FMRC 60-PLUS WOMEN STILL ROCK- by Donna McVety

As the season winds down, and perhaps throughout the year, I will post select pieces by members of the tennis community. This is one such piece, written by one of the absolute sweetest tennis personalities I've ever had the pleasure of meeting, Donna McVety, former League Coordinator for USTA Florida. Don't hesitate to share your thoughts and if you have something you think would be of interest to our tennis community, don't hesitate to email me. Here's Donna:

Captain Donna McVety front & center

Paula Scheff, captain of the Sabal Springs 60 Plus, asked me to start a team in this league. At the time I was busy with USTA and regional competitions and said, “I’ll think about it.”

Paula was persistent. "These 60 plus girls can still hit a ball!” she said. “Come on, form a team out of FMRC.” To entice me, she offered to give me her aqua colored Wilson visor which matched my new tennis dress. I took up the challenge. I was 69.

The second captain who influenced me was Lillian Haigy, a friend from the Legends. Lillian, a talented N.Y. hairdresser, was cutting my hair and upon learning that FMRC intended to form a team said, "We're gonna kick your team’s butt! We got some strong 4.0 players."

Whoa, that statement got my attention. I was having trouble recruiting strong players as this team was unknown with no track record. And there was a bias against playing 60 plus. It's like playing 60 plus labeled you over the hill. Not something you wanted to advertise.

Recruitment was based on these factors: (1) Desire to play competitive tennis (2) Desire to have fun (3) Commitment to improve, positive attitude and good sportsmanship. 

Motivation to get back after a hiatus propelled others. Karen Keeling, our co-captain, formerly played 3.5 tennis, but had knee replacements and was eager to return to the game. Six of our members had played together on USTA national teams and brought their spirit and desire to excel. Our 4.0 rated girls played confident tennis, even with lower rated partners.

Carolyn Lawver, tennis pro at Heritage Palms, said, “Donna, your team is strong, especially considering your range of ratings.”  Her comment meant a lot to me.

Our players’ hard work and splendid cooperation have resulted in our winning the 60 Plus League for the past three years. We celebrate women from ages 60-75 who still got game, gumption, and the will to win. After all, age is just a number!!

Rear: Nancy Nilson, Gay Gillespie, 
Gale Caron, Carole Hartman, 
Andrea Buczek, Pauline Smith, Missy Beck;
Front: Janice Layman, Rosanne Ziegler, 
and Donna McVety

Team members are: Missy Beck, Andrea W. Buczek, Gale Caron, Gay Gillespie, Carole B. Hartman, Dorrie F. Hill, Karen Keeling, co-captain, Katie Keen, co-captain, Janice Layman, Donna McVety-captain, Maria Mosco, Nancy Nilson, Laurie C. Schmidt, Pauline Smith, Teri Taylor, Rosanne Ziegler. 

OUT WITH MARCH IN WITH APRIL: TENNIS AROUND FORT MYERS

Those familiar with the area know that April can’t possibly compete with the smorgasbord of tennis we have had over the past couple of months, but there are some things going on that might interest you.

FGCU’S March Madness this Weekend

Before April gets here, though, don’t forget that the Guys in Green and Blue at FGCU Men’s Tennis have their final home stand starting tomorrow and ending Saturday. They are currently in second place in the Atlantic Sun Conference, and picking up two wins against strong conference foes, including the nationally-ranked, defending champion ETSU Buccaneers would be huge. Read more here.

Madisen’s Match at The Landings

Chief among April events may be Madisen’s Match, one of the area’s premier charity events, which consists of a weekend of tennis activities at The Landings, Yacht, Golf, & Tennis Club in Fort Myers, April 5^th and 6^th.  The festivities begin on Friday evening at 6pm with live entertainment and cocktails at The Landings, and conclude Saturday evening at 5:30pm with closing ceremonies.

2012 Madisen's Clinic participants

Along the way, participants will have the opportunity to take a clinic with former and current top-100-ranked tennis players, participate in a Pro-Am, have lunch with the tennis greats, and view doubles and singles exhibitions by players with skills we can only dream about.

Duane Chaney with Tennis Channel's
Murphy Jensen in background
at 2012 event

If you don’t already know, which means you have missed the public relations blitz (click here for Co-Founder Duane Chaney’s appearance on Fox 4 Morning Blend), the proceeds for this 5^th Annual Madisen’s Match will benefit Lee Memorial Health System’s Regional Cancer Center, and Golisano Children’s Hospital of Southwest Florida. 

Landings Tennis Director
Paul D'Amico with Madisen

Find out much more by visiting the Madisen’s Match website, or by contacting Robin Grande at 239-482-3211 or by emailing activities@lygtc.com.

Florida Sports Expo

I know you will be extremely busy on Saturday, right? But there’s something for you to think about for Sunday as well. The Florida Sports Expo will be held at JetBlue Park April 5 – 7, and according to the event website, there will be over “160 interactive vendor displays, festival foods, beer, dining areas,” and all sorts of fun things for kids and adults participate in and see. Our own Lee County Community Tennis Association (LCCTA) will be onsite, and I suspect there will be some tennis opportunities to be had. Check out the website for all the pertinent info.

Beach Tennis on the Horizon

Just in case you forgot or didn’t read my March episode of what’s happening in town (heaven forbid!), I’ll remind you that Beach Tennis, the real deal, is coming to town April 19 – 21and you can play or watch some of your friends play. I know some of our pro leaguers plan to get sandy that weekend, and I’m pondering it myself. If you want to check it out and/or register for the event, click here.

LCCTA Three Oaks Designated Tournament

Speaking of the LCCTA, the organization will host the Lee County CTA April (Designated) L5 B&G16, at the Barbara Manzo Tennis Center at Three Oaks Park, April 27 - 29. Essentially, that’s a major event for many of the junior players seeking a State ranking. One way you can tell it’s a major event is by the number of applicants, which already number 51, more than two weeks away from the deadline…and this is just one age group! Should be some event!

Three Oaks Early Bird Summer Camp Special

Since I have Three Oaks on the brain, if you have young ones who might enjoy tennis camp this summer, there will be junior camps starting as early as May 28 and running through the first week in August. The Three Oaks staff is offering an “early bird” special for registration prior to April 1^st. It sounds like a deal to me, and you can check it out here.

That’s about all I have for now, so see you around the courts. Game, set, match…T. A.

TENNIS EAGLES DISPLAY THEIR OWN MARCH MADNESS

Ok, so you are probably caught up in the “March Madness” over FGCU Men’s Basketball Sweet 16 appearance…and I couldn’t blame you or anyone else if you were. However, I’m here to spread some “March Tennis Lunacy.”

Coach C. J. Weber

Sure it’s crazy that a school so young with a second-year coach could be challenging to reach the “Elite 8.” It’s also crazy that second-year-coach C. J. Weber has his Eagles in second place in the Atlantic Sun Conference (A-Sun) at 3-1.

If the ball had bounced this way instead of that, fallen on this side of the line instead of that side in two critical matches in Georgia this past weekend, the Eagles would be tied atop the A-Sun Standings at 4-0. But ya know what they say about ifs…

While the Basketball Eagles were lighting up the highlight shows on ESPN last weekend, the Tennis Eagles were on the road in Macon and Atlanta, GA going 1-1 against conference foes Mercer (3-4 loss) and Kennesaw State (6-1 win).  

Tianyu Bao

No Mercy at Mercer

At Mercer, in what can now be considered unusual fashion, the Eagles dropped the doubles point  (two losses at 1 & 2, before suspending the third match). The top-end performers on Singles Courts 1 – 3, sophomore Jordi Vives at No.1, junior Dean Tsamas at No.2, and sophomore Tianyu Bao at No.3, posted solid wins.

Jordi Vives

Jordi stayed smooth in his 6-2, 6-2 sacking of his opponent, and Bao continued to blast his opposition with a 6-1, 6-4 stoppage. Dean’s “ground and pound” served him well in a tussle that went to a second-set breaker, scraping out a 6-3, 7-6 victory.

Jackson Moore

I’m not sure if senior Jackson Moore was at a hundred percent at No.4 singles, but I find it hard to believe he would go down 3-6, 3-6 at No.4 if he were. That would be a rare straight-set loss for J-Mo.

Lance Lvovsky

The Mercer match hinged on the action on Courts No. 5 and 6 however, as both freshman Dylan Gunning on 5 and junior Lance Lvovsky on 6 were locked up in some serious skirmishes. Dylan dropped two heartbreaking breakers 6-7 (4), 6-7 (5), and Lance slugged it out for three sets before falling 6-3, 0-6, 4-6.  

But like it says in the old Barry White tune (Never, never gonna give you up…in case you’re wondering), the Guys in Green and Blue showed that “quittin’ just ain’t their shtick.” They slid out of Macon and stormed into Atlanta the next day and took six of seven points from the Kennesaw Owls.

Kicking Kennesaw

Dean & Jordi

At Kennesaw, the Eagles took two of the three doubles matches, and Jordi and Dean came up HUGE at No.1 Doubles, taking it 9-8 in a tiebreak after knotting up the match at 8-8. 

Coach Weber counsels Bao & Dylan
Photo courtesy of Linwood Ferguson

The emerging force of Bao and Gunning at No.2 Doubles took care of business to the tune of 8-5, but Jackson and Lance struggled at No.3 Dubs, dropping that one 5-8. Still, the Eagles took the doubles point, a focus for them this season.

With their predominantly international squad (Turkey? Belarus? Indonesia? Wow!), the Owls did all they could to defend their house, pushing four of the six singles matches to three sets, but in the end, the Eagles returned home to roost taking all but one of those three-setters.

Dean Tsamas

Jordi has been more solid than a Dodge Ram all season at No.1 Singles, and dispatched his German competitor in straights, 6-4, 6-1. Dean has been as reliable as the Prudential Rock since Day 1, and dropped a 6-3, 6-4 loss on his turkey, uh, I mean his Turkish foe at No.3 Singles.

Tianyu Bao
Photo courtesy of Linwood Ferguson

The rest of the boys had knock-down-drag-outs on their hands. Bao, at No.2 Singles, showed that he could outlast (as well as bludgeon) opponents, taking down his Belarusian combatant, 6-3, 5-7, 6-2. 

At No.4 Singles, Jackson showed that his heart has no injury, coming back from 4-6-first-set deficit to snatch satisfaction from his opponent in taking the second set 6-2 and the match-tiebreak 10-6. Thump-thump, thump-thump…yeah, that heart is working baby!

Dylan Gunning
Photo by Linwood Ferguson

Dylan took the court at No.5 Singles again in Atlanta, and lost another gut-wrencher 6-4, 3-6, 3-10 on Saturday.  

And talk about sucking it up, stepping up, and all the other clichés that apply, how about Lance rebounding from his three-set loss on Friday to post a come-from-behind victory over another Turk at No.6 Singles. 

Lance Lvovsky
Photo courtesy of Linwood Ferguson

The “G” in FGCU might just stand for “grit,” because after dropping a tough 5-7 set, Lance went 6-3, and 10-4 in the match-tiebreak. Yep, these Eagles are turning out to be some hard birds!

Ok, so the mark of a good team is that they beat the teams they are supposed to beat, and with the possible exception of that Mercer loss (it was on the road though), your Tennis Eagles have done that. The mark of a really-good-bordering-on-great team is when that team starts taking down teams it isn’t supposed to beat. The Eagles are reaching for that status.

At home this Thursday the 28th, at 6pm, in a match dedicated to the Bonita Bay tennis community, the Eagles will face University of South Carolina Upstate (USCU). Last season the Eagles were downed 6-1 by the Spartans in Spartanburg, SC, and it appears the Spartans have a tougher squad this season. 

Win or lose, the Eagles will be back in action on Saturday the 30^th at 11am, at home against  nationally-ranked (No.68) East Tennessee State University (ETSU). Last season the Eagles fell 0-7 to the ETSU Buccaneers, and the Bucs bring back most of the players who delivered that defeat. But that loss was on the road, and the Eagles had to go indoors due to weather, so despite their underdog status this coming Saturday, I’m looking for the Eagles to bare their talons against the Bucs.

Collin Brown

This Saturday's match will be a special event since it will be Campus Kids' Day, as well as Senior Day. There will be an autograph session and meet and greet after the match for the kids, and after the doubles matches, seniors Collin Brown and Jackson Moore will be recognized for their contributions to the program.

Taking either of the two matches this weekend would be stupendous for the Eagles, but taking both would be serious “March Madness.” A major factor in pulling that off for the Guys in Green and Blue would be, you got it, YOU! Yep, your presence would be HUGE in helping the Eagles do the double this weekend. You know yours truly will be there.

In closing, I say we declare this extended weekend, Thursday-through-Sunday, “FGCU Weekend:” Thursday, tennis at 6pm; Friday, basketball at 9:57pm (versus the Gators!!!); Saturday, tennis at 11am; and Sunday, basketball at a TBD time. I plan to be at the tennis courts for the tennis and in front of the tube for the hoops. How bout you? Game, set, match…T. A.

FGCU TENNIS EAGLES SOARING ATOP A-SUN CONFERENCE!

Coach Weber & Jim Katterfield of
Shadow Wood with $8000 fundraiser check

We talk about giving 110% but in reality there is no such thing. In reality, 100% is the best there is, and that is where the Florida Gulf Coast University (FGCU) Men’s Tennis Eagles sit right now in the Atlantic Sun Conference (A-Sun) standings, after going 2-0 this past Thursday and Saturday to open their conference schedule. 

Weber holding $2900 fundraiser check
with Lanny Kalpin (tennis director) &
Rich DeSousa (organizer)
of Grandezza

A good start beats a bad start any day, but we all know that it’s how you finish that truly matters. We’ll have to keep an eye out to see how the Eagles cross the finish line.

Pre-singles huddle

The Eagles have shown thus far that they have short memories when it comes to adversity, as all top athletes must. After a tough outing at Miami on March 9, when they fell 1-6, they bounced back to deliver their own 6-1 drubbing to Lipscomb on the 14^th, and served up a 7-0 match-bagel to Northern Kentucky (NKU) two days later. Nice!

Jordi Vives vs Lipscomb

The 6-1 victory over Lipscomb is one good measure of the Eagles ascent as a team, given that Lipscomb had defeated the Eagles all three times the teams had met previously, albeit by close 4-3 margins. In this skirmish, sophomore Jordi “Smooth Operator” Vives and junior Lance “LL Cool Play” Lvovsky posted 

Lance Lvovsky vs Lipscomb

dominant performances, the former posting a 6-0, 6-2 victory at the No.1singles position, the latter a 6-1, 6-3 performance at No.6 singles.

Tianyu Bao vs Lipscomb

Sophomore Tianyu Bao and senior Jackson “J-Mo” Moore gritted out two tough sets, at No.2 and No.4 singles respectively, with Bao holding on for the 6-3, 7-6 (3) win, and Moore downing his opponent 6-4, 6-4. 

Jackson Moore vs Lipscomb

It was awesome to see J-Mo, recovered from his injuries, back on the singles court pounding the rock; and Bao bludgeoning the ball is always fun to watch.

Dean Tsamas vs Lipscomb

Two fierce, extended singles battles in the match-up with Lipscomb involved junior “Mean” Dean Tsamas at No.3 and freshman Dylan “Quick Draw” Gunning No.5 singles. Dean’s relentless “ground & pound” (more ground that pound I’d say) style has made him a favorite of the FGCU tennis faithful, and he delivered against Lipscomb. 

Rallies of 20-30 ball-strikes were commonplace in that war, and Dean was the one standing after that campaign, notching a 6-4, 3-6, 10-8 victory.

Dylan Gunner's intensity vs Lipscomb

Gunning continues to grow in confidence and demonstrate why Coach Weber brought the freshman on board. Although he is still developing his sea legs in competition (or perhaps I should say “his wingspan,” given that he is an Eagle), one can see the talent in both back and fore-court. 

Against Lipscomb, Gunning dropped the first set (4-6) against junior Miguel Cortez, but came back to take the second 6-4. He lost the tiebreak 4-10, but Dylan’s resolve is beginning to show, and I suspect he’ll be on the other end of such tiebreaks in matches to come.

Jordi & Dean close out doubles

Another sign of the Eagles’ growth is their sweep of the doubles against Lipscomb. Jordi and Dean notched an 8-2 victory at No.1, Bao and Dylan pulled out an 8-6 win at No.2, and J-Mo and Lance eased to an 8-2 win at No.3.

Lance sticks backhand volley with
J-Mo trailing

After the big win over Lipscomb, one might expect a bit of a letdown two days later against NKU, a foe the Eagles expected to beat. 

Eagle's perch for Coach
Weber

Tough to have a letdown with Coach Weber and his high expectations at the helm though, and the Eagles continued to soar against the Norse. NKU managed to win just one set in the three doubles and six singles matches played.  

Dylan & Bao vs Lipscomb

Coach Weber put out the same doubles lineup as he had for the Lipscomb match, and got the same result: a sweep. Jordi and Dean dropped another 8-2 on their opponents at No.1, Bao and Dylan took No.2, 8-5, and J-Mo and Lance topped their foes 8-3.

Jordi vs NKU
Photo courtesy of Linwood Ferguson

The scores don’t indicate much of a struggle on the singles courts, but the match reality told a different story. Jordi’s 3 and 3 victory at No.1 may sound easy, but from courtside, it took all of Jordi’s considerable skill to take down a talented and gritty opponent. 

Dean vs NKU
Photo courtesy of Linwood Ferguson

Playing at No.2 for the second time this season, Dean battled through a tough 7-5 first set before grinding down his opponent for a 6-1 second.

Bao vs NKU
Photo courtesy of Linwood Ferguson

Bao cranked up the volume in the first set at No.3, and his opponent couldn’t stand the noise to the tune of 6-1. But Bao’s opponent didn’t fold and he made a run at the second, making Bao overcome a break to take it 6-3. 

Jackson vs NKU
Photo courtesy of Linwood Ferguson

J-Mo was lights out at No.4, crushing it off both wings. Fortunately for his opponent, J-Mo’s consistency is still somewhat on the comeback trail, and he was able to hang around a bit before J-mo dispatched him 6-4, 6-3.

And how cool was it to see Michael “The Smiler” Beiler back on court doing his thing at No.6? 

Beiler vs NKU
Photo courtesy of Linwood Ferguson

Beiler had been out of the lineup the past few matchups, so it was great to see him notch a 6-4 victory his first time back out.

Lance vs NKU
Photo courtesy of Linwood Ferguson

But it was the action at No.5 singles that stole the show against the Norse. Lance jumped out to an early lead with a break, but his opponent was resilient and took the first-set breaker (7-4). LL Cool Play was none too happy about that, and heated things up to take the second 6-1. But again, his opponent wouldn’t go away, and Lance had to breathe a sigh of relief when he edged the Norseman 10-8 in the breaker.

John Woram Schmoozing

All in all, it was a great start to the Eagles’ Conference schedule, as they are now tied atop the A-Sun standings with Stetson and North Florida, last season’s Finalist and semifinalist respectively. With the Eagles fan base growing (thanks to the persistent efforts of John and Jill Woram), and a very solid home performance by the team, I’m sure many will be looking forward to their next home engagements on March 28 at 6pm (USC Upstate) and March 30 at 11am (No. 56 ETSU).

FGCU Fans at Lipscomb Match

The Eagles travel to Georgia to take on Mercer (March 22) and Kennesaw State (March 23) this weekend, and it will be a testament to their growth if they can pull off back-to-back wins on the road. Regardless of how they do on the road (and I have faith that they will take care of business), they will need all the support we can give them for their next home stand. Taking on a conference semifinalist and champion in consecutive matches after a road trip will be no easy task. I’m looking forward to seeing you there! Game, set, match…T. A.

USPTA Pro League Wrapping Things Up at Colonial

Our Lovely Photographer

Note: Photos by Steph, our beautiful photographer imported from Deutschland. Click here for final team standings and rosters. 

Legends Recap

Bob Green of BRA

March 8 at Legends Country Club was the last regular season engagement of the Fort Myers Ritzman Tennis USPTA Pro League, and, going in, this prognosticator figured that things would pretty much be status quo heading into the playoffs at Colonial on March 22. 

Legendary hospitality

After all, at Legends, BRA the team that had just trounced league-leading Remax 7 - 2.5 to take a 3-point league lead over Remax was taking on my team, Gateway Dental (GD), the, then, fifth place team that had gotten just 2 points the previous match.

Pro League scene at Legends

One would expect Remax, the dominant force in the League this season, to make a run for the title facing sixth-place University Grill, a team that hadn’t posted more than 3 points in any match-up since last November. 

Kim Jones of BRA

But with only 8 total points available, and BRA leading by 3, odds were good that BRA would, at the very least, hold its own against us and claim the regular-season title.  

Erica Coissart & John Gillette
of Babolat

In third place, Babolat, a team that had posted a rare (at least at that time) 8 points in its last outing, looked good to hold onto that position in its matchup against fourth-place Johnny Malloy’s (JM), the team over which Babolat held a 5-point lead. 

Elliot Debolt & Mike Curran of JM

With a 4-point lead on GD for fourth, all JM had to do was stay close to Babolat and have BRA do what it had done six of nine times this season (score 5 or more points), and JM would hang onto fourth…at least that’s the way it looked on paper.

Alex Hermeto & Kerry Kendrick of GD

But that’s why no sporting event is decided on paper. When the fuzz had ceased flying Friday night, and Anthony and I had wrapped up the final match of the evening, GD had outscored BRA 8-2; Remax had outpointed UG 7-0; and Babolat had posted a 6-2 win over JM. Here’s the team-by-team recap:

Remax vs. University Grill

Manuel Encalada of Remax

Court #1- Manuel Encalada & Luke Andreae posted a 6-2, 6-2 victory over Sergio Rebolledo & Patrick Kangwa

Court #2- Frank Fourgeau & Corey Knapp defeated Mike Lawver & Matt Maloney 6-2, 6-3

Court #3- Jorge Magalhaes & Mike Stevens (sub) beat Terry See & Tony Martin 6-1, 6-1

Christie Bradley & Dave Dooley of Remax

Mixed- Dave Dooley & Christie Bradley took the win over Carolyn Lawver & Rick Calton (sub) 1-4, retired, when Rick injured his knee

Team Totals: Remax 7, UG 0

Boston Retirement Advisors vs. Gateway Dental

Shawn Hedrick & Ryan Sherry of GD

Court #1- Shawn Hedrick & Ryan Sherry downed Jared Kalpin & Eddie Neese 6-3, 6-1

Anthony Hatori of GD

Court #2- Anthony Hatori & T. A. Niles defeated Joel Hampton and Mike Barnes 6-4, 3-6, 10-7

Jeff Timmer & Steve Shortridge of GD

Court #3- Steve Shortridge & Jeff Timmer outlasted Paul D’Amico & Mark Owens (sub) 6-7, 6-3, 10-7 in the Match of the Day

Mixed- Alex Hermeto & Kerry Kendrick downed Bob Green & Kim Jones 6-4, 7-5

Team Totals: GD 8, BRA 1.5

Babolat vs. Johnny Malloy’s

Denny Rager & Tyler Owens of Babolat
Denny must have missed a volley

Court #1- Denny Rager & Tyler Owens remained undefeated at a team, defeating Mike Curran & Elliot Debolt 7-6, 7-5. It was the second consecutive season in which Tyler went undefeated with a partner. I believe Tyler is 19-1 over the past two seasons, with a chance to end up 20-1 after Colonial.

Jeff Diggs & John Jerome of Babolat

Court #2- Jeff Diggs & John Jerome downed Oliver Stenger & Kevin Kearns 6-3, 6-1

Court #3- Larry Gagnon & Todd Wise beat Armor Persons & Tony Halski 6-1, 7-6

Mixed- John Gillette & Erica Cossairt defeated John Ramsey and Christyn Lucas 6-3, 6-4

Team Totals: Babolat 6, JM 2

Colonial Preview

At Colonial on the 22^nd, Remax (1st) will have the chance to prove once and for all that it was the best team in the League this season when they tangle with BRA (2nd). The two teams split the regular season match-ups, but Remax barely edged BRA by .5 of a point in the first skirmish, but was trounced by BRA 7 - 2.5 in the second. This one will really be for bragging rights.

Babolat, which finished a solid third, 7 points ahead of fourth-place GD, will seek to solidify that standing when the take on GD in the playoffs. The first meeting of the two saw GD outpoint Babolat 6 – 2.5, but in the most recent match-up of the two, Babolat outscored GD 5 – 3. This promises to be a close one if all players can make the date. Steve Shortridge and I, both for GD, may have to miss the playoffs as the USPTA National Clay Court Championships begin on the 22^nd.

JM (5^th) and UG (6^th) will face each other in the final Pro League event of 2012 – 2013, and it will be the last opportunity for UG to outpoint a team this season. The best UG has managed this season is a tie versus Babolat back in November. JM outpointed UG 5-2, and 6-2 respectively the two times they played this season, but perhaps some creative lineup shuffling might allow UG to finish with a bang, or a smash, or a dropshot, or anything that would give them a “W!”

Faithful Pro League Fans

I am sure all players will be scrapping for a win at Colonial. Nobody wants to end the season with a loss…and have to wait seven months to get back in the winners’ circle. To the faithful Pro League fans who have supported us throughout the season, we offer you a HUGE THANK YOU, and we hope to see you one more time before the 2013 – 2014 Season begins in October.

We will thank them again after the season, but I might as well get started now in expressing our gratitude to the Title Sponsor, Tony Ritzman of Ritzman Tennis, the Team Sponsors: multiple-year sponsors, Luke Andreae's Remax/Andreae Group, Boston Retirement Advisors (Paul Pignone), University Grill, and

Johnny Malloy’s; and first-year sponsors  Gateway Dental, and Babolat. A note of thanks must also be sent to the general managers, tennis directors and staffs of all the venues that so graciously hosted the League and its fans.

Scott Harrington, Jim Katterfield,
Paul Pignone, & Kenny Gibson of Palmira

Last, but certainly not least, we are grateful for the effort of League Commissioner Jim Katterfield, and all that he does to make the Pro League happen. We have a good thing going Fort Myers! Let’s keep it rocking. Game, set, match…T. A.