• Deadlines are specified within each district grant guideline if chosen.
If you have questions please contact Tara Williams: USTA Missouri Valley Community Tennis Manager 913-302-5901 • williams@movalley.usta.com
PEG SCHLACKS
USTA MISSOURI
JIM HIPKISS
USTA ST. LOUIS
DONNA STAUFFER
USTA ST. LOUIS
PHILCREST HILLS
TENNIS CLUB
USTA OKLAHOMA
PAMELA KOCH USTA HEART OF AMERICA
SUMMER CHRISTENSEN USTA NEBRASKA
JOSEPH CODER
USTA MISSOURI
EMEREY GROSS
USTA ST. LOUIS
COOPER WOESTENDICK
USTA HEART OF AMERICA
COOPER TENNIS COMPLEX
USTA MISSOURI
LEVEL 1: USTA NATIONAL HUSBAND & WIFE OPEN
USTA HEART OF AMERICA
STEPHANIE WATERMAN FOUNDATION
USTA HEART OF AMERICA
DOMINIC MARTICORENA USTA ST. LOUIS
PAUL LUCAS
USTA ST. LOUIS
CARLOS RIERA-RUIZ
USTA NEBRASKA
KAITLIN ROSELIUS USTA NEBRASKA
CLUB KIDS FOR A CAUSE L6 USTA IOWA
CHARLIE SMITH
USTA OKLAHOMA
THE BARKI FAMILY
USTA OKLAHOMA
CRISTIAN PENSAVALLE
USTA OKLAHOMA
NET NOTES
65+ Invitational 10-Year Anniversary
This year marked the 10 year anniversary of the 65+ League Section Invitational hosted in Overland Park, Kansas. A total of 40 teams competed for championships in their respective divisions with eight teams advancing to Nationals in Surprise, Arizona.
Click here to view the Facebook photo album.
L2 Wheelchair
33 players from 17 states traveled to Chesterfield Athletic Club to compete in the Level 2 Indoor Wheelchair Championship! This year the competition included multiple junior players.
Diversity Day + Mitch ‘n’ Friends
During the Edwardsville Futures USTA Pro Circuit, two DEI events were hosted. A Diversity Day event was held on July 30 to recognize those who have fought to make tennis an inclusive sport. August 1 Mitch ‘n’ Friend, a tennis clinic for children with special needs, was hosted by the Edwardsville YMCA.
We Are Flying High
You may want to look up the next time you’re playing! USTA Missouri Valley has a new drone to help take video of various facilities and events, starting with the USTA Premier Facilities located in the section.
Click here to view the Facebook photo album. Click here to view the video recap.
Adaptive Doubles + Fred Johnson ALL Stars
NET NOTES
The USTA Missouri Valley Adaptive Doubles Tennis National Qualifier took place in Iowa City, Iowa at the end of June! Eight teams from across the section traveled to compete with a team from USTA Iowa and USTA Nebraska securing their spot at Nationals. Two players qualified to compete in Nationals in Orlando October 2-3. Haley Wagner from Nebraska and Nathan Williams from Iowa competed and placed first and second in their respective divisions. Following the qualifier was the Fred Johnson ALL Stars event in Cedar Rapids, Iowa! The festivities included tennis, a spaghetti dinner, Dippin’ Dots ice cream and catching a Cedar Rapids Kernels Minor League Baseball game.
USTA Diverse Coaches Summit
Ireon Smith and Johnnie Singleton headed down to the USTA National Campus in Orlando, Florida in June for the second annual USTA Diverse Coaches Development Summit. During this weekend-long event they tried their hand at blind/visually impaired tennis, got an up-close look at the jaw-dropping skill of wheelchair tennis legend Shingo Kunieda and networked with leaders from across the country.
Tennis On Campus Fall Invitational
Back in Kansas City for the first time in five years, this year’s event was held at the beautiful Plaza Tennis Center in the heart of the Historic Country Club Plaza. After two long days of tennis, teamwork and some schoolwork, the 2024 USTA Missouri Valley Tennis On Campus Fall Invite is officially ‘in the history books.’
First Place - Washington University (St. Louis) Second Place - Saint Louis University Third Place - Oklahoma State University
Click here to view the Facebook photo album.
Get On The Court Today with the New USTA Tennis App
Looking to find a court, find a coach, or quench your competitive juices by signing up for tournaments or leagues? The USTA Tennis App is now available for both Apple and Android users!
Check out the new, one-stop-shop for managing your tournament schedule and program registrations with access to:
Tournaments: sign up for local tournaments and manage your registrations all in one place
Leagues: track progress on your phone with access to your ITF World Tennis Number
Results: customize your player profile, search for teammates and opponents and see their latest rankings and results
There’s a lot to love about the new app. Discover everything we’re serving up and download today!
SCAN TO DOWNLOAD THE APP TODAY
District News
USTA Heart of America 2024 Award Winners
Stephanie Waterman Junior
Sportsmanship Female - Leiloni Payton
Male - Adam Bell
Junior Player of the Year
Female - Lera Alexin
Male - Cooper Woestendick
Emerging Jr. Player of the Year
Female - Emma Fowler
Male - Graham Rapelye
Junior Sportsmanship Awards
Lucy Reynolds - Girls 10
Siena Timperley - Girls 12
Eli Ward - Girls 14
ScarleF Gates - Girls 16
Sydney Fuger - Girls 18
Aarnav GarikipaK - Boys 10
Fletcher Dunn-Knuth - Boys 12
Henry Fu - Boys 14
Aaryya Anjankar - Boys 16
Luke Pennington - Boys 18
Adult Player of the Year 4.0 & Above
Female - Erin Hambrick
Male - Mitch BenneF
Adult Player – 3.5 & Below
Female - Ashton Sparks
Male - Eric & Andy Wimmer
Shawna Froeschl Adult Sportsmanship
Female - Cheryl Liang Burns
Male - Jag Thyagarajan
Outstanding Contributor to USTA League
Tennis
Karthick PaFabiraman
High School Coach
Pam Koch
Outstanding Contributor to USTA Tennis
Youth Programs
Max Sanoja
Outstanding Contributor to Youth High Performance Program
USTA IOWA Congratulates Bunny Bruning on Two Honors
Bunny Bruning of Adel, Iowa, will be receiving two honors this year. A Champion of Equality honoree recognition from the USTA and USTA Iowa Hall of Fame inductee from USTA Iowa. Bruning was presented the Champions of Equality honor (which celebrates the fight for equality) at the 2024 US Open. Bruning will receive the USTA Iowa Hall of Fame induction during the fall meeting of the USTA Iowa.
When Bruning was asked what it feels like to be a Champion of Equality, she answered, “I am humbled and honored to accept this award. I really didn’t know anything about this. I love what I do and wish I could do more ”
Bruning grew up in California and was active on the WTA Tour during the 1970s and 1980s She competed in the main draws of all four Grand Slam tournaments and was runner-up in the Wimbledon Plate in 1976.
Since leaving professional tennis in the '80s, Bruning has worked in Iowa as a tennis coach She currently serves as tennis director of the Wakonda Club in Des Moines, where she has worked since 1983 There she’s helped develop the junior tennis program As a USPTA-certified Master Professional, all of Bruning’s programs focus on developing the person, the athlete and then the tennis player.
Bruning is active in USTA Iowa, a former district president and has served for years as a schools trainer and volunteer. She is a USPTA Master Professional and spent more than 15 years on the USPTA Missouri Valley Division board, including serving as president of the USPTA Missouri Valley Division She also held national office as a USPTA National Vice President from 2009–2011 Bruning continues to volunteer for many local organizations, including the Central Iowa Tennis Alliance that she founded in 1996
Over the years she has worked with Special Olympians, inner-city youth, wheelchair players and team-oriented juniors As a teaching pro, Bruning has selflessly given time, finances and encouragement so everyone she encountered found some success with tennis.
USTA ST. LOUIS 2024 AWARD WINNERS
PLAYER AWARDS
Adult Player of the Year (3.5 & Below)
Adult Player of the Year (4.0 & Above)
Emerging Junior Player of the Year
Judy Dippold Junior Player of the Year
Junior Sportsmanship Boys/Girls 10s
Junior Sportsmanship Boys/Girls 12s
Junior Sportsmanship Boys/Girls 14s
Junior Sportsmanship Boys/Girls 16s
Junior Sportsmanship Boys/Girls 18s
Tennis Family of the Year
Facility of the Year
Member Organization of the Year
Azher Sameer / Martina Augsburger
Jim Hipkiss / Annette Harris
Pranav Madamanchi / London Evans
Shaan Patel / Emerey Gross
Jack Leitner / Marlo Kennedy
Kolton Carlson / Hazel Windeknecht
Neel Thilak / Ava Lohmeyer
Aidan Zu / Kendall Pauls
Jai Patel / Skye Madatali
Patrick’s (Mike, Marsha, Shaun and Josh)
PROVIDER AWARDS
Edwardsville High School
St. Clair Tennis
Outstanding Community Tennis Association PUSH Wheelchair Tennis Academy
Outstanding Contributor to League Tennis
Outstanding Contributor Youth Tennis Programs
Outstanding Contributor Youth High Performance
Will Hamilton / Judy Malpiedi
Dominic Marticorena
Paul Lucas
Outstanding Junior Team Tennis Organizer Zachary Plocher
Outstanding Event of the Year
Set Mix ‘n Chill (18-39 Social League)
Outstanding Junior Tournament Level 6: Arch #3
Outstanding Adult/Senior Tournament Forever Tennis Summer Slam
Outstanding Official
Volunteer of the Year
High School Coach of the Year
Mary Vassar Adult Sportsmanship
Outstanding Diversity Achievement
Distinguished Service
President's Award
Liz Lahm
LEADERSHIP AWARDS
Bob Dienstbach
Sam Lhotak
Sharon Taysi
Kimberly Hughes Gill & Scott Stinson
Donna Stauffer
It's a Surprise! (to be announced November 16)
St. Louis Fall 2024
Fall Leagues: 18+ (Sep-Jan 2024/25)
• Men’s and Women’s Levels 2.5 thru 4.5
• Looking for a team? Let us help you!
• Email: playtennis@ustastl.com
CLICK HERE FOR ADULT TOURNAMENT CALENDAR WITH LINKS & DETAILS or on tourney name here
www.ustastlouis.com
Adult Tournaments (Fall 2024) MV NTRP 18+ & Open (DDTC) - October 4-6 • Mix It Up - WTN (The Highlands) - October 12 • Good Vibes One Night (CAC) - October 19 • Turkey Trot-offs (Vetta Concord) - December 1 • Adult One Night (Mixed Dbls) - December 14 •
Junior Tournaments (Fall 2024) - click tournament name for details
• Level 7: Vetta Sunset L7 (Oct 4)
• Level 6: St Clair Fall Challenge L6 (Oct 4-6)
• Level 7: Forest Lake L7 (Oct 12)
• Level 6: Vetta Sunset L6 (Oct 18-20)
• Jr Circuit: Forest Lake JC (Oct 19)
• Level 7: Forest Lake L7 (Oct 26)
• Level 6: Vetta Sunset L6 (Nov 1-3)
• Level 7: Forest Lake L7 (Nov 9)
• Level 7: Vetta Sunset Boys L7 (Nov 15)
• Level 7: Forest Lake Girls L7 (Nov 16)
• Level 7: Forest Lake L7 (Nov 23)
• Level 6: St Clair Thanksgiving Challenge (Nov 29/1)
• Jr Circuit: Forest Lake JC (Nov 30)
• Level 7: Forest Lake December L7 (Dec 7)
• Level 6: Vetta Sunset December L6 (Dec 13-15)
• Jr Circuit: Forest Lake December JC (Dec 14)
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