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RICHMOND TENNIS NEWS

Ridge Top Wins Second Annual Recreational Club Challenges

Over 130 tennis players participated in the 2nd Annual Recreational Club Challenge hosted at Avalon. The weekend proved to be as spectacular as the tennis.  Avalon, Kanawha and Ridge Top battled it out over two days in what ended up being a close finish. After day one, only a tenth of a point separated the teams.  Each club fielded teams at the 2.5, 3.0, 3.5 and 4.0 level. Saturday evening the players put down their rackets and enjoyed a dinner catered by Chef Maura. 

Sunday the teams got back to the business of tennis and a tight points race that came down to the last five matches between Ridge Top and Avalon.  Ridge Top’s Pat Anderson and Charlie Palmer cheered their teams on in a nail biter as Ridge Top squeaked by Avalon to steal the title in a 65 to 61 point victory. The tournament was sponsored by local businesses (Private Stock Wine and Beer, Mr. Able Propane, MeGeorge Mercedes, Westwood Pharmacy, Monument Builders and Richmond.com) and the Richmond Tennis Association.  The Tournament Committee co-chaired by Holland Gravely, Bill Carli and Kerri Rhodes voted to have the tournament proceeds go to go to the RTA’s Inner City Winter program that will enable at-risk youth the opportunity to play indoor tennis. Sharing our love of a sport many of us hope to play a life time with those that may not otherwise have that opportunity was a  motivator for all who participated. 

We all look forward to the 3rd Annual Recreational Club Challenge. 

Pat and Charlie cheer on their teams (l), Tournament Co chairs:  Bill Carli, Kerri Rhodes and Holland Gravely (r)

Ridge Top fans look on (l), Louis Allin is ready to receive (r)

Louis Allin hits a back hand (c), Kanawha serves it up (r)

Mary Beth is ready (l), the Blouch Brothers play doubles (r)

Tennis Central (c),

Richmond Junior Tennis Circuit Masters Tournament Results

The Richmond Junior Tennis Circuit 2008 series recently held its Masters Tournament at The Country Club of Virginia on September 6-7. The Masters Tournament is where the top eight juniors in points in their respective age group qualify to compete in a single elimination one day tournament. The qualifiers for this event should be congratulated on making it to the Masters as there were nine tournaments held throughout the summer at various clubs throughout Richmond. In the four different age groups for boys and girls there were over 800 total participants in the tournaments with over 300 different juniors participating. Listed below are the winners and runners up in the four different age groups for the boys and girls. A special thank you to all the clubs who hosted a RJTC tournament this summer and to all the juniors who've made this circuit such a huge success.

 
Whitaker and Bernstine (left), Troiano and Hensley (right)

 
Riggs and Key (left), Wideman and Sullivan (right)

   
Audrey and Blair (left), Raper and Hughes (right)

   
Ellick and Wilson (left), Click and Price (right)

2008 US Open Travelogue

WOW! What an incredible experience.  First of all, thank you to Ward Hamilton General Manager at Robious Sports & Fitness, for giving Melissa and me this great trip that he won through the RTA  raffle. Thank you to Joe and Shima Grover for donating the President's Box tickets. Friday we watched some great tennis including Safin, Monfils, Federer and watched Genepri lose a tough match to Celic , and we also met up with some friends from Richmond. The day concluded with one of the best dinner experiences we have ever had.  The name of the restaurant was Spark's Steakhouse. The atmosphere, food and service were all perfect.
 
Saturday we got to wake up on our own, instead of the sound of one of our children calling at the crack of dawn. We met friends for breakfast and did a little shopping before we caught the shuttle to Flushing Meadows. We got to avoid lines to get in the stadium and when we got to the President's Box we were greeted very nicely by Shima Grover. From this point on it felt like we were treated like royalty!  We went upstairs to have a wonderful lunch with Shima, Eric Perkins and Tracy Jones (sitting in for Chrissie who just had a new baby). After lunch was probably our favorite part of the trip ... we got a tour of Ashe Stadium! We saw the media rooms, interview rooms (in which we sat in for part of an interview in a language we didn't understand), the players lounge, restaurant, spa, childcare room and excercise room. Can you believe they have a mini salon under there?  Players can get a pedicue, manicure or haircut! During the tour, we got to see up close Jankovic, Monfils, Petrova, Djokovic; Melissa was pretty starstruck but thought giving Jankovic a hug was too aggressive! 
 
This was a fantastic experience! Thank you again to all involved and to the RTA for driving this opportunity. 
 
Cris and Melissa Robinson

Cris and Melissa Robinson enjoy the sights and sounds of the 2008 US Open over Labor Day weekend

Nomads Win Mid Atlantic Section Championship

The Richmond Nomads, a 14 advanced team playing in the USTA Junior Team Tennis program, won the Mid-Atlantic Section Championship on August 9, 2008. They will be representing Mid-Atlantic , Virginia and best of all, Richmond, at the National Championships in Mobile, Alabama beginning October 24. The seven players going to Nationals include Abigail Randolph, Leah Maready, Caroline Mosberg, Katie Leal, Thomas Hunold, Thomas Morris and Owen Devalk. They come from all over the west side of Richmond including Glen Allen, Powhatan, Short Pump and the Raintree area.

The Nomads began playing together in the Spring league against teams from Raintree Swim and Racquet Club and The Dominion Club. That season ended with two losses to the defending Mid-Atlantic Section Champion Team from Raintree. They began the Summer season again competing against Raintree and a new team from Woodlake Swim and Racquet Club. They ended the season undefeated and earned an invitation to play in the District (State Level) Championships.

At District s, they came in a very close second place with the State Title going to the Raintree team. Lucky for them, the top two teams from Districts advanced to Mid-Atlantic Sectionals the following weekend. In what was becoming an intense rivalry, they once again had to play Raintree. It all came down to one final team match with the winners advancing to Nationals. It was a hard fought, well played match with The Nomads winning 38-20.

To raise funds for the trip, they will be having a Family Friendly Buffet Dinner and Silent Auction on October 4 from 6-9 pm at the Wembly Swim and Racquet Club. The club is located at 1311 Gaskins Road. Tickets are $20 for adults and $15 for children.

Please come out and support the Richmond Nomads on their quest to Nationals. Team Sponsorship is also available that includes tickets to the Dinner and Auction as well as corporate recognition on their team banner and shirts. Contact Team Captain Lynn Maready at 598-7722 or 467-7875 for more information.

The team is training hard and will do their absolute best to represent Richmond Junior Tennis at Nationals in Mobile in October.

Tennis Academy of Virginia Fall Schedule Announced

Ridge Top Hosts Quickstart  Tennis Tournament

1 Recreational Tennis Facility = Free of charge20 adults and teens volunteering 1 Saturday morning= 4 hours

40 kids having a fun and playing their very first tennis match=PRICELESS

Saturday August 9th, Quickstart tennis came to Ridge Top Recreation Center. Pat Anderson and Kerri Rhodes organized and the Richmond Tennis Association sponsored the area's 2nd Quickstart Tennis Tournament. Quickstart tennis is a new USTA initiative that gets kids 10 and under on the tennis court playing matches. The courts are smaller than regulation and matches are completed in less than 10 minutes so participants are able to play several matches in one tournament. Ridge Top's 5 court complex was coverted to an 11 court facility where all kids played at least four matches all before 11:00 am. For most of the participants it was their very first tennis match. Many of Richmond's tennis professionals (Pat Anderson, Cris Robinson, Damion Sancilio, Jamie Morgan and Merrrell Harmon), were on hand to support this initiative and volunteer their time. Many of the top junior players in Richmond were also there lending a hand.  Check out the pictures from this event below and check this website for upcoming Richmond Quickstart events.

Mills Godwin High School Girls Tennis Team Celebrate 2008 VSHL AAA Championship Win

Mills Godwin Senior Cathleen Crouch hits a forehand in the VSHL Championship match against Thomas Jefferson - Alexandria.

Mills Godwin Senior Annie Larsen keeps her eye on the ball in Godwin's VSHL AAA victory over Thomas Jefferson-Alexandria held at Huntington Park on Saturday, May 31.

Godwin High School girls tennis celebrate their 2008 VSHL AAA Championship win by jumping in the James River. This has become a two year tradition since winning last year.
 
From left to right: Olivia Long, Maddie Wood, Jane Fellows, Kay Lagana, Megan Martin,Kate Larsen, Katie Blow, Meg Kristofak, Alexandra Wilder, Annie Larsen, Christine Albrecht, Nicole Parker, Jordan Jessee, Coach Mark Seidenberg, Mary Frances Dudley, Becky Seidel, Cathleen Crouch and Brenna McCarty.Mid-Atlantic 40s Hard Court Championships Results

Men's doubles consolation final - from left to right: Chris Blair/Tom Wallace def. William Carli/Kevin Beale 6-3, 6-2.

Mixed doubles final - from left to right: Bryan Bostic/Alicia Wise and Julie Ogborne/Garrett Horsley. Ogborne Horsley def. Bostic/Wise 6-1, 7-6 (4).

Men's singles final - from left to right: Glenn Chernigoff and Thierry Chiapello. Chiapello def. Chernigoff 5-7, 6-3, 6-2.

Men's doubles final - from left to right: Walton Makepeace/Bryan Bostic def. Steve Sedlock/Tom Ager 6-3, 5-7, 6-2.

Midlothian High Wins Dominion District
Midlothian HS won the Dominion District and was presented their trophy at the Girls District Tournament. Coach Doug Garrett was named Coach of the Year. The team made it to the finals in doubles with Elyse Anderson, Captain and Senior and partner Lauren Baxter, Sophomore (#2 seeds) getting Runner Up District Medals. They split sets and lost in a 3rd set to James River's #1 seeded doubles team, Stafford/Morrisette. They qualify for doubles in regionals on 5/19. The team will begin regional play on 5/12 at 3 p.m. Regionals matches will be played at James River High School.

Left to right, front row: Emily Whitmore, Lauren Baxter, Elyse Anderson (Captain, Senior w/trophy), Audrey Hart, Sarah Estes and Anna Culpepper.
Left to right, back row: Coach Doug Garrett (Coach of the Year), Erica Harvie, Devon Holland, Allison Abbott, Audrey Pfund, Meredith Warfield and Ashleigh Thomas.
Not pictured are: Valerie Carroll, Caroline Connolly and Madeleine Cassier.

Cinco de Mayo Mixed Doubles
2008 Country Club of Virginia Cinco de Mayo Mixed Doubles Club Championship

From left to right: 7.0 Mixed Combo division - Scott and Reed Harrison def. Jenny Maraghy and Mike Grappone 7-5.

From left to right: Open Division Championships - Clifford Foster and Liza Wallace vs. Sally Taylor and Chris Blair. Taylor Blair def. Foster/Wallace 8-7 (5).

From left to right: A flight of the 7.0 mixed combo division - Greg and Hylah Ballowe vs. Suzanne Spence and Ted Robertson. Robertson/Spence def. Greg and Hylah Ballowe 7-6 (10).