Sunday marked the third and final day of the USTA League National Adult 65 & Over 6.0/8.0 Invitational, hosted by the USTA National Campus. Four teams representing four different USTA Sections were crowned champions on the day.

Winners included the Northern (St. Paul Academy & Summit School – Saint Paul, Minn.) 6.0 men, the Pacific Northwest (Boeing Employees Tennis Club – Kent, Wash.) 6.0 women, the Mid-Atlantic (Cattail & Circle D – Woodbine, Md.) 8.0 men, and the Middle States (Independent – Delaware) 8.0 women

For the men’s 6.0 semifinals, Northern (St Paul Academy & Summit School – Saint Paul, Minn.) swept Texas (Sun City Texas by Del Webb – Georgetown) and Pacific Northwest (Amy Yee Tennis Center – Seattle) held off Southern (Independent – Birmingham, Ala.) by a 2-1 margin. Northern took all three courts in straight sets. Michael Schneider and Steve Wollman had the easiest time securing a victory, coming through 6-4, 6-2 at line three. Teammates Allan Hoen and Gary Huber prevailed 6-4, 6-4 at the second position, while Craig Engelhart and Igor Mikhailenko won 6-2, 7-5 on court one. Pacific Northwest received a quick 6-0, 6-1 victory from the pairing of Steve Suzuki and Mark Bach at the top spot to go along with Thomas Lennon and Rob Shurtleff hanging on at line two 6-4, 6-3. Southern’s David Swanson and Thomas Hardison staved off the sweep with a 6-2, 2-6, 1-0 result on court three.

After lines one and two were split by Northern and Pacific Northwest, court three became the matchup that decided the championship. Hoen and Huber moved up to the top spot for Northern, where they won 6-4, 7-5, while Suzuki and Bach slid down to the second position for a 6-3, 6-1 result. Northern captain Eric Narvaez teamed up with Igor Mikhailenko to compete at line three, where they shook off dropping the opening frame for the clinching 4-6, 6-2, 1-0 effort.

The complete Northern roster includes Eric Narvaez, Schneider, Leon Narvaez, Roger Stevens, Huber, John Goulett, Allen Miller, Patrick Ledray, Hoen, William Boyes, Gary See, Wollman, Engelhart, Gary Bilbrey, and Mikhailenko.

The 6.0 women’s semifinals saw Florida (The Players Club and Spa – Naples) upset top-seeded Texas (Independent – Northeast Texas) 2-1 and Pacific Northwest (Boeing Employees Tennis Club – Kent, Wash.) handle Caribbean (Independent – Puerto Rico) 3-0. It was an impressive effort from Florida’s Robin Harper and Laurie Dwyer, who rallied from a 6-1 opening set loss to earn the second position 1-6, 7-5, 1-0. That coupled with Karen Shmihluk and Janet Olliges besting their opponents 6-4, 6-3 on court three was enough to propel Florida into the championship dual. Even though Pacific Northwest ended up with a sweep, two of those matchups were pushed to a decisive match tiebreak. Ruthann Nelson and Carrie Bergquist rallied 3-6, 7-5, 1-0 on line one while Jill Wakefield and Barbara Selemon battled for a 6-3, 3-6, 1-0 victory at the third spot. The duo of Juanita Kraght and Mary Jo Leonardson had a much easier time on court two, winning 6-3, 6-2.

The top two tandems for Pacific Northwest took care of their courts in straight sets in the final to bring home the title. Nelson and Bergquist stayed on court one, where they lost just four games in a 6-3, 6-1 victory; Kraght and Leonardson once again held down line two by surrendering a mere five games, this time by a 6-1, 6-4 score line. Olliges and Shmihluk prevented the sweep with a 7-6, 6-4 result in favor of Florida at the third position.

Captained by Della McCleary, the complete Pacific Northwest roster is made up of Nelson, Leonardson, Selemon, Bergquist, Janice Brennan, Sally Linebarger, Lila Hughes, Wakefield, Kraght, and Carolyn Cruzat.

Both men’s 8.0 semifinals ended in 2-1 score lines, as Middle States (Independent – Delaware) defeated Florida (Parkland Tennis Center) and Mid-Atlantic (Cattail & Circle D – Woodbine, Md.) ousted Southwest (Phoenix Tennis Center). David Quinn and Wayne Marsh set the tone for Middle States by winning 6-1, 6-4 at line two; teammates Tem Saeui and James Wadsworth managed to win to tightly-contested sets on court one, 7-6, 6-4. In Mid-Atlantic’s semifinal, Michael Kane and David Wendt sprinted to the finish line at the top spot for a 6-1, 6-2 result while Jacob Zylberberg and Stanley Proser fought their way to a 6-1, 4-6, 1-0 victory at the third position.

Kane and Wendt’s 6-0 first set on court one of the final paced Mid-Atlantic to the divisional title, two courts to one over Middle States. That duo would go on to win 6-0, 6-4, while Zylberberg and Proser took line three in two sets, 7-5, 6-1. Marsh and Quinn came up with a 5-7, 7-6, 1-0 victory at the second spot to wrap up the dual.

Cliff Bernstein leads a Mid-Atlantic crew that also features Leon Geller, Kenneth Dauses, W. Houseknecht, Wendt, Proser, Joseph Touzin, Carl Rubin, Zylberberg, John Reinhard, Francis Kreysa, Greg Fitzgerald, Robert Finney, Kane, and Barry Grube.

The women’s 8.0 semifinals played out in a similar fashion to the men’s, with Middle States (Independent – Delaware) stunning No. 1 seed Mid-Atlantic (Watkins Regional Park – Upper Marlboro, Md.) two courts to one and Northern California (Gold River Racquet Club – Gold River) defeating Midwest (Olympic Indoor Tennis – Columbus, Ohio) by the same margin. After Maureen OBerg and Ann Rizzo got Middle States on the board with a 6-3, 6-1 victory on court one, the dual came down to a marathon at line three. Jane Stoutland and Evelyn Davidson claimed the first frame six games to four, but let the second slip away in the crucial moments; however, they responded by prevailing in the match tiebreak for the 6-4, 5-7, 1-0 triumph. Northern California also needed a match tiebreak to move on, as Noelann Ludwig and Susan Yep took court two 6-4, 3-6, 1-0. Martha Chase and Yolanda Valle also contributed to the Northern California win by coming through 6-3, 7-6 at line three.

Despite losing all three opening frames with the national title on the line, Middle States staged a furious rally at the second and third spots for the win. OBerg and Rizzo played on court two in the final, missing out on winning the first set before coming through a tough 5-7, 6-3, 1-0 encounter; Davidson and Stoutland stayed on court three, where once again they needed a match tiebreak, this time for a 2-6, 6-4, 1-0 triumph. Chase and Valle claimed the top spot for Northern California 7-6, 6-3.

Carol Vukelich serves as the captain for the Middles States squad that also features Melissa Veghte, Ellen Hamilton, Janeen Ruff, Kathy Bevans, Rizzo, Jennifer Bragagnolo, Stoutland, Davidson, Sugi Hayes, Anne Maxwell, Roberta Dimond, OBerg, and Suzanne McGrath.

Rebounding from semifinal losses to claim third overall in their respective division were the Texas 6.0 men and women, the Southwest 8.0 men, and the Florida 8.0 women.

For complete results from the USTA League National Adult 65 & Over 6.0/8.0 Invitational, click here.