Annual Hunt Memorial Set for Kramer Club
One of the Southland’s most popular junior events will be played Feb. 26-27 and March 6-7, as the annual Woody Hunt Memorial will be hosted by the Jack Kramer Club and played at various South Bay locations. Last year, Denis Lin won the boys’ 18s and Alexios Halebian downed Joseph Di Giulio in three sets to win the boys’ 16s.
Hunt, who died in ‘03 at the age of 36, was a National Championships finalist in ‘85 at Kalamazoo, Mich., and represented the U.S. in Davis Cup play in ‘91, achieving a career high ranking of No. 250.
A Job Well Done: Zaino Honored for Biszantz Center
It’s another year and another honor for Richard Zaino and Zaino Tennis Courts Inc., as the American Sports Builders Association has named the Biszantz Family Tennis Center the ‘09 Outdoor Facility of the Year. In ‘08, Zaino was honored for Best Residential Court for work he did at a home in Laguna Niguel.
“We’re going to try and be like the Lakers and pull off a three-peat next year,” Zaino said. “We feel like we’re getting some great national recognition that is due to the great work we do.”
The Biszantz Family Tennis Center on the campus of Claremont-McKenna College has become one of the nation’s premier collegiate facilities.
In ‘09, the 12-court site played host to the NCAA D3 Men’s Championships, Stag-Hen Invitational, the Paul Settles-coached men’s team at Claremont, Athena’s Tennis Teams and Nike Tennis Camps.
Trojan Tracker: No. 1 USC Off to Fast Start
The top-ranked USC men’s team got the ball rolling on its ‘10 campaign with a pair of decisive wins on the Trojans’ home court. The defending national champs set up camp at Marks Stadium for their first dual matches of the year, hosting LMU and UCSB in non-conference action. The rains stayed away long enough for USC to post a pair of wins to hold a 2-0 start to the season.
Peter Smith’s squad opened things with a 7-0 sweep of Loyola, dropping only one doubles match while amassing straight-set wins down the line in singles play. Against Santa Barbara, USC swept up in doubles and got singles wins at the Nos. 1-3 slots to post a 4-3 victory over the Gauchos.
“It’s important to me to start the season with everyone healthy and playing,” Smith said. “UCSB really pushed us, and it was a great early-season test for us to pass. We learned some things about our team, which is key in order for us to improve.”
USC’s top guns in doubles, Robert Farah/Steve Johnson, teamed up victoriously in both matches at the No. 1 doubles slot to help anchor the doubles point. Trojan newcomer Peter Lucassen enjoyed a successful debut, winning at No. 3 doubles with Daniel Nguyen against the Lions and with Jaak Poldma versus the Gauchos. He snagged a pair of straight-set singles wins as well, topping LMU’s Borja Malet 6-1, 6-1 at the No. 3 spot and UCSB’s Scott Hohenstein 6-3, 6-1 at No. 2.
SoCal Standouts Ink College Commitments
One of SoCal’s finest juniors has agreed to play under the watchful eye of Andy Roddick’s brother, John, as Colton’s Lawrence Formentera has committed to play for the University of Oklahoma beginning in the spring. Formentera has been ranked as high as No. 8 nationally and third in California. In ‘09, he was a doubles finalist at the USTA Spring Nationals, and in ‘08 he won the California Bowl. In ‘07, Formentera was ranked second in the nation and won the Easter Bowl.
Rancho Santa Fe’s Campbell Johnson has selected Georgia as the spot to play his college tennis. Johnson attended the Bridgeway Academy and spurned several top West Coast schools to play for the top-flight Bulldogs and legendary coach Manny Diaz. Other boys’ signees include Goleta’s Sasha Gryaznov (UCSB), La Jolla’s Axel Boullin (UCSB, S.D.’s Zach Leslie (Wake Forest), Daniel Kosakowski (UCLA) and Clay Thompson (UCLA).
On the girls’ side, Poway’s Kaley Schultz has chosen Colorado State, while S.D.’s Sabastiana Leon-Chao will head to San Jose State.
Jung: Big 10 Athlete of the Week
Torrance’s Jason Jung was named the Big 10 Athlete of the Week honor after online casino canada his efforts in Michigan’s season-opener at the Key Biscayne Individuals in Key Biscayne, Fla. The junior went 2-0 in singles play, winning both matches in straight sets. Jung finished the competition with a 3-2 overall mark, going 1-2 in doubles action.
L.A.’s Lee Triumphant at Copper Bowl
Top-seeded Sarah Lee of L.A. lived up to her No. 1 billing at the Copper Bowl in Arizona, where she knocked off unseeded fellow Californian April Scatliffe (Redlands) in the final 6-4, 6-1. Scatliffe, last year’s 16s titlist, had exceeded her expectations in her first 18s appearance at the Copper Bowl.
“I’m definitely proud of how I handled all my matches,” the 16-year-old said. “I feel like I’m more mature on the court. I have a good attitude on the court and I’m a good competitor. I feel this tournament gave me some good confidence that I can compete at a high level.”
4th Annual Crestmont Doubles Classic
The fourth annual Salvation Army Crestmont Classic Doubles Tournament will take place March 5-7 at the Peninsula RC in Rancho Palos Verdes. Last year, Dann Battistone teamed with Trent Aaron to win the first-place men’s Open prize of $1,200. On the women’s side, Judy DeVera/Dianne Matias grabbed $600, winning for the second consecutive year.
This year’s tournament will offer men’s and women’s Open to 3.0 divisions and entry fee for the fundraiser includes a complimentary BBQ lunch, tournament T-shirt, complimentary massage therapy and player goodie bag. The Open division prize money has been $5,000 in the past and once again this year is based on the number of open division entries. Proceeds will benefit the Salvation Army for Officer Training at Crestmont College “Fund for Excellence” program.
For info, visit crestmont.edu, or contact Rob Fronauer at (310) 541-2523.
Pomona’s Andrews Wins International Event
Pomona’s Gabrielle Andrews showed why she’s the No. 1 14-year-old in the nation with a win over Brooke Austin at the Aegon online casino Junior International Teen Tennis Championships today in Bolton, England.
Andrews, seeded No. 16 and the 14s winner at the Winter National Championships, topped Indiana’s Austin 2-6, 6-0, 6-3, to win the title. Andrews then teamed with Austin to win the doubles final as the pair lost just four games en route to the title.
From there, Andrews/Austin beat a team from Russia and the Ukraine to win the prestigious Les Petits As in France, one of the best 14-and-under competitions held internationally.
Querrey Will Return to Defend L.A Open Title
Santa Monica resident/defending champ Sam Querrey will return to the L.A. Open July 26-Aug. 1 at UCLA. Querrey, the ‘09 U.S. Open Series titlist, will attempt to be the first player to successfully defend his L.A. title since Andre Agassi won consecutive titles in ‘00 and ‘01.
“Last summer, Sam really elevated his game during the summer, and winning in L.A. was a jewel in his U.S. Open Series crown,” said tournament director Bob Kramer.
Querrey reached four ATP finals on home soil last year, claiming the L.A. title, and is currently the third highest ranked American player. Ticket info can be found at latennisopen.com.
LeagueTennis.com Expands to California
Atlanta-based www.LeagueTennis.com is looking to expand in 2010 and they’ve added a new online partner to help grow their network.
In less than two years, the organization has become one of the Southeast’s most popular flex tennis leagues. So far they have roughly 13,000 participants registered in Atlanta and some Texas cities. Now the organization is also adding California to the list. League co-founder Tricia Reeks said they wanted to find a way to combine the best elements of various leagues while creating an online tennis community.
“I played one league for singles and one league for doubles so we wanted to get that all under one roof,” Reeks stated.
Response to LeagueTennis has been so positive in its current markets that Reeks and her team are starting spring leagues in the greater L.A. and San Diego areas.
“We’re really excited about adding California,” said Reeks.
A big addition to growing the online presence of www.LeagueTennis.com could very well come from their new partnership with Tennisopolis.com, an online tennis social network boasting more than 24,000 members.
It’s free to create a login on www.LeagueTennis.com, once a member you can seek out players and leagues compatible with your level and style of play whether it’s singles or doubles, juniors or adults.
The site helps make it easy to find players near your home, check schedules, view standings and report scores. All of it geared to giving players the best option for their game and lifestyle.
UCLA Recruit Making Mark in Michigan
SoCal tennis fans better get used to hearing the name Courtney Dolehide. The 18-year-old UCLA recruit from Chicago recently won the Dow Corning Classic qualifier in Midland, Mich. Dolehide, a senior at Hinsdale Central H.S., defeated Emily Gelber, 17, 6-4, 7-6(5) for the spot in the qualifier of the Feb. 7-14 event. She’s currently the nation’s No. 7 overall recruit in the class of ‘10, according to TennisRecruiting.net.
