Sunday saw the conclusion of the 2018 USTA League National Adult 55 & Over 6.0/8.0 Championships, which is the third of five USTA League National events scheduled at the USTA National Campus this fall.

Overall, four different Sections were represented amongst the team champions. The Caribbean (Independent – Puerto Rico) women and defending titlists Northern (St Paul Academy & Summit School – Saint Paul, Minn.) men were the victors in the 6.0 divisions; the women from Midwest (Queen City Racquet Club – Cincinnati, Ohio) and men of Northern California (Gold River Racquet Club – Gold River) took home the 8.0 crowns.

In the women’s 6.0 competition, the Caribbean and Midwest (Evergreen Racquet Club – Bloomington, Ill.) squads stayed undefeated by claiming their semifinal duals. No. 1 seed Caribbean won courts two and three in straight sets to down Florida (Southside Tennis Complex – Jacksonville) by a 2-1 margin. Elvia Agosto and Aida Baerga prevailed at the second spot 6-4, 6-4 while Maria Calderon and Ana Garcia toughed out a 7-5, 6-4 result at line three. Second-seeded Midwest came through with a sweep of Pacific Northwest (Stafford Hills Club – Tualatin, Ore.) on the strength of two dominating victories and another in a match tiebreak. Jean Chang and Lisa Eckenrodt raced through the matchup on court three 6-1, 6-2; Maribeth Dura and Vicki Vandeveer handled their opponents at line two 6-3, 6-4. Cay Ernst and Lori Rebholz closed out the sweep by rallying back at the top spot 3-6, 6-2, 1-0.

The Midwest representatives were just a few points from claiming the divisional crown, but came up just short as Caribbean stole the dual in a tightly-contested 2-1 score line. Dura and Vanderveer looked sharp again, this time teaming up to win court one 6-2, 7-5. Ernst and Rebholz held a one-set lead at the second position, only to see Caribbean’s Agosto and Baerga piece together a comeback to take the matchup 2-6, 6-4,1-0. At the decisive line three, Calderon and Garcia won the opening set 6-4 before shaking off missed opportunities in the second frame to come through 6-4, 5-7, 1-0.

Captained by Baerga, the entire Caribbean roster includes Garcia, Patti-Ann Rouleau, Margaret Matos, Cadleron, Aurora Goldberg, Ivetter Jimenez, Elizabeth Melendez, Lesvia Maldonado Diaz, Agosto, Virgen Enid Rivera, and Wilma Colon.

Men’s 6.0 top seed Northern kept up their commanding play in the semifinal round, easily ousting Middle States (Hershey Racquet Club – Hershey, Pa.) 3-0. All three courts ending in straight sets, with just one frame being extended past 6-4. George Kimball and Steve Middleton-Koller cruised at the third position (6-1, 6-2) while teammates John Goulett and Allan Hoen took court two 6-3, 6-4. Line one saw a competitive first set go to Ron Saver and Tu Van, who kept the momentum for a quick 6-2 second set. No. 2 seed Pacific Northwest (Jupiter Tennis Center – Edgewood, Wash.) took a more arduous path to the championship dual despite securing the top spot 6-4, 6-2 in their clash with Texas (High Point Tennis Center – Plano). They also won the opening frames at lines two and three, only to see those courts go into match tiebreaks. It would be Ken Venneman and Reed Palmer delivering the clincher in the second position via a 6-3, 4-6, 1-0 margin. Texas earned court three to put the final overall tally at 2-1 for Pacific Northwest.

Northern wasted little time in defending their title. Across the three individual matchups, the group from the Twin Cities was absolutely dominant, losing a meager 10 games. Saver and Tu barely broke a sweat in winning line two 6-1, 6-1. Not far behind was William Boyes and Hoen closing the door at line one with a 6-2, 6-1 effort. Michael Schneider and Middleton-Koller were able to team up successfully at the third position, taking it 6-4, 6-1.

Eric Navarez’s Northern full Northern roster is made up of Schneider, Kimball, Middleton-Koller, Don Glover, Saver, Goulett, Hoen, Van, and Boyes.

The 8.0 women representing Southern (Brook Highland Racquet Club – Birmingham, Ala.) pulled off the biggest upset of the day, coming from behind to stun top seed Northern (Life Time Fitness – Lakeville, Minn.) 2-1. It appeared Northern had control after winning court two 6-2, 6-4 while also going up a set on court three. However, Walton Manderson and Barbara Smith fought back to come out on top 5-7, 6-2, 1-0. That set the stage for Sharon Brown and Kelly Holland, who held off their opponents for a 6-2, 5-7, 1-0 victory. In the other semifinal, Midwest swept aside New England (Bass River Tennis Club Inc. – Beverly, Mass.), but it was far from a one-sided dual. Even the lone straight-set matchup featured a tiebreak, with Lisa Terry and Jeanne Miller hanging on 7-6, 6-1. Lines two and three could have wrapped up in two sets as well, but the New England squad pushed Midwest to the limit. Barbara Hess and Felicia Bourbon grabbed court two 6-3, 4-6, 1-0 to go along with Sandra Stephens and Beverly Gates outlasting their opponents 7-6, 4-6. 1-0.

It was the last dual left on court Sunday afternoon, as Midwest put an ended to Southern’s Cinderella run with a 2-1 triumph for the championship trophy. Manderson and Smith polished off a solid 6-2, 6-3 effort at line two for Southern, but their other tandems just could not find a way to the finish line. Hess paired up with Janet Scruby in this dual, as they won on court one 6-4, 7-6. After neither played in the earlier semifinal round, Midwest sent out Nancy Armentrout and Terry Shick for the match at line three, in which they collected most of the crucial points to grab a 7-5, 7-6 triumph.

Captain Sandra Stephens’s victorious squad features Denise Koesterman, Miller, Carol Johnson, Bonnie Lang, Hess, Gates, Jill Baker, Armentrout, Terry, Donna Griffor, Shick, Barbara Lee, Scrucy, Bourbon, and Kim Vincent.

A dominating effort from Hawaii Pacific (Pearlridge Community Park – Aiea) against Texas (The Woodlands Parks and Recreation – The Woodlands) moved them into the final of the men’s 8.0 division. Gary Au Young and Victor Mau gave away just two games in taking line two, going along with Michael Nakatsu and Barry Ng finishing off court three 6-3, 6-2. The Hawaiian duo playing in the first position retired to put the final score at 2-1. Perhaps the most competitive semifinal on Sunday featured Northern California going up against Florida (River Hills Country Club – Valrico). While the second and third spot were decided by match tiebreaks, line one ended in a 7-6, 7-6 score line in favor of Northern California’s Richard Rinaldi and Kerry Smyth. On court two, Brad Stevens and Frederick Anderson punched the team’s ticket to the final with a 6-2, 5-7, 1-0 victory. Florida battled for a win on court three 6-1, 5-7, 1-0.

In the championship round, Northern California bested Hawaii Pacific in a dual that featured three straight-set results. Anderson and Stevens took to the courts at the top spot for Northern California, toughing out a 6-3, 6-4 win. Hawaii Pacific’s Carlo Balmilero and Lonopv Beamer proved too strong at line two, winning the first set in a tiebreak before running away with the second frame 6-0. For the crucial third spot, Hunt and Gasbarro delivered the goods for Northern California, 6-3, 7-6.

Northern California is captained by Maurice Smith, whose complete roster includes Gasbarro, Stevens, Mark Holgerson, Ralph Clark, Smyth, Richard Rinaldi, Anderson, Thomas Armstrong, Bratton, Larry Hawe, Wayne Dohnt, Kevin O’Brien, Earnest Allen, and Hunt.

A full listing of the updated divisional results can be found at the following links: 6.0 men; 6.0 women; 8.0 men; 8.0 women.

Established in 1980, USTA League has grown from 13,000 players in a few parts of the country in its first year to more than 900,000 players across the nation today, making it the world’s largest recreational tennis league.

USTA League was established to provide adult recreational players throughout the country with the opportunity to compete against players of similar ability levels. Players participate on teams in a league format, which is administered by the USTA through its 17 sections. The league groups players by using six National Tennis Rating Program (NTRP) levels, ranging from 2.5 (entry) to 5.0 (advanced). USTA League is open to any USTA member 18 years of age or older.

For more information on the 2018 USTA League National Championships, click here.