2012

NEW JERSEY DISTRICT

Annual Awards Event

April 21, 2013

Laurel Creek Country Club

Mount Laurel, NJ

GINA PILEGGIGINA PILEGGIGINA PILEGGIGINA PILEGGI on becoming

the new President of USTA Middle States

856-848-5700 www.riverwindsgolfandtennis.com

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Princeton Tennis Academy at PTP

presents our first

under the direction of Glenn Michibata

This invitation only summer camp held at Princeton University is open to high

performance juniors with top rankings in the USTA Middle States or Eastern Section.

Glenn Michibata is the former Princeton Men’s Head Tennis Coach and ATP Tour standout, cur-rently on staff at the Princeton Tennis Program.

For more information on PTP Summer Camps or

the Princeton Tennis Academy at PTP, please visit

our website, www.ptp.org, call 609.520.0015 ext. 27

or email info@ptp.org.

WWW.PTP.ORG

High Performance-Elite Summer Camp

2012 USTA MS NEW JERSEY DISTRICT

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MASTER OF CEREMONIES Dave Goodman

WELCOME

Carol MacLennan, President

MIDDLE STATES LEADERSHIP Marlynn Orlando, Executive Director

Gina Pileggi, President of Middle States

MIDDLE STATES AWARDS PRESENTATION Gina Pileggi

NJD AWARDS PRESENTATION

Rob Howland

PHOTOGRAPHER Marge McGann

SLIDE SHOW PRESENTATION

Terri James, NJD and Kate Verheyen, MS

AWARDS EVENT COMMITTEE Carol MacLennan

Jackie Jones, Melissa Dersch Betty Badecki, Terri James

USTA MS NEW JERSEY DISTRICT

President’s Message

Welcome to the Annual NJD Awards Event honoring our 2012 Award Winners as well as #1 Ranked Junior and Adult players. This year for the first time, we are pleased to include the Middle States Section winners and #1 Ranked players from NJD. On behalf of the NJD Board of Directors, Congratulations on your achievement. We are proud to honor you at today’s event.

As the newly elected president of NJD, I look forward to continued growth in our district. With our Mission Statement in mind, the new board of directors is anxious to help the game of tennis continue to grow in NJD. We’ve created some new and exciting events in the past few years, including “TennisFest” which is a weekend tennis festival and tournament directed by our VP of Community Development, Christine Macur. This year TennisFest will take place on August 10th at Veterans Park. With the help of our First Vice President Nancy Wilkins, the district will be sponsoring various “Allied” Tennis events in NJD. These allied events are one day doubles tournaments for Special Athletes who are paired with experienced doubles partners. And our new Media Coordinator, Ann LoPrinzi is feverishly working to improve our networking and communications by updating the NJD website, posting items on our Facebook page and gathering news stories for the newest edition of the NJD Newsletter “Baseline Buzz”.

NJD will continue to support 10 and under Tennis, Junior Team Tennis and other youth programs in the district. For information on these and other opportunities to play tennis in your area, please contact Lori Schwartz, NJD Tennis Server Representative at schwartz@ms.usta.com.

LIKE us on Facebook and sign up for Baseline Buzz by visiting our website at www.newjersey.usta.com,

Warmest regards, Carol MacLennan, President

NJD Mission Statement

TO ADVOCATE FOR AND SUPPORT TENNIS FOR ALL IN THE NEW JERSEY DISTRICT COMMUNITY

CONGRATULATIONS

TO

ALL THE WINNERS!!!

Chickie’s & Pete’s

PRESIDENT Carol MacLennan FIRST VICE PRESIDENT Nancy Wilkins VICE PRESIDENT OF ADULT ACTIVITIES Jim Cryan VICE PRESIDENT OF JUNIOR ACTIVITIES Gwen Guidice VICE PRESIDENT OF COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT Christine Macur VICE PRESIDENT OF COMMUNICATIONS/MEDIA Kathie Renner SECRETARY Terri James

TREASURER Betty Badecki DIRECTORS AT LARGE Adria Wentzel Liz Hetzer IMMEDIATE PAST PRESIDENT Rob Howland PRESIDENTIAL APPOINTEES Jackie Jones Mike Iannone

MEDIA COORDINATOR Ann LoPrinzi

TENNIS SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE Lori Schwartz 609-654-2947 schwartz@ms.usta.com

2013 USTA MS NEW JERSEY DISTRICT

BOARD OF DIRECTORS

THANK YOU!!!

The USTA MS New Jersey District gratefully acknowledges

Cherry Hill Health and Racquet Club for the use of their publishing program to develop

this Event Booklet

The Mercer County Tennis Council is proud to accept the

Organization of the Year (non-commercial) Award

and we congratulate all the 2012 NJD award winners

We salute these honorees

from the Mercer County area:

Special Award Winners: Princeton Racquet Club CJWTL B Team, Belinda Ji, Art & Liz Cramp, Rich Fisher

-and- All the No. 1 Ranked Juniors and Adults!

Please forward nominations for the 2016 Mercer County Tennis Hall of Fame to:

mercertenniscouncil@verizon.net

Congratulations to all of the NJD Award Winners

Thomas Dodson— Boy’s 16 Singles

Tommy Dodson is a high school Sophomore at Haddonfield Memorial High School, where he was a valuable member of their Varsity team last year, helping to get them to the State Group II finals in Mercer County Park. He has been a fixture on local tennis courts and with local tennis coaches since he was in preschool. He enjoys competing in district and sectional tournaments throughout Middle States and hopes to play college tennis, after helping bring a state title to Haddonfield Memorial High School.

Christopher D’Agostino —Boy’s 18 Singles

Belle Mead, NJ

CongratulationsCongratulationsCongratulationsCongratulations

Art and Liz CrampArt and Liz CrampArt and Liz CrampArt and Liz Cramp NJD Tennis Pro of the YearNJD Tennis Pro of the YearNJD Tennis Pro of the YearNJD Tennis Pro of the Year

From your star (??) pupils!From your star (??) pupils!From your star (??) pupils!From your star (??) pupils! Carol and JohnCarol and JohnCarol and JohnCarol and John

Art & Liz, Congratulations to you both on your award.

You have touched many young lives with your passion to teach. Keep it going and enjoy the rest of your journey.

John & Barbara Scheese

CONGRATULATIONS

USTA Middle States

and

New Jersey District

Award Winners and #1 Ranked Players

Westmont, NJ • Woodbury, NJ • Camden, NJ • Philadelphia, PA

SOUTH JERSEY TENNIS CLUB

CONGRATULATIONS To all the NJD Award Winners

Join in the Fun and Competition at the South Jersey Tennis Open

Franklyn Scott Classic

July 12th—14th

Boys 14 SR Singles & Doubles Mens & Womens 35, 45, 55, 65 Singles & Doubles

Contact Ellen Williams 609-871-9352

or Millie Sams 609 792 9027

Isabella Pescatore

Congratulations!

Ranked No.1 in the State of New Jersey

By The United States Tennis Association

For

Girls 10 and Under

We Love You, Popi and Nana Pescatore

Confidence

You’ve got to take the initiative and play your game. In a decisive set,

confidence is the difference.

---- Chris Evert

High School in last 25 years!), South Jersey Coaches Association Group IV All Star, and First Team Tri-County Conference All Star. With no tennis programs offered in her town, Brittany decided to bring tennis to the youth of Williamstown and started her own tennis pro-gram during the summer of 2012. 34 beginners were introduced to tennis with 5 of them ultimately joining Williamstown High School’s tennis teams! The Brittany Reedman Youth Tennis Program will proudly open its’ gates for the 2nd year in July of 2013. Brittany also volunteers her time as President of the Youth Council of the Gloucester County Chapter of the American Red Cross where she has worked blood drives, raised money for the indigent, and is currently undergoing shelter training to help dis-placed people in a disaster. With all she’s involved in, Brittany places top priority on her edu-cation. As a straight A Honors/AP student and member of the National Honor Society, Brittany is proud of her 4.09 GPA and being in the top 1.5% of her class of 428 students. She’s most interested in math, sci-ence, and computers and plans to continue her studies in these areas in college.

Nathan Sankar —Boy’s 10 Singles

Nathan Sankar, born on July 22, 2003 in Edison, NJ, began playing tennis at the age of seven and enduring daily one or two-hour practices with his friend at the age of eight. 2012 summer camps and various train-ing helped him to get better and started playing in USTA tournaments. His hobby is playing with his robot and he loves to play tennis with his brother. Jerry Gu —Boy’s 12 Singles

My name is Jerry Gu. I am 11 years old. I started playing tennis when I was 7 years old. My parents helped me a lot with my tennis. My dad was my first tennis coach. My mom would make every effort to drive me to my tennis classes. My brother would also warm up with me and hit with me during practice. My brother is 8 years old now. We like to play doubles together, even though we don’t get many games. I love to play singles most of all. I am very thankful that my family has given me this opportunity for me to play tennis. I love tennis!

Lucas Flotta— Boy’s 14 Singles

Lucas Flotta is 13 years old and attends Montgomery Upper Middle School. He has been playing tennis since about 7 years old and trains under Carey Sherman and Marc Hill at the Nassau Racquet and Tennis Club in Skillman, NJ. Lucas loves many sports and after juggling both soccer and tennis for a few years made the decision that tennis was his strong passion and committed his focus to the sport. In addition to athlet-ics, Lucas is also skilled in two musical instruments (alto saxophone and baritone horn). He has a 9 year old sister, Gabriella, who is also beginning to establish herself in the NJ District 10-and-under level. Lucas’ love for the game of tennis has continued to grow and he continues to focus on building his Middle States sectional rankings and plans to try out for the Montgomery High School team next Spring.

JUNIOR #1 RANKED PLAYERS

Isabella Pescatore— Girl’s 10 Singles

Isabella Pescatore is an 8 year old who resides in Washington Town-ship, New Jersey. She is a third grade honor roll student at Whitman Elementary School where she is a member of the Gifted and Talented Program. She is the oldest of 3 children. Isabella began playing tennis at Riverwinds Tennis Center in West Detford, NJ when she was 5 years old. She now trains in the Academy Program at Legacy Youth Tennis and Education Center in Philadelphia, PA.

Rhea Shrivastava— Girl’s 12 Singles

Rhea, who lives in the Princeton area is eleven years old and has been playing tennis since she was seven. She started playing tennis as she watched her older sister play but eventually developed her own love and passion for the game. In her free time, Rhea enjoys spending time with her family, her two little guinea pigs and her friends!

Alexandra Iordache —Girl’s 14 Singles

Alexandra Iordache is an eighth grader at Crossroads South Middle School. She is very excited to be attending South Brunswick High School next year. She plays tennis year round and enjoys doubles with her younger sister, Gabriella. Alexandra loves spending time with her family, especially her grandparents and young nephews and plays the flute, piano and viola. She has made many new friends through tennis and en-joys her classes with Mark Nicholas at Princeton Racquet Club. She would like to thank her family and friends for their continued love, support and encouragement.

Brianna Shvets —Girl’s 16 Singles

Plainsboro, New Jersey

Brittany Ann Reedman —Girl’s 18 Singles

Brittany Reedman is a Junior at Williamstown High School where she has played #1 Singles since her freshman year. She picked up a tennis racquet for the first time just 4 years ago and started playing USTA tour-naments less than 2 years ago. During that time, Brittany has played in 15 USTA DR tournaments. She has either won or been a finalist in 14 of those 15 events, accumulating a very impressive record of 33 - 7. Her ranking has been steadily improving. She ended 2012 with a Tennis Re-cruiting National Ranking of 658 and in less than 3 months has jumped to 557. Her IMG Tennis RPI National Ranking is currently 389. Her high school career record to date is 73-13-2 and this past season she was once again undefeated in all Tri-County Conference and team matches played, and was the winner of the Tri-County Conference Tri-Division Tournament for the 2nd year in a row. In addition, Brittany placed 2nd in the Gloucester County Times Tournament. She was recognized as the Most Valuable Player, All South Jersey All Star ( 1st girl at Williamstown

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Dear Isabella,

Congratulations on finishing first in Girls 10 and under. You have made us so proud. We know that with your incredible passion, hard work, and competitive spirit, this is just the beginning. Keep on reaching for the stars! Let's do this!Let's do this!Let's do this!Let's do this!

Love,

Mom, Dad, Augustine, and Giselle

I started playing in USTA team leagues at the 3.5 level in 2011. We were flight champions in 2012 Central NJ and lost to a better team in District Championship matches. With the renewed confidence and improvement in my game, I've played quite a lot of tournaments (singles/doubles) dur-ing 2012. To be recognized and awarded a rank is a wonderful gift.

Ovi Dragos —Men’s 45 Singles

I started playing tennis at 10 years old because along with soccer, tennis was a family affair. Both my uncle and my brother were very suc-cessful players. My uncle was a doubles national champion at 17-18. I played club, local, county, regional and national tournaments as a junior, back in Romania. Unfortunately in Europe there are no HS or collegiate teams. I work as a Health and Physical Education teacher in Florence and I've been the boys HS tennis coach since 2003 and a PTR teaching pro, since 2008. It has been a great and rewarding experience to coach many outstanding student athletes with whom we won several Freedom Division titles, Central Jersey Group 1 titles and reached the State final. Unfortu-nately because of 5 knee surgeries and a major injury to my elbow within the last 7 years , I haven't been able to play as much tennis as I would have liked. I had fun playing on different mixed and doubles teams led by captains Frank Cosky, Kum Davidson, Rodney Pierson and Dan Soko-lowski. I have played singles tournaments for 45’s , because the prepara-tion helped me quite a bit to stay in shape and get a good work out. I like to improve my skills playing against the wall or hitting with my friends. My elbow injury forced me to learn how to play and teach tennis with my non-dominant hand, which was probably the most challenging thing I ever done on the tennis court.

Louis A. Meehan— Men’s 50 Singles

Spring Lake, New Jersey

Robert B. Weise —Men’s 55 Singles

As a Junior tennis player, Bob was ranked # 1 in the 18 and under division in USTA Middle States. He continued to compete in college, play-ing #1 at the University of Maryland, and now works at Wells Fargo Advi-sors in Spring Lake, New Jersey.

Hiro Takahashi —Men’s 70 Singles

Hiro learned his tennis basics while playing in high schools in Japan. He took a 20-year hiatus from tennis because of the demands of univer-sity, grad-school, and post-doc studies involving three trans-oceanic mi-grations. In the mid-1970’s, he rekindled his love for the sport and has been playing ever since despite many injuries. A life-member of the USTA and a PTR certified tennis instructor, Hiro has met many kindred spirits through USTA tournament competitions over the last quarter of a century. He conducts plasma physics research when not playing tennis.

came whipping by me, I knew at that point my goal was to get better so I could beat him. Fast forward a number of years and lessons, and I have found that I truly enjoy the game and only want to get better with each match. Along the way, I have met many fierce competitors and have learned a number of lessons about the game and myself. It's true-Tennis is a lifetime sport. Thank you for this award and being recognized for this accomplishment.

Adria Wentzel— Women’s 3.5 Doubles

Adria was introduced to tennis while attending Rancocas Regional High School. While she did not play during her collegiate years, Adria picked the sport up again shortly after graduating and returning to New Jersey. She was introduced to the USTA league and tournament scene by a fellow player and has been enjoying the camaraderie and competi-tion ever since.

Luis Gutierrez —Men’s Open Singles

I first picked up a tennis racquet the year of 2003 and immediately fell in love with the sport. I am mostly self taught except for the couple years of high school tennis where I was taught by my only coach Ovi Dragos. From then on I just kept playing, evolving and increasing my knowledge of the game. My favorite player of all time is Roger Federer.

Mani Maran —Men’s 3.5 Singles

I am a Tennis enthusiast and have been playing Tennis for years. I captain a USTA Tennis Team from Central Jersey and helped my team to become flight Champions in our 2nd year. We played at NJ District Cham-pionships last year and are planning to go deeper this year. I received the NJD #1 Doubles player award in 2011 and this year I am the #1 Singles player. I am thankful and excited to better things with my Tennis this year.

Steven Pellerin— Men’s 4.0 Singles

Steve has been playing tennis for 40 years. He played college tennis at Mercer County Community College and the former Trenton State Col-lege. He is looking forward to playing the USTA 55 and over division this year. Steve is employed as a social worker for the Mercer County Board of Social Services and resides in Mercerville with his wife Virginia. Vanchinathan Govindarajan— Men’s 4.0 Doubles

I have been playing tennis since the age of 40 and I am really excited to be part of the # 1 doubles team in USTA Middle States and in the New Jersey District for 2012. I have passion to play tennis and it helped me to earn this credit. Thank you to the USTA for helping players to improve their tennis skills by organizing leagues and tournaments throughout USA.

Karunakaran Kode— Men’s 4.0 Doubles

I've been a community player for about 5 years and always thought that I wasn't good enough for tournaments. After all, tournaments are for serious players who play really well. Little did I know there are various levels to play and we could still compete with players on the same level.

CONGRATULATIONS TO

DENNIS OLIVEIRA

TOURNAMENT DIRECTOR OF THE YEAR (AND ALL AROUND GREAT GUY)

FROM THE WOMEN OF PRINCETON RACQUET

CLUB’S CJWTL “B” TEAM

Haddon Field ClubHaddon Field Club Established in 1902

Congratulations to

Mark Forrester •••• #1 MS Men’s 70 Singles & 2012 NJD Senior Service Award Winner

and all the New Jersey District

Award Winners

CONGRATULATES THE 2012 NJD

AWARD WINNERS

A Special Congratulations to Albert Stark!

Albert, you have been a friend to NJTLT for many years. We applaud your incredible lead-ership and fundraising efforts to redevelop the

Cadwalader Park Tennis Facility.

Sincerely, NJTL of Trenton Board, Staff & Participants

NJTLT Mission: To strengthen the character and enhance

the lives of low-income youth by providing opportunities and instruction in nutrition,

education and tennis.

www.njtloftrenton.org

for the NJTL of Trenton, it was an easy sell. Stark has fond memories growing up on those courts, and the throught of making it a world-class facility was a no-brainer. Through his incessant work in contacting private citizens who grew up and played at the facility, enough funds were raised to build fourteen 10 and Under courts, seven 60-foot lined courts, and seven regular courts, making it the largest permanent and blended-lined junior tennis facility in the United States. In September of 2011, a grand reopening was held with dignitaries from the City of Trenton, the NJTL of Trenton, and the USTA. Everyone celebrated the unique collaboration. Cadwalader Park is now back in business. Trenton Central High School now calls the courts home, the NJTL is running its regular programs, and community events are in the works. The finished project, which was sev-eral years in the making, was a thrill for Stark, and the tennis community is grateful for his contributions.

ADULT #1 RANKED PLAYERS

Victoria Baikova—Women’s Open Singles

Victoria grew up in Estonia. After studying and receiving a masters degree in Physics in Russia, she came to the United States. In 2006, she started playing tennis regularly at the Mercer County Park outdoor courts, and in 2006 joined a USTA Spring League. That season was a disappointment. To play all year round, Victoria joined Bucks County Rac-quet Club. In 2010, she started playing USTA 3.5 and 4.0 tournaments. The same year she reached the number one ranking in Women’s 4.0 in USTA MS NJD. In 2011, she was ranked #1 in both 4.0 and 4.5 in Middle States. Now she plays year round at various tennis facilities locally and participates in a variety of tri-state tournaments. Victoria is grateful to the USTA for organizing opportunities to play competitive tennis and for this award. Outside tennis she works as a financial and project advisor, help-ing small, medium and large businesses to grow.

Elaine McCoola— Women’s 3.5 Singles

You can teach an old dog new tricks...Elaine didn't start playing tennis till she was 40 and simply fell in love with this sport. She plays both sin-gles and doubles and her home base is Mercer County Tennis Center. She loves the sport so much that she recently got PTR certified to teach kids. She is currently working with NJTL of Trenton and teaching lessons on the side as well. “I plan to play till I can no longer walk!”

Lucy DiPastina —Women’s 4.0 Singles

Titusville, NJ Wynique Ervin —Women’s 3.5 Doubles

I didn't play tennis in high school or college. I remember my mother taking tennis lessons (wooden racquet and all) And I remember, having a pretend match in our garage going against the wall. Of course, this was difficult enough to navigate the garage and trying to play tennis. But I was also on roller skates. In fact, I didn't really get into wanting to play tennis until I played with my then boyfriend at the time. After the first few balls

Media Award— Rich Fisher

Rich Fisher has been covering high school and college sports in Central and South Jersey since 1980. A lifelong resident of Hamilton Township, N.J., Fisher has written about every high school sport imagin-able for various publications over the years,

From the late 1990s into the early 2000s, Rich was the South Jersey high school tennis beat writer for The Philadelphia Inquirer and had the pleasure of covering numerous team state champions and individ-ual standouts. He currently works for The Trentonian and has reported on the exploits of Mercer County teams in the NJSIAA and Mercer County tournaments. As CEO and founder of the All-Hamilton Township sports website Fish4scores.com, Rich provides daily tennis coverage and fea-tures on the three high school boys and girls teams in Hamilton.

Fisher has recently written lengthy feature stories celebrating the life of the late Carl “Ace” Abbott prior to his 99th birthday party, and on Bob Howland entering the Mercer County Hall of Fame for the Hamilton Post monthly paper. He has also done numerous tennis features on the Rob-binsville High teams for the Robbinsville Advance, and covers Hightstown and Hopewell Valley tennis teams for publications in the Princeton Packet chain. Fisher has won seven New Jersey Press Association awards for tennis features he has done.

Aside from his high school beats, Rich covers Rutgers football and basketball for The Associated Press, and does weekly harness racing stories for UStrotting.com. In March he received the Special Contributor to Amateur Football award from the Delaware Valley chapter of the National Football Foundation, and he has been named the Colonial Valley Confer-ence Soccer Writer of the Year three times. He also serves as Master of Ceremonies for the annual CVC Basketball Awards banquet.

Presidential Award Winner —Albert Stark Albert Stark has spent a lifetime advocating for the sport he has played since since the age of nine. Not only did he have reasonable success as a player, but he became the owner of the former Hamilton Tennis Club and gained national notoriety as an author and lawyer. Perhaps the most sat-isfying aspect of his career, however, is the Cadwalader Park renovation project in Trenton. For his tremendous effort in helping to make that hap-pen, Stark is the recipient of the NJD President’s Award. Stark grew up in Trenton. As a shareholder of Stark and Stark, he con-centrated his law practice since 1964 on those who have been seriously injured and have brain, burn or spinal cord injuries. His 2009 book, “Insider Secrets to Winning Your Personal Injury Battle – A Seasoned Trial Lawyer Reveals All,” discusses what happens to seriously injured people as they navigate the legal system, and what happens after the case is over. He also authored “Beyond the Bar –Challenges in a Law-yer’s Life, and a War Against Terror Through My Lens.” He is certified by the Supreme Court of New Jersey as a Civil Trial Lawyer and is an effec-tive speaker and lecturer. When longtime friend Dave Haggerty, now the president of the USTA, approached Stark about working together in lead-ing the court renovation project of the storied Cadwalader Park complex

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10 weeks 06.24.13 to 08.30.13

MULTIPLE LOCATIONS

Fine tune your game Intense Drills and Instruction

For more information, contact

Berlin Voorhees Tennis Center 388 Cooper Rd

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USTA MIDDLE STATES 2011 10 and under Program of the Year

The

Princeton Tennis Program,

a nonprofit community tennis

association specializing in group

Lessons for all ages and all levels

is proud of all of the

2013 NJD Award Winners

Congratulations!

To find out more about Princeton Tennis

Program and the programs that we offer,

check out our website at

www.ptp.org

work in promoting tennis, the Leggoes are NJD’s 2012 Family of the Year.

the Virginia Slims professional tournament; and helping teach tennis to special needs kids at Arrowhead Tennis Club. For the past five years, Dennis has run an adult evening program at Clearview Regional High School, and he is a member of the booster club for the William & Mary tennis teams. For six years, he wrote and did photography for Atlantic Racquet Press. He is currently a USTA League coordinator and is serving on the Middle States Adult Activities Committee and the Middle States Tennis Patrons’ Association. This is Dennis’ 20th year playing league tennis. His highlights include taking all four teams that he captained to nationals in 2005, and winning the senior men’s 4.0 national champion-ships. It’s no wonder that, in 2010, he celebrated his 500th match as a captain. Donna works with Dennis in many of his endeavors, including the William & Mary booster club, teaching adults, and helping with Atlantic Racquet Press stories. She also has captained USTA League teams and MSRCOA League teams. She has served on committees at the Haddon Field Club and has been involved with the International Tennis Hall of Fame Tennis Championships in Newport with her company, Campbell Soup. Donna volunteers every year at a charity tennis tournament in Williamsburg that benefits a women’s shelter. She plays on Interdistrict and Intersectional teams, but her playing highlight was winning the USTA North Atlantic Regional Championships four times. Together, the Leggoes have been true advocates of tennis, encouraging people to get involved in playing and joining USTA League Tennis programs. Their goal is simply to give back to the game. NJD is proud to honor the Leggoes as Family of the Year.

Junior Volunteer of the Year— Belinda Ji

Belinda Ji is currently a senior at West Windsor-Plainsboro High School South. She was a part of the varsity tennis team for four years and was captain this year. During her high school years, she volunteered with the Princeton Tennis Program, participating in events such as the Special Olympics and acting as counselor for the junior camps in the summer. She also was Assistant Coach to the Nassau Dare Doubles, the JTT ten-nis team she helped through the tournament ladder. The team eventually placed second in the National Tournament this past October. Junior Volunteer of the Year—Nicholas Prestera

Nicholas Prestera has been an active volunteer in his community from the moment he entered high school. While in middle school, Nicholas became aware of a program instituted by Barnegat High School’s girl’s tennis coach in which members of the team dedicated about one hour a week to teaching tennis or golf to special education students in the dis-trict. The program was established his sister’s first year on the team, and was proving to be a success when Nicholas entered the high school in 2011, and he immediately became involved as well. Since then, Nicholas Prestera has dedicated many hours to the Challenger League athletes, and has ultimately helped them to progress socially and physically. He plans on continuing his involvement with the Challenger League program for the rest of his high school career. He also joined the boy’s tennis team at Barnegat High School and played third singles as a freshman last year.

current winning streak of 20 coed matches. In 2012, Serves-U-Right was undefeated during the winter session and won all three matches at the District Championships.

Christian Akerley – Has been playing JTT since 2009, joining the Serves-U-Right team in 2012. Christian is a Sophomore at Bishop Eus-tace HS and is a singles player on the HS team. Steve Blatz – Started on the first Serves-U-Right team in the fall of 2010 and has been on every team since. Steve is a graduating Senior at Cinnaminson HS and is a singles player on the HS team. Steve will be attending East Carolina University in the fall. Kandace Chambers – Began playing JTT in 2011. Kandace gradu-ated from Cherry Hill West HS last year and competed as a singles player for the HS team. She currently is a student at Camden County College. Lee Collins – Began playing on the second Serves-U-Right team in January 2011 and has been on every team since. Lee is a graduating Senior at Cinnaminson HS and is a singles player on the HS team. Lee will be attending TCNJ in the fall and plans on participating in the Club Tennis program as a continuation of JTT. Michael Genovese – Began playing JTT in 2008. Mike is currently a Sophomore at Cherry Hill West HS and is a singles player on the HS team. Mike plans on continuing JTT through HS. Taylor Hoffmann – Began playing JTT in 2009 and this was Taylor’s first season with Serves-U-Right. Taylor is a graduating Senior at Hunting-don Valley HS and played both singles and doubles on the HS team. Tay-lor played in the PA State Doubles final twice. Will be attending Wilkes University in the fall and plans on playing on the College Team. Valerie Huertas – Began playing JTT in 2011 during the all girls league. This team was the first season on Serves-U-Right. Valerie is a Junior at Bishop Eustace HS and is a singles player on the HS team. Allison Jones – Began playing JTT in 2008 and joined Serves-U-Right in January 2011. Allison is the youngest member of the team and as an eighth grader last year, Allison also played on the 18 year old all boys league. Allison is a Freshman at Shawnee HS and is a singles player on the HS team. Amanda Ritter – Began playing JTT in 2008 and joined Serves-U-Right January 2011. Amanda is a Junior at Seneca HS and is a singles player on the HS team.

Family of the Year —Dennis and Donna Leggoe

Dennis and Donna Leggoe have been playing USTA Leagues, captaining teams, and participating in national championships for some twenty years. Their reach, however, extends far beyond league play. Cumulatively, the Runnemede, NJ couple has served on committees, helped teach special needs youth, wrote for a tennis publication, and served as president of USTA MS NJD. For their many years of volunteer work in promoting tennis, the Leggoes are NJD’s 2012 Family of the Year. Dennis was a Vice President on the NJD board before serving a two-year term as President from 1999-2000 . His volunteer work includes helping with adult, mixed, and senior district championships and mixed doubles sectional championships; working USTA Appreciation Night at

Congratulations! Dennis NJD Tournament Director of the Year

PRC Wednesday B Team Thanks for improving people’s lives- on and off the court

Congratulations NJD Ranked Juniors & Adults

Princeton Racquet Club 150 Raymond Road Princeton NJ 08540

732-329-6200 www.princetonracquetclub.com

The Women of

Princeton Racquet Club’s

CJWTL “B” Team

are humbled to have been honored for their work in helping those whose

lives have been devastated

by Hurricane Sandy

“To whom much has been given, much is expected”

We thank

Judith Vogt and Colleen Cosgrove

And all of our friends at

Princeton Racquet Club

For the gifts of

“Friends, Tennis, Lunch”

sport of a lifetime. Their stylish moisture-wicking gear can be found at country clubs and resorts across the nation, including the Ritz Carlton, Atlantis resort and Kiawah. They now enjoy playing USTA mixed doubles events with their husbands and truly live for the game. They hope to in-spire all players nationwide to enjoy being a part of USTA and feel blessed to have the opportunity to be awarded Organization of the Year for Middle States. Senior Service Award —Mark Forrester

Mark has had an illustrious tennis career spanning decades filled with accomplishments. Most recently, he held the #1 ranking in Men’s 70 Singles in Middle States from 2008 to 2012 and was ranked #5 nationally in 2008. He was captain of the NJD Walker Cup team in 2011 & 2012, and has played on the team since 2003. He also competed on the Middle States Intersectional Team from 2003 to 2012. In 2000, Mark joined the Haddon Field Club at the encouragement of his long time friend Vero Ajello. Vero, who passed away in July 2012, was also a passionate and well known tennis player in NJD. This led to Mark’s position as VP of tennis at the Haddon Field Club, and since 2006, Mark has been the Tournament Director for the Haddon Field Club Super Senior Classic. Coach of the Year— Phil Birnbaum

Phil has collected close to 800 victories in his carerr as a high school and college coach in New Jersey. As a player, he was an All Conference and small college All-American tennis player at Glassboro State College (now Rowan University). In 1970, he started the boys tennis program at Ocean City High School and took over the girls team in 1986. Overall, while at OCHS he won over 650 matches, more than 20 league or divi-sion titles and 8 South Jersey Championships. He was inducted into the NJSIAA Hall of Fame, South Jersey Tennis Association Hall of Fame and Ocean City High School Hall of Fame. In October 2011, Phil recorded his 100th career collegiate coaching victory at Stockton State College where he has been the only coach in the program’s 13 year history. In 2003, he was awarded the NJAC Coach of the Year and USPTA Middle States Coach of the year. He has since received another NJAC Coach of the Year award. Besides coaching, Phil is responsible for one of the larg-est community tennis programs on the East Coast as the head profes-sional and tennis director for the City of Ocean City for over 30 years. Team Spirit Award— Serves U Right

Mike Genovese is a firm believer in USTA Junior Team Tennis. As a parent of two children involved in JTT, every session was a scramble to find a team for his kids to play on. In the fall of 2010, he decided to start a new team to allow his son an opportunity to participate. This was the first Serves-U-Right team. His personal charter was to be a home for other children who could not find a team or were new and needed guidance on how JTT worked. Since that first session, they have played six different seasons with 49 rostered players. That very first team included two cur-rent players; His son Michael and Steve Blatz. They were not that good in the beginning through hard work and practice, have improved and have a

America. The pilot councils were the result of a marketing study of atti-tudes toward tennis called “Why People Play,” and this study provided the data from which to formulate programs. In the beginning, meetings were held at the USTA’s Education and Research Center in Princeton, and area invitees were from all facets of the tennis industry. The goals were to better coordinate existing tennis activities and programs and to implement new tennis programs/events to attract more players to the game. After the USTA’s Princeton office moved, area tennis leaders kept the Council going and continued to pro-mote tennis and conduct activities. Since its inception, the MCTC has been instrumental in the following: · Conducted an inventory of tennis courts and produced Tennis Directories for distribution throughout Mercer County · Held a tennis carnival in conjunction with a Mercer County sesquicen-

tennial celebration. · Ran a county-wide recreational junior tennis league preceded by a

Prince clinic. · Instituted a Mercer County Tennis Hall of Fame in 1992 and held an

induction ceremony every four years thereafter · Coordinated USPTA Tennis Across America Day activities. · Helped stage TKR Cable county tournament and exhibition. · Created a Mercer County tennis calendar for its Web site and for free

distribution to local clubs. · Held a fashion show luncheon. · Conducted a meeting with representatives of all area tennis clubs and

all tennis leaders to discuss how MCTC could be most helpful to the tennis community.

· Pooled its resources to get people in touch with those who could offer assistance, such as Princeton Tennis Program helping out the Trenton Success for Life Foundation and helping Hamilton Township to establish a tennis program.

In recent years, the MCTC’s sole purpose has been the every four year hall of fame, which recognizes those individuals who have contrib-uted to the growth of tennis in the Mercer County area. The Council has been supported by the Mercer County Park Commission, which recently completed a permanent Hall of Fame exhibit at the Mercer County Tennis Center. The Council uses Hall of Fame proceeds to support area events by placing ads and/or making a contributions to worthy programs and causes. It is run by a core group of area tennis leaders.

Organization of the Year ( Commercial) —Cruise Control Gear

Candice & Kristen are sisters and best friends that love being a part of USTA Middle States tennis. The Carlin sisters grew up playing in USTA tournaments while developing lasting connections and unforgettable ten-nis memories. After playing local and national USTA events, the girls en-joyed competing in college and coaching. Candice played both singles and doubles at the #1 varsity position for four years at Villanova University while Kristen competed at Princeton University. Their USTA national and collegiate experience on the court inspired the sisters to design Cruise Control Gear...e lite performance active wear for all athletes. They trade-marked the logo “LIVE FOR IT” for players who are passionate about our

Congratulations

~ Kristen and Candice ~

“The Cruise Control Girls” For your friendship and support

Throughout the years!

Love, Carol

served as Director of Advanced Training for the Princeton Community Tennis Program. He has worked with both Dennis Van Der Meer and Billie Jean King. One of his main influences was Stan Pasarell, who was then the top player in the country and took Art under his wing. Liz is certified by the USNTA. She grew up locally, played tennis for Princeton High School, and played first singles for University of Dayton. She played and coached for the Northwestern Connecticut men’s team, served as a pro at Canton Racquet Club in Connecticut and at the Hope-well Valley Golf Club. Liz has always been involved in athletics and also played basketball. She was a pro at Princeton Community Tennis Pro-gram under Eve Kraft before coming to the tennis club that was eventually named for Kraft. Needless to say, Kraft was a big influence in Liz’s career. Together, Art and Liz served as sectional verifiers, are members of the US Stringers Association, serve as Advisory Board members for Bucks County Tennis Association, and do volunteer coaching and stringing in the community. They co-founded ALC Tennis in the 1980s. They have two daughters, one who was a professional golfer and is now affiliated with a club in Maryland, and the other teaches and coaches at Hopewell Valley Central High School. Today, the pair continues to share the same teaching philosophies. They teach together in many classes and continue to enjoy getting people to play, helping them improve, and having fun with it. Tournament Director of the Year— Dennis Oliveira

In 2007, Dennis starting assisting with the junior USTA tournaments held at the Princeton Racquet Club. The following year, in addition to di-recting the junior tournaments from June-October, he also taught junior clinics. Dennis has also participated on USTA Adult league teams as a player and captain. In 2011, he became facility manager at PRC and was also responsible for converting 2 indoor and 4 outdoor courts to blended line courts. For the last several years, he has been the tournament direc-tor for 10-12 junior tournaments for the boys/girls 12-18 division. Due to his flexibility and dedication to the juniors, he provides opportunities for every player to have at least one consolation match. The 10 and under tournaments that he has directed have been a huge success and enjoyed by the parents and youngsters. He has conducted round robins, play days and several compass tournaments. Dennis doesn't just direct the tourna-ments, he uses them as a vehicle to teach the competitors lessons for life - sportsmanship, pride, respect, humor and compassion. He has a knack for being strict while demonstrating excellent communication and interper-sonal skills - skills that will also serve him in his new role…graduate of the training academy for the Sheriff's Department of Essex County.

Organization of the Year (Non Commercial)

Mercer County Tennis Council

The Mercer County Tennis Council (MCTC) was formed in June of 1988 as one of six pilot tennis councils of the USTA Tennis Industry Council, which was formed by the USTA. The general goal was to unite the diverse segments of the tennis industry and to expand the popularity of tennis in

Volunteer of the Year—Women’s B Team— CJWTL Princeton Racquet Club

Initially brought together by their love of tennis, this group of nine women formed a strong and supportive team that goes far beyond the tennis courts. To say they are just friends is an understatement. At the core of this friendship is their love for each other and a generosity that knows no bounds. So when Hurricane Sandy devastated the coastal areas in October 2012, there was no question that the women would want to help. Within a week of the storm, Princeton Racquet Club's CJWTL Wednesday B team kicked into action. Led by team captain Francine King, a plan was formulated: - Closets were scoured for gently used items, car seats were purchased and menus for bag lunches were planned. Using the lunch meats and bread, granola bars, fruit, bottled water and a few sweet treats they had purchased, the women met weekly, early in the morning, to create fresh and healthy bagged lunches. Their assembly line process enabled them to make more than 1,500 bagged lunches over a 7 week period. With their cars filled to the brim, they drove to the storm-ravaged towns - stopping at National Guard checkpoints and knocking on doors - to deliver lunches to the families whose homes had been devastated and the tireless volun-teers helping them. Stopping in Manasquan, Bay Head, Mantaloking, Point Pleasant, Staten Island and Seaside Heights, the women often were rewarded with hugs and tears from grateful homeowners. With limited resources available in so many of these towns, local policemen, National Guardsman, electrical workers and other contractors from across the country also gratefully accepted bagged lunches from the women. As word spread at PRC of the work the Wednesday B Team was doing, other PRC tennis members generously pitched in to help continue the mission. Recently, combining funds from their personal donations and those of others, the women were able to present a sizable Home Depot Gift card to a Staten Island family that lost everything. The members of Princeton Racquet Club’s Wednesday B Team all live in the Central NJ area. They are active members in their own local communities and volun-teer in Girl Scouts, PTA, School Board, sports teams and religious organi-zations.

Pro of the Year— Art and Liz Cramp

Art and Liz Cramp arrived at Princeton Indoor Tennis Center from dif-ferent parts of the country and different backgrounds in the late 1970s to teach tennis. They met through teaching, married 33 years ago, and have become teaching legends in the Princeton area. The club has changed hands a few times and is now known as the Eve Kraft Community Tennis Center, home to the Princeton Tennis Program, but Art and Liz have taught countless numbers of players and are widely known and re-spected.. Art, who is USPTA-certified, took up tennis after graduating from the University of Redlands. His vast experience includes attending Vic Braden’s Tennis Academy, teaching at a Laver-Emerson Tennis Camp in Texas and a club in Hawaii, and coaching a Community College Team in Hawaii. He was Assistant Director at Lawrenceville Tennis Camp and

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OPEN HOUSE: SATURDAY MAY 18th—10 am to 1 pm

The Cryan Tournament committee would like to congratulate the New Jersey District

on another successful year!"

The 2013 Cryan Tennis Tournament will run from

Saturday, July 27th thru Saturday August 3rd.

Please sign up in USTA’s Tennislink

(tennislink.usta.com) Use tournament ID #

350020013, entries close Sunday, July 21, 2013.

ADULT #1 DISTRICT RANKED PLAYERS

Women’s Open Singles Victoria Baikova Women’s 3.5 Singles Elaine McCoola Women’s 4.0 Singles Lucy DiPastina Women’s 3.5 Doubles Adria Wentzel Wynique Ervin

Men’s Open Singles Luis Gutierrez Men’s 3.5 Singles Mani Maran Men’s 4.0 Singles Steven Pellerin Men’s 4.0 Doubles Vanchinathan Govindarajan Karunakaran Kode Men’s 45 Singles Ovi Dragos Men’s 50 Singles Louis A. Meehan Men’s 55 Singles Robert B. Weise Men’s 70 Singles Hiro Takahashi

JUNIOR #1 DISTRICT RANKED PLAYERS

Girls 10 Singles Isabella Pescatore Girls 12 Singles Rhea Shrivastava Girls 14 Singles Alexandra Iordache Girls 16 Singles Brianna Shvets Girls 18 Singles Brittany Ann Reedman Boys 10 Singles Nathan Sankar Boys 12 Singles Jerry Gu Boys 14 Singles Lucas Flotta Boys 16 Singles Thomas Dodson Boys 18 Singles Christopher D’Agostino

MIDDLE STATES SECTION RANKED PLAYERS

ADULT #1 SECTION RANKED PLAYERS

Women’s 3.0 Singles Suzanne Stout Women’s 3.5 Singles Elaine McCoola Women’s 4.0 Singles Lucy DiPastina Women’s 4.0 Doubles Ann LoPrinzi Men’s 4.5 Singles Ryan Tavel Men’s 4.0 Doubles Karunakaran Kode Vanchinathan Govindarajan Men’s 4.5 Doubles Arunkumar Bangalore Ryan Tavel Men’s 55 Singles Robert Weise Men’s 70 Singles Mark Forrester Men’s 45 Doubles Ronald Jackson

JUNIOR #1 SECTION RANKED PLAYERS Boys 12 Singles Robert Siniakowicz Boys 14 Singles Nathan Perrone Girls 12 Singles Brianna Shvets Girls 16 Singles Christina Rosca Girls 18 Singles Taylor Ng

Sportsmanship

Boys 12 Singles Lex Decker Boys 16 Singles Michael Song Girls 12 Singles Esa Mari Kavtaradze Girls 16 Singles Christina Rosca

Most Improved

Boys 16 Singles Michael Zhao Girls 12 Singles Kelly Jiang Girls 18 Singles Taylor Ng

MIDDLE STATES Section Award Winners

Junior Volunteer of the Year

Belinda Ji

Belinda Ji is currently a senior at West Windsor-Plainsboro High School South. She was a part of the varsity tennis team for four years and was captain this year. During her high school years, she volunteered with the Princeton Tennis Program, participating in events such as the Special Olympics and acting as counselor for the junior camps in the summer. She also was Assistant Coach to the Nassau Dare Doubles, the JTT tennis team she helped through the tournament ladder. The team eventually placed second in the National Tournament this past October.

NJTL of the Year Willingboro Parks & Recreation Department

Willingboro Parks & Recreation Department has been a USTA mem-ber organization for many years running USTA tennis programs, sanc-tioned tournaments and tennis play days. The department serves Willing-boro Township and the surrounding communities in Burlington County, NJ. Willingboro's instructional tennis programming serves ages 5 through 65 throughout the spring and summer season. Each year, they host four USTA sanctioned tournaments, as well as numerous play days, NJTL events, recreational coaching workshops, camps and after-school clinics. Their facility at Mill Creek Park is home to both Adult and USTA Junior Team Tennis Leagues. Willingboro Parks & Recreation has been the recipient of several USTA MS New Jersey District NJTL Awards.

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2012 USTA MSNEW JERSEY DISTRICT

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Volunteer of the Year Women’s B Team

Princeton Racquet Club CJWTL

Pro of the Year Art and Liz Cramp

Tournament Director of the Year Dennis Oliveira

Organization of the Year (Non Commercial)

Mercer County Tennis Council

Organization of the Year (Commercial)

Cruise Control Gear

Senior Service Award Mark Forrester

2012 USTA MS

NEW JERSEY DISTRICT

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Coach of the Year Phil Birnbaum

Richard Stockton College of New Jersey

Team Spirit Award Serves U Right

Family of the Year Dennis and Donna Leggoe

Junior Volunteer of the Year Belinda Ji

Nicholas Prestera

Media Award Rich Fisher

Presidential Award Albert Stark