Heritage Palms, the Lawvers and their staff did a tremendous job of hosting the most recent Fort Myers Ritzman Tennis USPTA Pro League stop. Once again several hundred spectators converged on the premises to enjoy the friendly competition among local professionals.
Remax vs.
Gateway Dental (GD)
 |
| Alex Hermeto, Kerry Kendrick, Christie Pollin & Dan Moenning |
As expected, the Frank Fourgeau-led juggernaut that is
Remax chugged on when it met Gateway Dental, my team, led by Shawn Hedrick.
Remax swept all four matches, losing just two sets in the process. It was one of
the most dominating performances of this season’s Pro League. Remax posted 7
points on the day, tying Babolat for the highest single-match point total this season.
 |
| Manuel Encalada & Luke Andreae |
On Court 1, in a tightly contested affair, Manuel
Encalada and Luke Andreae toppled Shawn and Ryan Sherry 7-6, 7-5. On Court 2,
Frank and Corey Knapp came back from a 4-6 first set to win 6-1, 10-8 against
Anthony Hatori and me.
 |
| Dan Moenning & Christie Pollin |
Jorge Magalhaes and Dave Dooley of Remax took out Steve
Shortridge and Ted Farah, 6-3, 6-2, on Court 3, and on the Mixed Court, after
dropping their first set 5-7 to Alex Hermeto and Kerry Kendrick of GD, Dan
Moenning and Christie Pollin came back to win 6-2, 10-5.
Boston
Retirement Advisors (BRA) vs. Babolat
 |
| Scott Harrington & Jared Kalpin |
Scott Harrington’s BRA took three of four courts and posted
its highest single match total of the season, 6 points to 3 for Jeff Diggs’
Babolat. That total allowed BRA to hold onto second place by one point over
Johnny Malloy’s (JM).
 |
| Tyler Owens & Denny Rager |
On Court 1, Denny Rager and Tyler Owens continued their
winning ways for Babolat, taking two straight sets from Scott and Jared Kalpin,
6-4, 6-3. On Court 2,
League Commissioner Jim Katterfield teamed up with Joel
Hampton to take a heartbreaker from Jeff Diggs and Tom Fisher (sub), 2-6, 7-5,
11-9, scoring 2 points for BRA. The Commish and Joel saved match point en route
to that emotional victory.
 |
| Mike Barnes & Paul D'Amico |
Earning another two points for BRA were Paul D’Amico and
Mike Barnes on Court 3. Forming one of the strongest Court 3-teams in the
League, D’Amico and Barnes took out Toni Halski and John Gillette 6-0, 6-4.
 |
| Kim Jones & Bob Green |
Bob
Green and Kim Jones gave BRA another win on the Mixed Court, but it was no easy
task. Erica Cossairt and Fernando Carballo (sub) took Green and Jones to a
match-tiebreak before succumbing.
 |
| Elliot DeBolt & Jeremy Orme |
Johnny
Malloy’s (JM) vs. University Grill (UG)
Despite the absence of JM Captain Mike Curran, the team still posted
6 points to keep pace with BRA, just one point out of second. Curran’s usual
partner on Court 1, Elliot DeBolt teamed with Jeremy Orme (sub) to down Sergio
Rebolledo and Matt Maloney 6-3, 7-6.
 |
| Mike Lawver & Patrick Kangwa |
On Court 2, in the match of the day, resurgent UG captain Mike Lawver and
Patrick Kangwa battled late into the night against Todd Wise and Kevin Kearns.
 |
| Todd Wise & Kevin Kearns |
It looked good for Lawver and Kangwa after they took the first set 6-3, but Wise and Kearns battled back to take the second set in a tiebreak. Lawver and Kangwa outlasted the JM warriors, taking the match tiebreak 10-6.
 |
| Larry Gagnon & Oliver Stenger |
The other dominant third-court duo, Larry Gagnon and Oliver Stenger for
JM, did what they usually do: cruise to victory. They faced Mark Drons and Terry
See, and took the match 6-3, 6-4.
 |
| John Ramsey & Christyn Lucas |
On the Mixed Court, John Ramsey and Christyn
Lucas continued their winning ways, dispatching Tony Martin and Carolyn Lawver
6-2, 6-3 to close out the scoring for JM.
Friday's Match-ups
This coming Friday, at Bonita Bay Club, all matches will be played at 4:00pm. Remax will seek to maintain its
dominance when it faces third-place JM. Chances are good that they will do so
given that the first time the two played, Remax earned 2 points more than JM…and
JM had a healthy Mike Curran that day! It was closer than the point total indicates
though, because each team won two courts that day and three of the four matches ended
in match tiebreaks. JM would have to sweep all four courts to catch the top
team.
The BRA squad appear poised to cement their position in second as they take
on UG, the League’s last-place team. BRA outpointed UG by 2 points last time
around, winning three of the four courts. Lineups are a bit different this time
around for both teams, so the result may be different.
The Babolat-GD matchup offers a chance for GD to make up some ground on
the leaders, given that GD posted its best point total of the season against Babolat
in Week 2. However, the odds aren’t very good for GD as Manuel Encalada, who
didn’t play in the first meeting, will be playing this time on Court 1. And on
Court 2, Jeff Diggs and John Jerome have been playing better than the first
time around, but the same can’t be said for Anthony Hatori and me. The lineups
are also a bit different, so time will tell.
As always, the action should be as hot and heavy as it has been
throughout, and you know the players look forward to your presence at the best
Friday evening entertainment in town…well, the best early Friday evening entertainment
anyway. See you on Friday. Game, set, match…T. A.
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