this occurred at the same time for me, as if moving into college as a freshman wasn’t stressful enough. I was extremely worried and anxious, since I couldn’t help but think that my most reliable companion was in trouble and there was nothing that I was doing to help her get through it. I would try calling her hospital phone, but by that point, she had become so weak that she could barely form any words to speak with me. Amidst all of this chaos, I have realized just how lucky I am to be a part of the Williams
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Men’s Varsity Tennis Team. Although I am not one of the competing members, everyone on the team has been extremely supportive of me and has helped me through these times. They have been helping me adjust to college life and have also been helping me budget my time wisely so that I will have enough time to do all of the things that I want to do, while going home every weekend to visit my grandmother in the hospital. They have all been understanding, and realize that right now, neither tennis nor academics are of top priority in my mind, since some things, like family, will always just be more important than others. Being an un-recruited member of one of the top Division III tennis teams has also presented some of its own formidable challenges
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Long Island Tennis Magazine • November/December 2009
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for me. Coming from the Catholic High School League on Long Island, I did not have that much competition, and I was very close to, if not on, the top of my high school team all four years of school. Needless to say, I was very used to being in control of points and having the upper hand in a match both mentally and score-wise. However, once I came here, I had to make some quick adjustments. The players here are so much better than anything I have ever experienced while playing school tennis previously. They are both power and precision players, which is a phenomenon that is rarely encountered in high school play. They readily switch from offense to defense, and then back to offense, within a single point just to win it. Needless to say, the first day or so took some hard work just to accustom myself to the new level being put out before me, but I believe that I am a good enough player to one day become a contributing member of this team. Although it may not be today or even this year, I have full confidence in my abilities as a tennis player to overcome the obstacles that are being presented to me at the moment and just take them as challenges that will just make me stronger in the end. So far, being a part of this team, even if I won’t necessarily be a part of the competing team, has been one of the best experiences of college. I get to meet people who are as interested in this great game as I am, and, I also get a great opportunity to work on my game. On top of that, I gain new friends, and a network of players that would do anything for each other. Although hard work and sometimes disappointment are part of the deal, I am confident that being a part of the tennis team will be one of the best things that will happen for me over my four years here at Williams College, since it has already been one of the most rewarding so far in the mere three weeks that I have been on campus. Eric Dietsche is a senior and valedictorian of the Class of 2009 at St. John the Baptist Diocesan High School in West Babylon, N.Y. As a five-time varsity letter winner in tennis, he is also a two-time All-League Player. He also won the title of Most Valuable Player in the New York Catholic High School Athletic Association in 2009. He plans to attend Williams College in Massachusetts in the fall where he’ll play tennis. He may be reached by e-mail at edietsche@gmail.com.
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my opinion BY ERIC MEDITZ
What’s the Story With the Money Professional Tennis Players Make? So I’m at the U.S. Open this past year, and I’m enjoying my fifth Grey Goose Honey Deuce (for those of you who don’t know, this is the official drink of the 2009 U.S. Open … at least that’s what the bartender told me as she made eye contact with the tip jar). I’m walking the grounds with a smile on my face and without a care in the world. I take that back … I’m “stumbling” around the grounds with a smile on my face and without a care in the world, but I don’t care. It’s the two weeks of the year that I have always looked forward to ever since I was a kid. I walk into the Ralph Lauren Polo store and a few people who are dressed like ballgirls greet me. One of the ballgirls talked me into buying some sweater that had a big horse on the back of it. It seemed like a good idea at the time, but later when I checked my credit card statement online, I figured I pretty much could have bought a Hyundai Sonata. While I’m walking the back grounds, I have my baseball cap hanging very low close to my eyes, along with a big pair of sunglasses on. The last thing I want is to be recognized by anyone. I want to be as incognito as I possibly can. The reason why I do this is because I’ve been involved in tennis in the New York area for the last 25 years. If I wasn’t in some type of disguise, I wouldn’t be able to walk five feet without bumping into someone I know. Then, I would have to waste time having some silly conversation about nothing, which would be accompanied by many fake smiles and a few “I told you so’s.” I would be more than happy to oblige this type of behavior in a supermarket or a shopping mall, but not at the U.S. Open. The time here is precious! 18
I made my way to the back courts and I was able to watch some great tennis between two guys who were ranked around 80-something in the world. I don’t remember their names offhand, but the match went four sets and the small crowd that gathered around over the last three hours was really getting into it. When the match concluded, I clicked on my new U.S. Open iPhone app to see who was on this court next. It was a women’s doubles match between four women whose last names all end in “OVA.” I don’t think I even cleared the screen before I started to pack up my things. I want to sit through a women’s doubles match about as much as I want an axe to cave in the back of my skull. At that moment, I would have to immediately say goodbye to my time at court 12. As I’m leaving my seat, I overhear a father talking to his son. “Dad, I feel bad for that guy who just lost. He came all the way here from his country and he lost in the first round.” The father replied with: “It’s okay, son. This is what he does for a living. It’s just like me and insurance. Plus, I wouldn’t feel too bad for him. After all, he is a multi-millionaire.” I came close to saying something to this insurance guy, but I didn’t. I think if maybe I had another Honey Deuce in me, I probably would have. I just shook my head at his silly comment to his son and went about my business in trying to find another men’s match somewhere on the grounds. People think that professional tennis players are rich athletes. Sure, you have guys like Roger Federer and Andre Agassi, both of which made tremendous amounts
Long Island Tennis Magazine • November/December 2009
of money in their careers, not only from their results in tournaments, but also through countless endorsements. They are getting money from Nike, Wilson, Head, Canon, Rolex … and the list continues. They pretty much just sit back and watch the money roll in. I would say everyone in the top 25 has some type of deal where they are getting paid to use racquets or wear a certain brand of clothing. But as you get outside of the top 25, many players rely totally on what they make in tournaments as their total net income. It’s a miniscule amount for what they have accomplished in this sport. Let’s take a guy like Daniel Kollerer. Daniel is a journeyman Austrian player who turned professional at the age of 18. He has been grinding it out on the Future and Challenger Circuits for years, which is tennis’ version of the minor leagues. Daniel has played in the French Open and Wimbledon. He’s now 26-years-old, and in this year’s past U.S. Open, he lost in the third round to Juan Martin del Potro in four very competitive sets. As we all know, del Potro went on to win the Open. Because of Daniels’ great results, his ranking jumped up to 57th in the world. I repeat … he is the 57th best tennis player in the world. This is a mind-boggling accomplishment. How much do you think the 57th best tennis player walking this earth has made in his life? Around $5 million … $10 million … $20 million … $30 million? As of two weeks ago, Daniel Kollerer’s career earnings for being a professional tennis player for the last eight years is $430,086. So the 57th best tennis player in the entire world has averaged making $53,760.75 annually
since he was 18 years of age. That’s what assistant managers at Dunkin Donuts make. This is a guy who plays matches on television and in the Davis Cup for Team Austria. That is far from a millionaire or millionaire status. I don’t know what Daniel’s racquet or clothing deal is, but I can guarantee you it’s not a lot … if barely anything at all. I knew a player who was once ranked around 100th in the world and played in the Davis Cup for his country. He had a clothing sponsorship with Nike. He got all the clothes and sneakers his heart desired. But unfortunately, Nike didn’t give him a penny to wear them. Sure, I bet Rafael Nadal gets millions a year to wear his Nike cut-off shirts … but not this guy. This guy just got an extra box load of Nike socks, and that’s it! Okay, so a guy like Daniel Kollerer has made approximately $430,000 in his eightyear career so far. I’m sure he’ll add to it before he retires. But the thing that has to be remembered is that pro tennis players have absurd expenses to deal with as well. Tennis players spend pretty much their whole year
traveling and flying, and I’m not just talking about $150 fares on little puddle jumpers to Pennsylvania. I’m talking about flying to Australia, then to Paris, then to Toronto, then to Belgium. Then you have to take into account all the hotel nights they rack up. Traveling the world the way they do is not a cheap task. Now, unless they are getting some help from their country’s tennis federation, these professional players are totally responsible for their own travel expenses. Then, if they have a coach, you can multiply those expenses by two. If a player does travel with a coach, he also gets a cut of the prize money earned. So, our player who is outside the top 25 has even a smaller amount of money he can take home. Now if our friend, Daniel Kollerer should get injured, he will make no money at all. He is totally dependent on his tournament results and that’s it. If he doesn’t play, he doesn’t get paid! There are no contracts that are signed where he will get money, regardless if he plays or not. The 57th ranked baseball player according to Yahoo! Fantasy Baseball Rankings is
Victor Martinez. Victor was traded to the Boston Red Sox from the Cleveland Indians in July. This season, Victor made $5.6 million. Then in 2010, he will make $7 million. After that, he can renegotiate his contract with Boston, and I’m sure he’ll make even more money for seasons to come. Victor and Daniel might be very equivalent athletes, but the money Daniel makes compared to baseball players or any other professional athlete isn’t even in the same ballpark. I have said it before and I will say it again … tennis is the hardest sport in the world to achieve success at. The money that these professionals earn makes it that much harder. So, next year if I bump into Daniel Kollerer walking the grounds at the U.S. Open, I will approach him and give him a pat on the shoulder. Then I will take him over to the bar and buy him a Grey Goose Honey Deuce. After all, it’s the official drink of the U.S. Open, and I’m sure he can use one! Tennis Pro Eric Meditz may be reached by e-mail at meditzisfunny@yahoo.com.
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Long Island Tennis Magazine • November/December 2009
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Jimmy Connors Makes Special Appearance at the Alan King Pro-Am Tennis Tournament By Peter Fishbach The Annual Alan King Pro-Am Tennis Tournament was a great success and raised more than $11,000 for its designated beneficiary, the Wheelchair Sports Federation. Held on Aug. 30 at the Wildwood Pool & Tennis Club in Great Neck, N.Y., the day turned out better than anyone could have expected thanks to the unexpected arrival of a very special guest. A surprise appearance by legend Jimmy Connors added much to the excitement of the day. Connors spent the afternoon signing autographs and hitting with a number of the generous benefactors. Tennis greats such as Guillermo Vilas, Andres Gomez, Peter Fleming, Virginia Wade and Rosie Casals participated in the Pro-Am, along with 15 other stars who have won numerous Grand Slam titles.
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Dylan Levine, the number one-ranked junior wheelchair player in the country, played with Connors, and then participated in a center court exhibition with Gomez. The Women’s Pro-Am event was won by Marcie Zeitlin (and pro partner Lori McNeil), defeating Jennifer Menist and pro Gigi Fernandez. In the men’s final, Andrew Sandler teamed with Robert Seguso to defeat Sammy Tawil and Rick Leach. Morris S. Levy was once again the perfect host, ensuring that spectators and amateur players who attended and participated enjoyed an up-close experience with some of the greatest tennis players of all-time. Tournament Chairman Peter Fishbach was very pleased with the quality of pros he was able to recruit. Many were multiple Grand Slam Champions.
Long Island Tennis Magazine • November/December 2009
Women pros: Virginia Wade, Rosie Casals, Lori McNeil, Gigi Fernandez and Ilana Kloss Men pros: Guillermo Vilas, Andres Gomez, Peter Fleming, Jimmy Arias, Robert Seguso, Ken Flach, Aaron Krickstein, Christo VanRensburg, Bob Lutz, Eddie Dibbs, Ross Case, Gene Mayer, Dick Stockton, Rick Leach and Luke Jensen. Special thanks to the Wildwood Swim & Tennis Club for hosting the event. Wildwood’s tennis pro, Russell Heier, directed all of the onsite activities and ensured that the matches ran smoothly. In the coming months, be sure to look for details on the 2010 Alan King ProAm Tennis Tournament. Peter Fishbach is Alan King Pro-Am Tennis Tournament Chairman. He may be reached by e-mail at p.fishbach@yahoo.com.
A Look Back at the Maverick Tennis Labor Day ProSet Challenge By Stephen G. Sombrotto David Cooper, who currently resides in Washington, D.C., was going to be on Long Island visiting relatives for the Labor Day Holiday Weekend. He loves tennis and found the Maverick Tennis Labor Day Pro Set Challenge online at USTA tennis link. Although he was too late to register for the singles draw, tournament director Stephen Sombrotto invited him to participate in the doubles draw and offered to find him a partner so he could participate. Dave and his new partner, Lenny Bonacasa, went on to win all six of their pro sets, defeating Warren Espiritu and Victor Mercado in the final. “It was a pleasure to play with Dave, he is a great player, but also a great guy and
we had a lot of fun,” said Lenny Bonacasa. The 10-team doubles draw was played on Sunday, and followed Saturday’s 16player singles draw which featured some of the best USTA players from around the New York region. Steve Hu went on to win his second Maverick Tennis event, defeating Phil Rabinovich in the finals. The round-robin pro set format allowed everyone to enjoy playing some different opponents, and provided plenty of tennis for all participants. Keep an eye out for more Maverick Tennis events over the fall and winter. Stephen G. Sombrotto is Maverick Tennis tournament director. He may be reached by phone at (516) 807-3716 or e-mail ssombrotto@optonline.net.
Steve “The Master” Hu, Tournament Director Stephen G. Sombrotto and Phil Rabinovich celebrate the successful 2009 Maverick Tennis Labor Day ProSet Challenge event
Point Set – “Where Our Service Is Your Advantage” South Shores finest High Performance Tournament Training Program Join Long Islands top ranked players for weekly tennis training sessions with Tonny Van de Pieterman. Multiple Sclerosis/Wheelchair Weekly Tennis Clinics Too much Turkey?? Work it off with a two hour play day "Adult Turkey Trot" 9-11am "Junior Turkey Shoot" 12-2pm No Holiday Blues if you are on court for our : Junior and Adult Camps December 28-31 Call us at 516-536-2323 for more information, ask for Nayana
Point Set Indoor Racquet Club 3065 New Street • Oceanside, New York 11572 For info please call 516-536-2323 • www.PointSettennis.com Daniel B. Dwyer, Managing Partner
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23
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Athletic Mouth Guards Can Help Your Game
Your Upper Teeth Must Be Protected from Traumatic Injury, but an Unbalanced Bite Can Actually Physically Weaken Your Whole Body Could You Play Your Best with One Shoe Off? A mouth guard that properly fits over the upper teeth may, in fact, set your lower teeth up to hit the appliance with unequal forces. The uneven strain on muscles in the head and neck also affect the back, shoulders, arms, and legs. Just like from the feet up, the mouth down can impact the ability to function at peak performance.
What Can a Lopsided Bite Do? Interfere with hand-eye coordination, reflexes: Teeth supply information to many important cranial nerves. The brain interprets what your teeth bite on. Incompatible biting forces send inaccurate messages that have an impact on reactions to timing, focus, and concentration. Put strain on neck and back muscles or decrease strength, flexibility, and endurance: An athletic appliance that causes the mouth to over-open or clench on one side, or both, puts strain on the connecting muscles, nerves, bones, and blood supply making you more prone to injury and fatigue.
Prevent recovery from injury: Getting back in shape takes much longer when the body needs to overcome a structural imbalance. A mouthguard that does not take the bite into consideration prevents postural equilibrium, which can affect the body’s response to pain, retraining, and flexibility.
Level the Playing Field in Your Mouth Whether you buy an appliance from the store, on-line, or even from your dentist, you must still determine the fit for your body. If you suffer from allergies, painful areas, headaches, fatigue, sleeping disturbances, or any number of health conditions, your bite may be out of balance with the rest of your body. You may, in fact, find that a balancing lower appliance made to keep your bite level with the horizon, will help restore equilibrium to distant muscles.
How do you know if Your Appliance is Right? Kinesiology muscle testing is one way determine imbalances in the body. A dentist trained in muscle testing can use this technique, along with others, to help verify if your appliance is right for you.
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Eastern Juniors Honored at U.S. Open Awards Gala ome of the top players in the USTA/Eastern Region were rewarded for their fine performances over the past year with an awards gala on the U.S. Open grounds prior to the start of the first day’s play of the 2009 Open. The top three point winners in each age division at the end of the series of Designated Closed Tournaments were guests of USTA/Eastern on Aug. 31 at the U.S. Open in Flushing, N.Y. Prizes were awarded to the winners. Long Island Tennis Magazine was on hand to cover the event and support the winners, including five from the Long Island area. Vihar Shah and Bert Vancura, both from New Hyde Park, N.Y. took home high honors in their respective divisions. Isabella Pascucci from Oyster Bay, N.Y.; Katherine Yau from Manhasset, N.Y. and Julia Elbaba from Oyster Bay, N.Y. highlighted the field of girls in the Long Island region.
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Congratulations to the following on their accomplishments and achievements (winners from Long Island are denoted by italics): Boys 12 1. Robert Levine (Bedford, N.Y.) 2. Michael Chen (Holmdel, N.J.) 3. Paul Hayes (Middletown, N.Y.)
Girls 12 1. Jessica Golovin (New York, N.Y.) 2. Isabella Pascucci (Oyster Bay, N.Y.) 3. Elizabeth Tsvetkov (Brooklyn, N.Y.)
Boys 14 1. Vihar Shah (New Hyde Park, N.Y.) 2. Matthew Nardella (Manlius, N.Y.) 3. Ryoma Haraguchi (New York, N.Y.)
Girls 14 1. Quinn Gleason (Mendon, N.Y.) 2. Katrine Steffensen (Scarsdale, N.Y.) 3. Arielle Griffin (Jamaica, N.Y.)
Boys 16 1. Richard Del Nunzio (Forest Hills, N.Y.) 2. Bert Vancura (New Hyde Park, N.Y.) 3. Andrew Adams (Bronx, N.Y.) 3. Winston Lin (Williamsville, N.Y.)
Girls 16 1. Leighann Sahagun (Queens Village, N.Y.) 2. Katherine Yau (Manhasset, N.Y.) 3. Jamie Loeb (Ossining, N.Y.)
Boys 18 1. Joseph Schafer (Orchard Park, N.Y.) 2. Michael Lampa (Ocean, N.J.) 3. Gary Kushnirovich (Brooklyn, N.Y.)
Girls 18 1. Stefania Balasa (East Brunswick, N.J.) 2. Julia Elbaba (Oyster Bay, N.Y.) 3. Robin Anderson (Matawan, N.J.)
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Scenes From the U.S. Open Eastern Juniors Awards Gala August 31 in Flushing Meadows, N.Y.
Tim Heath, president of USTA/Eastern Section, at the podium
Julie Bliss, director of junior competition and player development for USTA/Eastern Section, addresses the Awards Gala audience
Julia Elbaba from Oyster Bay, N.Y. was honored at the Awards Gala D.A. Abrams, executive director and COO for USTA/Eastern Section, and Tim Heath, USTA/Eastern Section president (far right), congratulate the Girls 16 Junior Award winners
Congratulations to Bert Vancura from New Hyde Park, N.Y. on being recognized as a top 16-year-old by the USTA/Eastern Region Top U.S. player Justin Gimelstob was on hand to congratulate the USTA/Eastern Section Juniors for their accomplishments Long Island Tennis Magazine • November/December 2009
27
Long Island’s 3.5 Team Wraps a Successful Season By Bruce Lindenman and Marty Marmorale The 3.5 Long Island team began three seasons ago as a 3.0 team that rattled off 21 straight victories, including two at the national championships in Las Vegas. Two seasons ago, the team moved up to 3.5, added a few good players and wound up in the middle of the pack. This past season, the team added five new players and found the right combination to win. The 2009 season was to be an ultraclose, super competitive season that had us winning the West 3.5 Division by just five and seven points over the second and third place teams, respectively. The season began with a bang as our first match was a 15-7 victory over the ultimate second place finisher that could have gone either way, as first doubles ended in a victorious super tie-breaker. The intense competition continued all season long, as every team in the division had some very strong players and there were so many courts decided by super tiebreakers. All of the top four teams had a chance for the playoffs going into the last two matches of the season. Highlighting the season were wins over the other three top contenders, which ultimately gave us first place in the division. Every one of these matches had first doubles decided by a super tie-breaker which we were able to win. The first playoff round was a 4-1 victory against a very strong team from Setauket. The second round for the Long Island Championship had us up against an undefeated Blue Point team who had lost 28
only seven courts the entire season, including their impressive first round playoff win over a very competitive Nassau team by a score of 4-1. We approached the championship match with some of our top players injured or unavailable. But every team has to overcome difficulties to win, and our players stepped up their play to edge the Blue Point team three courts to two including
winning first doubles in a super tie-breaker. The success of the season was very sweet, due to the high level of competition throughout the year and all of the teams kept up the pressure on each other. In addition to our league play, several members of our team volunteered to work at Arthur Ashe Kids Day at the start of the U.S. Open. We look forward to volunteering again next year. (From left to right, front row) Steven Mantell, Rene Andre and team captain Bruce Lindenman, with (left to right, back row) Bobby Callaghan, Tim Consiglio, Patricio Mera, Jodi Nainggolan, Luis Osorio, Rich Brown and DJ Fitzharris. Team members not in photo: Martin Marmorale, Neil Berger, Joe Martines, Charles Schnier, Patrik Jutka, Stuart Kesner, David Weiner and Hamil Babb.
4.0 Carefree Team Takes Home National Crown in Vegas By Ignacio (Nacho) Arenas The little engine that could, just did! The 4.0 Carefree tennis team captained by Adam Kolenberg won the National Championships in Las Vegas by defeating the southern team from Arkansas by a score of 4-1 in the national finals. The Carefree team, playing out of the Merrick, N.Y. Carefree Racquet Club, capped an unbelievable season that saw them win the Long Island regular season and then go 12-0 in the post
Long Island Tennis Magazine • November/December 2009
season, sweeping the Sectionals in Syracuse, N.Y. and the Nationals in Las Vegas. No other team from Long Island has ever accomplished such a feat and won the National Championship, and no one gave the team from Carefree any sort of chance coming into the season. But unity, above all, carried the team through the highs and lows of the five-plus month season. Never once did one court matter more than another. Never once did one player matter more than the team. In a sport where individuality is the norm, team unity defines this group of men from Carefree who accomplished what many thought was the unthinkable. Even the men’s wives, starting with co-captain Bonnie Kolenberg and the many more
who traveled cross-country to support the team, joined in the amazing dream that became a reality on Oct. 4 at the Darling Tennis Center in Las Vegas. And what started as any other season for an unheralded team from the Eastern Region finished with a big bang. It once again proves that whoever wants can, and whoever believes, wins. “The National Championships are a funny thing and bittersweet in a way,” said team captain Adam Kolenberg. “Only nine players came to Vegas, but it took all 17 players on our team to win. I wish everyone could have been there to celebrate the win together. This has been a very arduous road to get here, from me tearing my meniscus at the beginning of the season, to Chris Colesanti being sidelined with a back injury, Brian Yegidis tearing up his groin, Danny Calhoun surviving a bad car accident, and RJ Narcisco and James Dell Italia dehydrating at Sectionals. But at the end of the day, this is an ad-
venture that I wouldn’t want to share with anybody else. It’s one thing to achieve personal glory on the courts, it’s something more meaningful to achieve this as a team. We all pulled together to accomplish something that is incredible. The feeling of camaraderie and the friendship that we all share makes this team special. We accomplished something incredible, but more importantly, we created a bond and a special friendship that will long surpass this championship.”
The team joins the Kolenbergs in thanking Carefree Racquet Club and the Long Island tennis community for all their support and well wishes. This was a win for all of us, friends and opponents alike. We’d also like to thank Kathy Miller, manager and friend of Carefree, for all of her support, generosity and undying faith. And so the little engine that could will now, and for the next 12 months, be 4.0 National Champions!
The Carefree 4.0 National Championship team of (standing, from left to right) Bobby Block, Chris Colesanti, Ignacio (Nacho) Arenas, Danny Calhoun, Adam Kolenberg (team captain), James Dell Italia and Scott Simon, with (kneeling, from left to right) RJ Narcisco and Russ Baier.
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29
A Look Back at the Beach Tennis USA National Championships in Long Beach he 2009 Beach Tennis USA National Championship demonstrated two days of exciting, fast-paced action. For the first time ever, the National Championship in the United States featured a “Paddle Battle,” in addition to the regular racquet competition. The National Championships are held in our backyard, in Long Beach, N.Y., and in addition to the extreme competition, the National Championship also has a beach party feel to it with a stage, food, drinks and music. On Saturday, Sept. 5, teams from all over the world competed, using paddles, rather than conventional tennis racquets. The European athletes in attendance, who have played with paddles for years, were the teams to beat in this tournament. In the Men’s Pro Division finals, it was two Italian teams that would square off: Gianluca Chirico and Massimo Mattei from Ravenna, Italy versus Maurizio DiCori and Emanuele Bianchedi, also from Ravenna, Italy. Both teams are very familiar with the sport of beach tennis, having competed in more than 100 tournaments in Italy combined. Although DiCori and Bianchedi were newcomers to American sand, it was no detriment to their game, as they defeated Chirico and Matei by
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a score of 8-5. In the Men’s Amateur Division, Team Top Gun, Long Island Tennis Magazine’s own David Sickmen and Jared Rada shocked the crowd by winning the championship. It was their first ever National Tournament, defeating two seasoned Beach Tennis players, the Johnson Brothers from Buffalo, N.Y., by a score of 8-2 in the finals on Center Court. It was a great win for David and Jared who were playing as a team for the first time. Over on the Ladies Pro Division, the final match consisted of two Southern California teams: Lee Whitwell and Joslynn Burkett from San Diego versus Lucy Streeter and Kristen Flagler from Hermosa Beach, Calif. Flagler and Streeter knocked out Nadia Johnston from Long Beach, N.Y. and Nicole Melch from Cresskill, N.J. in the semi-finals to advance; however, they were no match for the duo from San Diego, as they easily captured the first Paddle Battle title by a score of 8-4. Sunday, Sept. 6 featured the tennis racquet version of the 2009 Beach Tennis USA National Championship. In the Men’s Pro Division, two-time defending champions Matteo Marighella and Alex Mingozzi from Ravenna, Italy advanced to the finals to face off against former national champions Chris Henderson
and Phil Whitesell from Charleston, S.C. Henderson and Whitesell, who won titles in 2005 and 2006, were eager to defeat the Italians and bring the trophy back to the U.S. In dramatic fashion, the pair of Americans stunned the crowd as they delivered powerful serves, which was enough to defeat the seemingly unbeatable Italian team, 8-6. Team Top Gun of David Sickmen and Jared Rada were back on Sunday, this time playing in the Pro Division. The duo more than held their own and defeated both an American team and a team from the Czech Republic, advancing to the round of 16 before falling to the defending National Champions and much more seasoned Italian squad. In the Ladies Pro Division, it was the duo from San Diego yet again who would advance to the finals, as Lee Whitwell and Joslynn Burkett would face the hometown hero from Long Beach, Nadia Johnston, and her partner, Nicole Melch, who have been unstoppable in the tournaments in which they competed this season. The only thing fiercer than competition was the wind that made it very difficult to serve the ball. But the ladies battled through and seemed to be on par since a tie-breaker set was necessary. The San Diego team proved to be too much for Melch and Johnston, as they gained and maintained momentum in the tie-breaker set to win it by a score of 9-8(5). Whitwell and Burkett cleaned up in Long Beach, winning both the Paddle Battle finals and the 2009 Beach Tennis National Championship. The staff of Long Island Tennis Magazine was on hand for the entire weekend tournament supporting the event, taking photos, and passing out magazines to the many spectators who had come by to watch. Look for a recap of the Beach Tennis season on the Tennis Channel in October and November, and look forward to the 2010 Beach Tennis USA season. For more information, www.beachtennisusa.net.
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Long Island Tennis Magazine • November/December 2009
visit
Scenes From the 2009 Beach Tennis USA National Championship September 5-6 in Long Beach, N.Y.
“Special” Keenan Burton leads some singing and dancing on the main stage
Mark Altheim, Beach Tennis USA president, welcomes attendees to the National Championships in Long Beach, N.Y.
Lauren Francesca and Jared Rada, tennis director at Sportime Roslyn, pause for a photo
Nadia Johnson and Nicole Melch, finalists at National Championships, during match play Marty “The So-Cal Kid” Sokalas teams with Alex Mingozzi
Team Top Gun from Long Island Tennis Magazine, David Sickmen and Jared Rada, en route to the Beach Tennis Paddle Championship
The girls of Beach Tennis USA pause for a photo
Donald Young serving during his Beach Tennis USA match Marty Sokalas (right) interviews one of the female beach tennis competitors
Alex Mingozzi, two-time national Beach Tennis USA champion in Long Beach, N.Y.
Long Island Tennis Magazine • November/December 2009
31
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Long Island Tennis Magazine’s
Literary Corner
By Brent Shearer
The Roger Federer Story: Quest for Perfection By Rene Stauffer In this biography of Roger Federer, The Roger Federer Story: Quest for Perfection, Swiss tennis writer Rene Stauffer offers a glimpse of the stages in the development of the recently dethroned U.S. Open champ. Stauffer, who had the cooperation of Federer and his family, goes all the way back to the Swiss star’s earliest exposure to the game and tells the story of his emergence as a champion. Of course, as an “authorized” biography, Stauffer’s work has both the advantages and disadvantages of the genre. The biographer, who has the luxury of full cooperation from the subject and his circle, is usually not going to bite the hand that let him into the entourage. So while the book is full of fascinating stories about the development of the champion, it tends to portray its subject in a kind of idealized light. With Federer, this isn’t hard to do, heck, I’m a big fan myself. But if the reader wants to find out what the Swiss star is like, warts and all, assuming he has any, this isn’t the book for him. But with that slight caveat, the story of Federer’s development into the number one player in the world makes for fascinating reading. 34
A lot of tennis fans have heard about Federer’s “un-Federer-like” outbursts as a junior player. Among other anecdotes about the current world number one player’s tantrums, Stauffer tells a story about how Federer earned a punishment of having to clean the toilets at one Swiss training facility by throwing his racquet through a newly installed curtain after missing a shot. The book is rich in stories like this that give some perspective to moments that have surprised tennis fans lately, such as Federer smashing his racquet in the course of losing at Key Biscayne earlier this year. The gentleman-like composure of Federer is apparently an overlay to a personality that isn’t always calm. It’s easy to forget that Federer was overshadowed in Swiss tennis when he was growing up by Martina Hingis. She is only a year older, and at the same time, Federer was becoming the world’s best junior as a 17year-old and winner of the Wimbledon Junior Title in 1998, she was winning Grand Slams. Stauffer points out that while it now seems that Federer’s emergence as one of the greatest players in history seems to have been preordained, there were a lot of moments in his development at which he could have faltered. For example, the homesickness he fought as a 14-year-old when he relocated from his family home in Munchenstein to the other side of Switzerland could have, at the least, slowed down his development. He moved across the country to train at the Swiss National Tennis Center. In doing so, he confronted problems that might have derailed a less determined child. Federer was homesick, he missed his parents and he was dropped into a Francophone
Long Island Tennis Magazine • November/December 2009
world without knowing a single word of the language. Stauffer quotes him as saying that his first five months at the Swiss National Tennis Center in Ecublens was one of the worst periods of his life. Federer also had to face the adjustment of going from being one of the oldest and the best players in the junior program in his hometown to being the youngest and the worst at the new facility. Besides looking at the emotional staying power that led the young Federer to tough it out in Ecublens, Stauffer includes top players’ reactions to Federer’s game. The author quotes from an Andre Agassi press conference after the American lost to Federer in the 2005 U.S. Open. “Roger is the only guy I’ve ever played against where you hold serve to go up 1-0 and you’re thinking, ‘All right, good.’” This comment came in the course of what was a long, and sometimes rambling answer about what it was like to try to beat Federer. Agassi had a lot to say because he was trying to give people an idea about the challenge other pros face in trying to solve Federer’s game. The consensus from his peers is that there is so much variety in Federer’s game that he has many more options to call upon as a match goes on. Stauffer’s book is a worthwhile addition to the commentary about Federer. It was published in German in 2006 and the English translation was released in May 2007. As such, it doesn’t have anything to say about Federer’s recent trials and triumphs, but it is essential reading for those who want to see how this great champion has evolved. Brent Shearer may be reached by e-mail at bbshearer@gmail.com.
Summer Junior Team Tennis Recap Congrats also to the Long Island players and coaches of Sun & Surf Beach Club for finishing third in the 18 and 14 & Under Divisions. Eastern congratulates all the players, parents and coaches for their hard work and dedication to the JTT program. The winter junior team tennis program will be starting in November. If you would like information about the JTT program or
By Steve Abbondondelo The 2009 USTA Eastern Summer Junior Team Tennis Season culminated with 18 teams from the section, including Long Island competing at the USTA Eastern Summer Sectional for the right to be crowned the best in the Eastern Section. Slated to be played outside at SUNY College at Purchase, N.Y. Aug. 22-23, rain forced the event to be moved indoors. The 12 & Under and the 14 & Under Divisions were held at Solaris Sports and Racquet Club in Hawthorne, N.Y. The 18 & Under Division was played at New Rochelle Racquet Club. Rain did not dampen the player’s spirits or the level of competition. Match play followed the JTT format of boys and girl’s singles, doubles and mixed doubles. The sportsmanship and teamwork demonstrated by the players, and the coaches highlighted the event. Long Island congratulates the players from Hicksville CTA Smash, including Captain David Engelhardt, Jen and Emily Gregory, Danielle Lapierre, Angela Lupo, Scott Jackson, and Anthony Pastecchi for finishing first in the 18 & Under Division.
the upcoming season, please contact JTT Eastern Committee Chair/Long Island Regional Coordinator Steve Abbondondelo by e-mail at steveabby@optonline.net. Steve Abbondondelo is Junior Team Tennis Eastern Committee Chair/Long Island Regional Coordinator. For questions or inquiries about the USTA JTT program, e-mail Steve at steveabby@optonline.net. The Sun & Surf Beach Club, third place finishers in the 18 and 14 Divisions, gather for a team photo
Congratulations to the Hicksville Smash for their first place finish in the 18 & Under Division
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COLLEGE TENNIS ADVICE Getting a “Read” on a College Coach By Clark D. Ruiz II Players spend their entire careers trying to get a good “read” on their opponents in an effort to better understand their strengths and weaknesses, and achieve success against them. However, getting a good “read” on a college coach is a totally different ballgame, one which, when achieved, can lead to success on the court, with them. A critical component in making the right choice for your collegiate tennis career is understanding the coach who will be leading the team you are considering. That being said, it also happens to be the hardest to get your arms around. It is the last piece of the three prong package that comprises a complete school package.
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The first prong is choosing a school with the appropriate level of academics and area of study you need. As a student-athlete, you spend about 70 to 80 percent of
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your time studying in preparation for your future, your life. Better make sure you are going to be properly prepared to meet the challenges that lie ahead. The second prong is determining if the current players on the team are one’s you can envision as a second or extended family. Typically, teammates spend 70 to 80 percent of their time with each other. It extends beyond the time on the court to the classroom, library, dining halls, social events, etc. No one has a better idea of what you are going through or the support you need than someone who is going through the same exact things you are or has been there before … your teammates. The third prong is the coach. Choosing to play for the right coach can make all the continued on page 39
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Long Island Tennis Magazine • November/December 2009
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Nassau County Rally Day Brings Tennis to the Kids at Tully Park On Aug. 14, more than 250 children spent a glorious day at Tully Park in New Hyde Park, N.Y., which was hosted by Bill Mecca Long Island Tennis Associates. Represented at the event were CTA of Hicksville, Oasis Camp, and the Alliance Tennis Program with Director Emily Moore. The children enjoyed tennis activities, ranging from QuikStart demonstrations to games, Rally Ball Tournaments, footwork drills and a tennis carnival with music. All attendees re-
ceived lunch, t-shirts and prizes for their participation. A special thanks to all the volunteers who helped make these events the successes they were. In addition, gratitude must be given to the corporate partners of the event, whose cooperation and sponsorship were greatly appreciated, including Costco, Phathead WMJC Radio, White Cap Ice, La Vera Pizza, the Town of Islip and the USTA.
Many thanks to the many members of the USTA/Long Island Board who volunteered their time, including: Terry Fontana and Steve Haar, co-chairs of the event; Mike Pavlides; Dan Burgess; and from the Eastern Section, Sandy Hoffman. A special thanks also goes to Jared Rada of Sportime Roslyn for conducting the QuickStart program and to the people from Beach Tennis USA for the day-long demonstration.
Scenes From the Nassau County Rally Day August 14 at Tully Park in New Hyde Park, N.Y.
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Long Island Tennis Magazine • November/December 2009
COLLEGE TENNIS ADVICE difference in what kind of collegiate tennis experience you have. It can have a bearing on the success you have on the court and it will certainly determine if your game will grow during your time at the school. During the search process, you will have a number of opportunities to interact with prospective coaches, either by telephone, e-mail or in face-to-face meetings. Some of the things one needs to better understand in order to make the most informed decision possible about a coach are: Understand what the coach wants in a player Understand what the team’s needs are for the year you will be looking to join them. Understand what the coach expects from their players. Understand how the coach goes about making decisions.
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Understand if the coach is a good communicator. Can this coach make you a better player? Does the coach provide clarity on how spots are earned on their team? Do the coach’s methods of operation coincide with how you operate? What kind of relationship does the coach have with the school’s administration? How is the coach perceived by others (other coaches, current players, past players, the school’s administration, etc.)? In most cases, coaches welcome the opportunity to share their thoughts and ideology, because it gives potential candidates a sense of whether the program is right for them prior to getting to the school, but it also demonstrates to a coach your thoroughness in approach and that you really care about where you end up going to
school. It is no greater complement to a coach that you have chosen to attend their school because you want to play for them specifically. The amount of time and effort put into the due diligence of a school’s coach will ultimately pay off by providing you with a wonderful and fulfilling collegiate tennis experience, one filled with great memories, as well as taking your game to a level that perhaps you didn’t know you could reach or perhaps wanted to achieve en route to playing beyond college. Four years is a big commitment to make, so don’t put yourself in a position to be the recipient of unforeseen surprises that can adversely impact your game and your experience. Clark D. Ruiz II is founder of Advantage Tennis Strategies LLC. He may be reached by phone at (917) 991-0088 or e-mail clark@advantagetennisstrategies.com.
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Long Island Corporate Challenge Provides a Great Time for Local Businesses he Annual Long Island Tennis Corporate Challenge was delayed a day due rain, which resulted in two teams dropping out of the event, but couldn’t dampen the spirits of the remaining competitors. The courts at Broadway Park in Sayville, courtesy of the Town of Islip, were filled with enthusiastic players. Using the World Team Tennis format—gender singles and doubles and mixed doubles—the winner was not decided until the last match with the Sportime Executive team edging the Town of Islip team by a grand total of two games. Aside from trophies for the winners and runners up, each player received a complementary t-shirt, water bottle, hat and many other prizes were raffled off. Additional trophies were presented to the male and female players who exhibited the best sportsmanlike conduct. Thanks
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go to the generous event sponsors, Long Island Tennis Associates and Sportime Tennis clubs for providing many of the raffle prizes, U.S. Professional Tennis Association, Advantage Tennis Shop, USTA/Eastern Long Island Region, and Outback Restaurants, which provided
If you would like to enter a team in next year’s Corporate Tennis Challenge, please contact Tournament Chairperson Terry Fontana at (516) 822-8711 or e-mail info@longislandtennis.net.
The runner-up team from the Town of Islip gathers for a team photo
Congrats to the team from Sportime, winners of the Long Island Tennis Corporate Challenge
Long Island Tennis Magazine • November/December 2009
the hungry crowd with a wonderful onsite barbeque.
Coaching the Person, Not the Talent By Parsa Samii As long as there has been sport, there has been coaching. Coaching is an occupation that requires several specific qualities that continue to evolve as a sport, and in this particular case, tennis, continues to change year after year. A great coach must be passionate, direct, knowledgeable, sincere, disciplined, motivational, and most importantly, trustworthy. Often times, not only in the tennis world but in other sports as well, coaches get caught up in teaching the “talent” instead of the human being. It’s so easy for many coaches to focus on the technique of forehands and backhands or to explain, in great detail, about the consequences of certain shot selections on the court, yet one of the most overlooked areas is coaching the person. Helping someone develop a solid work ethic, self-confidence, and self-belief can all be achieved through teaching the game across all sports. Without these specific qualities, athletes cannot perform under the high stress and high pressure environment faced in modern
sports today. From the moment a youngster starts up in a sport, there’s a battle to see who’s the best on the block, in the school or in the city, and the pressure only becomes tougher on the athlete as the stage becomes larger. Competition is everywhere, and the athlete must possess the ability to handle it. As a coach, there are moments in which part of the art is about stroking a student’s ego, or at certain times, helping a student focus on reality in good ways and bad. In other situations, coaches sometimes have to deal with specific deep questions about the inner drive and focus on a particular goal. And it goes even deeper when the student asks why and how they got to the position they’re in. Take a look back in history and you’ll notice one very consistent quality that all great athletes possess … curiosity. It is curiosity in great athletes that fuels their desire to push and break the limits and boundaries of world records, grand slam titles and history. It is that same curiosity that empowers a young child to pick up a tennis racquet for the first time, and in the teen-aged
athlete, it is that curiosity of how far they can go in their sport that separates them from their competition. It’s the job of the coach to help cultivate and inspire that curiosity, yet many times we only see one aspect or one style of the game that is being taught. Each person has a different way of being coached and there’s never just one set way of becoming a great tennis player. There are several pieces to building and developing a talented tennis player/athlete, and one of the most overlooked pieces is working with the human being. Without working on the person, an athlete’s talent will never realize its full potential. In sports, when an athlete’s foundation is solid and they possess extraordinary talent, we can call them champions. Parsa Samii is a former pro player and he currently is the tennis coach of nationallyranked juniors and a part-time travel coach on the ATP Tour. Recently, he created GEMTennis.com to share his passion and views on the sport. He may be reached by phone at (516) 965-7445 or e-mail parsas@gmail.com.
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QUICK START TENNIS FOR TOTS 4-6 year olds, 6 week session, $135.00 per session, child receives one free racquet. 45 minute classes Wednesday 3:40-4:25 & 4:40-5:25 and Saturday 12:30-1:15. 4 children to one pro. Carefree Racquet Club congratulates their Men's 4.0 Team captained by Adam Kolenberg, USTA Men's 4.0 National Champions!!! Long Island Tennis Magazine • November/December 2009
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Local collegiate action is not to be missed!
By Sunny Fishkind
in the United States. In 2008, there was double that number dropped in the one year and this year—with half of 2009 remaining—that number looks to get larger. The alarming fact is that it’s the NCAA Division I programs—the ones that should be the most popular with the most supporters—which are beginning to be consistently hit by the cuts. Last year, a number of Division I schools lost college tennis teams, including highly-touted Arizona State. And this year, programs were cut at Indiana State and the University of Tennessee-Martin.” —Examiner.com
Now that the U.S. Open has come and gone, do you feel a void? Would you like to watch some live outstanding tennis and not even have it cost you a dime? How about bringing your children and having them watch great tennis close up? There are a number of colleges and universities on Long Island with great players and great facilities. You can benefit yourself, your children and believe it or not, the college teams, and it won’t even cost you a penny. I am sure that many of you are unaware of Rutgers in New Jersey lost their men’s tenthe fact that many college tennis teams nis team. Part of the reason is that tennis does throughout our country have been eliminated. not bring in any revenue to a school, so it becomes expendable. The women’s teams often “Between 1970 and 1980 there were only a survive because of Title IX (Equity for Men’s half dozen college tennis programs eliminated and Women’s Sports). Another reason for the
demise of collegiate tennis (especially on the men’s side) is that there seems to be little community interest. Parents of players, who live in close proximity, usually show up, but if a Long Island student from California or Norway plays, their family likely won’t be there to support the players or the team. So, let’s all get behind collegiate tennis and reap the benefits of watching some truly great matches. Go to the Web sites of some of our local Long Island schools and find their schedules. Then, pack a lunch and go out and enjoy watching some really great tennis. Sunny Fishkind is assistant coach of Hofstra University’s men’s and women’s tennis teams, and College Representative on the USTA/Long Island Board. She may be reached by e-mail at sunny77@optonline.net.
Woodbury Tennis Takes Home North Shore Men’s Tennis League 2009 Crown Jerry Wasserman, captain of the North Shore Men’s Tennis League 2009 champion Woodbury Tennis, celebrates his team’s victory
he North Shore Men’s Tennis League is an outdoor league comprised of teams representing clubs from across Long Island. The outdoor season runs from May through August, with playoffs in mid-August. The match format is five courts of men’s doubles played on Tuesday. The wet summer of 2009 proved to be challenging, forcing many of the matches to be played indoors. The North Shore Men’s Tennis League finals were held at Shelter Rock Tennis Club on Aug. 25. The Shelter Rock Meteors, captained by Sandy Weiner, were defeated by Woodbury Tennis, captained by Jerry Wasserman.
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If you are interested in information about the league or are a club considering fielding a team during the 2010 season please contact Steve Abbondondelo by e-mail at steveabby@optonline.net.
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Members of Woodbury Tennis, winners of the 2009 North Shore Men’s Tennis League, gather for a team photo
Long Island Tennis Magazine • November/December 2009
Be Humble and Have a Backup Plan By Lonnie Mitchel Did you know that you have a better chance of winning the New York State Lottery than gaining a spot in the U.S. Open Draw? That’s right, 17 men and 15 women in the U.S. Open Main Draw were from the United States of America. None of the males entered were from Long Island and only two of the women were from the Metropolitan area. Therefore, you dreamers out there, you better have a backup plan! Now, before you start saying, “I am not a friend of the game, that I am negative and not a promoter of the sport,” read my article “Tennis: A Parent’s Gift That Lasts a Lifetime” in the July/August 2009 edition of Long Island Tennis Magazine. I am here to
help tennis grow and to get as many people playing tennis in the many clubs we have here on Long Island. But for you juniors with high aspirations who play on the USTA Junior Circuit and their parents, you would be wise to have a backup plan! You have a dream, pursue it with laser focus, plan your work and work your plan. However, a good plan must always have a contingency. We have several excellent junior tennis academies here on Long Island. These academies produce Division I tennis players, as well as all levels of collegiate prospects and even more high school team players. So why go through the trouble to train our children if a lottery ticket gives them a better chance of becoming rich? It is because tennis makes them rich by giv-
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ing them an education. They can cash in on learning qualities, such as perseverance, concentration, dealing with adversity and humility. The more they play and compete, the “richer” they become. In very small increments, we fill their minds with these qualities. Yes, tennis does a lot of things and works its magic in many ways by advancing these qualities. Now, to the word “humility.” The dictionary says humility is “the state of quality of being lowly in mind.” Funny thing, when I submit to being humble is when I learn the most. I travel often on the Long Island Junior Tennis Circuit to watch my son and other juniors compete. We have a great deal of young talented tennis players on the Island and it is a joy to watch them continued on page 46
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USTA TOURNAMENT photo
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Scenes From the Labor Day Championships
Scenes From the L1 Point Set Championships
Thursday-Monday, September 3-7 at Robbie Wagner Tournament Training at Glen Cove
Friday-Sunday, September 18-20 & Friday, September 25 at Point Set Indoor Racquet
Photo Credit: Franklyn Higgs
Photo Credit: Franklyn Higgs
Long Island Tennis Magazine • November/December 2009
Coming to Nassau Coliseum
Friday, January 29-Sunday, January 31, 2010 Tickets on sale soon through Ticketmaster
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HAVE A BACKUP PLAN compete. In addition to watching our Long Island talent, I also grew up watching Rod Laver, Bjorn Borg and my beloved Chris Evert play. They were great champions and besides the fact they won a lot, when they did lose, although not often, is when their talent for humility emerged. Chris Evert dominated Martina Navratilova for years earlier in their careers. Martina reinvented herself (she gave into humility) and Chrissie
“You have a dream, pursue it with laser focus, plan your work and work your plan. However, a good plan must always have a contingency.” later found herself on the losing side for an extended period during their two-decade rivalry. Chrissie learned from those experiences and she reinvented herself and then turned the table back on Martina. She was humbled enough to realize she could not beat Martina by doing the same things anymore. In other words, they made each other better by being humble. Although we here on Long Island probably do not have the same level of talent as these two great champions, we can sure learn from it. A fact which cannot be denied is this, two players walk on the court, compete against each other, and one player wins and the other loses. If my arithmetic is correct, 50 percent of the players lose in the first round of any tournament. Let me put it another way, that after two rounds of any tournament 75 percent of the competitors have been eliminated. That is a lot of humility to go around. It is a war out there, and every player should compete with undeniable determination and then accept the outcome and learn from it. I often witness junior competitors pumping fists, screaming aloud, grunting and then after they lose, walk off the court as a terrible sore loser. A young junior just competed admirably, and to me, the whole effort was wasted, not because of the loss, but because they could not find just one moment to enjoy the experience of competition. Coaches and parents … because humility is such a wonderful trait, the 46
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opportunity to learn has just been presented. Of course, losing a match can sting and it does for all competitors, but losing and then behaving horribly is a learned trait as humility is also a learned trait. Some of my most memorable tournament matches in college were losses, as my opponents would push me to the brink. I can remember walking away from such matches very disappointed as I so wanted to win. I also remember that some of my best tennis was produced in these loses. I did not realize it at the time, but the experience made me better going forward. The 2009 U.S. Open saw Serena Williams behave foolishly in front of the world. John McEnroe ironically said, “How do you defend the indefensible.” She has and will suffer extensive fines by the USTA. We watched Kim Clijsters come out of retirement, and for two weeks, she was nothing more than a lady, as we admired her for her graciousness as a champion. We watched Roger Federer lose in an epic Open final. The greatest of all-time just lost on the world stage, and afterwards, conducted himself with humility. To me, this is what helps to make him the champion that he is. He realizes he now has some more details in his game to work on. What an example for all of us! Well, we all may not be able to be finalists at the U.S. Open, but we can work on humility. The one message I would like all
aspiring juniors and their parents to take away from this article is this: Have a backup plan just in case you do not make it to the pros or to your top choice Division I college. You now have an opportunity to use humility to your advantage. Humility is a wonderful trait because matches and life do not always go the way you want it. Make lemonade from lemons and learn from your losses. Hold your head up high because you competed hard. Be humble and use your loss as an opportunity to improve. You will become a better player, and more importantly, a better person. Lonnie Mitchel has been teaching tennis since 1985, mostly at Carefree Racquet Club in North Merrick, N.Y. and is a USPTA Level 1 certified tennis instructor. He has produced many high school and collegiate level tennis players, including his own children, Wayne (who plays at Muhlenberg College ) and Trevor (who competes regularly on the USTA Long Island Junior Circuit, gaining the number one ranking in the 14s). Lonnie has also worked in the travel and tourism industry as a regional sales manager for 25-plus years for such companies the Walt Disney Company and Royal Caribbean International. His wife, Harriet, is a club level tennis player and can often be found on the court. Lonnie may be reached by phone at (516) 414-7202 or e-mail lonniemitchel@yahoo.com.
Orange Crush Wins Fantasy Baseball League Championship very baseball season, 20 tennis pros/players and coaches from the Long Island area get together for their annual Fantasy Baseball League. This 20-team league is highly competitive, and of course, bragging rights are at stake. This year, the Orange Crush (aka Long Island Tennis Magazine’s David Sickmen) won the league title defeating the Jive Turkeys (aka Sportime’s Mike Kossoff) in an extremely tight final week. The Crush and the Turkeys were also the league’s Division Champions. HKS and the Woodside Colts will join the Turkeys and Crush in celebrating. Congrats to both teams and the entire league on a great 2009 season!
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Long Island Tennis Magazine • November/December 2009
Where to Go on Long Island For Your Tennis Apparel Needs
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218 Jericho Turnpike Syosset, NY 11791 Phone #: (516) 364-9470 Topspin Tennis & Fitness is the premier tennis specialty shop in Nassau County. Topspin has just moved to a brand new location, three blocks east from its former Syosset home, to 218 Jericho Turnpike, directly across from Syosset Hospital. Known as the home of “Clothes for the Pros,” Topspin has literally been serving the area’s tennis pros and community with equipment and top fashions for over 30 years. Topspin carries all the famous brands of tennis apparel and shoes for the whole family, including Nike, Adidas, K-Swiss, ASICS and Ralph Lauren Polo. You’ll find the actual outfits worn in the Grand Slam events by Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer at Topspin. Topspin now stocks a full line of cross-training, workout clothing and running shoes. Of course, Topspin’s racquet wall contains a huge selection of frames, bags and accessories at great prices. Your racquet can be strung by Topspin’s professional staff while you wait. Topspin is THE destination for tennis and fitness gifts, and gift certificates are available. Don’t forget to visit Topspin’s very popular 50 percent off sale rack.
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214 Commack Road Commack, NY 11725 Phone #: (631) 499-6444 Grand Slam Tennis owner Jim Donnelly first established the store in September of 1986. Jim was formerly a partner in the Tennis Emporium Franchise, located in East Northport for nine years (1977-1986). Grand Slam Tennis is currently the largest tennis specialty store in existence on Long Island (1,800-sq. ft.). Grand Slam offers the largest racquet demo program, with a full line of demos from Babolat, Wilson, Head, Prince and Adidas. Grand Slam’s specialized staff will guide you on how to purchase a tennis racquet to suit your needs. Grand Slam features five active stringing machines on site that string more than 4,000 racquets per year. Ball machine rentals are also available, and Grand Slam also sells Sports Tutor electric- and battery-operated machines. When a problem arises with your machine, Jim is personally there to repair it for you. Tennis court accessories and teaching aides are available as well. As a tennis specialty retailer, Grand Slam carries the finest line of clothing, sneakers and tennis bags for men, women, young adults and children. Grand Slam also offers specialized purchasing programs for high schools, college and USTA tennis teams. Jim actively supports community tennis and school fundraising events. Local tennis instruction referrals and information on local tennis events are also on hand. Jim and his welcoming, friendly staff make Grad Slam Tennis a comfortable, family fun place to shop. Store hours are, Monday to Thursday from 10:30 a.m.-8:00 p.m., Fridays from 10:30 a.m.-7:00 p.m. and Saturdays from 10:30 a.m.-6:00 p.m. Grand Slam is closed Sunday and are out playing tennis. See you on the courts! Long Island Tennis Magazine • November/December 2009
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A Look at the Girl’s High School Tennis Season at the Halfway Point Mia Vecchio Cracks the Herricks Varsity Squad Seventh grader up for the challenge of high school competition When we last left off with the story of 12-year-old Mia Vecchio in the September/October 2009 edition of Long Island Tennis Magazine, she was preparing herself for tryouts for the Herricks High School varsity tennis team. Going in as a seventh grader, the odds were against her to make the squad, but Mia was not deterred and was feeling “ready for the challenge” and more than ready to “prove herself.” Mia not only made the Herricks High School girl’s varsity tennis team, but ended up playing first singles this season. At the time this issue went to press (midway through the girl’s varsity season), we caught up with Mia to see how tryouts went and how the season was progressing so far. Mia started by telling us that the tryout process was surprisingly enjoyable (other than the physical fitness aspect of tryouts of course where she did a lot of running and chin-ups). She also said she “wasn’t too nervous” going into the tryouts, but that any nervousness quickly disappeared as the tryouts progressed and her confidence grew. With each win, her confidence grew. What also grew was the respect that 48
Mia’s teammates had for her. As a seventh grader playing on the varsity team at a high school, it can be hard to gain respect from the older team members. Mia said she thinks her performing well helped the girls recognize her as an equal. She was also able to make friends. “The girls have been really nice and have accepted me as part of the team,” said Mia. “We are all friendly and it’s nice to be part of a team. Usually in tennis, everything is individual.” Mia’s parents, Rudy and Lorraine Vecchio, as well as her coach, Alana Broderick, come out to support her at all of her matches as well, which has helped ease the transition to the world of high school tennis. At the time of this interview, Mia was 70 and still undefeated on the season. She qualified for the Nassau County tournament where she won her first round match before falling 10-7 to Jackie Raynor, a junior from Garden City, in the second round. Mia is very happy with how this season has turned out so far. “I feel that with the practice time I have put in, as well as playing in USTA tournaments, has prepared me well for high school competition,” said Mia. She plans on traveling to a few more national tournaments this year (where she has already experienced success) and then playing high school tennis again next season. “My goals next season are to go undefeated in league play and then qualify for states,” said Mia. “I am really looking forward to the challenge.”
Long Island Tennis Magazine • November/December 2009
Persistence is Key A closer look at Jericho High School’s Amanda Hyman If at first you don’t succeed, try again. I think a lot of us are familiar with that expression, but it is also one of those statements that is easier said than done. Setbacks in tennis and/or life are not always easy to handle, especially when you are in high school, but 16-year-old Amanda Hyman has persevered and is now reaping the benefits of her persistence. Amanda is a junior playing on the Jericho High School junior varsity girl’s tennis team this season. Amanda’s high school tennis experience began well when, as a freshman, she made the junior varsity team and enjoyed a successful season. However, as a sophomore, she faced something unexpected, as she was cut from the team. After playing as a freshman, she fully expected to make the team as a sophomore. But after a sub-par few days at tryouts, she received the bad news from the coach. Disappointed and embarrassed, most high school tennis players would have backed away from the sport instead of dealing with the reality of the situation. Not Amanda Hyman. After only a few days of admitted self-pity and with the support of her tennis pro Emilie Katz and her mother Beth, Amanda got back into good spirits and decided she wasn’t
going to let this happen again the following season. She was going to keep practicing and get ready for the next season. “This year, I came into tryouts excited and not nervous at all,” said Amanda. She had practiced and prepared herself mentally and physically for the challenge of tryouts. With that preparation, came great results. She was confident and played well and then got the good news one day at school. It was on a Tuesday afternoon when she received the exciting news that she had made the 2009 junior varsity girl’s tennis team at Jericho High School. The lessons, practice and positive mindset had finally paid off. This season, as this latest issue of Long Island Tennis Magazine went to press, the Jericho junior varsity girl’s team record stood at 7-1, and Amanda, with a 7-1 record playing doubles, is a big reason why. “I have enjoyed being one of the oldest on the team, mentoring the younger girls on the competition and match play,” said Amanda. She has gotten the opportunity to play doubles with her friend, Jillian Shakin, which has made it even better. “The girls on the team are friends, we support each other at matches and it’s a great feeling,” said Amanda. After high school tennis is over, the thing Amanda says she will miss the most is “just practices, laughing with the girls, and chillin’.” To other girls and boys who have experienced the disappointment of not making the
cut at tryouts in tennis or any other sport for that matter, Amanda says the lessons she learned is to “Keep practicing and never giving up because in the end, it will be worth it.” Amanda will keep that in mind over the next nine months and will come back next season to reach her next goal of making the Jericho varsity girl’s tennis team.
High School Coaching Thoughts By Edward Wolfarth With the high school tennis season in full swing and having been a recent high school coach for both highly skilled boys and girls, I feel qualified to discuss a few salient points. In 2002, I had the distinct opportunity to coach both a boy’s team (Roslyn) and a girl’s team (Cold Spring Harbor) to a County Championship in the same year. First, let’s discuss the similarities. Nobody knows how to play doubles! I’ve always spent the majority of our practice sessions teaching the intricacies of doubles. Formations, shot selection and teamwork are the keys to successful doubles play. Most of these athletes have little experience playing competitive doubles.
They’re so overly concerned with rankings and singles tournaments that even the most skilled players need to be taught effective doubles and proper positioning. I’m always on the lookout for good, aggressive athletes who might turn out to be effective doubles players. Many of our players have had coaches, were ranked juniors and continued to play tournaments. They were our singles players. Everyone else vied for doubles positions. This was the case for both girls and boys. Team or individual sport? While tennis, for the most part, is a sole endeavor, it is my contention that it’s best enjoyed as a team sport. I try to make everyone feel like they are part of a team. Practices are often team competitions with unique scoring. Anything to make it fun. Players not participating in a match (alternates or anybody not playing at a specific time) are required to watch a match and root. No homework! No watching other sporting events that might be taking place simultaneously. No player is allowed to leave a match until the results are final. We try to travel to and from matches as a team. It’s a common practice for parents to pick up their offspring after a match because of other extracurricular activities. I try to discourage this. We always have a team dinner after the season where we continued on page 50
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Contact former Stanford University and Roslyn High School MVP Ricky Becker today at 516-605-0420 or rbecker06@yahoo.com. www.juniortennisconsulting.com Long Island Tennis Magazine • November/December 2009
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G I R L’ S H I G H S C H O O L T E N N I S S E A S O N give out fun awards, such as most improved player, best partner or teammate with the best attitude. These awards are voted on by the players. Attitude and effort! As a coach, I only require a few things of all my student-athletes: A positive attitude while competing, or better yet, no negativity. Negative energy is self-destructive and often fuels the opponent. There’s the rare case when a negative attitude or behavior can be helpful. Another requirement I have is 100 percent effort! It’s often easy to accept an inevitable loss than to fight to the very last point. This is easy to monitor, and I’m always on the lookout for someone who’s about to quit. Down 2-6, 0-3, you’ll see it all the time. It becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy. I’m gong to lose anyway, so why fight it? It’s all about effort and attitude. It’s much harder to do than learn a spin serve or effective backhand, but in the end, much more valuable.
Keeping everyone involved This is a tough one. Often, alternates or anyone not playing in a match, feel left out and isolated. I always try to give everyone specific tasks. Charting a match is my favorite. A great deal can be learned by watching someone else play and objectively keeping track of unforced errors, first serve percentages, points won at the net, etc. It helps the player and the statistician as well. We have a user-friendly chart that I introduce at the beginning of the season that we all can use. After each match, I allow the player being charted and the person observing and charting to consult. This can be very fruitful and educational. In the end, the quality of the experience, for all, determines if you have run a successful program or not. The wins and losses, the championships and the individual honors are all icing on the cake. They’re nice and make you feel good, but are still secondary and transient. Of course this brings up the obvious question as to what you can learn from losing, or
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more importantly, how can you have a positive experience from, what seemingly appears to be a negative situation, and there lies the problem in a nutshell! It’s so easy and seems so obvious, to associate success with enjoyment. I mean after all, don’t we all feel better and more fulfilled after we win a tennis match? Losing sucks, right? But I digress ... and this leads to another discussion. Edward Wolfarth is the tennis director at the Tam O’ Shanter Club in Brookville, N.Y. He is also a professor of physical education and sports sciences at Hofstra University. In addition to his class load, Edward finds time to coach high school tennis at Jericho High School. He’s an active member of the United States Professional Tennis Association and currently serves on the executive board of the United States Tennis Association-Long Island Region. He still plays competitively and is a highly ranked senior player. He may be reached at (516) 6269005 or e-mail wolfarthe@msn.com.
Local Pros Brent and Harrison Take Home Silver at the 55 USTA National Grass Court Championship By Jonathan Klee ocal tennis pros David Brent of Woodmere, N.Y. and Mark Harrison of East Rockaway, N.Y. were finalists at the 55 USTA National Grass Court Championships, held at the Rockaway Hunting Club in Lawrence, N.Y. the week of Sept. 14-20, 2009. Brent, who teaches at Nassau Indoor Tennis in Inwood and is the head pro at Inwood Country Club, teamed with Harrison, who also teaches at Nassau Indoor Tennis and is the head pro at the Village of Lawrence Country Club. Seeded fourth in the 22-team draw, the duo knocked off the number two seeds, Mario Singer and Wesley Jackson, in the semi-finals before bowing to num-
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ber one seeds, Fred Robinson and Tom Smith, in a three-set final. In 2008, Smith from Alpharetta, Ga., won a golden slam when he won all four surfaces of the USTA 55 Doubles Championships (clay, hard, grass and indoor). Congratulations to our local pros. Jonathan Klee is a partner at the Law Firm of Klee & Woolf LLP. He is the Long Island representative on the Eastern Grievance Committee, and currently serves as chair. He has played in league tennis since 2000, and has captained and played on many teams on Long Island. He may be reached by e-mail at jkleelaw@aol.com.
Long Island Tennis Magazine • November/December 2009
Local pros Mark Harrison and David Brent, runners-up at the recent 55 USTA National Grass Court Championships
Prince Hosts EXO3bition in Central Park On Aug. 30, prior to the start of the 2009 U.S. Open, Prince hosted its EXO3bition event at Central Park’s public courts, where attendees could meet, watch and even play with some of the world’s top tennis stars. On hand for the event were Gael Monfils, Mike and Bob Bryan, John Isner, Sam Querrey, David Ferrer, and legends Stan Smith, Paul Annacone, Roger Rasheed and Wayne Bryan. A great time was had by all, as they took advantage of this unique opportunity to learn from the pros first-hand and chat oneon-one with some of the sport’s biggest stars.
Scenes From the Prince 2009 EXO3bition Event August 30 at Central Park Tennis Courts in New York City
Sam Querry (center) was on hand in Central Park for the Prince tennis event
Gael Monfils (left) is interviewed in Central Park
Mike Bryan hits a volley during the Prince EXO3bition event
John Isner (left) shares some tips with attendees of the Prince EXO3bition in Central Park
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Long Island Tennis Magazine • November/December 2009
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Houghton Captures Women’s Division I One-on-One Doubles and Rockin’ Blues Title at Stony Brook Annie Houghton
Annie Houghton, a junior from Army, defeated Katherine Lange, a junior from Northwestern State (Louisiana) 6-4 to win the Flight “A” One-on-One Doubles Tennis Tournament held at Stony Brook University as part of the Third Annual Stony Brook Women’s Invitational, held Sunday, Sept. 20. Houghton now captures the number
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one one-on-one doubles ranking for Women’s Collegiate Tennis. The tournament was held on the final day of the threeday Invitational, with all nine Division I teams entering their players into four different flighted divisions. Flight “B” was won by Erin McCarthy, a sophomore from Marist College. McCarthy defeated Julia Prantl, a sophomore from Fairleigh Dickinson University, 6-5(7-3) in the finals. Flight “C” Champion was Fanny Charliquart, a junior from Stony Brook University. Charliquart beat Joanna Kacprzyk, a junior from the University of Houston, 6-3 in the finals.
Long Island Tennis Magazine • November/December 2009
Flight “D” Champion was Veronica Cardenas, a sophomore from West Virginia University. Cardenas defeated Jurelle Mendoza, a junior from Army, 63 to win this flight. Friday’s format of play was all doubles; Saturday’s format was all singles and Sunday’s format was solely one-on-one doubles. “This was a great three-day, college tennis tournament because we played tennis to some of the best rock n’ roll and blues music ever recorded! We heard The Replacements, Springsteen, John Lee Hooker, The Blues Brothers, Gary Moore, Paul Westerberg, The Fabulous Thunder-
birds, Joe Bonamassa, Dusty and Danny and other greats,” said Gary Glassman, head tennis coach at Stony Brook and tournament director. “The One-on-One Doubles Tourney was a great experience for our team,” said John Severance, head tennis coach at the University of Houston. “I strongly feel that playing one-on-one doubles will surely strengthen one’s doubles game. I also personally enjoyed the concept of music being played throughout the weekend tournament. I can see more tournaments, and even dual matches, being played in this sort of environment. I will be running an event like this in the future.” The tournament concept was well received by the players and coaches alike. Jeff Greene, former Vanderbilt player and FDU volunteer assistant coach, said, “What the players thought of one-on-one doubles at the beginning of the event and what it looked like at the end of the event, showed why this was an awesome concept. Anytime you introduce something new, people are going to look at you with skepticism. Meanwhile, if you are willing to buy into it, the game’s skills will become an integral part of your game. The game may be cutting-edge, but the value derived from it will be a huge, long-term benefit. Change is slow, but the game is fast. This event deserves huge accolades for taking a chance and making it happen.” One-on-one doubles is being played as the only format of competition at this year’s ITA National Coaches Convention on Dec. 16 at Naples Grande Resort in Naples, Fla. The new game has also been played at two USTA National Men’s 35s Claycourt Tournaments, as well as at two ATP Challenger Tournaments in Sunrise, Fla., the BMW Tennis Championships. A sold-out crowd of 3,500 people witnessed the One-On-One Doubles Final, won by Austria’s Davis Cup star, Stefan Koubek in March of 2007. One-on-one doubles, played to rockin’ blues music, has been USTA-sanctioned for tournament play in Florida, Georgia and New York.
Scenes From the Third Annual Stony Brook Women’s Invitational September 18-20 at Stony Brook University
For more information on upcoming one-onone doubles tournaments and events in New York, visit www.oneononedoubles.com. Long Island Tennis Magazine • November/December 2009
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What’s New is Old, Again … By Edward Wolfarth In previous articles, we’ve explored the dangers of multitasking, the vagaries of momentum in sports, high school coaching issues, and the subtle differences between teaching and learning. The common thread in all is that there’s nothing new! Most information and practically all technical advice is simply being recycled, rehashed and merely packaged differently. Kudos and much thanks to all my colleagues and friends whom I have learned so much from (thanks, Hapster). Of course, this is not to diminish the ‘new’ product, but merely to point out that someone did it before. While there may be “nothing new under the sun,” so to speak, it is helpful to “think outside the box.” And, therein, lies our topic for this article. One of my favorite practice drills is to have players do other “stuff,” such as tactics and strokes they would not normally employ in a match. For instance, I’ll play a match attempting to topspin every backhand. No chip and charge, and no slice backhands … you’ve got to come over every backhand. This accomplishes a few interesting things. For one, expectations are low. Because I’ve put myself in an uncomfortable position uti-
lizing a skill I’m not particularly good at, my expectations are commensurately less. I can easily rationalize my mistakes, but more importantly, I get to practice a weaker stroke. Psychologically, I feel more relaxed since the outcome has become secondary to the process goal of simply hitting more topspin backhands. I remember vividly having played one of my bitter, and better, rivals a number of years ago. He served and volleyed all the time. My chip return was floating and he was nailing every first volley. Down 1-2, I vowed to come over my backhand return for the rest of the match no matter what the outcome. I resolved myself to a process goal, regardless of the match outcome. I rattled off the next 11 games! In another example, our club 3.0 team practices serve and volley tennis all the time! Interestingly, they’re pretty good at it. Their 40 mile-per-hour serves enable them to close in for easy first volleys. Since the returns are not hit that hard either (remember, these are 3.0 players), they can actually hold a serve more often using this unconventional (for them) tactic … and, it works! Also, interestingly, however, is the fact that even after practicing this they are reluctant to put it into a “real” game situa-
Congrats to Men’s 4.0 National Champs From Long Island ongratulations to the Men’s 4.0 team from Carefree Racquet Club on winning the National Title and bringing the crown to Long Island. It’s been 20-plus years since a team from Long Island has won the National Championship, but Carefree’s 4.0 team from the Merrick, N.Y. facility took home the championship by defeating a 4.0 team from Arkansas 4-1 at the nationals on Oct. 4 at the Darling Tennis Center in Las Vegas.
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Long Island Tennis Magazine • November/December 2009
tion. It seems that most people would rather play “comfortably” and lose than think outside the box, do something unconventional, and possibly win! Go figure. That’s just human nature! My suggestion is to try different stuff. Of course you need to “have” other stuff before you can effectively try it in a real match. You may not be able to turn a liability into an asset, but playing outside the box has many advantages. It relaxes you and lowers expectations. It allows you to develop a “B” game and it relaxes you! I cannot stress enough the importance of playing in a nonstressful environment or state of mind. Nothing can place your head in this situation better than playing an unfamiliar game, stroke or tactic. If you’re a baseliner, start rushing the net more. Aggressive players, stay in points longer. Put yourself in someone else’s shoes. It’s not you who’s playing … it’s someone else! There’s no pressure on you. Role-playing may seem nothing more than a psychological ploy, but it can work to your advantage. You need to try it. In conclusion, I encourage you to think outside of the box. Your game is familiar to you and works, to a point. To get beyond that point, to improve and to have more fun requires that you take risks. Failure is just one step closer to getting it right. Try stuff! Think outside the box and you‘ll be a better person for it. Are you having fun yet? Edward Wolfarth is the tennis director at the Tam O’ Shanter Club in Brookville, N.Y. He is also a professor of physical education and sports sciences at Hofstra University. In addition to his class load, Edward finds time to coach high school tennis at Jericho High School. He’s an active member of the United States Professional Tennis Association and currently serves on the executive board of the United States Tennis Association-Long Island Region. He still plays competitively and is a highly ranked senior player. He may be reached at (516) 626-9005 or email wolfarthe@msn.com.
Tennis: Truly the Sport of a Lifetime By Steve Haar ho says tennis is a young man’s game? As the saying goes, “Tennis is a lifetime sport,” and Charlie Hurme of Huntington Station N.Y. is living proof. Charlie will be 97 in November and still plays three or four times a week. His accomplishments on the court over the past 77 years are remarkable, and he is still going strong. Charlie grew up in Brooklyn, N.Y., where tennis was not the most popular kid’s sport. Street games like stickball and stoop ball ruled the day. All of his friends excelled in other sports, so Charlie took up tennis so that none of his friends could compete with him. Although Charlie never took a lesson, he eventually taught kids and adults for many years. Charlie married a girl who became a travel agent, so he would travel with her, playing in local matches. Moving from Brooklyn to New Jersey to Long Island in 1960, Charlie could always find a game. As a late bloomer (he first picked up a racquet at the age of 20), Charlie didn’t begin playing in tournaments until he was in his 60s. His initial results were less than favorable, earning the nickname of “Consolation Charlie.” After two years, he moved up in finishes and at about the age of 70, began a long period of great winning accomplishments that lasted for more than 20 years. His best year was in 2003 when he won the national title in 90s singles and 90s doubles and was ranked number two nationally in singles in the 90s and in the top 10 in the 90s for many years. He also won the 95s in doubles. As with all of us tennis players, we hopefully learn from our victories as well as our defeats and Charlie’s matches with Gardiner Malloy improved the pace and depth of his serve. He is also very proud of being listed along with great champions of the past, having won the senior 80s doubles in 1994 at Longwood Cricket Club in Boston. As we all know, injuries are part of the
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game and Charlie’s last injury was, in some ways, helpful to his game. Six years ago (yes at the age of 91), Charlie was windsurfing at Club Med and a gust of wind caused a rotator cuff shoulder injury. Charlie’s serve went underhand for a year during his recovery and was so effective that it is still part of his serve game today. These days, finding a singles game in his age group (he stopped playing singles at 95) is almost impossible, so Charlie plays lots of doubles. His love for the game after 77 years is so apparent and he still gets a kick out of making non-returnable shots. Charlie’s advice to us “youngsters” is to, “Play in your age group, enjoy the game, and stay healthy.” The best parts of his game according to Charlie … “Keeping the ball in play, hand-switching, volleying, court movement and a killer drop shot.” Most recently, Charlie received an invitation to sit in the President’s Box at the U.S. Open, three years in a row. Wouldn’t it be wonderful to invite him back for his 100th? Steven Haar is a member of the United States Tennis Association/Long Island Region Board and PTR teaching professional. He may be reached by e-mail at steveoncourt@aol.com.
Charlie Hurme shows off a token of his longtime dedication to the sport of tennis
Ninety-seven-year-old Charlie Hurme of Huntington Station N.Y. works on his game
Long Island Tennis Magazine • November/December 2009
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A Look Back at Long Island Tennis Summer Camps: Summer of ‘09 Bethpage Park Tennis Center Summer Tennis Camp
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The Early Hit Training Center Junior Tennis Camp at Glen Head Racquet Club
Long Island Tennis Magazine • November/December 2009
Friends Academy Summer Camps
A Look Back at Long Island Tennis Summer Camps: Summer of ‘09 Future Stars Tennis Camps
Girls 4 Girlz Tennis Camp
Hofstra Summer Camps
Long Island Tennis Magazine • November/December 2009
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A Look Back at Long Island Tennis Summer Camps: Summer of ‘09 Peter Kaplan’s Westhampton Beach Junior/Adult Tennis Academy
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Rockville Racquet Club Summer Camp
Long Island Tennis Magazine • November/December 2009
Sportime Excel Tennis Camps
Bethpage Park Tennis Center Andrea Pappas-Manager 99 Quaker Meeting House Road #1 Farmingdale, NY 11735 516-777-1358 bptcenter@aol.com
Rockville Racquet Club Susan Alvy-Manager 80 North Centre Avenue Rockville Center, NY 11570 516-764-5350 rockvilletennis@optonline.net
Carefree Racquet Club Kathy Miller-Manager 1414 Jerusalem Avenue • Merrick, NY 11566 516-489-9005 • carefreetennis@aol.com
Smash Tennis Club Bob McKenna-Director of Tennis 575 Merrick Avenue Westbury, NY 11568 Business: 516-832-8010 Cell: 516-817-2455
Deer Park Indoor Tennis Club Afzal Ali-Director of Tennis 30 Burt Drive Deer Park, NY 11729 631-667-3476 • Fax: 631-667-7179 Eastern Athletic Club Cira Jones-Manager 9 Montauk Highway #A • Blue Point, NY 11715 631-363-2882 easternathleticclubs.com Eastern Athletic Club Betsy Johnson-Manager 854 Jericho Turnpike • Huntington Station, NY 11746 631-271-6616 easternathleticclubs.com Eastern Athletic Club Gary Jones-Manager 100 Ruland Road • Melville, NY 11747 631-753-3696 easternathleticclubs.com Glen Head Racquet Club Heath Koch: 516-676-9849 Home of Early Hit Training Center Carl Barnett: 516-455-1225 95 Glen Head Road • Glen Head, NY 11545 earlyhit@optonline.net Huntington Indoor Tennis Club Rich Rottkamp-Director of Tennis 100 Broadway • Huntington Station, NY 11746 631-421-0040 Point Set Indoor Tennis Dan Dwyer-Owner 3065 New Street • Oceanside, NY 11572 516-536-2323 www.pointsettennis.com matt@pointsettennis.com Robbie Wagner’s Tournament Training Center Adrian Chirici-Director of Tennis 142 Glenwood Road Glenwood Landing, NY 11547 516-676-9107 • www.rwtt.com Robbie Wagner’s Tournament Training Center @ GLEN COVE Stephen Alcala-Business Manager 60 Sea Cliff Avenue Glen Cove, NY 11542 516-759-0505 • www.rwtt.com
SPORTIME at Amagansett Sue De Lara-Co General Manager Hana Sromova-Director of Tennis/Co-General Manager 320 Abrahams Path Amagansett, NY 11930 631-267-3460 www.SportimeNY.com amagansett@sportimetfm.com
SPORTIME at Lynbrook Chris Morales-Director of Tennis 175 Merrick Road Lynbrook, NY 11563 516-887-1330 www.SportimeNY.com tdlynbrook@sportimetfm.com SPORTIME at Massapequa Fayez Malik-Director of Tennis 5600 Old Sunrise Highway Massapequa, NY 11758 516-799-3550 www.SportimeNY.com tdmassapequa@sportimetfm.com SPORTIME at ProHealth Jay Karl-General Manager 3 Delaware Drive Lake Success, NY 11042 516-348-8463 www.SportimeNY.com jkarl@sportimetfm.com
SPORTIME at Bethpage Tennis Perry Aitchison-Director of Tennis 101 Norcross Avenue Bethpage, NY 11714 516-933-8500 www.SportimeNY.com tdbethpageten@sportimetfm.com
SPORTIME at Randall’s Island Ted Dimond-Director of Tennis 1 Randall’s Island New York, NY 10035 212-427-6150 www.SportimeNY.com randallsisland@SportimeTFM.com
SPORTIME at Bethpage Multi-Sport Randy Louie-General Manager 4105 Hempstead Turnpike Bethpage, NY 11714 516-731-4432 www.SportimeNY.com bethpagemulti@sportimetfm.com
SPORTIME at Roslyn Jared Rada-Director of Tennis Landing Road, PO Box 1 Roslyn, NY 11576 516-484-9222 www.SportimeNY.com tdroslyn@sportimetfm.com
SPORTIME of the Hamptons Mauricio Gattuso-Director of Tennis Route 104 East Quogue, NY 11959 631-653-6767 www.SportimeNY.com tdhamptons@sportimetfm.com
SPORTIME at Schenectady Philippe Ceas 2699 Curry Road Schenectady, NY 12303 518-356-0100 www.SportimeNY.com tdschenectady@sportimetfm.com
SPORTIME at Harbor Island Eric Fromm-General Manager, Director of Tennis In Harbor Island Park Mamaroneck, NY 10543 914-777-5050 www.SportimeNY.com efromm@sportimetfm.com
SPORTIME at Syosset Tennis & Multi-Sport Karl Sommer/Director of Tennis 75 Haskett Drive Syosset, NY 11791 516-364-2727 www.SportimeNY.com
SPORTIME at Kings Park Petr Perecinsky-Director of Tennis 275 Old Indian Head Road Kings Park, NY 11754 631-269-6300 www.SportimeNY.com tdkingspark@sportimetfm.com
SPORTIME at Syosset Fitness & Racquetball Joe Gazio-General Manager 10 Gordon Drive Syosset, NY 11791 516-496-3100 www.SportimeNY.com jgazio@sportimetfm.com
Long Island Tennis Magazine • November/December 2009
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LONG Boys & Girls Long Island Rankings (as of 09/28/09)
BOYS Long Island Boys 10 Singles Rank Name ....................................City 1 ......Sean Patrick ..................Oyster Bay, N.Y. 2 ......Patrick F. Maloney ..........Oyster Bay, N.Y. 3 ......Arjun Mehrotra................Woodbury, N.Y. 4 ......Kyle Hudson Gower ........Oceanside, N.Y. 5 ......Neel Raj ..........................Oyster Bay, N.Y. 6 ......Ronald P. Hohmann ........Oyster Bay, N.Y. 7 ......Thomas A. Korossy..........Oyster Bay, N.Y. 8 ......Eli Grossman ..................Woodbury, N.Y. 9 ......Kyle C. Yaun ....................Sand Point, N.Y. 10 ....Cannon Kingsley ............Northport, N.Y. 11 ....Michael Medvedev ..........Oceanside, N.Y. 12 ....Gardner Howe ................Locust Valley, N.Y. 13 ....Daniel Eric Pellerito ........Syosset, N.Y. 14 ....Amani Siddiqui................West Babylon, N.Y. 15 ....Ryan Goetz ....................Greenlawn, N.Y. 16 ....Colin Francis Sacco ........Brightwaters, N.Y. 17 ....Justin Ilan Lempert ........Roslyn Heights, N.Y. 18 ....Pete Sizios ......................New Hyde Park, N.Y. 19 ....Brian Shi ........................Jericho, N.Y. 20 ....Brady Berman ................Glen Head, N.Y. 21 ....Austin Egna ....................Port Washington, N.Y. 22 ....Aditya J. Dave ................Syosset, N.Y. 23 ....Rajan Jai Vohra ..............Glen Head, N.Y. 24 ....David Ammendola ..........Massapequa, N.Y. 25 ....Billy G. Suarez ................Huntington, N.Y. 26 ....James Kyrkanides ..........Stony Brook, N.Y. 27 ....Ethan Nussdorf ..............Old Westbury, N.Y. 28 ....Vincent Caracappa..........Smithtown, N.Y. 29 ....Steven M. Schneider ......Southampton, N.Y. 30 ....Blake Shaevitz ................Glen Head, N.Y. 31 ....Alex Joseph Amadio........Smithtown, N.Y. 32 ....Ian Bank ........................Old Westbury, N.Y. 33 ....Max Egna........................Port Washington, N.Y. 34 ....Jacob Weiner ..................Oyster Bay, N.Y. 35 ....Jack Aaron Briamonte ....Great Neck, N.Y. 36 ....Parker Appel ..................Locust Valley, N.Y. 37 ....Cody Bograd ..................Huntington, N.Y. 38 ....William Michael Salzano Dix Hills, N.Y. 39 ....Matthew Roberts ............Setauket, N.Y. 40 ....Carl Grant ......................Water Mill, N.Y.
Long Island Boys 12 Singles Rank Name ..................................City 1 ......Curran Varma..................Manhasset, N.Y. 2 ......Spencer Killen Swanson..Remsenburg, N.Y. 3 ......Sean Patrick ..................Oyster Bay, N.Y. 4 ......Zane Siddiqui..................West Babylon, N.Y. 5 ......Alexander Pintille ............Wainscott, N.Y. 6 ......Garrett Malave ................Laurel, N.Y. 7 ......Kevin Alec Kowalsky ......Oyster Bay, N.Y. 8 ......Evan Kober ....................Wantagh, N.Y. 9 ......Alan Delman ..................Great Neck, N.Y. 10 ....Jonathan C. Staudigel ....Northport, N.Y. 11 ....Jesse M. Levitin ..............Manhasset, N.Y. 12 ....Nikhil Raj ........................Locust Valley, N.Y. 13 ....Brian Hoffarth ................Fort Salonga, N.Y. 14 ....Andrew J. Bentz..............Massapequa Park, N.Y. 15 ....Alexander Grossman ......Sands Point, N.Y. 16 ....Daniel Shleimovich ........Merrick, N.Y. 17 ....Justin Park......................Huntington, N.Y. 18 ....Noah J. Reisch................Floral Park, N.Y. 19 ....Bryant J. Born ................Manhasset, N.Y. 20 ....Daniel David Kafka..........Massapequa Park, N.Y. 21 ....Chirag Sharad Soni ........New Hyde Park, N.Y. 22 ....Michael Schweitzer ........Old Westbury, N.Y. 23 ....Arjun Mehrotra................Woodbury, N.Y. 24 ....Jacob Frisch ..................Sagaponack, N.Y. 25 ....Giuseppe Loduca ............Great Neck, N.Y. 26 ....Stephen Gruppuso ..........Bayport, N.Y.
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ISLAND
27 ....Aziz Rashidzada..............Dix Hills, N.Y. 28 ....Benjamin Tenner ............Roslyn, N.Y. 29 ....Oliver Ridgley Green........Locust Valley, N.Y. 30 ....Ryan James Maloney......Oyster Bay, N.Y. 31 ....Faran Nazir ....................Deer Park, N.Y. 32 ....Travis Leaf ......................Dix Hills, N.Y. 33 ....Logan Beckerman ..........East Norwich 34 ....Palmer T. Clare................North Bellmore, N.Y. 35 ....Patrick F. Maloney ..........Oyster Bay, N.Y. 36 ....Robert James Gavigan ....Garden City, N.Y. 37 ....David Michael Jaslow ....Roslyn, N.Y. 38 ....Sahil Massand ................Woodbury, N.Y. 39 ....Alex Brebenel..................Glen Head, N.Y. 40 ....Braddock Chow ..............Glen Cove, N.Y.
Long Island Boys 14 Singles Rank Name ................................City 1 ......Drew F. Feldman ............Port Washington, N.Y. 2 ......Doron Saraf ....................Great Neck, N.Y. 3 ......Daniel Sliwowski ............Islip, N.Y. 4 ......Ian Baranowski ..............Syosset, N.Y. 5 ......Ethan Hayden Handa ......Rockville Centre, N.Y. 6 ......Marcell Rengifo ..............Copaigue, N.Y. 7 ......Dylan Ander ....................Hewlett, N.Y. 8 ......Kevin Cino ......................East Quogue, N.Y. 9 ......Gabriel P. Lazar ..............Hewlett, N.Y. 10 ....Brett Edelblum ................Roslyn, N.Y. 11 ....Michael Hakimi ..............Great Neck, N.Y. 12 ....Connor Daniel Jeran ......Islip, N.Y. 13 ....Benjamin Mermelstein ....Northport, N.Y. 14 ....Ty Stone..........................Centerport, N.Y. 15 ....Stone E. Mitchell ............Woodmere, N.Y. 16 ....Steven Marzagalli ..........Patchogue, N.Y. 17 ....Erik Ujvari ......................Hauppauge, N.Y. 18 ....Jesse Richheimer ..........Merrick, N.Y. 19 ....Gregory M. Abrahams ....Baldwin, N.Y. 20 ....Jayant S. Sani ................Great Neck, N.Y. 21 ....Caleb Van Loon ..............Port Washington, N.Y. 22 ....Matthew R. Demichiel ....Hewlett, N.Y. 23 ....Kyle Apler ......................Dix Hills, N.Y. 24 ....Brandon Kay ..................Setauket, N.Y. 25 ....Andrew J. Bentz..............Massapequa Park, N.Y. 26 ....Michael A. Vera ..............Bethpage, N.Y. 27 ....Cole Lafitte ....................East Setauket, N.Y. 28 ....Michael J. Nelson............Manhasset, N.Y. 29 ....Chris Casamassima ........Franklin Square, N.Y. 30 ....Douglas Notaris ..............Wantagh, N.Y. 31 ....Jamis Ross ....................Manorville, N.Y. 32 ....Ian Combemale ..............Bridgehampton, N.Y. 33 ....Nick Bauer......................Great River, N.Y. 34 ....Kevin Alec Kowalsky ......Oyster Bay, N.Y. 35 ....Palmer T. Clare................North Bellmore, N.Y. 36 ....Jacob Ethan Rosenthal....Jericho, N.Y. 37 ....Josh Young ....................Old Bethpage, N.Y. 38 ....Andrew Reiley ................Manorville, N.Y. 39 ....Christopher Schwab........Seaford, N.Y. 40 ....John C. Knight ................East Northport, N.Y.
Long Island Boys 16 Singles Rank Name ................................City 1 ......Sloan Millman ................Woodmere, N.Y. 2 ......Pasha Shapouri ..............Albertson, N.Y. 3 ......Eric Sumanaru ................Middle Island, N.Y. 4 ......Stephen Peng ................Woodbury, N.Y. 5 ......Sean Jagi Chhugani ........Roslyn, N.Y. 6 ......Darren Reisch ................Floral Park, N.Y. 7 ......Scott Johnson ................Northport, N.Y. 8 ......Brian Chalif ....................Huntington, N.Y. 9 ......JT Esposito ....................Rockville Centre, N.Y. 10 ....Doron Saraf ....................Great Neck, N.Y. 11 ....Matthew Zuckerman ......Valley Stream, N.Y. 12 ....Andrew Z. Wang..............Huntington, N.Y. 13 ....Ryan Marcus ..................Merrick, N.Y. 14 ....Jared Drzal ....................West Sayville, N.Y. 15 ....Sander Brenner ..............Port Washington, N.Y. 16 ....Henry D. Lee ..................Sag Harbor, N.Y.
Long Island Tennis Magazine • November/December 2009
RANKINGS
17 ....Jacob Mishkin ................Woodbury, N.Y. 18 ....Ryan Gary Wennberg ........Huntington Station, N.Y. 19 ....Michael Freilich ..............Lawrence, N.Y. 20 ....Nick Wong ......................Jericho, N.Y. 21 ....Ryan White ....................Wantagh, N.Y. 22 ....Seth Kornfield ................Jericho, N.Y. 23 ....Solomon Ofir ..................Plainview, N.Y. 24 ....Gabriel P. Lazar ..............Hewlett, N.Y. 25 ....Benjamin Q. King ............East Meadow, N.Y. 26 ....Kevin H. Kim ..................South Setauket, N.Y. 27 ....Matthew Granito ............Wantagh, N.Y. 28 ....Christian Thienel ............East Quogue, N.Y. 29 ....Patrick Brosnan ..............Garden City, N.Y. 30 ....Brett Ringelheim ............Atlantic Beach, N.Y. 31 ....Ethan Hayden Handa ......Rockville Centre, N.Y. 32 ....Jordan A. Zecher ............Woodbury, N.Y. 33 ....Michael Mcfelia..................Huntington Station, N.Y. 34 ....Trevor S. Mitchel ............East Meadow, N.Y. 35 ....Matthew R. Demichiel ....Hewlett, N.Y. 36 ....Chris Casamassima ........Franklin Square, N.Y. 37 ....Jason A. Fruchter ............Lawrence, N.Y. 38 ....Evan Ross Seidman ........Dix Hills, N.Y. 39 ....Christopher DeSimone ....Centerport, N.Y. 40 ....Matthew Kline ................Roslyn, N.Y.
Long Island Boys 18 Singles Rank Name ................................City 1 ......Scott Johnson ................Northport, N.Y. 2 ......Benjamin Bogard ............Lido Beach, N.Y. 3 ......Eric Dietsche ..................Bay Shore, N.Y. 4 ......Jaewon Kim....................East Northport, N.Y. 5 ......Darren Reisch ................Floral Park, N.Y. 6 ......Richard A. Ferguson ........Franklin Square, N.Y. 7 ......Michael T. Puntillo ..........Sands Point, N.Y. 8 ......JT Esposito ....................Rockville Centre, N.Y. 9 ......Eric Sumanaru ................Middle Island, N.Y. 10 ....Stephen Peng ................Woodbury, N.Y. 11 ....Matthew Zuckerman ......Valley Stream, N.Y. 12 ....Robert James Buda ........Northport, N.Y. 13 ....Richard Sipala ................Quogue, N.Y. 14 ....Sloan Millman ................Woodmere, N.Y. 15 ....Jason Hubsher................Sands Point, N.Y. 16 ....Derek J. Wells ................Massapequa Park, N.Y. 17 ....Dylan Marsh ..................Lloyd Harbor, N.Y. 18 ....Justin Ziccardi ................Islip, N.Y. 19 ....Kenneth D. Pinillos ..........East Hampton, N.Y. 20 ....Brain Hui ........................East Meadow, N.Y. 21 ....Matthew Corriston ..........Wantagh, N.Y. 22 ....Faizan Khurram ..............Long Beach, N.Y. 23 ....Evan Pincus ....................East Meadow, N.Y. 24 ....Dylan Matthew Roberts ..Holtsville, N.Y. 25 ....Pasha Shapouri ..............Albertson, N.Y. 26 ....Solomon Ofir ..................Plainview, N.Y. 27 ....Alex Bessarabov ............Lindenhurst, N.Y. 28 ....Matthew R. Johnson ......Huntington, N.Y. 29 ....Jeremy Pomerantz ..........Sayville, N.Y. 30 ....James Nandalal Prasad ..Lindenhurst, N.Y. 31 ....Jeffery H. Kornhauser ....Wantagh, N.Y. 32 ....Sean Jagi Chhugani ........Roslyn, N.Y. 33 ....Thomas Fischl ................Huntington, N.Y. 34 ....Shane B. Liebenthal ........Old Westbury, N.Y. 35 ....Steven Ferrantello ..........Dix Hills, N.Y. 36 ....Jesse Liebenthal ............Old Westbury, N.Y. 37 ....Brian Chalif ....................Huntington, N.Y. 38 ....Sidesh Sachithananthan..Hicksville, N.Y. 39 ....Kevin A. Burgess ............Freeport, N.Y.
GIRLS Long Island Girls 10 Singles Rank Name ................................City 1 ......Courtney Kowalsky ........Oyster Bay, N.Y. 2 ......Claire Handa ..................Rockville Centre, N.Y. 3 ......Jasmine Olivia Abidi........Glen Head, N.Y. 4 ......Lea Ma ..........................Dix Hills, N.Y. 5 ......Celeste Rose Matute ......Amityville, N.Y. 6 ......Amanda Allison Foo ........Manhasset, N.Y.
7 ......Vista Grinde ....................Sea Cliff, N.Y. 8 ......Jacqueline Rae Bukzin ....Manorville, N.Y. 9 ......Emily Kate Shutman........Huntington, N.Y. 10 ....Nicole Kielan ..................Valley Stream, N.Y. 11 ....Dasha Dlin ......................Glen Head, N.Y. 12 ....Caitlin M. Cosme ............New Hyde Park, N.Y. 13 ....Devika Kedia ..................East Norwich, N.Y. 14 ....Morgan A. Wilkins ..........Glen Head, N.Y. 15 ....Abigail Carrie Okin ..........Amagansett, N.Y. 16 ....Emily Austin ....................Hewlett, N.Y.
Long Island Girls 12 Singles Rank Name ................................City 1 ......Cameron Leigh Moskol ..Wantagh, N.Y. 2 ......Shanice Nadia Arthur ......Glen Head, N.Y. 3 ......Vanessa Scott ................Dix Hills, N.Y. 4 ......Brittany Burke ................Garden City, N.Y. 5 ......Elena Nitsa Maria Nastasi Bayville, N.Y. 6 ......Taylor S. Cosme ..............New Hyde Park, N.Y. 7 ......Julia Ciardullo ................Locust Valley, N.Y. 8 ......Nicole Koskovolis ............Manhasset, N.Y. 9 ......Alexa Graham ................Garden City, N.Y. 10 ....Jeannie Lozowski ..........Amityville, N.Y. 11 ....Courtney A. Digia ............Manhasset, N.Y. 12 ....Courtney Kowalsky ........Oyster Bay, N.Y. 13 ....Bridget Elaine Harding ....Northport, N.Y. 14 ....Michele Shelia Lehat ......Great Neck, N.Y. 15 ....Michelle Haykin ..............Great Neck, N.Y. 16 ....Michelle Vancura ............New Hyde Park, N.Y. 17 ....Celeste Rose Matute ......Amityville, N.Y. 18 ....Nicole Damaghi ..............Kings Point, N.Y. 19 ....Annelise Meyding............Port Washington, N.Y. 20 ....Madison Courtney Appel Locust Valley, N.Y. 21 ....Rachel Gastaldo ..............Syosset, N.Y. 22 ....Rhea Malhotra ................Syosset, N.Y. 23 ....Katie Jean Cirella............Woodbury, N.Y. 24 ....Marissa Luchs ................Roslyn, N.Y. 25 ....Julia Khan ......................Sands Point, N.Y. 26 ....Laura Jean Halsey ..........Westhampton, N.Y. 27 ....Lauren F. Salzano............Dix Hills, N.Y. 29 ....Claudia M. Ruiz ..............Glen Head, N.Y. 30 ....Sabrina Ferretti ..............Setauket, N.Y. 31 ....Caitlin M. Cosme ............New Hyde Park, N.Y. 32 ....Victoria Macchia ............Seaford, N.Y. 34 ....Caroline Keating..............Huntington, N.Y. 35 ....Ashley Bespechny ..........Hewlett, N.Y. 36 ....Emily K. Morgenbesser ..Bayport, N.Y. 37 ....Kelsey Shields ................Old Westbury, N.Y. 38 ....Tyler P. Hartmeyer ..........Great Neck, N.Y.
Long Island Girls 14 Singles Rank Name ................................City 1 ......Cameron Leigh Moskol ..Wantagh, N.Y. 2 ......Ruth Freilich....................Lawrence, N.Y. 3 ......Zenat Rashidzada ..........Dix Hills, N.Y. 4 ......Emma Brezel ..................Port Washington, N.Y. 5 ......Jennifer Glukhman..........Syosset, N.Y. 6 ......Ola Mally ........................Franklin Square, N.Y. 7 ......Alexa P. Sternschein........Syosset, N.Y. 8 ......Campbell Howe ..............Locust Valley, N.Y. 9 ......Aimee N. Manfredo ........Shoreham, N.Y. 10 ....Shanice Nadia Arthur ......Glen Head, N.Y. 11 ....Jennifer C. Ferguson ......Franklin Square, N.Y. 12 ....Kathryn Herburger ..........Manhasset, N.Y. 13 ....Mary C. Harding ..............Northport, N.Y. 14 ....Jeannie Lozowski ..........Amityville, N.Y. 15 ....Erica Bundrick ................Mattituck, N.Y. 16 ....Amanda Edelman............Southampton, N.Y. 17 ....Taylor Rose Anderson......Locust Valley, N.Y. 18 ....Amanda R. Nowak ..........Huntington, N.Y. 19 ....Lauren Ann Livingston ....Sands Point, N.Y. 20 ....Lara Fishbane ................Commack, N.Y. 21 ....Amanda Marie Gaimaro ..Lynbrook, N.Y. 22 ....Holly Hubsher ................Sands Point, N.Y. 23 ....Emily Bentley ..................East Islip, N.Y. 24 ....Sarah Dionisio ................Shirley, N.Y.
LONG 25 ....Davianna Brynn Romer ..Hampton Bays, N.Y. 26 ....Megan M. Tamborrino ....Massapequa Park, N.Y. 27 ....Sunaina Vohra ................Glen Head, N.Y. 28 ....Anna Posluny ..................Centerport, N.Y. 29 ....Brittany Burke ................Garden City, N.Y. 30 ....Rachel Murillo ................Roslyn Heights, N.Y. 31 ....Harley Kaiserman............Setauket, N.Y. 32 ....Betty Ma ........................Dix Hills, N.Y. 33 ....Angelika Rothberg ..........Centerport, N.Y. 34 ....Alison Wang ....................Great Neck, N.Y. 35 ....Rachel Gastaldo ..............Syosset, N.Y. 36 ....Karen A. Serina ..............Islip Terrace, N.Y. 37 ....Christine Apicella ............Massapequa Park, N.Y. 38 ....Leah Green ....................Old Bethpage, N.Y. 39 ....Amanda Bishop ..............Woodbury, N.Y. 40 ....Kristen Bomkamp ..........Northport, N.Y.
Long Island Girls 16 Singles Rank Name ................................City 1 ......Amy Ginny Naula ............East Hampton, N.Y. 2 ......Veronica Paikin ..............Valley Stream, N.Y. 3 ......Jessica Sickles ..............Massapequa Park, N.Y. 4 ......Ruth Freilich....................Lawrence, N.Y. 5 ......Courtney Sokol................Floral Park, N.Y. 6 ......Ashley Sandler................Jericho, N.Y. 7 ......Brett A. Lieb ....................Cutchogue, N.Y. 8 ......Zenat Rashidzada ..........Dix Hills, N.Y. 9 ......Robin R. Mehta ..............Manhasset, N.Y. 10 ....Andrea Arreguin ..............Hicksville, N.Y. 11 ....Amanda L. Seeley ..........Sound Beach, N.Y. 12 ....Amanda Marano ............Hampton Bays, N.Y. 13 ....Hannah Hinchcliffe..........Mineola, N.Y. 14 ....Jessica Nowak................Huntington, N.Y. 15 ....Jamie Hann ....................Westhampton, N.Y. 16 ....Kelly Marie Benini ..........Northport, N.Y. 17 ....Paige J. Mintz ................Roslyn, N.Y. 18 ....Briel G. Smith..................Locust Valley, N.Y. 19 ....Erica Bundrick ................Mattituck, N.Y. 20 ....Elan King ........................Baldwin, N.Y. 21 ....Elizabeth Caroline Rossi ..Flanders, N.Y. 22 ....Abbott M. Brant ..............Shoreham, N.Y. 23 ....Christine Bender ............Amityville, N.Y. 24 ....Rithika D. Reddy ............Syosset, N.Y. 25 ....Lauren Skolnick ..............Sayville, N.Y. 26 ....Ola Mally ........................Franklin Square, N.Y. 27 ....Molly O. Nolan ................Montauk, N.Y. 28 ....Jennifer Glukhman..........Syosset, N.Y. 29 ....Marissa D. Lazar ............Hewlett, N.Y. 30 ....Anita Krish ......................Greenlawn, N.Y. 31 ....Emily Bennett..................Port Washington, N.Y. 32 ....Amanda Edelman............Southampton, N.Y. 33 ....Deana Davoudiasi ..........Rockville Centre, N.Y. 34 ....Casey L. Nicoletti ............East Hampton, N.Y. 35 ....Sunaina Vohra ................Glen Head, N.Y. 36 ....Paulina Tafler ..................Oceanside, N.Y. 38 ....Taylor Wilkins..................Glen Head, N.Y. 39 ....Ludmila Yamus................Melville, N.Y. 40 ....Michelle Graziosi ............East Northport, N.Y.
Long Island Girls 18 Singles Rank Name ................................City 1 ......Eliza J. Budd ..................Locust Valley, N.Y. 2 ......Christine Bender ............Amityville, N.Y. 3 ......Brooke Pottish ................East Quogue, N.Y. 4 ......Elizabeth Caroline Rossi ..Flanders, N.Y. 5 ......Jessica Nowak................Huntington, N.Y. 6 ......Zenat Rashidzada ..........Dix Hills, N.Y. 7 ......Andrea Arreguin ..............Hicksville, N.Y. 8 ......Elan King ........................Baldwin, N.Y. 9 ......Gabrielle Dicroce ............East Meadow, N.Y. 10 ....Kelly Marie Benini ..........Northport, N.Y. 11 ....Veronika Paikin ..............Valley Stream, N.Y. 12 ....Molly O. Nolan ................Montauk, N.Y. 13 ....Taylor A. Diffley ..............Hampton Bays, N.Y. 14 ....Aylin Mehter ..................Massapequa, N.Y. 15 ....Courtney Sokol................Floral Park, N.Y.
ISLAND
16 ....Paige J. Mintz ................Roslyn, N.Y. 17 ....Allie Reisch ....................Floral Park, N.Y. 18 ....Cassie Bender ................Amityville, N.Y. 19 ....Alexandra F. Esposito ......Bellmore, N.Y. 20 ....Robyn Romanoff ............Centereach, N.Y. 21 ....Robin R. Mehta ..............Manhasset, N.Y. 22 ....Deana Davoudiasi ..........Rockville Centre, N.Y.
Boys & Girls Sectional Rankings (as of 09/29/09)
Sectional Boys 10 Singles Long Island Region Rank Name ................................City 1 ......Keegan James Morris ....Franklin Square, N.Y. 4 ......Terrill Cole Bernard ........Mill Neck, N.Y. 6 ......Finbar Talcott ..................Sea Cliff, N.Y. 8 ......Rajan Jai Vohra ..............Glen Head, N.Y. 10 ....Alan Delman ..................Great Neck, N.Y. 13 ....Brian Shi ........................Jericho, N.Y. 18 ....Ryan Goetz ....................Greenlawn, N.Y. 28 ....Sean Patrick ..................Oyster Bay, N.Y. 34 ....Patrick F. Maloney ..........Oyster Bay, N.Y. 40 ....Michael Medvedev ..........Oceanside, N.Y. 42 ....Eli Grossman ..................Glen Head, N.Y. 44 ....Gardner Howe ................Locust Valley, N.Y. 46 ....Ronald P. Hohmann ........Oyster Bay, N.Y. 47 ....Thomas A. Korossy..........Oyster Bay, N.Y. 48 ....Neel Raj ..........................Oyster Bay, N.Y. 51 ....Amani Siddiqui................West Babylon, N.Y. 57 ....Kyle C. Yuan ....................Sands Point, N.Y. 60 ....Cannon Kingsley ............Northport, N.Y. 62 ....Daniel Eric Pellerito ........Syosset, N.Y. 70 ....Justin Ilan Lempert ........Roslyn Heights, N.Y. 71 ....Pete Siozios ....................New Hyde Park, N.Y. 73 ....Parker Appel ..................Locust Valley, N.Y. 80 ....Billy Suarez ....................Huntington, N.Y. 83 ....Blake Shaevitz ................Glen Head, N.Y. 89 ....David Ammendola ..........Massapequa, N.Y. 95 ....James Kyrkanides ..........Stony Brook, N.Y. 102 ..Spencer Bozsik ..............Sag Harbor, N.Y. 108 ..Jake Grossman ..............Sands Point, N.Y. 109 ..Michael Jaklitsch ............Islip, N.Y. 114 ..Alex Joseph Amadio........Smithtown, N.Y. 131 ..Jacob Weiner ..................Oyster Bay, N.Y. 133 ..Matthew Porges..............Sands Point, N.Y. 134 ..Cody Bogard ..................Huntington, N.Y. 141 ..Matthew T. Roberts ........Setauket, N.Y.
Sectional Boys 12 Singles Long Island Region Rank Name ................................City 3 ......Alexander Lebedev ........Island Park, N.Y. 5 ......Lubomir T. Cuba ..............Massapequa, N.Y. 6 ......Brenden Andrew Volk ......Dix Hills, N.Y. 11 ....Eric Wagner ....................Roslyn Heights, N.Y. 29 ....Finbar Talcott ..................Sea Cliff, N.Y. 33 ....Palmer T. Clare................North Bellmore, N.Y. 38 ....Chris Kuhnle ..................Shoreham, N.Y. 39 ....Kevin Alec Kowalsky ......Oyster Bay, N.Y. 47 ....Jordan Michael Bennett ..Valley Stream, N.Y. 48 ....Tyler Ng ..........................Great Neck, N.Y. 49 ....Sean M. Mullins ..............Lloyd Harbor, N.Y. 50 ....Christopher Moyer Ardito Rockville Centre, N.Y. 54 ....Rajan Jai Vohra ..............Glen Head, N.Y. 64 ....Andrew Walsh ................St. James, N.Y. 68 ....Sean Patrick ..................Oyster Bay, N.Y. 70 ....Athell Patrick Bennett......Valley Stream, N.Y. 72 ....Kyle Hudson Gower ........Oceanside, N.Y. 76 ....Andy Zhou ......................Commack, N.Y. 79 ....Joshua Williams Gordon..Hicksville, N.Y. 80 ....Curran Varma..................Manhasset, N.Y. 81 ....Nikhil Raj ........................Locust Valley, N.Y. 82 ....Logan Beckerman ..........East Norwich, N.Y. 85 ....Noah J. Reisch................Floral Park, N.Y.
RANKINGS
88 ....Giancarlo Cavallero ........West Hempstead, N.Y. 90 ....Faran Nazir ....................Deer Park, N.Y. 91 ....Jesse M. Levitin ..............Manhasset, N.Y. 93 ....Colin Francis Sacco ........Brightwaters, N.Y. 100 ..Stephen Gruppuso ..........Bayport, N.Y. 104 ..Garrett Malave ................Laurel, N.Y. 105 ..Daniel Shleimovich ........Merrick, N.Y. 112 ..Spencer Killen Swanson..Remensburg, N.Y. 118 ..Zane Siddiqui..................West Babylon, N.Y. 133 ..Alan Delman ..................Great Neck, N.Y. 134 ..Giuseppe Loduca ............Great Neck, N.Y. 140 ..Bryant J. Born ................Manhasset, N.Y. 146 ..Nasser Abdel Ghaffar ......Massapequa, N.Y. 148 ..Jonathan Staudigel ........Northport, N.Y.
Sectional Boys 14 Singles Long Island Region Rank Name ................................City 2 ......Noah Rubin ....................Merrick, N.Y. 3 ......Samuel Lam ..................Old Westbury, N.Y. 4 ......Vihar Shah ......................New Hyde Park, N.Y. 6 ......Aidan Talcott ..................Sea Cliff, N.Y. 7 ......Ethan Bogard ..................Lido Beach, N.Y. 15 ....Philip Daniel Antohi ........Glen Head, N.Y. 19 ....Michael Paul ..................Baldwin, N.Y. 21 ....Zain Ali............................Dix Hills, N.Y. 22 ....Julian Alexi Zlobinsky......Greenvale, N.Y. 23 ....Douglas Notaris ..............Wantagh, N.Y. 24 ....Richard Mitchell..............Franklin Square, N.Y. 27 ....Lamar Remy ..................Roslyn, N.Y. 30 ....Conor Mullins..................Lloyd Harbor, N.Y. 33 ....Dylan Hobbs Appel..........Locust Valley, N.Y. 38 ....Josh Silverstein ..............Great Neck, N.Y. 39 ....Brandon T. Stone ............Melville, N.Y. 49 ....Zachary A. Lessen ..........Roslyn Heights, N.Y. 50 ....Mark Daniel Temporal ....Carle Place, N.Y. 52 ....John P. D’Alessandro ......Northport, N.Y. 55 ....Benjamin Pleat................Roslyn, N.Y. 56 ....Matthew R. Demichiel ....Hewlett, N.Y. 59 ....Tyler J. Hoffman..............Sayville, N.Y. 71 ....Ethan Hayden Handa ......Rockville Centre, N.Y. 72 ....Jared R. Halstrom ..........Bellmore, N.Y. 74 ....Benjamin Q. King ............East Meadow, N.Y. 77 ....Josh Young ....................Old Bethpage, N.Y. 84 ....Gonzalo E. Mocorrea ......Locust Valley, N.Y. 90 ....Brian W. Slivonik ............Oyster Bay, N.Y. 100 ..Lubomir Cuba ................Massapequa Park, N.Y. 106 ..Kyle Alper ......................Dix Hills, N.Y. 107 ..Joshua Williams Gordon..Hicksville, N.Y. 108 ..Brett Edelblum ................Roslyn, N.Y. 110 ..Alexander Lebedev ........Island Park, N.Y. 112 ..Jonathan Paris ..................Cold Spring Harbor, N.Y. 116 ..Michael A. Vera ..............Bethpage, N.Y. 117 ..Daniel Sliwowski ............Islip, N.Y. 118 ..Raymond Zhao................Great Neck, N.Y. 120 ..Benjamin Rosen..............Port Washington, N.Y. 126 ..Drew F. Feldman ............Port Washington, N.Y. 127 ..Ian Baranowski ..............Syosset, N.Y. 132 ..Aaron Nussdorf ..............Old Westbury, N.Y. 135 ..Alex C. Sacher ................Glen Head, N.Y. 147 ..Benjamin Mermelstein ....Northport, N.Y.
Sectional Boys 16 Singles Long Island Region Rank Name ................................City 5 ......Bert Vancura ..................New Hyde Park, N.Y. 7 ......Eric Rubin ......................Lido Beach, N.Y. 8 ......Alexander Friedlich ........Great Neck, N.Y. 9 ......Matthew O. Barry............Long Beach, N.Y. 15 ....Howard Weiss ................Great Neck, N.Y. 20 ....Josh Levine ....................Syosset, N.Y. 23 ....Jensen Reiter..................Syosset, N.Y. 26 ....Zachary Morris................Garden City, N.Y. 27 ....Andrew Yaraghi ..............Mill Neck, N.Y. 30 ....Eric Ambrosio..................Lloyd Harbor, N.Y. 35 ....Jonahiby Tauil ................Valley Stream, N.Y.
39 ....Alan S. Pleat ..................Roslyn, N.Y. 43 ....Jason Hubsher................Sands Point, N.Y. 52 ....David Greenbaum ..........Great Neck, N.Y. 53 ....Aidan Talcott ..................Sea Cliff, N.Y. 56 ....Harrison Digia ................Manhasset, N.Y. 57 ....Brendan Henry................Massapequa, N.Y. 60 ....Kevin Katz ......................Woodbury, N.Y. 65 ....Paul Abrudescu ..............Great Neck, N.Y. 68 ....Richard Sipala ................Quogue, N.Y. 69 ....Noah Rubin ....................Merrick, N.Y. 77 ....Stephen Peng ................Woodbury, N.Y. 84 ....Adam S. Gottlieb ............Great Neck, N.Y. 87 ....Sloan Millman ................Woodmere, N.Y. 88 ....Matthew J. Richards ......Bayport, N.Y. 90 ....Ofir Solomon ..................Plainview, N.Y. 92 ....Samuel Lam ..................Old Westbury, N.Y. 97 ....Douglas Hoch..................Glen Head, N.Y. 98 ....Zachary Mintz ................Roslyn, N.Y. 103 ..Michael Paul ..................Baldwin, N.Y. 120 ..Jacob Mishkin ................Woodbury, N.Y. 129 ..Ethan Bogard ..................Lido Beach, N.Y. 130 ..Sean Jagi Chhugani ........Roslyn, N.Y. 133 ..Christian Thienel ............East Quogue, N.Y. 137 ..Matthew Lam..................Old Westbury, N.Y. 149 ..Eric Sumanaru ................Middle Island, N.Y. 150 ..Darren Reisch ................Floral Park, N.Y.
Sectional Boys 18 Singles Long Island Region Rank Name ................................City 2 ......Daniel Kreyman ..............Long Beach, N.Y. 8 ......Shaun Bernstein ............Plainview, N.Y. 21 ....Jason Simon ..................Roslyn, N.Y. 25 ....Corey Morgenstern ........Old Bethpage, N.Y. 28 ....Dennis Zlobinsky ............Greenvale, N.Y. 29 ....Shane Giannetti ..............Oyster Bay, N.Y. 30 ....Zachary Weiss ................Great Neck, N.Y. 41 ....Oliver Loutsenko ............Bellmore, N.Y. 44 ....Joseph Agler ..................North Bellmore, N.Y. 49 ....Eric Ambrosio..................Lloyd Harbor, N.Y. 56 ....Jonathan Defrancesch ....Manhasset, N.Y. 62 ....Austin Blau ....................Roslyn, N.Y. 63 ....Nolan Gelman ................Dix Hills, N.Y. 66 ....Zachary Morris................Garden City, N.Y. 67 ....Alexander Friedlich ........Great Neck, N.Y. 79 ....Ignacio Casali ................Farmingdale, N.Y. 83 ....Bert Vancura ..................New Hyde Park, N.Y. 84 ....Morgan Dauer ................Lloyd Harbor, N.Y. 94 ....Brett Byron ....................Dix Hills, N.Y. 97 ....Matthew O. Barry............Lido Beach, N.Y. 103 ..Ryan Fitzgerald ..............East Williston, N.Y. 106 ..Benjamin Bogard ............Lido Beach, N.Y. 110 ..Brandon Burns................Wheatley Heights, N.Y. 112 ..Steven Milo ....................Woodbury, N.Y. 118 ..Jason Hubsher................Sands Point, N.Y. 121 ..Joshua Katten ................Plainview, N.Y. 123 ..Michael T. Puntillo ..........Sands Point, N.Y. 126 ..Constantinos Papavasiliou ..Roslyn, N.Y. 128 ..Dylan Matthew Roberts ..Holtsville, N.Y. 131 ..Adam S. Gottlieb ............Great Neck, N.Y. 132 ..Richard Sipala ................Quogue, N.Y. 139 ..Zachary A. Dean..............Commack, N.Y. 144 ..Scott Johnson ................Northport, N.Y. 145 ..Brandon Li ......................Jericho, N.Y.
Sectional Girls 10 Singles Long Island Region Rank Name ................................City 7 ......Claire Handa ..................Rockville Centre, N.Y. 9 ......Courtney Kowalsky ........Oyster Bay, N.Y. 18 ....Jasmine Olivia Abidi........Glen Head, N.Y. 24 ....Caitlin Cosme..................New Hyde Park, N.Y. 26 ....Lea Ma ..........................Dix Hills, N.Y. 28 ....Stephanie Chikvashvili ....Syosset, N.Y. 44 ....Jacqueline Rae Bukzin ....Manorville, N.Y. 45 ....Nicole Kielan ..................Valley Stream, N.Y.
Long Island Tennis Magazine • November/December 2009
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LONG 51 ....Gillan Moser....................Hewlett, N.Y. 59 ....Dasha Dlin ......................Glen Head, N.Y. 66 ....Morgan A. Wilkins ..........Glen Head, N.Y. 75 ....Julia Kielan ....................Valley Stream, N.Y. 79 ....Emily Austin ....................Hewlett, N.Y.
Sectional Girls 12 Singles Long Island Region Rank Name ................................City 3 ......Isabella Pascucci ............Oyster Bay, N.Y. 6 ......Madison Battaglia ..............Cold Spring Harbor, N.Y. 8 ......Mia Vecchio ....................Manhasset Hills, N.Y. 15 ....Morgan Kelly Herrmann ..Garden City, N.Y. 18 ....Samantha Perri ..............Floral Park, N.Y. 20 ....Jeannie Lozowski ..........Amityville, N.Y. 26 ....Madison Appel ................Locust Valley, N.Y. 29 ....Alexandra Lipps .............. Roslyn, N.Y. 30 ....Karen A. Serina ..............Islip Terrace, N.Y. 31 ....Alexa Graham ................Garden City, N.Y. 45 ....Taylor S. Cosme ..............New Hyde Park, N.Y. 56 ....Celeste Rose Matute ......Amityville, N.Y. 57 ....Marissa Luchs ................Roslyn, N.Y. 60 ....Claire Handa ..................Rockville Centre, N.Y. 62 ....Shanice Nadia Arthur ......Glen Head, N.Y. 68 ....Courtney Kowalsky ........Oyster Bay, N.Y. 75 ....Elena Nitsa Maria Nastasi Bayville, N.Y. 84 ....Vanessa Scott ................Dix Hills, N.Y. 87 ....Sarah Paul ......................Baldwin, N.Y. 93 ....Michelle Vancura ............New Hyde Park, N.Y. 114 ..Michele Sheila Lehat ......Great Neck, N.Y. 117 ..Michelle Haykin ..............Great Neck, N.Y. 122 ..Nicole Damaghi ..............Kings Point, N.Y. 128 ..Caitlin M. Cosme ............New Hyde Park, N.Y. 131 ..Katie Jane Cirella............Woodbury, N.Y. 138 ..Rhea Malhotra ................Syosset, N.Y.
Sectional Girls 14 Singles Long Island Region Rank Name ................................City 6 ......Vivian Cheng ..................Woodbury, N.Y. 17 ....Sophie R. Barnard ..........Mill Neck, N.Y. 18 ....Claudia Li........................Jericho, N.Y. 20 ....Nadia Smergut................East Hampton, N.Y. 29 ....Gabriella Nicole Leon ......Woodmere, N.Y. 30 ....Sara R. Finger ................Saint James, N.Y. 35 ....Paulina Tafler ..................Oceanside, N.Y. 39 ....Isabella Pascucci ............Oyster Bay, N.Y. 41 ....Sunaina Vohra ................Glen Head, N.Y. 45 ....Claudia M. Ruiz ..............Glen Head, N.Y. 48 ....Ola Mally ........................Franklin Square, N.Y. 53 ....Madison Battaglia ............Cold Spring Harbor, N.Y. 58 ....Bianca Posa ....................Valley Stream, N.Y. 60 ....Rithika D. Reddy ............Syosset, N.Y. 70 ....Zenat Rashidzada ..........Dix Hills, N.Y. 73 ....Maria Korshunova ..........Oceanside, N.Y. 82 ....Cameron Leigh Moskol ..Wantagh, N.Y. 85 ....Mia Vecchio ....................Manhasset Hills, N.Y. 93 ....Rachel Gastaldo ..............Syosset, N.Y. 94 ....Ruth Freilich....................Lawrence, N.Y. 96 ....Karen A. Serina ..............Islip Terrace, N.Y. 98 ....Julia Zhuang ..................Great Neck, N.Y. 106 ..Laura Torsiello ................Bayport, N.Y. 113 ..Jennifer Ferguson ..........Franklin Square, N.Y. 114 ..Karishma Ramesh Tank ..New Hyde Park, N.Y. 115 ..Amanda Edelman............Southampton, N.Y. 122 ..Veronika Paikin ..............Valley Stream, N.Y. 126 ..Campbell Howe ..............Locust Valley, N.Y. 128 ..Aimee N. Manfredo ........Shoreham, N.Y. 134 ..Megan M. Tamborrino ....Massapequa Park, N.Y. 135 ..Lauren Ann Livingston ....Sands Point, N.Y. 137 ..Emma R. Brezel ..............Port Washington, N.Y. 144 ..Amanda Nowak ..............Huntington, N.Y.
Sectional Girls 16 Singles Long Island Region Rank Name ................................City 4 ......Katherine Yau..................Manhasset, N.Y.
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ISLAND
RANKINGS
5 ......Julia Elbaba ....................Oyster Bay, N.Y. 7 ......Hannah L. Camhi ............Woodbury, N.Y. 8 ......Shelby Talcott ................Sea Cliff, N.Y. 11 ....Jacqueline Raynor ..........Garden City, N.Y. 21 ....Devlin-Ann Ammendola ..Massapequa, N.Y. 26 ....Samantha B. Gann ..........Massapequa, N.Y. 28 ....Stephanie Loutsenko ......Bellmore, N.Y. 36 ....Diana Vamvakitis ............Quogue, N.Y. 40 ....Morgan C. Feldman ........Glen Head, N.Y. 45 ....Missy Edelblum ..............Roslyn, N.Y. 46 ....Deana Davoudias............Rockville Centre, N.Y. 62 ....Lauren Wagner ..............Roslyn Heights, N.Y. 65 ....Paige J. Mintz ................Roslyn, N.Y. 72 ....Sophie R. Barnard ..........Mill Neck, N.Y. 79 ....Samantha Rosca-Sipot....Malverne, N.Y. 81 ....Taylor A. Diffley ..............Hampton Bays, N.Y. 85 ....Robin R. Mehta ..............Manhasset, N.Y. 86 ....Samantha Elgort ............Melville, N.Y. 89 ....Jamie Hann ....................Westhampton, N.Y. 90 ....Claudia Li........................Jericho, N.Y. 95 ....Melissa Carlay ................New Hyde Park, N.Y. 97 ....Carly Siegel ....................Dix Hills, N.Y. 104 ..Vivian Cheng ..................Woodbury, N.Y. 106 ..Nadia Smergut................East Hampton, N.Y. 114 ..Ludmila Yamus................Melville, N.Y. 115 ..Jessica Sickles ..............Massapequa Park, N.Y. 118 ..Courtney Sokol................Floral Park, N.Y. 120 ..Amy Ginny Naula ............East Hampton, N.Y. 124 ..Ashley Sandler................Jericho, N.Y. 134 ..Veronika Paikin ..............Valley Stream, N.Y. 135 ..Lila Martz........................Long Beach, N.Y. 137 ..Jessica Nowak................Huntington, N.Y. 139 ..Hannah Hinchcliffe..........Mineola, N.Y.
113 ..Eric Wagner ....................Roslyn Heights, N.Y. 556 ..Rajan Jai Vohra ..............Glen Head, N.Y. 592 ..Kevin Alec Kowalsky ......Oyster Bay, N.Y. 617 ..Palmer T. Clare................North Bellmore, N.Y. 636 ..Finbar Talcott ..................Sea Cliff, N.Y. 752 ..Jordan Michael Bennett ..Valley Stream, N.Y. 790 ..Justin Park......................Huntington, N.Y. 990 ..Sean Mullins ..................Lloyd Harbor, N.Y.
Sectional Girls 18 Singles Long Island Region
National Boys 16 Singles Long Island Players
Rank Name ................................City 2 ......Julia Elbaba ....................Oyster Bay, N.Y. 5 ......Jennifer Kellner ..............Smithtown, N.Y. 10 ....Olivia Pascucci................Oyster Bay, N.Y. 12 ....Shelby Talcott ................Sea Cliff, N.Y. 14 ....Aylin Mehter ..................Massapequa, N.Y. 17 ....Blair Seideman ..............Glen Head, N.Y. 21 ....Nicolle Stracar ................Jericho, N.Y. 23 ....Jessica Podlofsky ..........Port Washington, N.Y. 33 ....Jennifer Fridman ............Port Washington, N.Y. 34 ....Kelsey Raynor ................Garden City, N.Y. 38 ....Robyn Romanoff ............Centereach, N.Y. 39 ....Ashley T. Harel ................Roslyn Heights, N.Y. 41 ....Shelby Bates ..................Jericho, N.Y. 42 ....Kristin Norton..................Port Washington, N.Y. 67 ....Deana Davoudiasl ..........Rockville Centre, N.Y. 75 ....Andrea Samlin ................Merrick, N.Y. 77 ....Hannah L. Camhi ............Woodbury, N.Y. 80 ....Samantha Gann ..............Massapequa, N.Y. 82 ....Andrea Arreguin ..............Hicksville, N.Y. 85 ....Eliza J. Budd ..................Locust Valley, N.Y. 97 ....Stephanie Loutsenko ......Bellmore, N.Y. 98......Lindsay V. Kantor ....................Westhampton Beach, N.Y. 102 ..Amanda B. Halstrom ......Bellmore, N.Y. 107 ..Allie Reisch ....................Floral Park, N.Y. 130 ..Cassie Bender ................Amityville, N.Y. 138 ..Marissa D. Lazar ............Hewlett, N.Y. 144 ..Elizabeth Caroline Rossi ..Flanders, N.Y. 145 ..Missy Edelblum ..............Roslyn, N.Y.
Rank Name ................................City 38 ....Bert Vancura ..................New Hyde Park, N.Y. 99 ....Eric Rubin ......................Lido Beach, N.Y. 122 ..Alexander Friedlich ........Great Neck, N.Y. 130 ..Matthew O. Barry............Lido Beach, N.Y. 143 ..Howie Weiss ..................Great Neck, N.Y. 157 ..Josh Levine ....................Syosset, N.Y. 187 ..Jensen Reiter..................Syosset, N.Y. 188 ..Andrew Yaraghi ..............Mill Neck, N.Y. 249 ..Eric Ambrosio..................Lloyd Harbor, N.Y. 323 ..Alan S. Pleat ..................Roslyn, N.Y. 358 ..Zachary Morris................Garden City, N.Y. 392 ..David Greenbaum ..........Great Neck, N.Y. 429 ..Jason Hubsher................Sands Point, N.Y. 492 ..Jonahiby Tauil ................Valley Stream, N.Y. 568 ..Kevin A. Katz ..................Woodbury, N.Y. 570 ..Samuel Lam ..................Old Westbury, N.Y. 695 ..Aidan Talcott ..................Sea Cliff, N.Y. 882 ..Richard Sipala ................Quogue, N.Y. 892 ..Noah Rubin ....................Merrick, N.Y.
Boys & Girls National Rankings (as of 09/28/09)
National Boys 12 Singles Long Island Players Rank Name ................................City 48 ....Lubomir Cuba ................Massapequa, N.Y. 50 ....Alexander Lebedev ........Island Park, N.Y. 57 ....Brenden Andrew Volk ......Dix Hills, N.Y.
Long Island Tennis Magazine • November/December 2009
National Boys 14 Singles Long Island Players Rank Name ................................City 23 ....Noah Rubin ....................Merrick, N.Y. 35 ....Ethan Bogard ..................Lido Beach, N.Y. 40 ....Samuel Lam ..................Old Westbury, N.Y. 45 ....Aidan Talcott ..................Sea Cliff, N.Y. 47 ....Vihar Shah ......................New Hyde Park, N.Y. 123 ..Philip Daniel Antohi ........Glen Head, N.Y. 196 ..Zain Ali............................Dix Hills, N.Y. 218 ..Michael Paul ..................Baldwin, N.Y. 222 ..Julian Alexi Zlobinsky......Greenvale, N.Y. 248 ..Lamar Remy ..................Roslyn, N.Y. 304 ..Douglas Notaris ..............Wantagh, N.Y. 342 ..Dylan Hobbs Appel..........Locust Valley, N.Y. 359 ..Josh Silverstein ..............Great Neck, N.Y. 398 ..Richard Mitchell..............Franklin Square, N.Y. 520 ..John P. D’Allesandro ......Northport, N.Y. 569 ..Zachary A. Lessen ..........Roslyn Heights, N.Y. 731 ..Tyler J. Hoffman..............Sayville, N.Y. 757 ..Benjamin Pleat................Roslyn, N.Y. 828 ..Conor Mullins..................Lloyd Harbor, N.Y. 890 ..Mark Daniel Temporal ....Carle Place, N.Y. 961 ..Brandon T. Stone ............Melville, N.Y.
National Boys 18 Singles Long Island Players Rank Name ................................City 22 ....Shaun Bernstein ............Plainview, N.Y. 70 ....Daniel Kreyman ..............Long Beach, N.Y. 329 ..Shane Gianetti ................Oyster Bay, N.Y. 471 ..Dennis Zlobinsky ............Greenvale, N.Y. 484 ..Jason A. Simon ..............Roslyn Heights, N.Y. 491 ..Zachary Weiss ................Great Neck, N.Y. 547 ..Corey Morgenstern ........Old Bethpage, N.Y. 584 ..Joseph Agler ..................North Bellmore, N.Y. 623 ..Oliver Loutsenko ............Bellmore, N.Y. 769 ..Bert Vancura ..................New Hyde Park, N.Y. 809 ..Alexander Friedlich ........Great Neck, N.Y. 896 ..Eric Ambrosio..................Lloyd Harbor, N.Y.
National Girls 12 Singles Long Island Players Rank Name ................................City 72 ....Mia Vecchio ....................Manhasset Hills, N.Y.
89 ....Isabella Pascucci ............Oyster Bay, N.Y. 91 ....Madison Battaglia ..............Cold Spring Harbor, N.Y. 181 ..Morgan Kelly Herrmann ..Garden City, N.Y. 283 ..Samantha Perri ..............Floral Park, N.Y. 328 ..Madison Appel ................Locust Valley, N.Y. 390 ..Alexandra Lipps ............Roslyn, N.Y. 400 ..Jeannie Lozowski ..........Amityville, N.Y. 404 ..Alexa Graham ................Garden City, N.Y. 602 ..Karen A. Serina ..............Islip Terrace, N.Y. 717 ..Taylor S. Cosme ..............New Hyde Park, N.Y. 793 ..Sarah Paul ......................Baldwin, N.Y.
National Girls 14 Singles Long Island Players Rank Name ................................City 76 ....Vivian Cheng ..................Woodbury, N.Y. 180 ..Sophie Barnard ..............Mill Neck, N.Y. 251 ..Claudia Li........................Jericho, N.Y. 320 ..Nadia Smergut................East Hampton, N.Y. 466 ..Sara R. Finger ................Saint James, N.Y. 477 ..Paulina Tafler ..................Oceanside, N.Y. 523 ..Gabriella Nicole Leon ......Woodmere, N.Y. 620 ..Isabella Pascucci ............Oyster Bay, N.Y. 774 ..Rithika D. Reddy ............Syosset, N.Y. 830 ..Sunaina Vohra ................Glen Head, N.Y. 845 ..Madison Battaglia ............Cold Spring harbor, N.Y. 848 ..Bianca Posa ....................Valley Stream, N.Y. 850 ..Mia Vecchio ....................Manhasset Hills, N.Y.
National Girls 16 Singles Long Island Players Rank Name ................................City 56 ....Shelby Talcott ................Sea Cliff, N.Y. 57 ....Julia Elbaba ....................Oyster Bay, N.Y. 72 ....Katherine Yau..................Manhasset, N.Y. 80 ....Hannah L. Camhi ............Woodbury, N.Y. 382 ..Devlin-Ann Ammendola ..Massapequa, N.Y. 426 ..Jacqueline Raynor ..........Garden City, N.Y. 431 ..Stephanie Loutsenko ......Bellmore, N.Y. 443 ..Morgan C. Feldman ........Glen Head, N.Y. 514 ..Lauren Wagner ..............Roslyn Heights, N.Y. 519 ..Samantha B. Gann ..........Massapequa, N.Y. 580 ..Missy Edelbaum..............Roslyn, N.Y. 743 ..Sophie R. Barnard ..........Mill Neck, N.Y. 799 ..Paige J. Mintz ................Roslyn, N.Y. 822 ..Diana Vamvakitis ............Quogue, N.Y. 925 ..Deana Davoudiasl ..........Rockville Centre, N.Y. 939 ..Samantha Rosca-Sipot....Malverne, N.Y.
National Girls 18 Singles Long Island Players Rank Name ................................City 24 ....Blair Seideman ..............Glen Head, N.Y. 33 ....Jennifer Kellner ..............Smithtown, N.Y. 74 ....Julia Elbaba ....................Oyster Bay, N.Y. 119 ..Olivia Pascucci................Oyster Bay, N.Y. 254 ..Mollie Anderson ..............Melville, N.Y. 343 ..Nicolle Stracar ................Jericho, N.Y. 360 ..Kristin Norton..................Port Washington, N.Y. 394 ..Aylin Mehter ..................Massapequa, N.Y. 431 ..Jennifer Fridman ............Port Washington, N.Y. 463 ..Shelby Talcott ................Sea Cliff, N.Y. 501 ..Robyn Romanoff ............Centereach, N.Y. 502 ..Jessica Podlofsky ..........Port Washington, N.Y. 543 ..Ashley T. Harel ................Roslyn Heights, N.Y. 623 ..Kelsey Raynor ................Garden City, N.Y. 664 ..Shelby Bates ..................Jericho, N.Y.
USTA/Long Island Region 2009
TOURNAMENT SCHEDULE For detailed information on these and all USTA tournaments, visit tennislink.usta.com/tournaments. NOVEMBER 2009 Friday-Sunday, November 6-8 L3 Long Beach Eastern UPS Championship Long Beach Tennis Center 899 Monroe Boulevard • Long Beach, N.Y. Divisions: Ranked BG (10-14)s, RR Surface Type: Unknown Entry Fee: $43.50 per player for singles (deadline for entries is Tuesday, Nov. 3 at 1:00 p.m.) For more information, call (516) 432-6060. Friday-Sunday, November 6-8 LBTC Men’s/Women’s NTRP Challenger and Men’s Tournament Long Beach Tennis Center 899 Monroe Boulevard Long Beach, N.Y. Divisions: M (40, 50, 50, 70, 80)s; W (40, 50, 60, 70)d; NMW (3.0-4.0)sd Surface Type: Unknown Entry Fee: $45 per player for singles and $30 per player for doubles (deadline for entries is Saturday, Oct. 31 at 11:59 p.m.) For more information, call (516) 432-6060.
Friday-Sunday, November 13-15 & November 20-22 L1 Sportime Bethpage Ron Smyth Memorial Championship Sportime Tennis Bethpage 101 Norcross Avenue Bethpage, N.Y. Divisions: Ranked BG (16)s, SE Surface Type: Unknown Entry Fee: $48.88 per player (deadline for entries is Friday, Oct. 30 at 1:00 p.m.) For more information, call (516) 933-8500.
Friday-Sunday, November 13-15 L2O Long Beach Championship Long Beach Tennis Center 899 Monroe Boulevard Long Beach, N.Y. Divisions: Ranked B (10-18)s, SE Surface Type: Unknown Entry Fee: $48.88 per player (deadline for entries is Monday, Nov. 9 at 1:00 p.m.) For more information, call (516) 432-6060. Friday-Sunday, November 20-22 L1B Sportime Massapequa Thanksgiving Warm-Up Challenger Sportime Massapequa 5600 Old Sunrise Highway Massapequa, N.Y. Divisions: Ranked BG (12, 18)s, SE Surface Type: Clay Indoor Entry Fee: $48.88 per player (deadline for entries is Friday, Nov. 6 at 1:00 p.m.) For more information, call (516) 799-3550.
Friday-Sunday, November 13-15 & November 20-22 L1 Huntington Championship Huntington Indoor Tennis 100 Broadway Street Huntington Station, N.Y. Divisions: Ranked G (14)s, SE Surface Type: Unknown Entry Fee: $48.88 per player (deadline for entries is Friday, Oct. 30 at 1:00 p.m.) For more information, call (631) 421-0040. Wednesday-Sunday, November 25-29 L1B Long Beach Challenger Friday-Sunday, November 13-15 & Long Beach Tennis Center Friday-Sunday, November 6-8 & November 20-22 899 Monroe Boulevard November 13-15 L1 RWTTC Championship Long Beach, N.Y. L2R Long Island Regional Westhampton Robbie Wagner Tournament Training at Divisions: Ranked BG (16)sd, SE Championship Glen Cove Surface Type: Unknown Westhampton Beach Tennis & Sport Club 60 Sea Cliff Avenue Entry Fee: $48.88 per player for singles, 86 Depot Road Glen Cove, N.Y. $28 per player for doubles (deadline for Westhampton Beach, N.Y. Divisions: Ranked B (14)s, SE entries is Wednesday, Nov. 11 at 1:00 Divisions: Ranked BG (12-16)s, SE Surface Type: Unknown p.m.) Surface Type: Unknown Entry Fee: $48.88 per player (deadline for For more information, call (516) 432-6060. Entry Fee: $43.50 per player (deadline for entries is Friday, Oct. 30 at 1:00 p.m.) entries is Friday, Oct. 23 at 1:00 p.m.) For more information, call (516) 759-0505. Wednesday-Sunday, For more information, call (631) 288-6060. November 25-29 Friday-Sunday, November 13-15 L1B RWTTC Thanksgiving Classic Friday-Sunday, November 6-8 L3 Sportime Massapequa Eastern UPS Robbie Wagner Tournament Training at L2R Long Island Regional Sportime Championship Glen Cove Massapequa Championship Sportime Massapequa 60 Sea Cliff Avenue Sportime Massapequa 5600 Old Sunrise Highway Glen Cove, N.Y. 5600 Old Sunrise Highway Massapequa, N.Y. Divisions: Ranked B (18,12-10)s, SE; G Massapequa, N.Y. Divisions: Unranked BG (14-10)s, RR (12-10)s, SE Divisions: Ranked BG (14-10)s, SE Surface Type: Unknown Surface Type: Unknown Surface Type: Unknown Entry Fee: $43.50 per player (deadline for Entry Fee: $48.88 per player (deadline for Entry Fee: $48.88 per player (deadline for entries is Friday, Oct. 30 at 1:00 p.m.) entries is Wednesday, Nov. 11 at 1:00 entries is Friday, Oct. 30 at 1:00 p.m.) For more information, call p.m.) For more information, call (516) 799-3550. (516) 799-3550. For more information, call (516) 759-0505.
Thursday-Sunday, November 26-29 Thankful Senior Jericho Westbury Tennis 44 Jericho Turnpike Jericho, N.Y. Divisions: Ranked M (25, 35, 50, 60-65)sd Surface Type: Unknown Entry Fee: $60 for singles players, $60 for doubles players, late registrations must add $8 (entries open Monday, Oct. 26) For more information, call (516) 997-4060. Friday-Sunday, November 27-29 L2O Long Beach Championship Long Beach Tennis Center 899 Monroe Boulevard Long Beach, N.Y. Divisions: Ranked BG (18-16)s, SE Surface Type: Unknown Entry Fee: $48.88 per player (deadline for entries is Friday, Nov. 13 at 1:00 p.m.) For more information, call (516) 432-6060. Friday-Sunday, November 27-29 Huntington Championship Huntington Indoor Tennis 100 Broadway Street Huntington Station, N.Y. Divisions: M (Op)s Surface Type: Unknown Entry Fee: $54.25 per player (deadline for entries is Friday, Nov. 20 at 11:59 p.m.) For more information, call (631) 421-0040. Friday-Sunday, November 27-29 L2R Long Island Regional Sportime Bethpage Championship Sportime Tennis Bethpage 101 Norcross Avenue Bethpage, N.Y. Divisions: Ranked BG (10-14)s, SE Surface Type: Unknown Entry Fee: $48.88 per player (deadline for entries is Friday, Nov. 13 at 1:00 p.m.) For more information, call (516) 933-8500.
Long Island Tennis Magazine • November/December 2009
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USTA/Long Island Region 2009
TOURNAMENT SCHEDULE For detailed information on these and all USTA tournaments, visit tennislink.usta.com/tournaments. DECEMBER 2009 Friday-Sunday, December 4-6 L2O LBTC Championships Long Beach Tennis Center 899 Monroe Boulevard Long Beach, N.Y. Divisions: Ranked BG (10-14)s, SE Surface Type: Unknown Entry Fee: $48.88 per player for singles, (deadline for entries is Friday, Nov. 20 at 1:00 p.m.) For more information, call (516) 432-6060.
Friday-Sunday, December 4-6 L3 Sportime Bethpage Eastern UPS \Championship Sportime Tennis Bethpage 101 Norcross Avenue Bethpage, N.Y. Divisions: Ranked BG (10-18)s, RR Surface Type: Unknown Entry Fee: $43.50 per player (deadline for entries is Friday, Nov. 27 at 1:00 p.m.) For more information, call (516) 933-8500.
Friday-Sunday, December 4-6 & December 11-13 L1 RWTTC Championships Robbie Wagner Tournament Training at Glen Cove 81 Round Hill Road Roslyn Heights, N.Y. Divisions: Ranked BG (16)s, SE Surface Type: Unknown Entry Fee: $48.88 per player (deadline for entries is Friday, Nov. 20 at 1:00 p.m.) For more information, call (516) 759-0505.
Friday-Sunday, December 11-20 L1 Sportime Kings Park Championships Sportime Kings Park 275 Old Indianhead Road Kings Park, N.Y. Divisions: BG (10)s, SE Surface Type: Unknown Entry Fee: $48.88 per player (deadline for entries is Friday, Nov. 27 at 5:00 p.m.) For more information, call (631) 269-6300.
Friday-Sunday, December 18-20 & Friday-Wednesday, December 25-30 L1B Sportime Bethpage Challenger Sportime Tennis Bethpage 101 Norcross Avenue Bethpage, N.Y. Divisions: Ranked BG (10-14)s, SE Surface Type: Unknown Entry Fee: $48.88 per player (deadline for entries is Friday, Dec. 4 at 11:00 p.m.) For more information, call (516) 933-8500.
Friday-Sunday, December 11-13 L2O LBTC Champs Long Beach Tennis Center 899 Monroe Boulevard Long Beach, N.Y. Divisions: Ranked BG (16-18)sd, SE Surface Type: Unknown Entry Fee: $48.88 per player (deadline for entries is Friday, Nov. 27 at 1:00 p.m.) For more information, call (516) 432-6060.
Friday-Sunday, December 18-20 & Saturday-Sunday, December 26-27 L1B World Gym Setauket Challenger World Gym Racquet & Sports Arena 384 Mark Tree Road East Setauket, N.Y. Ranked: BG (18)s, SE Surface Type: Clay Indoor Entry Fee: $48.88 per player (deadline for entries is Friday, Dec. 4 at 1:00 p.m.) For more information, call (631) 751-6100.
Friday-Sunday, December 4-6 & December 11-13 L1 Huntington Championship Huntington Indoor Tennis 100 Broadway Street Huntington Station, N.Y. Divisions: G (14)sd, SE Surface Type: Clay Indoor Entry Fee: $48.88 per player for singles, $28 per player for doubles (deadline for entries is Friday, Nov. 20 at 1:00 p.m.) For more information, call (631) 421-0040. Friday-Sunday, December 4-6 L3 Westhampton Eastern UPS Championships Westhampton Beach Tennis & Sport Club 86 Depot Road Westhampton Beach, N.Y. Divisions: Ranked BG (12-16)s, RR Surface Type: Unknown Entry Fee: $43.50 per player (deadline for entries is Friday, Nov. 20 at 1:00 p.m.) For more information, call (631) 288-6060. 64
Friday-Sunday, December 18-20 L3 LBTC UPS Long Beach Tennis Center 899 Monroe Boulevard Long Beach, N.Y. Divisions: Ranked BG (10-16)s, RR Surface Type: Unknown Entry Fee: $48.88 per player (deadline for entries is Friday, Dec. 4 at 1:00 p.m.) For more information, call (516) 432-6060.
Long Island Tennis Magazine • November/December 2009
Friday-Sunday, December 18-20 L1B Sportime Massapequa Challenger Sportime Massapequa 5600 Old Sunrise Highway Massapequa, N.Y. Divisions: Ranked BG (16)s, SE Surface Type: Clay Indoor Entry Fee: $48.88 per player (deadline for entries is Friday, Dec. 11 at 11:59 p.m.) For more information, call (516) 799-3550.
Saturday-Wednesday, December 26-30 Winter Solstice Jericho Westbury Tennis 44 Jericho Turnpike Jericho, N.Y. Divisions: Ranked M (25, 40, 50, 60-65)sd Surface Type: Unknown Entry Fee: $60 for singles players, $60 for doubles players, late registrations must add $8 (deadline for entries is Monday, Nov. 30) For more information, call (516) 997-4060. Saturday-Thursday, December 26-31 L20 Point Set Holiday Championship Point Set Indoor Racquet 3065 New Street Oceanside, N.Y. Ranked: BG (10-18)sd Surface Type: Unknown Entry Fee: $48.88 per player (deadline for entries is Wednesday, Dec. 9 at 1:00 p.m.) For more information, call (516) 536-2323. Tuesday-Thursday, December 29-31 L1 Long Beach Doubles Championship Long Beach Tennis Center 899 Monroe Boulevard Long Beach, N.Y. Divisions: Ranked BG (10-18)d, SE Surface Type: Unknown Entry Fee: $48.88 per player (deadline for entries is Saturday, Dec. 12 at 1:00 p.m.) For more information, call (516) 432-6060.
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