national playoffs

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2012 US Open National Playoffs Finals Day @USTAMidAtlantic #USONP

Posted by Admin on June 5, 2012
Posted in: Maryland, Tennis Center at College Park, US Open National Playoffs, USTA, Washington. Tagged: , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

Today is trophy day in College Park as the finals of the US Open National Playoffs are just an hour away. At 10 am, Latvian Pjotrs Necajevs takes on England’s Matt Brooklyn. Brooklyn, a DC resident and Assistant Coach for Georgetown University Tennis, took the long way yesterday, advancing in two three-set matches. In the quarters, he was bageled in the first set before shocking defending champion Matt Gooch in three. An hour and a half later, he grueled through another three set win, this time against Tennessean Maxx Lipman in the semifinals.

The road was shorter for Necajevs. The Head Coach of the University of Detroit’s Women’s Tennis program hasn’t dropped a set all tournament. He knocked off Tyler Turenko in the quarters and Christiaan Lee-Daigle in the semis. Necajevs will also take the court today for the Mixed Doubles Final, as Sophia Abelson and her coach Necajevs try to take two titles home to Michigan.

On the women’s side, Nina Kukharchuk continues to dominate, defeating local favorite Amy Zhu in a straight sets semifinal. She has also not dropped a set in this tournament. She’ll face Monet Willis of Philadelphia, who beat Leslie Hansen 7-5, 6-3 in yesterday’s other semifinal. Willis is another player who hasn’t lost a set. One of those perfect records will come to an end today.

Don’t forget to follow us on twitter for the mens final, and keep an eye on the USTA Mid-Atlantic blog all afternoon.

 

US Open National Playoffs/ Men’s Sectional Qualifying

SF Pjotrs Necajevs d. Christiaan Lee-Daigle 6-4; 6-2
SF Matt Brooklyn d. Maxx Lipman 7-5; 4-6; 6-3
Q Christiaan Lee-Daigle d. Ryan lipman 7-5; 3-6; 7-6(7-4)
Q Pjotrs Necajevs d. Tyler Tulenko 6-1; 6-3
Q Maxx Lipman d. Yancy Dennis 7-5; 6-2
Q Matt Brooklyn d. Damon Gooch 0-6; 7-5; 6-4

US Open National Playoffs/ Women’s Sectional Qualifying

SF Monet Willis d. Leslie Hansen 7-5; 6-3
SF Nika Kukharchuk d. Amy Zhu 6-2; 6-3

US Open National Playoffs/Mixed Doubles Sectional Qualifying

SF Chambers/Jordan d. Pavlov/Stillwagon 2-6; 6-1; 10-8
SF Abelson/Necajevs d. Clarke/Hansen Def (ns)
Q Chambers/Jordan d. Heitzner/Heitzner 6-7(5); 6-1; 1-0(6)
Q Pavlov/Stillwagon d. Fowler/Leake 6-0; 7-5
Q Abelson/Necajevs d. Fogleman/Silbergeld 6-1; 6-0
Q Clarke/Hansen d. Jones/Sturzu Wd (emerg)

2012 US Open National Playoffs, Mid-Atlantic Qualifying Day 2 @USTAMidAtlantic #USONP

Posted by Admin on June 3, 2012
Posted in: Baltimore, Maryland, Tennis Center at College Park, US Open National Playoffs, USTA. Tagged: , , , , , . Leave a comment

Day 2 of the US Open National Playoffs Mid-Atlantic Sectional Qualifying at the Junior Tennis Champions Center at College Park was again blessed with unusually pleasant June weather. Top seeds Nika Kukharchuk and Damon Gooch both breezed into the later rounds. Kukharchuk will face Greenbelt, Maryland’s Amy Zhu in a semifinal tomorrow, alongside the Monet Willis/Leslie Hansen semi. Damon Gooch is scheduled to play a quarterfinal against Matt Brooklyn, who upset a beloved local, Gaithersburg’s Junior Ore in straights in a close match. Other scheduled men’s quarters include Yancy Dennis/Maxx Lipman, Piotrs Necajevs/Tyler Tulenko and Ryan Lipman/Christaan Lee-Daigle.

A most impressive run in this tournament belongs to Piotrs Necajevs. Necajevs hails from Latvia, where he is a former national doubles champion. He was an MVP at Mississippi State, and he’s currently the Interim Head Coach of the University of Detroit Women’s Tennis program. He went 5-0 in a span of 32 hours this weekend, winning 3 singles contests and 2 mixed doubles matches. Tomorrow, he’ll try to win another 2 in singles and a mixed doubles semi. If he can pull that off, he’ll have a relatively easier time on Tuesday, when he’ll only have to play 2 finals in 7 hours. His mixed doubles partner, Sophia Abelson, a National Open 14s doubles champion herself and is coached by Necajevs. She has a spinning kickserve that I’ll never forget. Sophia Silbergeld of Baltimore and I played them earlier today in a Quarterfinal. Though the official scoreline reads 6-1, 6-0 to the Michigan power duo, neither of us Marylanders remember it being that close at all. I apologize for the shakiness of the video below in the first few seconds, but my hand was still in perpetual motion from all that spin. I want to thank them for being so hospitable and for going easy on us. Thank you!

 
–S. Fogleman
 

2012 US Open National Playoffs: Mid-Atlantic Qualifying Day 1

Posted by Admin on June 2, 2012
Posted in: Baltimore, Junior Tennis Champions Center, Tennis Center at College Park, US Open, US Open National Playoffs, USTA, Washington. Tagged: , , , , , , . Leave a comment

Day 1 of the USTA US Open National Playoffs, Mid-Atlantic Sectional Qualifying is in the books. For the record books, it may have been the finest June 1st in National Capital meteorological history. 41 battles were fought and the winners move on to what promises to be another gentle day in College Park, weather-wise. Tournament management seamlessly directed a hectic schedule after wet courts delayed the start of play for a half an hour in the morning. Players were courteous to each other, fans were courteous to the players, and it was truly a perfect day of tennis in the Mid-Atlantic.

Yancy Dennis, Alex Sidney, Damon Gooch, Chris Clarke and Pjotrs Necajevs were among the winners in Men’s Singles. In Mixed Doubles, 13-year-old Evan Zhu of Greenbelt, MD, certainly put on an impressive show despite a loss. All the Draws, Scores and tomorrow’s Order of Play are found here. Don’t forget to follow USTA Mid-Atlantic’s blog, either.

Women

32 Rita Tatiana Kwigoua d. Lindsey Hardenbergh Wd (inj)
32 Mamdrena Majoro d. Amanda Rodgers Wd (emerg)
32 Leslie Hansen d. Kendall Heitzner 4-6; 6-2; 6-2
32 Sophie Chang d. Alyssa Bing Wd (inj)
32 Bridgett Blowe d. Alexus Jones Wd (emerg)
32 Audrey Wooland d. Megan Hahn 6-1; 6-0
32 Christina Harris d. Lisa Suggs Wd (inj)
32 Monet Willis d. Yelik Murat Wd (inj)
32 Naomi Waters d. Jimena Wu Wd (emerg)
32 Ikttesh Chahal d. Taylor Newman 6-3; 3-6; 6-4
32 Katia Jordan d. Tanya Baytor 6-0; 6-0
32 Amy Zhu d. Monet Graves 6-0; 6-1
32 Ines Vias d. Stephanie Wetmore Wd (inj)
32 Jeannez Daniel d. Sophia Abelson 4-6; 6-4; 6-0
32 Kaitlyn McCarthy d. Grace Leake 6-3; 6-3

Men

64 Christiaan Lee-Daigle d. Bryant Mohns Def (ns)
64 Noah Fenton d. Paul Webster 6-3; 6-1
64 Adam Cranford d. Roosevelt Cooper 7-5; 7-5
64 Zach Hublitz d. Jackson Laird 6-0; 6-0
64 Danny Naja d. hao du 6-1; 6-0
64 Christopher Clarke d. Danijel Lolic 6-4; 6-2
64 Michael Wong d. Francis Tiafoe Wo (admin)
64 ryan lipman d. Lee White 6-1; 6-0
64 Tyler Tulenko d. Kent Watkins Wd (inj)
64 Kevin Reilly d. Edward Miller 6-0; 6-0
64 Michael Fowler d. Brandon Hall 6-2; 6-0
64 Tita Mba d. Zachary Fritz 6-2; 6-2
64 Brandon Weston d. Joel Orkmon 6-0; 6-1
64 Patrick Brick d. Ramzi Ressas 6-0; 6-0
64 Leon Vessels d. Ryan Shane Wd (inj)
64 Pjotrs Necajevs d. Mike Lesko 6-3; 6-0
64 Maxx Lipman d. Alexandru Sturzu Wd (emerg)
64 Louis-Philippe Genereux d. Nathan Banks 6-4; 6-0
64 Ryan Radke d. Brandon Larsen 6-3; 6-1
64 Fred Mesmer d. Pedro Sanoja 6-0; 6-1
64 Dai Edwardes-Evans d. David Martin 6-2; 6-3
64 Yancy Dennis d. Keith Whittingham 7-6; 7-6(7-1)); 6-1
64 Graham Wilson d. Nicholas Bakos 6-1; 6-2
64 Alex Hahn d. Matt Stein 7-5; 6-0
64 Alan Savage d. Roosevelt Nash 6-1; 6-2
64 Junior Ore d. William Szamosszegi 6-2; 6-1
64 Alex Sidney d. William Peterson 6-0; 6-1
64 Matt Brooklyn d. Travis Denny 6-0; 6-2
64 William Young d. Laith Layous Wd (inj)
64 Alok Neopane d. Robert Colwell 6-4; 6-3
64 Steve Heitzner d. Ky Nguyen 6-0; 6-0
64 Damon Gooch d. Harris Henry 6-1; 6-0
128 Dai Edwardes-Evans d. Hunter McCawley 0-6; 6-1; 6-1

US Open National Playoffs: Journalistic Embedmanship Gone Too Far?

Posted by Admin on June 1, 2012
Posted in: Baltimore, Maryland, Tennis Center at College Park, US Open, US Open National Playoffs, US Open Qualifying, USTA, Washington. Tagged: , , , , , , . 2 Comments

US Open National Playoffs:

Journalistic Embedmanship Gone Too Far?

By Steve Fogleman, TennisEastCoast.com

In an act of journalistic embedmanship, a word which I believe was invented by former President George W. Bush, I may have finally gone too far. As a tennis fan and blogger who came to the game later in life, I have enjoyed pro tennis from every angle except one. I have been on court, in the photographer’s boxes, in court side boxes, and in Upper Promenade (don’t go there, seriously). For all that, I have never stood on court and attempted to return a 100+ miles per hour serve from someone who really wanted to win in a real match that really counted.

So it was that I decided to enter the 2012 US Open National Playoffs, Mid-Atlantic Sectional Qualifying Edition. It’s that time of year again when any Johnny Sweatsock with a USTA membership card and $65-$108 in his pocket to plop down can sign up for a beatdown and a t-shirt that says, “I Tried, Damn It”. Or alternately, “What Pro Sports Tournament Have YOU Entered Lately?”. Or alternately, “Just Visiting”. Or alternately, “Suicide by Tennis Pro”.   

I attended last year as a spectator and noticed that the median scoreline for the first round matches was 6-0, 6-0. How could I do worse than double bagel, right? Right? Wrong. Retiring due to injury could be worse. The most horrible fate would be withdrawing due to injury prior to the match because we tried to cram a lifetime of doubles strategy into a few days. 

But hey, it’s not like I’m getting into a boxing ring with Mike Tyson, right? Right? Wrong. One of the 4 possible opponents I could face at the net was a USTA National Open Doubles Champion. In the Girls 14s. At 15, she’s nearly one-third my age. And she could destroy me. 

I originally envisioned playing singles this year. When I mentioned my interest to Junior Tennis Champions Center CEO Ray Benton last winter, he jokingly compared me to Walter Mitty* and looked at me like I was a little misguided.

On the Beat for a Beatdown?

Then, a case of ‘plantar fasciitis’  kept me off the courts for most of the winter and spring. I figured I would just wait another year. Yet, when you’re 43, you don’t know what new physical ailment will find you in the next year.

My hitting partner and I decided to enter Mixed Doubles at the last minute, thinking it might be easier than singles. I think we may have made an unforced error in our thought process. Being at the net against beasts in doubles now seems a bit more dangerous than hiding behind a baseline in singles.  And I’m finding that the theory that doubles is somehow easier because you ‘only’ have to cover half of the court is sheer nonsense. If there is any advantage at all to entering doubles over singles in a tournament of this caliber, it is this:

Plausible Deniability for losing teammates in being able to say that they were on fire, but their partner wasn’t pulling his weight. I am not ashamed to admit that we have encouraged each other to do just that in the event of an ugly loss. 

Not only did we enter, we even got a first round bye. One of 10 doubles teams at the College Park event, we’ll get a chance to eyeball the competition when teams play their first round matches on Saturday afternoon. One winning duo will be all warmed up to take the court against us on Sunday in the Quarterfinals. I’m not sure if the bye is a blessing or a curse. Will we be advantaged or terrified by watching our competitors dispatch a team likely more skilled than ours? Only time will tell. The optimist in me says we’re only 7 upset wins away from a main draw berth at Flushing Meadows. The realist in me just wants to have fun.

Reporters have been dodging sniper fire and dirty looks from angry warriors in places like Vietnam, Afghanistan and Tahrir Square for years. Now, College Park is the battleground and I am your rather imperfect, badly-punned Dan Rather.  

Friends are concerned that this is an act of suicide, or at least an attempt at sterilization. I can assure you that it is not a cry for help. The cry for help will not come until I awake the day after the match.

* For the kids out there who have never heard of James Thurber’s “Walter Mitty”, you will know him soon, as Ben Stiller is directing and starring in the remake later this year.

US Open National Playoffs Mid-Atlantic Sectional Qualifying Tournament Kicks off June 2

Posted by Admin on May 30, 2012
Posted in: Baltimore, Junior Tennis Champions Center, Maryland, Tennis Center at College Park, US Open National Playoffs, USTA, Virginia, Washington. Tagged: , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

 

The US Open National Playoffs (USONP) is a series of tournaments that give anyone 14 years or older the opportunity to earn a singles wild card entry into the US Open Qualifying Tournament at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center, Aug. 17–20, and/or a doubles wild card entry into the main draw of the US Open Mixed Doubles Tournament. The 2012 US Open begins on August 27.

The US Open Mid-Atlantic Sectional Qualifying Tournament will take place at the Tennis Center at College Park (TCCP) in College Park, Md., the home of an award-winning 27 court facility, from June 2–5. The winner of each draw will advance to the US Open National Playoffs held in August in conjunction with the New Haven Open at Yale presented by First Niagara, an Emirates Airline US Open Series event.

Play begins Saturday, June 2 at 8 a.m. Men’s Round of 64, Women’s Round of 32, and Mixed Doubles Round of 16 will be played June 2; all finals will be played Tuesday, June 5. 

64 men, 27 women, and 10 mixed doubles teams will compete in the Sectional Qualifying Tournament. Participants can be of any playing level, from aspiring novice to seasoned professional, giving everyone an equal opportunity to advance. A diverse field includes top-ranked juniors, college players, college coaches, senior players, club teaching pros, siblings, a father/daughter team, and international players.

Defending Champ

Returning Champion Damon Gooch of Bethesda, Md., will attempt to repeat as the Mid-Atlantic’s men’s singles champion. Gooch trains at TCCP and won two matches at the US Open National Playoffs in New Haven last summer before falling in the semifinals to eventual champion Blake Strode.

College Players

The list of college players competing include Nicholas Bakos (Potomac, Md.) from University of Charleston, Ikttesh Chahal (Chandigarh, India/Morgantown, W.Va.) from West Virginia University, Zach Hublitz (Vienna, Va.) from UNC Wilmington, Brandon Larsen (Woodbridge, Va.) from Bridgewater College, Ryan Lipman (Nashville, Tenn.) from Vanderbilt University, Hunter McCawley (Bel Air, Md.) from Harford Community College, Taylor Newman (Olney, Md.) from Radford University, Junior Ore (Gaithersburg, Md.) from Texas A&M, and Alex Sidney (Baltimore, Md.) from Cornell University.

Coaches

Joining over a dozen college players in the tournament are three college coaches: Pjotrs Necajevs is the Interim Women’s Tennis Head Coach for the University of Detroit, Matt Brooklyn is the Assistant Men’s Tennis Coach at Georgetown University, and Adam Cranford is an Assistant Men’s Tennis Coach at Washington College in Chestertown, Md.

Family Affair

Father and daughter Steve and Kendall Heitzner of Potomac, Md., will partner for mixed doubles. Kendall has committed to play tennis at Colorado State University this fall and has also entered the women’s singles draw. The Heitzners are joined in the mixed doubles draw by siblings Amy and Evan Zhu from Greenbelt, Md. Brothers Maxx and Ryan Lipman from Nashville, Tenn., will play men’s singles and siblings Alex and Megan Hahn from Rockville, Md., will play men’s and women’s singles, respectively. 

Top Juniors

Ryan Shane (Falls Church, Va.) is ranked 12th in the nation in the Boys’ 18s and will play at the University of Virginia in the fall. Mid-Atlantic Section’s (MAS) other top juniors competing include Kendall Heitzner (Potomac, Md.) ranked 10th in the MAS’s Girls’ 18s, Alex Hahn (Rockville, Md.) and Yancy Dennis (Reisterstown, Md.) ranked 5th and 10th in the MAS’s Boys’ 16s, respectively, and Evan Zhu (Greenbelt, Md.) ranked 6th in the MAS’s Boys’ 14s.

International Flavor

Several international players will be playing in the tournament including Canadians Tanya Baytor and Christiaan Lee-Daigle, Matt Brooklyn of England, Ikttesh Chahal of India, South Africans Dai Edwardes-Evans and Damon Gooch, Tita Mba of Cameroon, and Pjotrs Necajevs of Latvia. 

Maryland brings the most competitors into the tournament (43 players). 

Players will be competing from eleven states and the District of Columbia, including Maryland, Virginia, Delaware, Florida, Michigan, New York, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, and Texas.

Audrey Wooland, of Sugar Land, TX, is travelling the farthest distance to play in the event.

Youngest player is Evan Zhu of Greenbelt, Md., who will turn 14 in August.

Oldest player is Kent Watkins, of Bethesda, Md., who is 75.

–Chris Miller, USTA/Mid-Atlantic