long island tennis magazine may / june 2009

65Long Island Tennis Magazine • May/June 2009

66 Long Island Tennis Magazine • May/June 2009


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Features3 Tennis is Fundamental By Steven Kaplan

Steven Kaplan takes a closer look at the basics of the game.

4 Bringing Tradition Back to the Sport of TennisBy Bruce ForrestBruce Forrest looks back at the way the game was played.

5 USTA Team Tennis: Increasing Your Chances to Playfor a National Title By Jim DileoJim Dileo looks at the impact of a player’s rankings and theself-rating system.

7 What is Your Dream? By Alanna BroderickAlanna Broderick discusses her path from her tennis start inJamaica to her time spent at a Florida tennis academy.

23 The Path to the Pros A chat with tennis pros Megan Moulton-Levy and Ahsha Rolleon their very different paths to the professional circuit.

27 Teaching or Learning … That is the Question By Ed WolfarthEd Wolfarth takes a deeper look at what it takes to be a bet-ter tennis instructor.

28 You’re Not Fully Dressed Without Your Mouth GuardBy Dr. Len FazioDr. Len Fazio discusses the importance of mouth guards in allsports.

31 High School Memories: From the Front of the BusBy Alan FleishmanRetired high school tennis coach Alan Fleishman reflects onhis experiences with his team and shares some of his favoriteexperiences.

36 Tennis and Multiple Sclerosis By Dan DwyerDan Dwyer takes a look at the game through the eyes of play-ers stricken with multiple sclerosis and dealing with their ill-ness through the sport of tennis.

38 My Opinion: What’s the Story With Country Club Tennis?By Eric MeditzEric Meditz’s lighthearted take on the world of country clubtennis and its revolving cast of characters.

40 Long Island Tennis Magazine’s Special FashionApparel SectionWe take a closer look at some of the upcoming season’s on-court wear and some of the sport’s hottest accessories and gear.

43 QuickStart TennisDebbie Cichon introduces the USTA’s QuickStart program andJared Rada recaps the program’s success at a recent tour ofLong Island schools.

48 The Sand Pit: Beach Tennis … More Than a Sport, it’sa Long Island Movement!Long Island Tennis Magazine prepares you for the upcomingBeach Tennis USA events set to hit the Island this summer.

50 19th Annual USTA Long Island Region Awards Dinner Program: May 6A look at the special guest speakers and award winners whowill be honored at the 19th Annual USTA Long Island RegionAwards Dinner set for Wednesday, May 6 at the Crest HollowCountry Club.

59 USTA Junior Team Tennis Takes L.I. by StormA look at the upcoming Junior Team Tennis season on Long Is-land along with photos of last season’s successful campaign.

Columns10 Sportime Elite Program Photo Gallery: Sportime

Tennis Bethpage

6 College Tennis Advice: To D1, D2 or D3 … That isthe Question? By Clark D. Ruiz IIClark D. Ruiz II provides his expert advice on where to go tofurther both your higher education and tennis career.

19 Adult League Wrap-Up By Kathy MillerUSTA/Long Island Adult League Coordinator Kathy Miller dis-cusses the upcoming Tri-Level League set to begin in August.

22 Long Island Tennis Magazine’s Literary CornerBrent Shearer reviews the book, Getting a Grip: On My Body,My Mind, My Self by Monica Seles.

24 Fitness and NutritionCertified Personal Trainer Laszlo Elek takes a look at tennisconditioning and how to step up your level of fitness.

34 College Tennis SpotlightLong Island Tennis Magazine chats with Bryan Koniecko fromOhio State University as Bryan shares his thoughts on his starton Long Island, his time in the collegiate ranks, though hispost-collegiate plans and future pro aspirations.

45 Tips From the Tennis Pro: The Forehand VolleyMade Simple By Carl BarnettCarl Barnett shares his perspective on volleying the ball bytaking a closer look at proper racquet positioning.

58 Long Island Tennis Club Directory

60 Long Island Rankings

63 USTA/Long Island Region 2009 TournamentSchedule

News Briefs36 Country Club Tennis: Tennis is the Sport of a Lifetime

44 USTA Tournament Photo GalleryPhotos by Franklyn Higgs from the March 6-8 L1 Champs fromthe Long Beach Tennis Center and the March 13-15 L2R LongIsland Regional Championship at the Deer Park Tennis Center.

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Statements of fact and opinion in Long Island TennisMagazine are the responsibility of the authors alone and donot imply an opinion on the part of United SportsPublications Ltd. Long Island Tennis Magazine reservesthe right to edit, reject and/or postpone the publication ofany articles, information or data.

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United Sports Publications Ltd.Copyright © 2009 United Sports Publications Ltd.

May/June 2009Volume 1, Number 3 16 World TeamTennis Preps for Another Season

This summer, World TeamTennis returns to the area as the New York Sportimes host theworld’s top on-court talent for another exciting season. Featuring a closer look at the NewYork Sportimes roster and the team’s 2009 home schedule.

Cover story

Cover photo credits: Anna Kournikova (BillPutnam) and John McEnroe (CameraworkUSA, Fred and Susan Mullane)


While there are many ways to performsuccessful tennis hitting movements,

there are underlying commonalities that unifyand define them all. I would call these univer-sal stroke production characteristics “funda-mentals.” These fundamentals are based onthe static and immutable laws of physics,mechanics, kinesiology and motor learning.If your strokes adhere to the demands of theaforementioned principles, you are likely tosucceed. There are also variations that occurin the production of movements. They involvea different way to achieve the same importantgoal. I would call these variations “style.”

One of the most profound mistakes a ten-nis instructor or player can make is to focuson developing style, rather than emphasizingfundamentals. While each individual playermay find a particular style suitable and ben-eficial, my redress here focuses on theteaching of playing style at the cost of thedevelopment of strong fundamentals.

For example, look at the variation of foot-work style exemplified by the world’s currentthree top ranked players in the execution of abackhand. Rafael Nadal will usually bring hisback foot around after impact with the ball.Roger Federer tends to push both feet up to-gether and land them in a position similar tohis start. Novak Djokovic will often lift his rearleg up to counterbalance his body’s forwardweight shift during the hit. All three styles arecommon amongst top players and achievetheir desired results, yet all are performed withvastly different—yet valid—styles. The unify-ing factors that make these strokes useful aretheir adherence to the principles of good bal-ance, stability and kinetic linking.

First, all of these backhand techniques startwith a lowering of the player’s center of grav-ity and an explosive leg drive upward usingtheir rear leg and gluteus muscles. All threeplayers have a unit take-back emphasizing theactivation and use of their core muscles. Next,the lifting of their legs are seamlessly linked to

the rotation of their torso. All three playersdemonstrate the balance necessary to keeptheir hips stable during the hit. These samequalities of balance and stability are importantin their consistent and complete finish.

Sound instruction and productive learningshould emphasize the achievement of all ofthese skills, as well as other fundamentalmovements rather than focusing on how themovements are performed. It is alarming tosee the same style directed toward everystudent. It is almost comical to wonderwhich player a style-oriented method ofteaching would suggest is doing somethingdramatically wrong. “Sorry Rafa, you needto change that stroke. You should watchRoger, he’s hitting it correctly.”

A United States Tennis Association-fundedstudy conducted several years ago examinedAndre Agassi’s stroke production using high-speed video over several thousand strokes. Inthe execution of his forehand, it was found thatthe single highest correlation to success wasthe shifting of his weight from right to left dur-ing the stroke. Interestingly enough in thisstudy, there was no connection between the

direction his foot stepped and his stroke suc-cess. In other words, stepping “in,” “sideways”or even “back,” was irrelevant to Agassi!

Great teaching emphasizes the explicit de-tails of fundamental skills rather than a general-ized focus on provisionally useful skills.Ultimately, adherence to fundamental integratedprinciples of stroke production, rather than an-cillary or unnecessary dogma, will be the mostdirect path to the development of great strokes.

Steven Kaplan has guided many touring pro-fessionals in the U.S. Open and Wimbledon,and has coached more than 350 nationally-ranked junior players. Steve’s backgroundcombines a rare blend of competitive andscholastic achievement. In 1979, Steve wonthe Big East Conference Singles Champi-onship. In 1983, he received his Master’s De-gree in Physiology. Steve develop the gamesof both Keith Kambourian and two-timeNCAA Singles Champion Sandra Birch, fromthe 12-year olds through the pro tour. Mostrecently, Steve’s longtime student, BryanKoniecko has achieved the number one rank-ing in Men’s NCAA tennis.

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Tennis is

Fundamental


By Bruce Forrest

I’ve been playing tennis for34 years. I truly enjoy thegame. Every time I step on tothe court, it brings me back

to my junior tennis years and I feel like a kidagain. I wrote this article not to be critical,but as an observation on how the sport oftennis is losing its traditional values.

I grew up playing tennis usually wear-ing a Lacoste shirt that came in severaldifferent colors and white shorts. Theshirt had a collar and the shorts had aclassic look. Today’s outfits are quite dif-ferent. I am not a big fan of the cut-offsleeveless shirts. I see a lot of pros whowear them. I play in a North Shoreleague, and quite often, my opponentswear these types of shirts. Sometimes, Idon’t know if I should serve to them orwrestle them. Two years ago, I watcheda match at the U.S. Open. One of theplayers wore a shirt that had two holesin the back shoulder blade area. What’sup with that? I enjoyed the match, butkept thinking how ugly his shirt was.Most tennis apparel today is not madeof cotton. I personally do not see anyadvantage to micro fiber. It feels likepolyester and sticks to your skin. Mostpeople would agree the McEnroe, Borgand Connors era was the most exciting

in tennis. I don’t see where cottonslowed them down. I think t-shirts lookfine. There are some pretty cool t-shirtsout there and most of them are cotton.My suggestion to the tennis fashionworld is to stick to the basics. You willsell more outfits, and more importantly,your customers will look better in them.

It is hard to find a racket these days.There are so many choices. They aremade of Aerogel, Microgel, fiberglassand a little bit of graphite. Some of themhave holes in the frames. I think mostpeople would agree the original Princegraphite is the best racket ever made.Some top juniors still use this racket.You don’t see many 100 percentgraphite rackets these days. Pro Kennexmakes a great 100 percent graphiteracket called the Heritage Redondo.This racket has a great traditional feel.Not only will it take your game to a nextlevel, but you will be able to hit a dropshot that Nadal couldn’t even get to. Iknow what you are thinking, who is ProKennex? I realize racket manufacturershave to be creative to sell rackets. Ithink they can still be creative and carrya 100 percent graphite racket in theirselection.

I love going to the U.S. Open. I was aball boy as a kid and am very familiarwith how the tournament is run. It is a

great New York event. I used to enjoywatching the matches on the outsidecourts the most. Obviously, today most ofthe matches are in Ashe, Louis ArmstrongStadium and the grandstand. This pastyear, we were watching Andy Roddick inArthur Ashe Stadium wipe some guy offthe court in the first set. At least from mySection 322 seat, I think it was Roddick. Isaid to my wife and daughter, “Let’s getout of here.” We settled down watching agirl’s junior match on an outside courtthat went three sets. We all agreed thiswas more enjoyable than watching ten-nis where you have to look at the score-board to know who’s playing. Mysuggestion to the United States TennisAssociation (USTA) is put one less matcha day on the stadium courts and put thematch on the outside courts. This way,the day matches won’t run into the nightmatches, which often happens and anavid tennis fan like myself will get a bet-ter value for his ticket.

My daughter is 10-years-old and hasbeen taking lessons for four years. Emilie(her pro) is a great instructor and concen-trates on the fundamentals of the game. Ihear from friends in my neighborhood thattheir pros recommend using weights. I donot think any kid should lift weights andcertainly not at 10-years-old. My guess isRoger Federer has never lifted a weight inhis life. Tennis is a game of endurance andagility. Jogging and jump-roping is betterpreparation for serious juniors than liftingweights.

I know tennis has grown tremendously inthe past 25 years. I also know that everygame has to change with the times, but it isimportant to keep up the traditional values.My opinions and suggestions are to bringback these values. Maybe I’m old fash-ioned, but I just cannot picture Bjorn Borgwining Wimbledon, falling to his kneeswhile wearing a ripped shirt. �

Bruce Forrest is a former nationally-rankedjunior player, a member of Piquet Lane andcurrently plays in the North Shore TennisLeague. He may be reached by e-mail [email protected].

Bringing Tradition Back to the Sport of Tennis


By Jim Dileo

You have seen the com-mercials promoting mem-

bership in the United StatesTennis Association with the

tagline “Join a team and have the opportunityto play for a national title.”

As a USTA captain on Long Island, I havecome close to going to the nationals a fewtimes with trips to the sectionals in 2001,2002 and 2003 where we lost. Each year,after the season, we lost some players whowere bumped up to the next level, but wewere able to recruit replacements and con-tinued to be successful.

That all ended for us in 2004, and unfor-tunately, we have not been able to get to

the sectionals again. With an average ofthree teams per year at varying levels for thepast four years from 2004 to 2008, that rep-resents 12 opportunities where we fell short.

Did the fact that 2004 represented thefirst year for the new self-rating systemhave anything to do with our failures to ad-vance to the sectionals after 2003? You bethe judge.

Prior to self-rating, individuals would goto a tennis facility and play for 30 to 60 min.under the supervision of a trained “rater”who would evaluate everyone’s skills andset their individual ratings. I am sure therewere people who tried to sandbag theirplay to obtain a lower rating, but the highly-skilled raters saw through that most of thetime and did an excellent job evaluating the

talent. Could an individual slip in to a lowerrating? Sure, every once in a while some-one probably got by. But they were few andfar between.

The advent of self-rating has now accom-plished what any new system eventually ac-complishes; it presented an opportunity forthe creative captains to find the loopholesand exploit the system. Boy have they beensuccessful!

In order to level the playing field so every-one has an opportunity to “play for a na-tional title,” I have decided to share with yousome tips for building your teams. Thesehave been gleaned from observation of themost creative captains since self-rating hasbeen in effect.

USTA Team Tennis: Increasing Your Chancesto Play for a National Title

continued on page 12


By Clark D. Ruiz II

Believe it or not, the path that leadsto the selection of a college/uni-

versity for your child, a choice which hasthe right balance between academicsand tennis, actually begins during yourchild’s junior career. Simply put, the pathyour child paves in the juniors, startingwith the number of times they practice,the number of tournaments they play in,the type of tournaments they play, and ofcourse, the results they achieve, will usu-ally dictate the type of school they willend up at if tennis is to be an importantpart of the mix. This is why it is impera-tive that parents have a good under-standing of what they expect as early inthe junior level as possible so that theright path can be chosen, step by step.

This will save you much angst, manysleepless nights and possibly moneywhen all is said and done.

Three critical questions that need to beconsidered and answered early on …

Will financial assistance be a de-termining factor in choosing aschool?Everyone would like a scholarship to playtennis, but is a scholarship the only wayone’s child can attend college? Obvi-ously, if a family is in the position to payfor their child’s collegiate education, anyand all Division 1, Division 2 and Division3 options are available to them depend-ing on their child’s grades and tennisranking. However, if the only way yourchild can attend college is with a schol-arship, then D3 will not usually be an op-

tion unless you can receive a tremen-dous amount of financial aid because D3schools do not offer athletic scholar-ships. Neither do the Ivy League Schoolsfor that matter. D1 schools usually havethe most amounts of scholarship dollarsto offer, but not all D1 schools are fullyfunded, meaning they do not have a fullscholarship for every player. The schoolmight, for instance, have 3.5 scholar-ships to divide amongst the entire team.D2 schools usually don’t have as manyscholarships to offer as D1 schools. Par-ents should ask the coach of schoolsthey are considering this question ASAPin their child’s junior year in high school,to determine if the scholarship level isadequate for your needs. FYI, scholar-ship dollars available vary from year to

To D1, D2 or D3 … That is the Question?


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Season opens July 7 at Sportime Stadium at the new Sportime at Randall’s Island Tennis Center!

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Orison Swett Mardenonce said, “All men

who have achieved greatthings have been greatdreamers.” When I was ayoung girl, I had a dream of

becoming a successful tennis professional.I used to see myself walking up to the netafter winning match point against SteffiGraff no less, and shaking her hand. I usedto practice my “thank you” speeches in thebathroom mirror. I had it all planned out. Idreamt of becoming the most famous Ja-maican athlete ever born. Unfortunately,Usain Bolt beat me to the punch, but that’sa different story.

It was because of this dream that Iwould wake up every morning at 5:30 a.m.and drive to our tennis club about 55 min.away to take a private tennis lesson beforegoing to school. Because of this dream, Iwas picked up before school was out andtaken to another practice session. Becauseof this dream, my parents built a tenniscourt in our backyard and hired a coachfrom Croatia to come and live with us as

the availability of coaching in Jamaica waslimited. Because of this dream, I would runthe hills around my neighborhood, fearfullydodging my neighbors’ unchained dogs.Because of this dream, I had absolutely nosocial life. I would go to school, thenstraight home into this little bubble my par-ents had created and then have to do thesame thing day after day. At times, I felt asif I was missing out, but it was okay be-cause I had a dream. I was working to-wards something.

Because of this dream, I tolerated therepetitive verbal instructions that felt likeabuse from my emotionless Croatiancoach. If I heard (please insert Europeanaccent here), “Use your hips Avanna,”“Turn your shoulder Avanna,” or “Moveyour feet Avanna” (my name is Alanna bythe way) one more time, I thought I wouldjust burst.

Because of this dream, even though Istarted playing at the late age of 12, I be-lieved if I worked hard enough I couldcatch up with my adversaries. Eventhough Jennifer Capriati was winning the

U.S Open at the age of 14, it was okay be-cause I had a dream and I was told, “If youbelieve you will achieve.” Thanks, dad!

Because of this dream, we realized thatI had to play many tournaments to honemy skills. Being from a small island withvery few female tennis players meant I hadto travel to other countries to compete. Ifirst went to the near by islands, such asthe Dominican Republic, St. Lucia, Arubaand then onto Europe.

I got to see many countries I had onlyheard about, such as Italy, Austria, Ger-many, Denmark and, of course, Croatia!Places I would never have experienced if Idid not play tennis .I was staying in hotels,playing tennis (the sport I loved), winningmatches and I almost forgot, there wereboys there too! I had a dream, but I was stilla teenage girl! I had to stay focused on thedream, so no boys were allowed (please ig-nore the moment of weakness).

“This is the life,” I thought to myself. Ifthis was only International Tennis Federa-tion (ITF) tournaments, imagine when Iturned pro how much better it was goingto be. Because of this dream, I ended upmissing so much school that my teacherstold me that I could not be both, an athleteand a student, one had to give. And thatone was tennis. Well of course no one orany school was going to stand in the wayof my dream. I decided to go to a tennisacademy in the United States where tenniscame first and academics second.

I was leaving my small island behindwhere, in my mind, they did not sufficientlyappreciate athletic talent and moving towhat I saw as the big leagues where peo-ple took tennis seriously.

So at the age of 15, I moved to Americaand I got a job. My job was to play tennis.I went to school from 8:00 a.m. to noon,but school seemed a whole lot easier in

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year for all programs, depending on howmany players graduate that particularyear.

Do you want your child to play atthe best tennis program avail-able to them, perhaps sacrific-ing the quality of the educationthey will receive, or do you wantthem to attend the best aca-demic program available tothem, perhaps sacrificing thequality of the tennis programthey play in?Considering this question truthfully willrequire some real soul searching, butwhen answered, the truth will set youfree to make a decision on your termswith eyes wide open. D1 schools run thespectrum, from big time athletic schools(Duke, UNC and Wake Forest) to smallerschools (Fairfield University, Marist & Ni-agara), to state schools (University ofRhode Island, Stony Brook Universityand the University of Albany, to name afew). Each school offers a very differentacademic/athletic mix, which ultimatelywill lead to very different collegiate ex-periences. D2 and D3 have some reallygreat schools with not-so-great tennisprograms. But some schools have agreat mix of both academics and tennis,

such as Emory University in D3, whichhas a tennis program that is as good asa great many D1 schools and great aca-demics.

Do you have the resources andsense of commitment necessaryto see the plan through from thetime your child is 10-11 until thetime they graduate high school?If the plan is to have your child play for abig D1 program, then come to grips withthe fact that it will require a great deal oftime, effort, expense and commitmentfrom you to make it happen. Theseschools are looking for players with highranking, with a great deal of nationaltournament experience. InternationalTennis federation (ITF) tournament playhelps as well. Participating in Na-tional/Super National and ITF tourna-ments comes with a price tag related toextensive travel (airfare, accommoda-tions, food and transportation). Keep inmind, that in order to be competitive atthese levels usually requires practicingfive to six times a week, working with apersonal conditioning trainer and playingtournaments two to three times permonth. Calculate these expenses intothe equation as well. And don’t forgetthat your child cannot take themselves to

C O L L E G E T E N N I S A D V I C E continued from page 6

these events, so you either have to pay acoach to go with them or one of the par-ents has to go as well. Get the picture,big commitment and sacrifice from boththe parents and the player for the 12, 1416 and 18 age groups.

Smaller D1 schools, D2 and most D3schools will accept players with muchless national, ITF and tournament expe-rience, which means that the practiceand tournament schedule can be lessstringent, thus translating to less timecommitment and reduced expenses.However, never lose sight of the fact thatthe more experience the player has, themore attractive they will be to coaches.

In between big D1 and D3 programsare a multitude of schools with academicand tennis programs of varying levels.The sooner one can come to grips withwhat type of program they want theirchild to end up at, the sooner you canstart implementing a game plan whichpaves the way. Then, all you have to dois plug you and you child in and enjoy theride, for this ride should be as rewardingas getting into the school of choice. �

Clark D. Ruiz II is founder of AdvantageTennis Strategies LLC. He may be reachedby phone at (917) 991-0088 or [email protected].

photo gallerySportime Elite Program

Sportime Tennis BethpagePhoto credit: Franklyn Higgs

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2. New self-rated players are given alower threshold for disqualification basedon their playing results, so in their firstseason with your team you need to playthem sparingly and at third court doubles.They will clearly be able to dominate the com-petition, but you do not want that. You wantthem to maybe play three or four matchesthat first season. Have them win a couple andlose one by reasonably close scores. Eventhrow in a 10-point super tie-break or two tomake it look even more competitive.

3. At the end of their first season, theseplayers will receive the coveted “com-puter rating.”Once they have the coveted computer rating,they can be unleashed the following season toplay high value courts because their thresholdfor disqualification is now much higher. Theywill probably get bumped up after the season,but that is fine since you had them available toget you as far as possible that second season.

U S TA T E A M T E N N I S continued from page 5

When they are in a match where they can betotally dominant, have them give away a fewgames to keep the scores close as that mighteven help keep them from being bumped upafter the second season.

As another source for recruiting, find re-cent or not so recent, former college play-ers. When they self-rate, they can answer“no” to the question about whether theyplayed college tennis. As long as that lie isnot discovered in their first season, they arehome free. You can then follow steps twoand three above so they will not draw anyattention to themselves in their first season,obtain the coveted computer rating and beready to play for real in season number two.

An interesting loophole, where you are notpenalized for lying during the self-ratingprocess once you complete your first yearand get the computer rating, allows this tohappen. I know it sounds unbelievable, and it


While I cannot guarantee you a sec-tional or national title if you follow thesetips, I will guarantee that you will field ateam that will dominate any other teamwith legitimately rated players at thelevel you compete at. The process willtake approximately two seasons to befully implemented, but if you can be pa-tient for these two years, you will reaplong-term rewards year after year by fol-lowing these tips:

1. Visit the various tennis facilities inyour area and look at the in-houseleague results for the highest levelleagues that are offered.These are usually at the 4.0 and 4.5 level.Identify a few of the top players and make theUSTA pitch—that they can join your teamand have a chance to play for a national title.You will have them self-rate at a lower level—say 3.5 and that will position them to playtheir first season.


America. I loved the multiple choice andshort answer questions. In Jamaica, itseemed every test had to be answered inessay form.

My job started at 1:30 p.m., and I had afive-hour shift. At this job, there were manyother employees just like myself. Employ-ees who fought to stand out, who workedhard to make me look like I was not work-ing hard and they were competing for thesame promotion. My fellow employeeswanted to build their resume just as I did.It was at this time I realized I was no longerin my little bubble. (“Dorothy was no longerin Kansas!”) It was a bubble certainly, butthis bubble had kids just like me with thesame exact dream. They had my dreamand they were willing to work just as hardas me. Their parents supported them justas much as mine did and they played justas many tournaments as I did.

This is when the dream started to de-velop little doubts. It is the first time in my

tennis journey that I started to wonder if Iwould actually see Steffi on the other sideof the net. I struggled to find a coach thatI felt believed in me or who could relate tome. Do not get me wrong, I was still doingwell. I was one of the top girls at the acad-

emy and yet I had to fight to get recogni-tion. But it was okay because I had adream and I knew I had to fight for what Iwanted. I was winning local tournaments,but not being able to play sectionals or na-tionals meant I had to travel far and wide toget points. Each year, I qualified for the Or-ange Bowl Tennis Tournament, but Istarted to get these things called “dream

W H AT I S Y O U R D R E A M ? continued from page 8

crushers,” also known as injuries. I thoughtI was indestructible. I was young and fit,why was my body failing me? This was notpart of the dream.

I was turning 17 and I had already grad-uated from high school because my previ-ous essay focused education in Jamaicaallowed me to skip a grade when I mi-grated to the big leagues. That academic-focused nation did me some good after all.I decided to take the permitted year breakafter high school and see how well I did onthe pro circuit.

I was still at the academy, but now with-out school, my workday had now in-creased to seven hours including myfitness regimen. I must say that training didnot seem as easy as it had before. I some-times dreaded it and even exaggerated myaches and pains to get out of it because Isimply did not feel like hitting another ten-nis ball for another consecutive hour. Why

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“… a dream pursued withdetermination and

discipline equals success.”


was this happening to me? Was it becausemy dream was fading? Or, was I no longerthe big fish in the small pond, but instead,a part of a massive school of fish, chasingthis big killer hook, disguised as a deliciousand scrumptious worm!

I started receiving college scholarshipoffers. I went on a few visits just for thefun of it, but I could still see the faint vi-sions of my dream. Very few girls went tocollege back then and became successfulpros. I was already pushing the envelopeby not turning pro by the age of 15, but Iturned them all down. I still believed Icould make it.

In December, I decided to play my lastOrange Bowl tournament before going onthe pro circuit. I did reasonably well andgarnered a lot of attention and interest. Al-though I did not win the tournament or getfar in the main draw, it was still a hugemilestone for me. I finally understood thattennis is a journey and that it has its upsand downs, its trials and tribulations butthose moments of victory are worth thehard work, just as in life.

To conclude my story, after the OrangeBowl, I was offered a full scholarship to theUniversity of Miami and after many a diffi-cult conversation with my parents, I endedup enrolling and arrived at the CoralGables’ campus, one that I had never vis-

ited, two weeks later. I rushed into this de-cision because I felt the opportunity wouldnot present itself again.

You may ask what happened to thedream I have been talking about this wholetime?

I made my decision based on threethings:

1. I could see myself relating to the coachwho recruited me for the University ofMiami. It would be the first time I’d experi-ence having a female coach and the ideaof learning from a woman who had ac-complished and experienced all the thingsI had or dreamed of doing was a huge fac-tor in my decision. Who better to coach agirl than a girl?

2. My dad told me that a dream never dies.He said that if I had the same desire aftercollege, nothing could stop me. Steffiwould have to wait a few more years toplay me that’s all! The only difference beingthat I’d have an education to fall back onafterwards.

3. Although I appreciated the wonderfultennis tradition coupled with a great ath-letic program, I’d have to say that the over-riding reason why I chose the University ofMiami was because it was close to home.

W H AT I S Y O U R D R E A M ? continued from page 13

They say, “Home is where the heart is,”and yes, this is so true, but home is alsowhere the dream ignites. Through my jour-ney away from home, I have learned thatone should appreciate what you have be-cause sometimes, the next best thingmight not be necessarily better.

My dream allowed me to get an educa-tion from a private university. It afforded methe opportunity to see the world. I was ableto meet interesting and diverse people andto follow the road less travelled. Although Idid not get to shake Steffi Graf’s handacross that net or say that “thank you”speech, I feel that I can say, without reser-vation, that a dream pursued with determi-nation and discipline equals success. Ibelieve the most important lesson I learnedoverall was that you can be both an athleteand a student.

Orison Swett Marden said, “Greatachievers are great dreamers.”

What is your dream? �

Alanna Broderick is an independent tennispro on Long Island and the director of Girls4 Girlz Tennis Camps. She competed onthe pro tour from 2002 after graduatingfrom the University of Miami, where she re-ceived her BBA in marketing and Spanish.She is a USPTA certified coach and can bereached at [email protected].

The Early Hit Training Center is pleased to announce our 6th annual Junior Summer Tennis Camp. Our comprehensive program will provide your child with all the resources necessary to reach his/her maximum tennis potential.

The Early Hit Training Center incorporates all aspects of the game into our complete program. We begin each session with a nutritionally complete and balanced shake from Court 7 our on-premise restaurant and smoothie bar. After a thorough warm-up, the student will work through the core components of tennis, including stroke

dynamics and strategy, and reinforce these lessons with focused match play. A thorough cool-down and stretching session completes a world-class day of tennis for your child.

With our team of renowned tennis teaching professionals, experienced physical conditioning trainers, movement experts and on-site chef, the Early Hit Training Center offers a unique and total tennis experience.

$125 a day / $495 a week.

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JUNIOR “ALPS” PROGRAMSeptember 2009 - January 2010

Saturday 8:00am - 10:30amSunday 8:00am - 10:30am 3:30pm - 6:00pm

Monday 6:00pm - 8:30pm 7:30pm - 10:00pmTuesday 8:30pm - 10:00pm

(adult group training)

The Early Hit Training Center is pleased to announce our 4th season of group training.This comprehensive program will provide your child with all the resources necessary to reach his/her maximum tennis potential.

The Early Hit Training Center incorporates all aspects of the game into our complete program. After a thorough warm-up, the student will work through the core components of tennis, including stroke production and drilling. We then move onto playing dynamics and strategy, and reinforce these lessons with focused match play. A session starts or

Come experience our team of renowned tennis teaching professionals, conditioning trainers and movement experts.

“ALPS” Is a program for High Aptitude Learners.

World TeamTennis (WTT) is tennis like you’ve neverseen it, featuring the biggest names in the world

playing together in an innovative co-ed team format thatoffers exciting possibilities for players, fans and com-munities. The 10-team league was co-founded by BillieJean King in the early 1970s.

The format of matches is that each team is comprisedof two men, two women and a coach. Team matches con-sist of five sets, with one set each of men’s singles,women’s singles, men’s doubles, women’s doubles andmixed-doubles. The first team to reach five games winseach set. One point is awarded for each game won, anda nine-point tie-breaker is played if a set reaches four all.If necessary, overtime and a “super tie-breaker” areplayed to determine the outright winner of the match.

The 2009 Advanta WTT Pro League regular seasonruns July 2-22 in 10 U.S. markets, with the top twoteams from both the Eastern Conference and Western Confer-ence advancing to the Conference Finals on July 24. The Con-ference Champions will compete in the Advanta WTT Finals onSunday, July 26 at a location still to be determined.

Players from 17 countries will play in WTT this season, but it’sa team of young Americans that will make league history this sum-mer. The defending WTT Champion New York Buzz selectedWorld TeamTennis’s youngest team ever, with a lineup of four up-and-coming American junior prospects, a WTT first. The new-lookBuzz will feature two 17-year-olds, Alex Domijan and Evan King,and two 16-year-olds, Christina McHale and Sloane Stephens.

Earlier this year, the United States Tennis Association(USTA) became a minority owner of World TeamTennis, and

the organizations areteaming up to promotethe growth and devel-opment of youth team tennis in the U.S.

“One of the main goals of the USTA’s partnership with WorldTeamTennis is to create innovative new ways to showcase our sport,”said Lucy S. Garvin, chairman of the board and president of USTA. “Bycreating this WTT team that features some of the country’s top juniorprospects, the young players will gain valuable experience while show-casing our next generation of up-and-coming talent to new audiences.”

The lineup for the U.S. team was put together by PatrickMcEnroe, general manager, USTA player development and hisUSTA coaching staff.


Photo credit: Bill Putnam

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Andre Agassi, Philadelphia FreedomsAndre Agassi, Philadelphia Freedoms


“An integral part of our newplayer development philoso-phy is to foster a team conceptamong our rising junior talent,while providing them the bestopportunities to face toughcompetition,” said McEnroe.“The New York Buzz will pro-vide the perfect opportunity tofulfill both these goals for theboys and girls working with theUSTA.”

Buzz owner Nitty Singh hasa long history of supportingyoung tennis talent.

“We are extremely excited toshowcase America’s finest juniors on our New York Buzz team thisseason,” said Singh. “This keeps with our tradition of presentingthe game’s future stars, such as Andre Agassi, Pete Samprasand Lindsay Davenport.”

Big names will certainly take the court for WTT this summeras well. Marquee players including Maria Sharapova (New-port Beach Breakers), Venus Williams and Andre Agassi(Philadelphia Freedoms), Serena Williams (Washington Kas-tles), Kim Clijsters and Anna Kournikova (St. Louis Aces),Martina Navratilova (Boston Lobsters), John McEnroe (NewYork Sportimes), Michael Chang (Sacramento Capitals), andMike and Bob Bryan (Kansas City Explorers) are all going tocompete.

The local team here on Long Island and in New York City is theNew York Sportimes. They will be playing home matches at theirbrand new facility on Randall’s Island.

The Sportimes finalized their roster on March 31. The teamprotected Sportime’s star and New York City tennis icon, JohnMcEnroe, who will play five matches for the Sportimes in his10th year as a member of the team. One of 10 teams partici-pating in the WTT player draft, the Sportimes drafted in theeighth position as a result of their success in 2008, when theywere one of four teams to qualify for the 2008 league finals.The Sportimes made a deal with the St. Louis Aces to swapfirst-round picks, which allowed the Sportimes to secure thefirst pick in the first round of the draft. The Sportimes used thatpick to draft top American player Robert Kendrick, who playedfor the team twice before; first in 2001 and then in 2005 when

the team was crowned WTT champions. In round two,the Sportimes protected WTT Rookie of the Year, andcrowd favorite, Jesse Witten, who returns for his thirdconsecutive season with the team. In round three, theteam selected Ashley Harkleroad, who returns for herthird season as a member of the Sportimes, havingplayed in 2006 and 2007. Harkleroad, who has re-mained in the headlines as a top 100 player, returns tothe Sportimes as a new mom of baby Charles IV, withproud dad Chuck Adams joining his family for his thirdyear as the Sportimes coach. In round four, theSportimes completed its roster by selecting American

doubles specialist Christina Fusano.McEnroe will play for the Sportimes at Sportime Stadium on

Monday, July 13, and in a special legends match-up, versus theBoston Lobsters and their star Martina Navratilova, on Wednes-day, July 15. Marquee players visiting Sportime Stadium in2009 include: Anna Kournikova (Tuesday, July 7 playing for theSt. Louis Aces), Serena Williams (Friday, July 10 playing for theWashington Kastles); Martina Navratilova (Wednesday, July 15playing for the Boston Lobsters); and the Bryan Brothers (Fri-day, July 17 playing for the Kansas City Explorers). TheSportimes’ home opener is scheduled for Tuesday, July 7 atSportime Stadium at 7:00 p.m. on Randall’s Island.

2009 New York SportimesHome ScheduleStart time for all matches is 7:00 p.m. unless otherwise noted.

Date OpponentTuesday, July 7 ..........St. Louis Aces (featuring Anna Kournikova)

Wednesday, July 8 ....NY Buzz (2008 WTT champions featuring members of the All-American junior team)

Friday, July 10............Washington Kastles (featuring world number one-ranked women’s player Serena Williams)

Monday, July 13 ........Newport Beach Breakers (legend John McEnroe will play for the Sportimes)—7:30 p.m. start time

Wednesday, July 15 ..Boston Lobsters (featuring Martina Navratilova in a special Legends Matchup versus John McEnroe)

Friday, July 17............Kansas City Explorers (featuring world number one-ranked team of the Bryan Brothers)

Sunday, July 18 ........NY Buzz (2008 WTT champions)—4:00 p.m. start time

Maria Sharapova,Newport BeachBreakers

Michael Chang,SacramentoCapitals

New York Sportimes Player Draft Results

Protected Player: John McEnroeLong Island’s own John McEnroe is aformer world number one-ranked pro-fessional tennis player. McEnroe wonseven Grand Slam singles titles—threeat Wimbledon and four at the U.S.Open—nine Grand Slam men’s doublestitles, and one Grand Slam mixed-dou-bles title.

Round #1: Robert Kendrick California born and raised, and a formerAll-American at Pepperdine, RobertKendrick turned pro in 2000 and achieveda career-high ranking of 77th in the worldin 2007. Kendrick was a member of theSportimes’ 2001 and 2005 WTT champi-onship team.

Round #2: Jesse Witten A native of Naples, Fla., Jesse Witten isa former NCAA finalist who played forKentucky and turned pro in 2005. Heachieved a career-high singles rankingof 171st in 2006. He was the WTT MaleRookie of the Year in 2007. This isJesse’s third consecutive season play-ing WTT for the New York Sportimes.

Round #3: Ashley Harkleroad Born in Georgia, Ashley Harkleroadachieved a career-high singles rankingof 39th in the world in singles in 2003and 39th in doubles in 2007. She car-ried the Sportimes to a WTT conferencetitle in 2006. She is the winner of eightITF singles titles and five ITF doubles ti-tles. This is her third year playing for theSportimes and her fourth WTT season.

Round #4: Christina FusanoChristina Fusano turned pro in 2003 andachieved a career high doubles ranking of84th in the world in 2008. Born in theUnited States, Christina is the winner ofeight ITF Tour (one with Harkleroad) andone WTA Tour doubles titles. This is herfirst year playing for the Sportimes andher second season playing WTT.

Anna Kournikova fromthe St. Louis Aces cele-

brates a victory over theSpringfield Lasers

Play during aWTT doublesmatch featuringBob & Mike Bryanfrom the KansasCity Explorers

Martina Navratilova ofthe Boston Lobsters pumpsher fist during a WorldTeamTennis match

Photo credit: Camerawork USA, Fred Mullane

Photo credit: Camerawork USA, Fred and Susan Mullane

Photo credit: Camerawork USA, Fred and Susan Mullane


Photo credit: Getty Images

Photo credit: Getty Images

Photo credit: William MorrisAgency

Photo credit: Camerawork USA,Fred and Susan Mullane


Moussa Drame Tennis is serving up a lot of funon the newly resurfaced NovaGrass tennis courts atthe Pridwin Hotel, just off the beach.

Our philosophy encourages every player to bethe best player he or she can be, through smallclasses or private instructions from seasoned teach-ers who offer plenty of positive reinforcement.

AdultsAll skill levels. Private or group lessons. Ladies clinic5 days a week.

Junior CampAll skill levels, ages 7-18. 3 sessions: 8 a.m.-11a.m., 11a.m.-2p.m., 2p.m.-5p.m.

PeeWeeAll skill levels, ages 3-6.Private or group lessons.

Private Court InstructionWe are happy to travel to your private court or acourt near your home, if you prefer.

OUI LOVE TENNIS!

Contact information:[email protected]

Phone numbers: 917-209-6615 • 631-749-0799

Address: Moussa Drame TennisShore Road • Shelter Island, NY

With Adult, Senior and Super Senior playbeginning the week of May 18, its time

to start thinking about the Tri-Level Leaguewhich will begin this August. The Tri-LevelLeague format is women’s teams, as well asmen’s teams, consisting of three courts ofdoubles. One court is made up of playerswith a National Tennis Rating Program(NTRP) rank of 3.5, one is of players 4.0 andthe third is of players rated 4.5. A team canhave up to four players at each level.

To get this league off the ground and havea team qualify for the 2009 sectionals, weheld a one-day round-robin event for both themen and women this past January. All theplayers loved the format, and as the coordi-nator watching the event unfold, I enjoyedwatching the camaraderie among teammates

of different levels whose tennis paths proba-bly would not have crossed without thisleague. It also gives friends of different tennislevels the opportunity to share the team ex-perience together.

The winning teams from Long Island ad-vance to a Sectional Championship in Febru-ary 2010 (location to be determined) and thewinners from that event will advance to theNational Championship, set for March 2010 inIndian Wells, Calif. The nationals are played thesame weekend in March as the pro tourna-ment, so not only do you get to play great ten-nis, but you get to watch some as well!

Since court time is so hard to get betweenSeptember and May and the United StatesTennis Association Mixed-Doubles Leaguetakes available weekend time, we decided

to run the Tri-Level League in August whenthere is plenty of available time. If you havea team or would like to get involved with ateam, please contact me by e-mail [email protected]. I must be aware of allteams by July 1 so registration can takeplace and I can get a schedule completeand to the clubs.

Regarding the USTA Adult, Senior andSuper Senior teams, the deadline to add play-ers to your team is Monday, June 15, 2009.League standings showing the point systemcan be seen online at www.litennisscores.com.

Kathy Miller is the manager at CarefreeRacquet Club and is also the Adult LeagueCoordinator for USTA/Long Island. Shemay be reached at [email protected].

B Y K AT H Y M I L L E R

ADULT LEAGUE WRAP-UP


is, but if you can make it through that firstseason under the system’s radar, you canplay with impunity the following season.

There are others methods being employedto get around the system and there will con-tinue to be creative captains that can exploitthe system with ever more cleaver ideas.

By adding four or five players each sea-son in this manner, you will essentially createyour own “farm” system to feed your rosterand replace players that get bumped up.With 18 or 24 roster spots available on eachteam, depending on the region you play in,there is plenty of room to add new playerseach season who will only need to play thethree or four matches necessary to obtaintheir coveted computer rating.

For the majority of USTA captains, who, likemyself, would never stoop to these antics, Ihave some better ideas. If only 20 percent ofthe captains cheat using the methods outlinedabove, or others that are similar, the other 80percent will never have a real opportunity to

play for a national title and that is a shame.I have taken all of this up with both the

Eastern Section and the National USTAgroups with zero success. I accept the factthat the new computer system and the self-rating process are here to stay, but I have sug-gested some checks and balances to insurefairness within the framework of that system.In a nutshell here is what needs to be done:

1. Increase the fee to join a team and ac-cumulate a fund of a few thousand dollarsfrom the thousands of players who jointeams each season.

2. Provide each captain, at each level, withthree challenges that they can use to chal-lenge the validity of a player’s rating whentheir own players feel someone is above level.

3. The challenge is communicated to thecaptain of the player being challenged, aswell as the league coordinator.

U S TA T E A M T E N N I S continued from page 12

4. The captain whose player is being chal-lenged is then committed to letting theleague coordinator know when the chal-lenged player is playing again in a USTAmatch.

5. The league coordinator then makesarrangements to get a teaching pro to at-tend that match to observe the player forthe duration of the match. The teachingpro needs to be from a club not involvedin the match being watched. The teach-ing pro is paid their regular rate from thepool of funds collected when players joina team.

6. The player who is challenged cannotplay another match until evaluated by ateaching pro as part of the challengeprocess. When being evaluated, the playerneeds to be playing on the same court (i.e.,first singles, second singles, etc.) as whenthe challenge was issued.


7. If the teaching pro decides that theplayer is above level, he disqualifies theplayer, and all of that player’s results forthat particular season are reversed. In ad-dition, since the challenge was upheld, theoriginal captain who made the challengestill has the original three challenges left.

8. If the teaching pro decides that the player inon level, the player can continue to play andthe original captain that made the challengenow loses one of the three challenges.

9. A way to minimize the number of chal-lenges actually carried out with a pro atthe match is to only permit challenges ofplayers who are in the system three yearsor less. So a player in the system for fouryears of more cannot be challenged.

Of course, like the self-rating systemcurrently being abused, there are potentialissues with the process outlined above.The player being challenged can attemptto tank the match or otherwise hold back.This might work, but an experiencedteaching pro will see through most ofthese attempts, just as an experiencedrater under the old system could.

What it will do, however, is create an en-vironment where captains will think twicebefore recruiting high level players forlower rated divisions. I have always beenamazed that people would want to play atlevels well below their true rating, but thelure of a national championship, I guess,is too strong for some to pass up.

Over a two- to three-year period, thechecks and balances will improve com-petitiveness, help facilitate fairness, andgive everyone a real opportunity to play fora national championship.

Then, the reality will finally match themarketing hype. �

Jim Dileo and his wife, Fran, own a real es-tate investment and management com-pany. Jim also volunteers his time for andis co-president of the North Bellmore-North Merrick Youth Basketball League.He has captained USTA teams since 2001and currently captains 10 teams annuallyincluding men’s, seniors and mixed dou-bles out of the Carefree Racquet Club inMerrick, N.Y. He may be reached [email protected].


Getting a Grip: On My Body, MyMind, My SelfBy Monica Seles

Monica Seles’memoir Gettinga Grip: On MyBody, My Mind,My Self, pub-lished by theAvery Books im-print at PenguinPress, tells thestory of the un-luckiest tennischampion. The

nine-time Grand Slam winner writes aboutthe difficult emotional journey she enduredduring her playing years. The appearanceof the book in early 2009 is an attempt tocapitalize on her recent appearance on theTV show “Dancing with the Stars.”

Seles retired from professional tennis inearly 2008. She branched out into showbusiness via the show the same year. Shedidn’t get far in the competition, but in herbook, she considers her ability to take sucha step as evidence of a newly-found self-confidence.

“I was a different person now, and it tookonly a few days of moping around before Irealized I was fine,” said Seles. “I’d facedmy greatest fear, performed despite a caseof nerves that was worse than any I’d hadbefore any of my Grand Slam finals, sub-jected myself to the judgment of totalstrangers, and taken criticism withoutfalling apart in front of millions of people.”

But as tennis fans know, Monica Selesisn’t known primarily for her dancing, or,unfortunately, for her two-handed fore-hand.

The appearance of her book is as good

a reason as any for readers to reflect on theunfairness of what happened to the playerin the wake of her on-court stabbing.

To recap, Seles was playing MagdalenaMaleeva in Hamburg, Germany, on April 30,1993. She was ranked number one at thetime. A fan of her rival, Steffi Graf, plungeda knife into her back during a change-over.Seles lost two-and-a-half years of playingtime at the peak of her career and what sheestimated to be more than $10 million inprize money and endorsements. Evenworse, she lost her confidence and senseof who she was.

And as the icing on the cake, her at-tacker was only sentenced to two year’sprobation. Understandably, she appealedthe decision. She lost that legal challengeand ended up paying what she said was $1million in court fees.

Is this grim enough? It gets worse. Dur-ing her rehab period, Seles developed whatwas in the scheme of things, a relativelymild eating disorder. Still, for a woman ath-lete in the public eye carrying around whatwas, at its worst, an extra 30 or 40 lbs., itwas no picnic.

Just when she had managed to over-come enough of the physical and psycho-logical barriers that had prevented herfrom competing, Seles was hit with an-other blow—the death of her father, KaroliSeles, who had been her first coach andwho functioned as an irreplaceable sup-port system.

As she tried to make her way back ontothe tour in the late nineties, Seles alsostruggled to keep up with a new generationof rivals on the court, Venus and SerenaWilliams, Justine Henin, and Martina Hingis.Except for the latter, the first three playersexemplified a new trend of power-hittingthat Seles had to adjust to. She never made

it back to number one, but she was able toreestablish herself in the top 10.

Seles’ book is worth reading for the storyof her struggle to overcome her personaldemons. Caught up in the whirlwind of thepro tour from an early age, it is no wonderthat her emotional development suffered.Self-image problems connected to one’sphysical appearance strike women in allwalks of life. Nor is the problem confinedto women.

But Seles’ story has a larger significancein addition to her victory over binge eating.Sadly, every time a tennis fan attends a proevent, there is a grim reminder of the worstmoment in her career. You just have to ob-serve the guys, usually in some kind of uni-form, who stand between the player’schairs and the crowd during change-oversto understand that what happened to herin Hamburg in 1993 changed things in thesport of tennis.

The attack on Seles was part of the loss oftrust in safety in the tennis world and thelarger world overall. It wasn’t as bad as Sept.11, nor as bad as John Lennon, althoughhad the wound been a few inches closer toher spine, there wouldn’t have been anyMonica Seles comeback on the tour, still,what happened to Monica Seles will alwaysbe a marker for a decline in public life.

Getting a Grip: On My Body, My Mind,My Self is her mature response to that rolein history. And although it can be over-looked, let’s close with a nod to her playingaccomplishments. Nine Grand Slam titles,a unique style, a pioneer in grunting, it’sonly fair to remember Monica Seles theplayer. Her book only contributes to thatlegacy. �

Brent Shearer may be reached by e-mail [email protected].

Long Island Tennis Magazine’s

Literary CornerBy Brent Shearer


Long Island Tennis Magazine recentlyhad the chance to chat with two pro-

fessional women’s tennis players, MeganMoulton-Levy and Ahsha Rolle to discusstheir paths to the pro tour.

For many talented junior players, break-ing into the professional ranks can beoverwhelming. It takes a whole lot morethan just hitting a good ball to make thetransition into the pro game, and ofcourse, if any of these young players dohave holes in their games, you can bet thatthe better tennis players out there aregoing to find them.

In other words, even a solid career in jun-ior tennis—no matter how great the re-sults—it is not always enough to make it onto the pro circuit. Tournament schedules,travel itineraries, cutting costs, and deepsecond serves are only a handful of thethings that must be considered. So thequestion then becomes, “When is the righttime to turn pro?”

In an attempt to solve the traditionalproblems that occur for a young playergraduating from juniors, some playershave been turning to the collegiate sys-tem first in hopes of finding professionalsuccess later.

One of those players is Megan Moulton-Levy, a 24-year-old native of Grosse Pointe,Mich. Currently ranked in the top 250 on thepro tour, Megan began playing tennis atthe age of seven. She moved to Switzer-land at the age of 11 where she played forfive years while attending boardingschool. Megan never played high schooltennis and at 16-years-old she enrolledat Evert Tennis Academy in Boca Raton,Fla. where she became one of the topjunior players. Two years later at the ageof 18, she had a decision to make onwhether to go to college or turn pro. Dur-

ing the recruiting process, she decidedshe wasn’t mature enough or ready forthe pro tour, both physically and mentally,so she choose to attend William & MaryUniversity.

For Megan, col-lege helped hergrow into the playershe is now. Shegained experience,matured, and im-proved on the men-tal side of thegame. She learneda lot, both on the

court and off the court, during her years incollege and now has both a career on theprofessional tour, as well as an education.In our conversation, she did note that “Thereis a large gap between college and pro ten-nis in the women’s game, much more thanin the men’s game.”

One negative aspect she sees in col-lege tennis was the physical preparation

for the pro tour. In college, she was onlyplaying approximately three matches aweek where as in the pros, she mayhave to play three matches just to qual-ify for a tournament. She explained that,while you do have teammates andcoaches, “You have a lot of personal re-sponsibility to keep your own focus ontraining.” Due to the fact the competi-tion on the college level wavered attimes for Megan, she had to make sureshe was preparing herself for a pro ca-reer and not just to win the match thatwas in front of her. Megan certainly seesboth positives and negatives to thewomen’s college game and said, “thereis no right decision on college tennisversus pro tennis as a graduating junior.The decision is a personal one to knowwhat is in your best interest at thattime.”

At the age of 24, Megan is now play-ing her best tennis and feels that not

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By Laszlo Elek

Any tennis player look-ing to move their game

to the next level has to lookat their fitness level. Fitness

is an essential part of tennis, and its im-portance increases at the higher levels.When assessing the fitness components oftennis, we need to look at several areas tohighlight the demands of the sport. This willalso help to illuminate the areas that anytraining program needs to cover.

One major factor is the length ofmatches. For example, men’s Grand Slammatches regularly last in excess of fourhours, while the 2008 Wimbledon Final be-tween Roger Federer and Rafael Nadallasted four hours and 48 min.

The distance covered is also a factor. Ina typical game of tennis, a player can ex-pect to cover anywhere from three to fivemiles. However, unlike simply running asimilar distance, in the course of a tennismatch, most of this distance will be shortside to side (lateral) movements, or sprintsto and from the net.

This combination of speed and en-durance is further highlighted if we look atindividual points and movements. A typicalpoint lasts 3 to 7 sec.—though some aremuch longer—and in the course of a game,a player will make around 300 to 500 rapidbursts of energy.

So what will advanced tennis training dofor you?

First and foremost, increased fitness willimprove your ability to be in the right placeand make the right shot—quite simply, im-proved fitness allows you to forget aboutthe physical demands of the game andconcentrate on shot selection.

There’s more to it however.An analysis of the game showsthat tennis has a limited rangeof movements—the service,forehands and backhands—thus certain muscle groups dothe bulk of the work and takemost of the strain.

Tennis-specific training canthus target these areas, improv-ing strength and reducing therisk of repetitive strain injuries.

The key elements of atennis conditioning pro-gram include:

� Aerobic (cardio) conditioning for endurance

� Anaerobic (sprint)conditioning forspeed

� Flexibility� Strength� Agility

We’ll look at each inturn, demonstrating howit can help you to move tothe next level.

Cardio fitnessWhile tennis does not have the nonstopcardiovascular demands of running orswimming, the sheer length of the gamenecessitates including it in a tennis fitnessprogram.

Players need to be able to sustain move-ment for several hours at a time withoutgetting overly fatigued. In addition, cardiofitness will also help you to recover quicklybetween points.

Anaerobic fitnessWatch any high level tennis matchand you will see that in a typicalpoint, players change directionseveral times, at speed. Whetherit’s sprinting to the net or racingfrom one side of the court to theother to track down a wide pass-ing shot, players need speed. Thequicker you are in position, thebetter your shot execution will be.Speed is developed throughrepetitive sprint drills in which theplayer simulates match conditions.

In addition to simply sprinting,speed work for tennis should also reflectthe typical motions of the game, much ofwhich is lateral (side to side). It is also im-portant to include agility work to hone theability to move precisely. Specific drills areneeded to train these muscle systems.

FlexibilityAn underrated element in many trainingprograms, good flexibility is essential fortennis. However, if you consider the ex-

Tennis Fitness: The Next Level



putting her body through the rigors ofpro tennis during her college years hasenabled her to be playing as well as sheis now.

According to AhshaRolle, a top 250women’s professionalplayer, “In men’s ten-nis you can go to col-lege and come outready to play, but inwomen’s tennis, itdoesn’t prepare youfor the different styles

and high level of play and fitness that takesplace on tour.”

For this reason, Ahsha decided to skipcollege and go straight to the pro tourafter juniors. The path Ahsha took beganin Miami Shores, Fl. Growing up, Ahshadidn’t play at fancy tennis academies. In-stead, she honed her skills on the publiccourts of Miami. She didn’t want to be,

as she described, “a small fish in a bigpond” at one of the academies. Ahshanever played high school tennis as shewas home schooled after the seventhgrade. Her dedication to tennis causedAhsha to miss out on a lot of the morenormal experiences of a high school kid,such as the prom and football games, butbecause of tennis, she got to travel theworld and experience a lot of things thekids her age were not able to.

When it came time to choose betweencollege or a path straight to the pros,Ahsha choose the tour. She decided shewould try the tour for a year and if shewasn’t successful, she would then gothe college route. She was successfulthough, and decided to stay the courseand remain on tour. She did say the tourcan be lonely at times, as it is certainly abusiness and sometimes the players iso-late themselves from “the competition,”but that she has no regrets about her de-

T H E PAT H T O T H E P R O S continued from page 23

cision to skip college. She said it was“the best thing for her tennis game.”Ahsha is currently playing some of herbest tennis and is looking forward to herfavorite major, the U.S. Open this sum-mer, where she enjoys the “crazy love”she receives from the American fans.

Megan and Ahsha both took differentpaths to the pro tour, but what’s impor-tant is that they both made it and are ex-celling on the tour. Neither of them haveregrets about their choices and both areliving their dream of playing on the protour. The lesson they both shared wasthat no matter which path you take afterjuniors—going to college or goingstraight to the pros—the key is havingfun, staying positive and doing your bestto improve upon your game each day. �

Megan and Ahsha will be coming to LongIsland this summer to instruct at the Girlz 4Girlz Tennis Camp.

Ahsha Rolle


tended positions a player has to executeduring a game—such as reaching forwardfor a lob, extending to reach a wide pass-ing shot—it is apparent how important thiselement of fitness is. Flexibility helps youto reach shots more quickly and efficiently,and hit the ball with balance and control.

StrengthThe top players regularly serve in excess of130 mph, and are able to hit both fore-hands and backhands with brutal power.While some of this is natural talent, it ishoned and improved by strength training.

A good example of this is Andy Murray,whose natural talent made him a top 10player. However, it was not until he steppedup his conditioning that he was able tobegin consistently beating Federer andNadal.

For anyone looking to advance to thenext level, the message is simple—thestronger and more powerful you are, thestronger and more controlled your hittingwill be, and the better your overall game.

However, strength isn’t just aboutbrute power. As noted above, tennis isalso a repetitive game, so sufficientstrength is required in the core, legs,upper back, shoulders and arms to with-stand these repetitive motions. A baselevel of strength will thus help you avoid

injuries. Indeed, it is only once you haveestablished a base level of strength thatyou can build the explosive power nec-essary to execute better shots. Playersneed good leg strength to cover the courtmore effectively, and core and upperbody strength to serve and executegroundstrokes more powerfully.

While some of this power and strengthwill come from simply playing the game,to maximize your talent, you will need toincorporate strength training into yourprogram.

A key part of tennis strength training isthus muscular endurance. Tennis playersneed to perform regular, high repetition ex-ercises to condition their muscles to exe-cute the same motion over and over againwithout weakening.

Stability and dynamic balanceFinally, a player needs to develop stabilityand dynamic balance. Again, this is crucialin tennis where you have to maintain bodycontrol while hitting shots at speed. Theability to remain balanced while moving willenhance your game, allowing you to makeshots even while off-balance.

Putting it all togetherCombining all these elements into an ef-fective training program takes hard work

F I T N E S S A N D N U T R I T I O N continued from page 24

and knowledge. An overall program re-quires planning as the program should bebuilt around your major competitions.Thus you will start with a period of basetraining, gradually adding more intensityand match-based work as you approacha major tournament, then tapering off tobe rested come match day. Keeping trackof all this requires regular testing of thevarious elements (speed, strength, en-durance), to ensure that progress ismaintained.

It is also important to look at your bodycomposition—that is, the ratio of fat tomuscle in your body. Look at a player likeNadal if you have any doubts about thebenefits of a strong, muscular build with lit-tle body fat! This comes from a combina-tion of good diet and effective training.

If you want to take your game to thenext level, you need a personal trainerwith the ability to design a tennis condi-tioning program. �

Laszlo Elek is a certified personal trainer(CFT) working out of Sportime-Syossetwho runs tennis specific training programs.He can be reached by phone at (516) 320-1463 or e-mail [email protected] toarrange your own tennis specific trainingprogram, and start to move your game tothe next level.

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By Ed Wolfarth

I cannot figure out why someof my students just don’t getit. I’m telling them everythingI know, I’m trying different

images and drills and they still do not seemto improve. One day on the court, I was ob-serving a fellow teaching pro giving a les-son. In a half-hour time span, he said verylittle. As a matter of fact, he didn’t say any-thing technical or noteworthy. “Good shot,way to go, that’s not it,” seemed to be hisrepertoire, but the student was still improv-ing at a rate not much different than my stu-dent … what’s up? Certainly, I give mystudents feedback as well. After manyyears of trying different teaching tech-niques, I’ve come to the conclusion that

there is little that can be taught but muchthat can be learned through self-discovery.And that’s the gist of it! I’ve evolved in to a“learning facilitator.” This may seem noth-ing more than a connotation distinction, butdefinitively, an important one.

A good teacher of any motor skill, in myhumble opinion, needs to be aware of howeach student learns. He or she needs todwell less on “how to” advice and more onthe “what.” By this, I mean learners arecommonly task-oriented. Take, for exam-ple, the simple (not always easy) task of di-recting a forehand. Many instructors mightsay, “Turn your shoulders, point the stringsin the desired direction,” etc. This how-toadvice may work, but it does not createpermanent learning, and in fact, may im-pede complete progress. A better ap-

proach might be to set up targets and say,“Hit it there!” This simple task will, eventu-ally, provoke the desired result. The learnerwill have to go through a process of trialand error and the learning will be morecomplete.

The other day, I was giving a backhandlesson to a female student. Her one-handed backhand tended to fly long be-cause of her incomplete switch to a fulleastern backhand grip. During our half-hour lesson, I asked her to hit a backhandinto the net with an exaggerated high fol-low through. Her first few attempts sailedwell over the baseline, but after a while, shewas able to perform this simple (but not sim-ple) task. Without any instruction, she hadchanged her grip! Within 15 min., she com-

Teaching or Learning … That is the Question



When thinking about what we will wearto our next tennis practice session or

match, we are usually concerned with thecomfort and style of our athletic apparel.After all, keeping comfortable during aworkout is easily accomplished with all themoisture-wicking fabrics available to ustoday. And looking good while doing it …well, that’s a bonus! Both stylish and func-tional, tennis apparel has come a long waysince the days of all-cotton, all-whites. Sowhile we go to great lengths (and expense!)to purchase our outerwear and underwear,how many of us consider some “inner”wear? Inner-armour, as I like to call it, canalso be stylish and functional. It can protectagainst injury, and for some players, actu-ally enhance their performance on the court.This often overlooked piece of apparel is es-sential for virtually every sport. Of course,I’m talking about athletic mouth guards.

Mouth guards for tennis? Anyone?While most of us would consider athleticmouth guards for traditional “contact”sports like football, boxing, hockey,lacrosse, martial arts, rugby, etc., as es-sential equipment, wearing a mouth guardfor a tennis match would be consideredunnecessary … overkill, perhaps. After all,tennis is a non-contact sport, right? Tellthat to my patient, JoAnn C., who, duringthe third set of a mixed-doubles match,took a backhand from her partner’s racquetright in the mouth. Fortunately for her, thisaccident occurred at a time when I was inmy office, so I was able to provide emer-gency care in a timely manner. Six stitches,one root canal and two caps later, she wasable to return to her passion. But NOTwithout her custom mouth guard!

“Never in a million years would I haveimagined something like this happening tome,” she later lamented. “I have been play-ing tennis competitively for close to 20years, and I have never heard of anyonegetting hit like that.”

It should be noted that dental injuries are themost common type of oral-facial injuries sus-tained during sports of all kinds. In JoAnn’scase, significant physical, emotional and fi-nancial pain could have been avoided with thisseemingly insignificant piece of equipment.

An ounce of preventionIn sports, a major challenge is to maximize thebenefits of participation, and to limit injuries.Prevention, via adequate preparation, is a keyelement in minimizing such injuries. Properlyconditioned bodies, well-fitting protectiveequipment and correct techniques duringcompetition can help minimize injuries.

Holistic sports dentistry has a major role toplay in this arena. The holistic sports dentistshould be concerned with providing proper in-jury prevention strategies and dental educa-tion. Properly-fitted and sport-specific custommouth guards are the single most effectiveway of minimizing the likelihood of severe den-tal and jawbone injury, as well as concussion.

An athlete whose tooth is knocked out dur-ing a game and does not receive the properemergency dental treatment within 30 min.,may face a lifetime of dental costs estimatedat between $10,000 to $15,000 per tooth,many inconvenient hours in the dentist’s chair,and possibly other dental and physical prob-lems. Purchasing in a custom mouth guard,especially during this current economic crisis,may be the wisest investment you make!

A rose is a rose, is a rose, is arose … right?Not necessarily. Contrary to popular belief,all mouth guards are not created equally. Aproperly-fitted mouth guard must be pro-tective, comfortable, resilient, tasteless andstreamline. It should cause minimal inter-ference with speech and breathing, and ontop of that, have excellent retention and fit.Additionally, it must have sufficient thick-ness in critical areas of to disperse theforces of impact.

You’re Not Fully Dressed Without Your Mouth Guard

By Dr. Len Fazio



plained that hitting balls into the net waspretty dumb. I countered, “We don’t haveto practice hitting backhands out, you al-ready know how to do that! Duh!” She haddiscovered, on her own, that her weak gripwas the cause of her problem. She becameaware (the operative word) of the causeand effect relationship through self-discov-ery. Her progress was swift.

Learning a motor skill is best accom-plished when the learner goes thru the foursteps of learning:

1. Unconscious incompetence: Not know-ing the cause of the problem.

2. Conscious incompetence: Now, beingaware of the cause and effect, but still notable to always perform properly

3. Conscious competence: Being able toperform at reasonably high skill level, butonly with conscious thought.

4. Unconscious competence: Highly skilledwith no thinking!

Skill or swing is habitual and can be per-formed in any environment. Many learnersnever progress from step one to step two.And that’s the key … failure to becomeaware dooms one to failure. You’ve proba-bly heard the definition of ignorance …“doing the same thing over and over andexpecting a different result!” Awareness isthe key. All motor learning starts with thebrain. The learner needs to understand thecore concepts of hitting a tennis ball. Whatmakes the ball go up or down. Then theprocess of trial and error kicks in. Then, andonly then, does practicing that skill orswing have any true consequence. And,don’t forget that practice makes perma-nent, not perfect!

In conclusion, we need to train our brain.By that I mean, our brain controls the bodyand the body controls the racket. How-to

T E A C H I N G O R L E A R N I N G continued from page 27

instruction is less effective than allowingself-discovered learning. The brain learnsthrough self-discovery. I’ve concluded thatI can teach very little, but my students canlearn a lot. I implore my teaching col-leagues to get more in tune with the learnerand the learning process and stop teach-ing so much! �

Edward Wolfarth is the tennis director atthe Tam O’ Shanter Club in Brookville, N.Y.He is also a professor of physical educationand sports sciences at Hofstra University.In addition to his class load, Edward findstime to coach high school tennis at JerichoHigh School. He’s an active member of theUnited States Professional Tennis Associa-tion and currently serves on the executiveboard of the United States Tennis Associa-tion-Long Island Region. He still plays com-petitively and is a highly ranked seniorplayer. He may be reached at (516) 626-9005 or e-mail [email protected].

��


There are three popular types beingused today.

1. Stock: The stock mouth guard, availableat most sporting goods stores, come inlimited sizes (youth, small, medium, large),are the least expensive, and the least pro-tective. This type is ready to be used with-out any preparation. Simply remove it fromthe package and immediately place it in themouth. They are bulky and lack retention,and so must be held in place by constantlybiting down. This interferes with speechand breathing. This type of mouth guard isoften altered and cut by the athlete in anattempt to make it more comfortable, fur-ther reducing its protective properties.

2. Boil and bite: Presently, this is the mostcommon type of mouth guard on the mar-ket. Made from a thermoplastic material,they are immersed in boiling water and re-formed in the mouth using finger, tongueand biting pressure. Available in limitedsizes, these mouth guards often lack properextensions for posterior teeth in adult ath-letes. Leaving those molars uncovered sig-nificantly reduces the effectiveness of theguard, making injury more likely. Addition-ally, this type of mouth guard is often fur-ther altered by the user to increase comfort,which may reduce its protective ability.

3. Custom-fitted: Custom-fabricated mouthguards are supplied by a dentist. Custom

mouth guards provide the dentist with thecritical ability to address several important is-sues in the creation of a device which satis-fies the main criteria of proper fit, protectionretention and comfort. The dentist can alsotake into account previous history of injury orconcussion, missing or loose teeth, or ortho-dontic treatment. In the case of grade schoolathletes, mixed dentition of primary and adultteeth and ever-growing jawbones must beaccounted for. These mouth guards are themost satisfactory of all types, and are thekind I recommend for my patients.

Find your sweet spotIn addition to providing protection fromtrauma, custom mouth guards can alsohave a positive effect on body strength. Oralorthopedics (custom mouth guards) havean effect on the entire neuromuscular/auto-nomic nervous system (ANS). Specifically,the position of the lower jaw—an after-thought with conventional mouth guards—is directly related to arm muscle strengthand spinal alignment. Enhancement of theANS is achieved by changing the “bite” to amore ideal position. This places the lowerjaw into an optimal relationship with theskull which relieves pressure placed on themuscles, nerves, bones and blood supply.This can provide for postural equilibrium,which will affect the body’s response topain, retraining and flexibility.

Benefits to tennis players would likely in-clude: Hitting the ball with more authority,

W I T H O U T Y O U R M O U T H G U A R D continued from page 28

increased endurance and less pain afterthe match.

Joseph D., another patient of mine, saidit best when he related his experience afterwearing his new mouth guard for the firsttime. After enduring some good-naturedribbing from his opponent (“It’s a tennismatch, not a boxing match!”), he said: “Ifelt like a kid out there. Then I promptlydropped a double bagel on him!”

To be sure, Joe D. was already an excel-lent tennis player and in great physicalshape, so his experience may not be typi-cal. However, persons of average abilitymay benefit in different ways ranging frompain reduction and quicker recovery, tobetter footwork, more powerful strokes andimproved service.

Advantage … you!A thorough evaluation by a sports dentist isthe best first step in determining the mostappropriate mouth guard for your needs. Asa holistic sports dentist, avid sportsmanand father of three sports-active boys, I cantruly appreciate the requirements of today’sathletes. Manufacturers of tennis equip-ment have continually turned to science forthe latest advancements in technology,which can give players a competitive edge.The sport-specific custom guards of todayare no exception. If designed, fitted andcared for properly, these space age mate-rials can provide long-term protection andan athletic advantage.

As more research is being conducted, itis becoming more apparent that condi-tions affecting any part of the oral-dentalcomplex can, and do, have an impact onan individual’s physical health. So thenext time you are ready to hit the court,bring your “A” game and bring yourmouth guard! �

Dr. Len Fazio graduated the NYU Collegeof Dentistry in 1988 and has been prac-ticing metal-free, mercury-safe, holisticdentistry since 1993. Dr. Fazio operateshis practice PowerPlay Holistic SportsDentistry out of Port Jefferson, N.Y, andserves as the official team dentist of theLong Island Lizards of Major LeagueLacrosse. He may be reached by phoneat (631) 474-7477.

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“Hey, coach.” I remember thefirst time I heard it. It soundedstrangely ominous. I was aSocial Studies teacher atJohn F. Kennedy High Schoolin Bellmore, N.Y. My first few

years there, I would go out and hit with theteam; coaching was a whole new world.

I had been playing tennis since I was incollege, with a passion that bordered onfanatic. I remember attending Forrest Hillsto see the likes of Rod Laver, Ken Rosewalland Arthur Ashe. I remember wooden rac-quets and white tennis balls, and when thefinal of the U.S. Open cost $6 for a seat.

In reflection, I think every coach, everyteam and every season is a story unto itself. Icame from an era when your racquet spokefor you and your behavior was as importantas your win/loss record. I had not been muchof an athlete in high school and did not relateto the “big game” football approach. I under-stood what it meant to watch from the side-

lines. I mention all of this because it was def-initely part of my coaching. I never tired ofsaying (though my teams certainly were tiredof hearing) “You represent yourself, your par-ents, your school and me. Behave in an ap-propriate manner or stay home.” I would nottolerate unsportsmanlike behavior; it wasprobably the only thing that I would flare at.

When I got the coaching position, one ofmy colleagues said that I would get a wholenew perspective on teaching. All teachersfeel that they can never have enough “tools”in the classroom and he was correct. I sawa completely different side of some kids,and they saw a slightly different side of me.In retrospect, I was coached as much as Icoached. I became a better teacher and abetter person for it.

Coaching high school tennis is differentfrom coaching other sports. There is an in-verse relationship between talent and need.In wrestling, for example, your high schoolrecord is vital to your hopes for scholarship

and entrance into the college of yourchoice. The better you are at tennis, themore important your United States TennisAssociation ranking and your performanceis in local and regional tournaments. An-other difference is that often it is in a player’sand coach’s self interest to excuse a playerfrom practice in order to take a private les-son. What may have appeared to be indif-ferent coaching to a baseball coach wasessential coaching to a competitive team intennis. Another interesting aspect of tenniscoaching is the pressure placed on somecoaches. Where football and wrestling maybe the measure of success in some com-munities, the Bellmore JFK team playedsome schools where the future of the coachdepended on their win/loss record. I had acoach lie to me once to postpone a sched-uled match by saying his best players wereon a religious retreat. I found out later thatthe “religion” they were retreating to was a

B Y A L A N F L E I S H M A N

Do you aspire to play college tennis at a Division I, II or III level? Finding a school with the right tennis program and well balanced

academics that fit your needs does not have to be an overwhelmingexperience. Let Advantage Tennis Strategies help. We will work with

you to navigate through the college selection process both realisticallyand efficiently. ATS will help you make the right choice. The process ofselecting a college is a huge step towards your future. Take that step

with an advantage, Advantage Tennis Strategies.

Visit us at www.AdvantageTennisStrategies.com

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"College tennis provides an excellent platform for junior players to learn more about themselves It is a great environmentto learn life skills before the transition to the workforce. College tennis challenges you with adversity, diversity, and yourability to adapt to change. Unlike the juniors, you have teammates cheering you on throughout the process.".

Asi PhillipsHead Coach, Long Island University



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This month, Long Island Ten-nis Magazine had a chanceto chat with Jericho, N.Y. na-tive Bryan Koniecko, a seniorat Ohio State University.

Bryan has been ranked number in thecountry for most of the year by the NCAA.

Did growing up on Long Islandinfluence your tennis for the bet-ter or the worse?Long Island is a great place to grow up,but not an easy place to become a greatplayer. Social life, balance, concentrationof life, and academics are all perhaps moreintense here than in many other places.Obviously, the weather in Florida is moresuitable for tennis, but time efficiency isimportant and you had better learn to useyour time well here since it is very expen-sive to play indoors. With my game, I dobelieve that playing indoors helped me be-

come a better overall player since I workedon different things, which helped me im-prove by being more aggressive and di-verse. The U.S. Open is right next door, soyou can see the best players in the worldnearby. Of course there are also great fa-cilities on Long Island and many goodplayers in the area.

What was the best moment ofyour tennis career?My experience at Junior Wimbledon wasgreat. I traveled there with my coach,Steve Kaplan, and we had a really terrifictime. There is no place like The All Eng-land Club anywhere else in the world. Ithelped me gain experience to even agreater accomplishment in playing theMen’s U.S. Open. Having three Big 10 ti-tles with the team at Ohio State means alot to me, its a different feeling playing forthe team.

What was the worst moment ofyour tennis career?After my mom passed away, I left a week laterto play ITF tournaments in South America.There were both good and bad things aboutthe experience. It was tough being away from

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my family at a time like that, but it also helpedme get away and sort of clear my mind. Eventhough it was such a difficult time, I knew thatshe wouldn’t have wanted me to stop doingwhat I love, so I continued to play.

What advice can you give LongIsland junior players about devel-oping their game, managing theirexpectations and choosing theright college?First off, I would say to start with basics.Technique is very important and funda-mentals help you play more efficiently.Mentally, you also have to be strong on thecourt. What most don’t realize is how fit-ness and flexibility play a big role as youimprove your game. Many players areborn with talent, but fitness is the factorthat separate the best players.

It is good to establish some personalgoals, but if you don’t achieve them, don’tgive up. Instead, keep working harder.Also, managing expectations from parentsor coaches can be difficult. Every parentdeals with expectations in a different wayand some are harder than others. In theend, every parent means well and youcannot take it personally if they are tough.My coach, Steve Kaplan, didn’t judge onwins and loses, but more on performanceand the way I acted out on the court andthe effort I gave which is more importantin the long run.

Syosset ‘s Sarah Landsman Honored as University of Arizona “Freshman of the Year”

Sarah Landsman, a native of Syosset, N.Y. who played her junior ten-nis on Long Island, has been named “Freshman of the Year” by theUniversity of Arizona. The award is given to the top freshman in allwomen’s sports at the University of Arizona. In addition to her honor,Sarah was also ranked in the top 100 in college women’s tennis.

A graduate of Syosset High School, Sarah participated in theUnited States Tennis Association National Open in 2007 and wasranked in the Tennis Recruiting Network’s Top 50. She will spendher summer working at the Early Hit Summer Camp at GlenHead Racquet Club.

As for collegiate advice, I’d say to seekout and find a school with a good balance.A good tennis program is obviously impor-tant if you want to take tennis to next level.A coach you get along with and can workwith is a very important aspect of you col-lege learning experience. Finally, don’t gofor the best “name” school, find a placethat is a good fit for you.

What does the future hold for you?I have another quarter of school to finish inthe fall before I graduate and get my de-gree. Then, I intend to play professionaltennis. I have been offered a scholarship atIMG Academies in Florida and that will be

a great base to train from. I hope to breakthe top 200 in the world rankings in undertwo years and perhaps continue to be top100 in the world. I am very happy that nomatter what happens, I will have a degreeto fall back on if things don’t go well withmy tennis career.

What is something that few peo-ple know about Bryan Koniecko?I said on my school bio that I enjoy kick-boxing, where in reality, I never even triedit. I guess I like pulling pranks on my team-mates and friends. I think it’s hilarious. Iwould also love to learn how to surf, thatwould be pretty cool. �

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If there is one thing that all tennis profes-sionals agree on, it must be “look at the

ball.” We all try to get our students to un-derstand that from the very first lesson.However, most students truly do not un-derstand the depth of the concept of “look-ing at the ball.” Along came Roger Federerand it was obvious that he had perfectedthe skill. Hundreds of photographs andstop-action videos show how his head isstill down looking at the spot where the ballmet the racquet, even though the ball hasalready left the strings of his racquet.

Years ago, I concluded that all good play-ers have four things in common on theirstrokes, and from that information I formu-lated what I thought and still think are the fourbasic concepts of a good stroke. Notice thatI do not mention grips, topspin, slice, etc.

1. Look at the ball with such intensity thatyour eye muscles are actually a little soreat the end of play.

2. Turn your shoulders.3. Hit the ball as far in front of you as pos-

sible (almost never does someone hit theball too early).

4. Make sure that the ball, the racquet andthe body weight go in the same direction.

Looking at the ball (number one) is thecatalyst that produces the chain reaction ofthe stroke (numbers two, three and four).

At this point, you are probably wonderingabout the title of this article and what does allthis have to do with people with Multiple Scle-rosis (MS). For the past five years, I have beenconducting MS clinics in conjunction with theLong Island Chapter of the National MS So-ciety. I am always amazed that when the stu-dents first come, they have very noticeableambulatory problems, but within 30-40 min.,they appear to be moving much better. Sev-eral of the students who originally neededwalkers began not to use them and somewho spent all their time in wheelchairs on thecourt actually started to stand and hit balls.

Assuming that I do not have any miracu-lous powers (a very safe assumption) …what would account for this very noticeableimprovement in mobility in such a short pe-riod of time? The answer … “looking at the

ball” with intensity beyond belief and lookingstraight ahead when moving, rather thanlooking down which is what most MS pa-tients normally do. The reason behind it isvery interesting. Normally, MS patients aregetting false messages from their brain,which in turn, affects their balance and theyare constantly overreacting, trying to puttheir body parts in sync with the false mes-sages. Nerves are normally surrounded byfatty sheaths called the myelin sheath whichare basically fatty sheaths that act as insu-lators, similar to the rubber coating on elec-trical wires. In MS patients the “insulation”is not complete, so the transmission of im-pulses gets distorted at the very least. Whenplaying tennis with a full comprehension ofwhat it means to “look at the ball,” the brainis so focused on that one particular task thatit ignores the false messages and the bodygoes on automatic pilot. I have spoken withmany doctors and they confirm that al-though my explanation is a little over simpli-fied, it is accurate.

Now, just imagine if you are fortunateenough not to be afflicted with MS, howmuch better your game would be if you trulynot only looked at but saw the ball with every

available brain cell. If you would like to seehow important this really is, try the following.

1. Bounce and catch a tennis ball five times.I am sure you will catch it every time.

2. Repeat number one, but this time, do itwith your eyes closed. If you are success-ful two times, you are way above average.

3. Hold a ball in your dominant hand andput your arm out to your side, but keepyour head and eyes pointing straightahead. Bounce and catch it if you can.Don’t cheat! Keep your eyes straight aheadso you cannot see your hand bouncing theball. Again, two successful tries would beabove average. �

Dan Dwyer is the head professional atOceanside, N.Y.-based Point Set IndoorRacquet Club. He was named USTA Man ofthe Year in 1997 and was inducted into theUSTA Hall of Fame in 1998. His list of paststudents includes John McEnroe, four-timeU.S. Open Champion and three-time Wim-bledon Champion. He may be reached at(516) 536-2323 or e-mail [email protected].

Tennis and Multiple Sclerosis By Dan Dwyer

Country Club TennisTennis is the Sport of a Lifetime

The North Shore Men’s Tennis League (NSMTL) is comprised of players from var-ious walks of life who love the sport of tennis and are eager to play outdoors dur-

ing the months of May through September in an organized setting. The league hasbeen in existence for more than 20 years, successfully hosting as many as 16 teamsper season and run ably by its president, Steve Abbondondelo.

Planning begins in March and April for the season’s opening the first week of May. At thepre-season meeting, ideas are hatched, and rules are reviewed and revised depending onpast experiences. Strict rules apply to each team’s roster. Weekly scores are collected fol-lowing matches for calculation. League format is five courts of doubles. All matches arescheduled for Tuesdays at 5:30 p.m. Standings are e-mailed to the team captain and co-captain every other week. Each team supports the league with membership dues and re-ceives a set of rules, schedule, list of team captains and contact information, directions toeach other’s clubs and score sheets for completion following a match.

New teams are always encouraged to join the NSMTL if they comply with leagueguidelines.

If anyone is interested in the NSMTL or for more information about the upcoming season,please contact Steve Abbondondelo by e-mail at [email protected] or NSMTL Sec-retary Val Pakaluk at [email protected] for more information. See you on the courts!


regional USTA tryout. The coach was fear-ful of losing a match.

These are the parameters that shaped mycoaching. Like a kaleidoscope, just a littletwist gives a very different picture. I carried asquad of 24 players because we had sixcourts at JFK. Some of the players never gotto play a competitive match, but all receivedVarsity letters (I attended Wantagh HighSchool, class of ‘65, and a letter was a bigdeal). Some of my proudest moments werewhen some of the court one and two playerswould hit with the kids on five and six. Onceagain, there is much to be learned fromcoaching and the idea of a team concept.

I had my share of great players and greatpersonalities. When Scott Lipsky came toplay for the team, the guys said, “Just puthim on court one.” I replied, “Don’t any ofyou want to challenge him, he’s a freshman.”“He’s number six in the world in juniors,” theytold me. Wow. What do you do now? Fortu-nately, he was a normal child blessed withabnormal talent. His parents, Gail and MarkLipsky understood Scott’s talents as well ashis needs. He was “one of the team,” and Iconsider it a great honor that Scott came toplay high school tennis even in his senioryear. These are the things that really matterto a coach long after the phone calls intoNewsday (the winning coach makes the call).

What a fun time we had. Shawn Worth (an-other member of the JFK team), would say,“Put me in last, coach. I’ll get us the win.” Andhe often did, but when he didn’t he just smiledand said “next time.” I loved that attitude.

David Sickmen always stepped up andwas victorious in the final set of a matchthat would determine the division champi-onship. The whole team was happy forhim, as well as themselves.

I had all different types of players, fromTina and Gary, my Russian players, wholoved the fact that I could say about fivewords in Russian, to superstars like ScottLipsky to David Sickmen, who played bas-ketball and tennis with the same desire tosucceed. He would bring you a win or col-lapse trying. What a blessing to be acoach. This leads me to another pricelessmemory … the bus ride home.

I coached both boys and girls tennis and,

if there is a gender difference, it was reflectedon the bus ride home from an away match. Iwas not a disciplinarian under most circum-stances, and if the team lost a match Ithought they should have won, I might try andset a somber tone, though I never insisted onit. More often than not, I tried to console theplayers who lost (I remember being there my-self). It is a fact that if 10 million tennis play-ers walk onto the court, five million will lose.Generally speaking, the girl’s team had aneasier time coping with an unexpected lossthan the boys, however, let me let you in on alittle secret—if you want to know all of thescandals and gossip in a suburban highschool, go on a bus ride with the girls. It wasa great and eye opening experience.

I taught social studies for a third of century,and coached for a decade. I would not tradeeither for all the gold in Ft. Knox (consideringour present economic situation, I guess I amnot giving much away). Let me leave thisstory with two vignettes: Scott Lipsky is nowon the ATP Tour and I reside in Florida. Whenhe played at the Delray Beach tournament,he got me a pass. I used to describe mycoaching of Scott by saying “I would insistthat I open the can of balls for him beforematches so he would not cut his finger.” Itsaid “Player Coach.” You cannot imaginehow much that meant to me. Another player,Eliot Rosenblum, gave me a coffee mug thatsaid “World’s Greatest Coach.” I know thatisn’t true, but nevertheless, I drink my coffeefrom it every morning. All in all, it was a greatview from the front of the bus. �

Alan Fleishman has been a devoted fan oftennis since 1969. He won the Town ofHempstead tennis tournament at New-bridge Road Park in 1972 and was runner-up in 1974. He worked as an assistant tothe tennis professional in the summer pro-gram at Lutheran High School in the early1970s. While teaching social studies atJohn F. Kennedy High School in Bellmore,N.Y., he was fortunate to have coachedsome talented players, but more impor-tantly, some wonderful young men andwomen during his last seven years at theschool. He may be reached by e-mail [email protected].

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The tennis scene at any country club onLong Island is one of the most enter-

taining places to be. I have been involvedwith this scene as an employee for manysummers of my high school and collegeyears. In fact, if I ever had a chance to pitcha reality show to a television executive, coun-try club tennis would be at the top of my list(with female bullfighting in bikinis as a closesecond). Every club has its own cast of char-acters accompanied by strange events withstupid, mindless rules that have to be fol-lowed at all times or a guy with a sniper riflepoints a red laser dot at your forehead. If youstep back and look at it as a spectator, youcannot help but be compelled at all thedrama. It would score big ratings on primetime television networks. The world would bemesmerized with watching what unfolds onthe tennis courts at a country club.

Okay, let’s get started with the main char-acter of our show—The Head Tennis Pro.

Every country club head pro that I have comeacross over the years is a tremendous actorand does a great job hiding his true feelingsto the world. But the beauty of this guy is thathe never shows it, no matter how far he ispushed. In essence, his whole job is to serveas a human punching bag. He takes jab afterjab about anything and everything, and justsits there and takes it. The head pro justnods, smiles and agrees with whatever com-plaint is being thrown his way. He has longaccepted that this is the main part of his job.I remember one time witnessing a memberyelling at a head pro about the weather andhow the weather ruined her time. The guy justsmiled and repeatedly apologized as if hesummoned the rain clouds to ruin the tennispart of this poor woman’s day. After all, shedoes have the weight of the world on hershoulders and is an extremely busy person.(In case you haven’t figured it out, that lastsentence was oozing with sarcasm.)

Most head tennis pros can out-drink anycollege frat boy you meet. I think one of thejob requirements is to have some type ofmutant liver that can keep you alive afteryou consume a case of Jagermeister in a15-min. period. I have been out to many din-ners with these guys and there hasn’t beenone time where I haven’t debated with my-self whether or not to bring this guy to theclosest hospital after our meal was done.

Every head pro repeats two phrases re-peatedly during their private lessons. “Bendyour knees … watch the ball” … “bend yourknees … watch the ball.” One time, I had aclicker and counted how many times hewould say these phrases in a one-hour les-son, and I stopped at 200 because I wasstarting to get carpal tunnel in my thumb.

Now let’s move to the next character of ourshow—The Assistant Pro. These are prosthat teach sporadically throughout the dayand come and go as they are given lessonsby the head pro. This type of pro has issuesof their own as well. He can get very dis-gruntled at times for two reasons. Reason 1:Most assistant pros are secretly upset be-cause the head pro is taking a cut of theirhourly pay. Very rarely are they getting the fullmoney that is earned in the hour of the lessonthat they teach. Reason 2: The assistant prousually teaches the unattractive members ofthe club. Trust me on this one … it happens,and here is why. The head pro spends a lot ofhis day in the tennis office of the country club.Very rarely is the assistant pro there. He reallyjust gets hours from the head pro and doesn’tschedule too much on his own. When a fe-male member shows up to the tennis officelooking to schedule a lesson, the head pro isthere to help her. If she is attractive, the headpro will make sure he immediately puts her in

What’s the story with country club tennis?

opinionmy B Y E R I C M E D I T Z


his schedule of lessons in his day. Now, if amember shows up and looks like JohnMadden in a tennis skirt, he will, without adoubt, give this lesson to the assistant pro.I’ve seen many forced smiles from assistantpros faces over the years when their 2:00p.m. lesson comes waddling in. The onlything missing from this picture is ChiefBrody telling the assistant pro, “We’re goingto need a bigger boat!”

Now, let’s move to the job that I’ve had formany summers of my college years—TheHitter. The hitter is usually a college playerhome for the summer lacking the ambition toget that internship at Goldman Sachs. His jobis to hang around the courts and hit withmembers who show up unannounced. Hismind wanders as he spends countless hoursjust hitting with random members. He prettymuch spends the rest of his time wonderingto himself if he picked up some type of vibefrom the desperate housewife he just hit with.

At this point, we have met the staff and allthe issues surrounding them. If you aren’thooked on the show yet, you will be after youmeet the members of the club. Country clubmembers love to complain. I hate to be theone to say it, but it’s just how it is. It’s likethey live for it. I think if things were goingsmoothly, they would all be miserable. Thecomplaints can range from—I banged myknee on the ball hopper you left hangingaround and now I can’t hit a backhand, tothe guy who is sweeping the courts is mak-ing too much noise (both are complaints Iheard in the past). But the complaint heardmost often from members is always aboutthe court conditions. The clay is never right.It’s sometimes too soft or too slippery. It’ssometimes too wet or too dry. And everytime they miss a ball, they almost alwayslook confused at the mark in front of themand immediately pretend to investigate it. It’sa little show for the people watching so wedon’t think they normally miss that shot. Afterall, they did play for their high school tennisteam during the Taft administration, so theyare really good … again with the sarcasm.

Members also have to have new ballsevery time they play, because they can’tplay with day-old balls. This just cannot hap-pen! Those balls require optimum pressurewhen they hit their earth-shaking first serves!If not, then what’s the point of even beingout there? Another quirk that they have alsoinvolves the tennis balls. They always have

to have their three balls, and they alwayshave to know where they are at all times.

“Does anyone have a Wilson 2? We aremissing our ball! Wilson 2! Is anyone listen-ing? Wilson 2!”

The whole club has to stop so we canfind this specific Wilson 2. In the past, I havecrawled through bushes and jungles look-ing for missing tennis balls for members.I’ve spent many hours hacking away atbranches with a machete and digging holeswith a shovel to find their very importantthird ball. I mean, we do have a hopper filledwith balls about 10 feet away from them,but they cannot use any of those. Theyneed that Wilson 2! Sometimes I find it forthem on one of my expeditions in thebushes … that’s the good news. The badnews is I think I might have contractedmalaria along the way.

One episode of our country club tennisreality show would be totally devoted to theMember/Guest Tournament. I have playedin this tournament many times as a guestthroughout my life. My personal resume in-cludes being a nationally ranked junior, play-ing four years of Division I college tennis,and I traveled Europe after college playingprofessional tennis. I like to think that I havea very good tennis resume. So every time Iam asked to participate in one of theseevents, I always assume that I am the ringerof the tournament. Now this feeling usuallyends immediately when I show up and seewhom everyone else brought. One guesthas a ponytail, a deep tan and is runningsprints back and forth on the court. The next

guy is in the corner signing autographs onthe back of kid’s shirts. And then I makesmall talk with another guy and, in passing,he mentions that he was once married toChris Evert.

I never know how to play these Mem-ber/Guest Tournaments either. Should Iplay all out? Or should I try to set up themembers so that they put the ball awayand we all make a big deal about how greatof a shot it was? I never know what to doand it’s something you don’t want to askthe members. It’s kind of an unwritten ruleamongst the peasant guests. It’s some-thing you have to just find out on your own.I came to this conclusion when the guy withthe ponytail pegged me in the ear with hisfirst return. Okay … I guess we are playingall out!

With all these things combined, whowouldn’t want to watch this type of showon television? From the events being heldthere … to the constant drama that in-volves everything. It’s a very dysfunctionalenvironment and dysfunction sells! This iswhat the American public needs right nowin these hard times. We need to be enter-tained! We need to be distracted! We needcountry club tennis in our living rooms! I’mtalking about ratings that would take outseason one of American Idol. People wouldbe speeding home at night to make surethey didn’t miss a minute of the drama thatis “Country Club Tennis.” �

Tennis Pro Eric Meditz may be reached bye-mail at [email protected].

Beginners, Advanced and Tournament Players looking to improve or perfect yourtennis game, come and train with a USPTAProfessional One, USTA High PerformanceCertified Coach. Carl is a former Davis Cupplayer who has also competed alongside

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AdidasThe French Open is the world’s premier claycourt tournament and the second of thefour Grand Slam events contested annuallyby members of the ATP and WTA tours. TheFrench Open will be played at Roland Gar-ros Stadium in Paris, from Sunday, May 24-Sunday, June 7. Today’s grand slam tennismatches are more then just prestigious, ac-tion-packed tennis events. These tourna-ments have evolved into important fashionevents, where the world’s top players dis-play the latest sports apparel from theirsponsors on a global stage.

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All in all, the 2009 French Open tennistournament is sure to be one of the greatestsports events of the year. Paris in the springis the place to be to see the world’s top ten-nis players dressed for grand slam success. For more information, visit www.adidas.com.

BaNGG! Inc.BaNGG! Inc. is a fresh alternative sports ap-parel line launched locally on Long Island.Whether you want casual tank tops, veloursweat suits, hoodies or shorts, BaNGG! has itall. With the tagline: “Bring It!,” BaNGG! Ap-parel will make you stand out from the crowd.For more information, e-mail [email protected].

Bionic Tennis Gloves“Every player should wear a glove. But notjust any glove. Tennis players need the BionicGlove because it will improve their game.”—Dan Santorum, CEO of the ProfessionalTennis Registry

That’s a strong statement from someonewhose life is tennis. Dan Santorum repre-sents 13,000 of the world’s top tenniscoaches and teachers. “I was skeptical whenI first heard about the Bionic Tennis Glove,”Santorum says. “Tennis is among the lastsports to embrace wearing a glove. But aftera few volleys they felt very comfortable and


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“The fit is amazing. Bionic’s scientific de-sign provides players with a light grip thatrelaxes your forearms,” Santorum said. “Re-laxed hands and forearms increase racquethead speed for more power, and in tenniswe all want more power.”

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BodyStyleAthleticsTwo New Jersey moms, Meredith Kasun andErnabel Demill, hit a winner with the must-havetennis accessory of the season. It’s called theTennisRAQ (pronounced tennis rack) fromBodyStyleAthletics, and it’s a fashionable wayto hold your tennis balls while playing.

“We were tired of pick-ing up after our kids andhusbands,” said Kasun,one of the creators. “Whowants to bend over andpick up tennis balls?”

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“We wanted to create something functional,”said Demillo, “but it also had to be fashionable.”

Demillo is a former New York City re-porter and anchor, and Kasun worked as afashion buyer in Manhattan. Their com-pany, BodyStyleAthletics, is now a yearold and to celebrate its one-year anniver-sary, they just rolled out a new product—a neoprene backpack, called theRAQpack for your tennis racquet. There isplenty of space for a can of balls, cellphone, keys and of course a TennisRAQ.

The TennisRAQ comes in five cool col-ors, with a matching carrying case, all forjust $19.99. And it comes in a kid’s versiontoo. The RAQpack comes in two colorsand costs $24.99.For more information, e-mail [email protected] or visit www.bodystyleathletics.com.

Whak SakIf you love fashion and fitness rolled up intoone, then Whak Sak are the bags for you.

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FA S H I O N A P PA R E L continued from page 41

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Don’t miss the advertising and editorial opportunities in the next edition of

Long Island Tennis Magazine July/August 2009.

Distribution scheduled for 07/01/09

This edition will also feature:

• Boys High School Recap • Adult USTA summer league report

• Summer Tennis Fashion

Submissions for both advertising and editorial are due by June 1st.For more information, please call (516) 409-4444 or e-mail [email protected].

US OPEN PREVIEWUS OPEN PREVIEWUS OPEN PREVIEWComing July 1stComing July 1stComing July 1st

Distribution across Long Island at: • indoor tennis clubs • country clubs • tennis camps • clinics • supermarkets • gyms • and many more

Also bonus distribution this month at: World Team Tennis at Randalls Island and the US OPEN

Heart,” “Boogie Wonderland,”, “Pretty in Pink”and “Captain Jack,” just to name a few, find-ing the right bag for you is a fun experiencethat’s just a click away at www.whaksak.com.Coming from Long Island, Whak Sak Indus-

tries Owner Heather Combshas focused on creatingbags for comfort and style.

“It was very important tome to introduce a productto the industry that wouldbe original, affordable, andallow everyone to have funwith the product.”

Voted the hottest tennisbag in fashion magazinesfor 2008, these bags are

available at the finest tennis pro shops inthe U.S. and abroad. New patterns and col-ors are offered every season so start yourWhak Sak collection today.For more information, call (888) WHAKSAK(942-5725) or visit www.whaksak.com.

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children to hit the ball, over lower nets.They also use smaller racquets, making iteasier for tots to handle them. Colorfulteaching aids, fun games and constant ac-tivity also keep the children stimulated andwanting to come back for more.

The Quick Start Tennis program enableschildren to have early success with tennis andalso teaches teamwork, while improving con-centration and motor learning development.

Debbie Cichon is coordinator of the QuickStart Tennis Program for Tots at CarefreeRacquet Club in North Merrick, N.Y. Shemay be reached at (516) 489-9005 or e-mail [email protected].

QuickStart TennisQuick Start Tennis Targets Youth

By Debbie Cichon

Quick Start Tennis is an ex-citing new play format forteaching tennis skills to chil-dren. The program was de-

veloped by the United States TennisAssociation to bring children into the gameby utilizing specialized equipment andshorter court dimensions, all tailored to ageand size. With this program, children willbe taught the basic skills that will help de-velop hand-eye coordination and propermovement. The goal is for children to de-velop tennis skills, and more importantly,have fun while doing so.

Carefree Racquet Club, located in NorthMerrick, N.Y., is one of the first clubs onLong Island to implement the Quick StartProgram for three- to five-year-olds. Theyuse large foam balls which bounce lowerand travel slower, making it easier for the

UCLA, Fordham & Hofstra Join Together For2009 Accelerated Summer Tennis Academy

Coached by:Robert Janecek – Former UCLA 4 time All-American and A.T.P. Tour player

Alex Bancila – Former Fordham University standout and top I.T.F Junior in the world Amanda Foukas – Current Hofstra Men’s and Women’s Tennis Coach

Academy Highlights• Coaching the fundamentals,

strategy and footwork• Daily instruction and drills,

individually and in smallgroups

• Singles & Doubles matchplay

• Movement & conditioningmechanics

• Video Analysis

Academy SessionsSession #1 – June 22 - 26Session #2 – June 29 - July 3Session #3 – July 6 - 10Session #4 – July 13 -17Session #5 – July 20 - 24Session #6 – July 27 - 31Session #7 – August 3 - 7Session #8 – August 10 - 14Session #9 – August 17 – 21 Each session - $200

Academy ScheduleWhere – Hofstra University, Hempstead NY

Mon. – Fri. 4:30pm – 6:30pmSign up for 1 week or 2 or more weeks!

Improve your game and have fun!

To register or for more information call: (631) 961-9987

For all ages and levels!This is an intense program that will help your game.You will not find a better teaching staff anywhere.



U S TA T O U R N A M E N Tphotogallery

Scenes from the L2R Long IslandRegional Championship

March 13-15 at Deer Park Tennis Center

Photo Credit: Franklyn Higgs

Scenes from the L1 Champs LBTC

March 6-8 at Long Beach Tennis Center

Photo Credit: Franklyn Higgs


By Carl Barnett

Pros use a simple method tovolley the ball. You can dothe same. This is not divingor figure skating, so addi-

tional points are not gained for degree ofdifficulty.

The mistake I most commonly see onthe volley is players getting caught with theracquet head laid back. Most people havenever made an unforced error on a high-five and a good volley is not much harderthan that.

I like to say the most economical way toset up your forehand volley is to fan theracquet head open. The hand extends for-ward, out and up to the 2 o’clock position,while finding your weight now on the footclosest to the ball. Now step with the op-posite foot from behind your volley and ex-

tend the racquet through the ball withoutletting your racquet head fall back. Leftieswill raise the racquet to 10 o’clock.

Never let the racquet head be at 12o’clock, as you will push the ball down.Never let the racquet be parallel to yourhand while above thenet, because the wristwill then be brokenand you will dump theball into the net.

When volleyingfrom below the nettape, it is imperativeto have the racquetlower than the ball be-fore you volley, usinga similar method offanning open, then volley with a neutral loftwhich sends the ball back on the sameflight path. Any downward motion at the

time of contact will net theball. Keep it simple …less is more. �

Carl Barnett started theEarly Hit Training Pro-

grams at Glen Head Racquet Club six yearsago. He may be reached by phone at (516)455-1225 or e-mail [email protected].

The Forehand Volley Made Simple


Tennistennis as a teamsport, get the kidsplaying and having funfaster, and learning tolove the sport of a life-time. Many of Long Is-land’s tennis clubshave also seen thevalue of the QuickStart format andhave been promoting QuickStart les-sons, tournaments and leagues fortheir members.

Contact the USTA Eastern Long Islandrepresentatives through their Web site,www.eastern.usta.com, to find out how tobring the QuickStart Tennis program toyour school or organization. �

Jared Rada is director of tennis forSportime at Roslyn. He has been coach-ing and directing tennis programs for thepast 10 years. Jared holds a BA in busi-ness with a concentration in marketingfrom Hofstra University. He is a USPTAcertified coach, as well as a certifiedspeed, agility and quickness trainer. Hemay be reached at (516) 484-9222 or e-mail [email protected].

QuickStart Tennis is a Hit inLong Island Schools

By Jared Rada

The United States TennisAssociation Eastern Sec-tion, in conjunction with theUSTA Long Island Regional

Board and local pros and volunteers, hasbeen promoting tennis in local schoolsby introducing students to the newQuickStart Tennis USTA program. Thisnew play format utilizes “kid-sized”equipment, easier-to-understand scor-ing, shorter nets and smaller courts tomake tennis more fun for juniors. Oneway of introducing the game has been forthe USTA coaches to take over gymclasses and in a 8:1 student to coachratio that has kids playing and having funin just minutes.

In the past year, QuickStart Tennis hasbeen introduced to thousands of Long Is-land’s children and 100s of physical edu-cation teachers, PTA parents, volunteerinstructors and others.

The goal of the program is to develop

Controlling the chaos: Using small nets, small rackets andfoam balls, the gym turns into the U.S. Open for the day

Volunteer pro Daniel Burgess (third from left) and PTAmoms from Merrick promote the QuickStart Tennis program

Volunteer pros visit George A. Jackson Elementary Schoolin Jericho, N.Y.: Steve Haar, Sandy Hoffman, Teacher EricaNichols, Bill Mecca, Jared Rada and Steve Abbondondelo

Jericho’s George A. Jackson Elementary School students en-thusiastically welcomed the USTA

Kids in Freeport learning tennis from USTA volunteers

QuickStart

The Door May Fit in the Frame, but the Frame May Not Fit the Opening

A mouth appliance that properly fits over the teeth may in fact not be the correct size for the mouth opening. Unsuitable pressure from incorrect orpoorly distributed biting forces can have a powerful effect on the athlete’s health and the ability to function at peak performance.

What Shouldn’t an Athletic Mouth Guard Do?

Interfere with hand-eye coordination, reflexes: Teeth supply information to many important cranial nerves. The brain interprets what your teethbite on. Incompatible biting forces send inaccurate messages that have an impact on reactions to timing, focus, and concentration.

Put strain on neck and back muscles or decrease strength, flexibility, and endurance: An ill-fitting athletic appliance that causes the mouth to over-open or clench puts strain on the connecting muscles, nerves, bones, and blood supply making you more prone to injury and fatigue.

Prevent recovery from injury: Getting back in shape takes much longer when the body needs to overcome a structural imbalance. An improperlyfitted mouthguard prevents postural equilibrium which can affect the body’s response to pain, retraining, and flexibility.

Do It Yourself Only If Your Health and Athletic Achievements Aren’t That Important

Whether you buy an appliance from the store, on-line, or even from your dentist, you must still determine the fit for your body. If you suffer from al-lergies, painful areas, headaches, fatigue, sleeping disturbances, or any number of health conditions, there may be some connection to the balancesof your bite or the type of material your appliance is made from.

How do you know if Your Appliance is Right?

Kinesiology muscle testing is one way determine imbalances in the body. An appliance in the mouth should not make muscles weak. A well fittingbiocompatible appliance should in fact help to strengthen muscles.

Athletic Mouth Guards Can Hurt You!

Your Teeth May Be Protected from Traumatic Injury, but the Wrong Fitting Appliance CanActually Physically Weaken Your Whole Body

FREE MOUTHGUARD REPORTPlease Call for your FAQ sheet today

"Athletic Mouthguards: 10 Things you must know"

from the Long Island Lizards Official Team DentistDr. Len Fazio

(631) 474-7477


What do you get when you combinethe best elements of tennis and

beach volleyball with the laid-back beachlifestyle? You get the hottest new sport inAmerica: Beach tennis.

Beach tennis is essentially doubles tennisplayed on sand. Played on a regulation beachvolleyball court using regulation tennis rac-quets and a slightly depressurized tennis ball,beach tennis players volley for points withoutletting the ball touch the sand. Because it’splayed on sand, players are able to dive to re-turn shots, which makes for exciting volleys.

Beach tennis is easy to learn and mostnewcomers to the game can be up and run-ning in as little as 30 min. Played at its high-

est pro level, however, it is a fast-paced, in-tensely competitive game that delivers anamazing workout, even for hardcore ath-letes. That’s why beach tennis has been re-ferred to as “The X-Games of Tennis.”

What began in 2005 by Beach TennisUSA as a modest grassroots operation—a truck loaded with beach tennis gear anda small staff of instructors driving to beachcommunities along the East Coast—hasblossomed into a full-production, 10-cityPro Tour, and includes tournaments inFlorida; California; South Carolina; LongBeach, N.Y. and Bermuda.

Long Island, Long Beach in particular, whichhas hosted the Beach Tennis USA (BTUSA)National Championship for the past four years,has become a hotbed for both pro and recre-ational beach tennis. Long Beach is home toseveral of the sport’s prominent figures, in-cluding three-time Women’s National Cham-pion Nadia Johnston, BTUSA Vice Presidentof Business Development Melissa Gibson andBTUSA President Jim Lorenzo.

This season, Long Beach will be the site oftwo BTUSA events. On Memorial Day week-end, fans and players can come check outthe Tri-State Open, which will feature com-petitive and instructional play for all ages andlevels, including Men’s and Women’s Pro di-visions, Amateurs and Mixed Doubles, YouthBoys and Girls Divisions, and open freeplay. There will also be a Pro and AmateurPaddle Division.Paddles, which areused predominantlythroughout Europe,where beach tennisoriginated, are shar-ing the stage withconventional rac-quets on this year’sNational Tour.

On Labor Dayweekend, LongBeach will hostthe 2009 BTUSANational Championship, where players

Ages 3-14yrs 0ver 20 programs

in Sports, Arts, Computers and

Travel

4, 6 or 8 Weeks NEW

1 Week Camps

Locust Valley, NY (516) 393-4207

Two-time Beach Tennis USA National ChampionNadia Johnston shows her

perfect form


from all over the world will compete for cashand glory on the sand. This festival-styleevent includes music by local and nationalbands, product sampling booths, T-shirtgiveaways, and more. It’s like “Lollapaloozaon the beach … with tennis!”

“Long Beach has really become thehome of Beach Tennis USA,” said MarcAltheim, BTUSA’s founder and commis-sioner. Altheim, a resident of Lake Success,

N.Y., discoveredthe sport whilevacationing withhis family inAruba in 2004.“This year, welook forward toi n t r o d u c i n gbeach tennis tomore Long Is-land communi-ties with leagues,youth programs

and our new ‘Places 2 Play’ programs,” Al-theim added.

Currently, there are several permanentcourts set up in Long Beach (on the beachat Lincoln Avenue), and there are plans tobuild more in other communities thisspring.

“This year, our mission is simple—toget more people playing beach tennis,”said Melissa Gibson, BTUSA’s vicepresident of business development.One of Gibson’s many roles at BTUSAis to help people become league direc-tors and beach tennis instructors, or toassist beach clubs, summer camps, ho-tels and resorts in setting up courtsthrough the company’s Places 2 Playprogram. “We’ve really made it easy forpeople to get involved. Beach tennishas this wonderful social element builtinto it—tennis on the beach. Does it getany better?”

This summer, the Beach Tennis USA teamwill also be working feverishly on player re-cruitment and membership enrollment, es-pecially at the college level. Beach TennisUSA will be enlisting the services of students

around the countryto serve as BTUSAUniversity Directors,who will be brandambassadors attheir schools andhelp promote thegrowth of beachtennis in 2010. Uni-versity Directorscan earn up to$500 per schoolyear for their effortsand receive ongo-ing training andsupport from BeachTennis USA. �

To learn more about joining an existingbeach tennis league or starting one of yourown, or to become an official BTUSA Place2 Play, contact Melissa Gibson at [email protected]. To learn moreabout America’s fastest growing beachsport, visit www.beachtennisusa.net.

2008 Beach Tennis USA National Champions Laura and Lisa Maloney high-five

after a match win

2007 and 2008 Beach TennisUSA National Champion

Alex Mingozzi serves during a match


Ricky Becker Kathleen Rice Jill Levine

Guest Speakers

Wednesday, May 6, 2009Crest Hollow Country Club • 5:30 p.m.

Executive BoardScott AxlerRegional Vice President—Long Island Boys Ranking Chair

Daniel Burgess1st Vice President—USPTA Liaison,Dinner Committee Chair

Craig FligsteinSecretary/Treasurer, Suffolk County District Delegate

Sectional StaffBill MeccaT.S.R. Long Island

Sandy HoffmanCommunity Outreach

Board MembersBob CoburnMembership & Marketing

Roberta FeldmanLong Island Girls Ranking ChairDinner Committee

Sunny FishkindNassau County District DelegateDinner Committee

Terry FontanaRally Day ChairDinner Committee

Chris GrennenRegional Volunteer

Steve HaarPTR Liaison/Rally Day Chair/Dinner Committee

Herb HarrisVolunteer Liaison, Dinner Committee,Grant Committee Chair

Anneleis KarpJunior Competition Scheduling

Eileen LeonardCompetition Training Center, Administrator, Dinner Committee

Kathy MillerLeague Coordinator

Emily MooreMulticultural Chair

Mike PavlidesScholastic Representative/Dinner Committee

Ed WolfarthGrievance Committee Representative

Marian MorrisEvents Planner/Coordinator

Calling all volunteers …The USTA Eastern Long Island Region is always seeking enthusiastic, able andtalented volunteers to assist in a variety of ways. If you are thinking of becominga volunteer and would like to be a part of growing tennis on Long Island, contactVolunteer Liaison Herb Harris at [email protected].

A Message From Vice President Scott AxlerWe, the Board of the Long Island Region, are committed to the growth oftennis, the recognition of achievement, the support for our member organ-izations, and especially the fellowship we have with our tennis profession-als and businesses.

The Awards Dinner is our premier event. It is our most beloved event be-cause it is all about the award recipients. We get to celebrate their accom-plishments in the workplace, their successes on the court and theirgenerosity to the tennis community.

I would like to give special thanks to the Dinner Committee, chaired byDaniel Burgess, and fellow committee members, Steve Haar, MichaelPavlides, Sunny Fishkind and Marian Morris, as well as thank the entireLong Island Board for their aid and cooperation in making this most specialevent happen.

Scott Axler, Vice PresidentUSTA Eastern Long Island Region

For information about Long Island‘s clubs, CTAs, parks,programs, tournaments, etc.

please visit our Website:www.longisland.usta.com

19th Annual Awards Dinner Program • www.longisland.usta.com


COUNTY OF SUFFOLK

OFFICE OF THE COUNTY EXECUTIVEH. Lee Dennison Building • 100 Veterans Memorial

HighwayP.O. Box 6100 • Hauppauge, NY 11788-0099

Office of the County Executive1550 Franklin Avenue

Mineola, NY 11501

Steve LevyCOUNTY EXECUTIVE

Thomas R. SuozziCOUNTY EXECUTIVE

Dear friends:On behalf of the thousands of tennis enthusiasts whomake their homes in Suffolk County, I would like tocongratulate members and friends of the United StatesTennis Association (USTA) Eastern Long Island Re-gion on the occasion of its 19th Annual Awards Dinner.I would also like to congratulate the deserving tennisplayers who are honored in over twenty categories fortheir excellence on the court and tireless efforts to pro-mote the game of tennis throughout Long Island. Fortheir exceptional contributions, outstanding achieve-ments and talent, they all are certainly worthy of ourpraise and recognition.

Support of amateur and professional competitionsand tournaments serves to elevate competitive play tothe highest levels in our region and contributes to in-creasing the quality of life for our residents.

My sincere best wishes to all for what I am sure willbe another exciting and successful event this year.

Very truly yours,

Steve LevySuffolk County Executive

Dear friends:I am pleased to join all of you who have gathered to cele-brate the success of the United States Tennis AssociationEastern Long Island Region on the occasion of its 19th An-nual Awards Dinner at the Crest Hollow Country Club.

Tennis has evolved into an exemplary sporting event,providing the athletes who participate an opportunity todevelop their skills and to enjoy the excitement, cama-raderie and lasting friendships inherent in sports.

This wonderful organization is to be commended for itscharitable involvements, quality leadership and selfless servicewhich have made a permanent and positive impact on us all.

Please accept my best wishes and allow me to extendhearty congratulations to the United States Tennis As-sociation Eastern Long Island Region for its exemplaryleadership and dedicated community service, and to allof you who work toward forwarding the goals of thisfine organization throughout the year.

On behalf of the residents of Nassau County, I wish toextend best wishes for an exciting and memorable event.

Sincerely,

Thomas R. SuozziNassau County Executive

COUNTY OF NASSAU

Guest Speakers

Kathleen RiceIn November of 2005,Kathleen Rice becamethe first woman electedDistrict Attorney in LongIsland’s history. Ms.Rice started prosecut-

ing crime in 1992, while in the office ofthe Brooklyn District Attorney. In 1999,Ms. Rice became an Assistant U.S. At-torney, appointed by then-AttorneyGeneral Janet Reno, to serve in thePhiladelphia office.

During the spring of 2005, Ms. Riceleft the U.S. Attorney’s office to returnto Long Island and to give back to thecommunity that raised her and her ninesiblings. In November of that sameyear, Ms. Rice was victorious in herfirst run for public office.

Ms. Rice is a graduate of GardenCity High School, Catholic Universityand Touro Law School.

Ricky BeckerRicky Becker grew up inRoslyn, N.Y., just 30minutes away from here,and played all sportsas a child. At the age ofeight, his mother sug-

gested tennis as both parents wereavid players. From the start, Rickyplayed better than his friends andwas noticed by a local pro. Followinglessons, tennis became part of hisweekly school year sports routine. Atthe age of nine, Ricky entered a tour-nament and beat the number four-ranked 10-year-old in the east. Hisfather took note, and from that pointon, Ricky focused on tennis, as oneby one, his other sports activities fellby the wayside.

Ricky’s on-court accomplishments

as a junior and college player are leg-endary:

� A four-time Most Valuable Player atRoslyn High School;

� Ranked number one in the E.T.A. forboy’s 16s and 18s;

� Number four-ranked nationally inboy’s 18s;

� A U. S. Junior Open Doubles quar-terfinalist; and

� At Stanford University, holder of thethird best record in school historyand even has a chair on the Row ofChampions named for him.

After college, Ricky joined the ATPtour and holds wins against some well-known players. Today, in addition tocoaching, Ricky spends time with Jun-ior Tennis Consulting LLC, a companythat guides junior tennis players inchoices for college, choosing the bestteaching pros, the right tournaments toenter, etc.

Jill LevineJill Levine, born inBrooklyn, N.Y., wasraised in Ann Arbor,Mich. After graduatingfrom the University ofMichigan with a BA in

Psychology, she attended Boston Uni-versity, where she earned both a Mas-ters in Social Work and Masters inPublic Health. Immediately followingher graduation, she moved back toNew York and after a few-years’ stop inBrooklyn once again, now makes herhome in Merrick, Long Island.

Jill is married to Craig Levine, anoral and maxillofacial surgeon whopractices in Bay Shore, N.Y. Shortly be-fore getting married, Jill worked as anoncology social worker at MaimonidesMedical Center in Brooklyn, where sheremained for several years. While there,she counseled and assisted patientsand families dealing with cancer diag-

nosis, as well as ran support groupsand stress management programs.

Jill and Craig became parents in 1996,when their first child, Robbie, was born.Soon after came their son, Josh. Jill wasvery active for many years as presidentof the PTA at her sons’ nursery school.She remained active at Levy-Lakeside,their elementary school. She also hasbeen very active in her local Hadassahgroup, Dayan Lilah, where she has beenhonored with many awards, and heldseveral positions in that group. Her hus-band, Craig, has always been extremelyactive in local little league activities,coaching their sons’ teams. Their chil-dren have always been involved in manysports and local activities.

The Levines decided to add to theirfamily, and in 2005, their daughter,Samantha, was born. Unfortunately,tragedy struck their family later that year,when Robbie collapsed and died at a lit-tle league practice in front of his father.Their life has never been the same. Im-mediately, they formed Forever 9—TheRobbie Levine Foundation in Robbie’smemory. The foundation’s mission is toraise awareness and increase the pres-ence of Automated Electronic Defibrilla-tors (AEDs) in all places where childrenplay. To date, they have hosted threesuccessful fundraisers (Robbie’s Run),and are in the process of planning thefourth, scheduled for April. Their mis-sion is spreading across the area, andthey have already donated approxi-mately 50 AEDs and have raised over$150,000. As all this has been occur-ring, Jill and Craig had a second daugh-ter, Rylie, born approximately one yearafter Robbie’s death.

Jill is devoted to her family and theiractivities, and with the support of herfamily and friends, has devoted hertime and energy, along with her hus-band Craig, to keeping Robbie’s mem-ory alive. They spend their time raisingawareness of the need for AEDs whereour children play sports, all the while,keeping up with her very active family.


5:00 p.m.-6:00 p.m. ..........................................................................................................................Registration

5:00 p.m.-7:00 p.m. ..................................................................Photographs of Award Recipients • The Plaza

6:00 p.m.-7:00 p.m. ....................................................................................................Cocktail Hour • The Plaza

� Welcome and Opening Remarks From Scott Axler, Regional Vice President

� Introductions by D.A. Abrams, CEO of USTA/Eastern

� Prestigious Award Presentations

� Guest Speaker: Jill Levine, Founder of Forever 9

� Award Presentations

� Dinner Served in The Emerald Room

� Guest Speaker: Kathleen Rice, Nassau County District Attorney

� Auction

� Guest Speaker: Ricky Becker, Tennis Professional

� Musical Entertainment from End the Stars

� Closing Remarks From Daniel Burgess, 1st Vice President of USTA/Long Island

*Raffle drawings to be held throughout the evening.

19th Annual Awards Dinner SPONSORS

19th Annual Awards Dinner PROGRAM

AdidasAdvantage TennisApplebee’sDaniel Burgess—Awards Dinner ChairCarefree Racquet ClubCOSTCO Inc.DunlopEastern Athletic ClubGamma SportsGrand Slam TennisHead/PennHicksville Community Tennis AssociationHoulihan’s RestaurantHuntington Indoor Tennis

IHOPEileen Leonard—Grant CommitteeL’OrealLong Beach Tennis CenterLong Island Display ConnectionMary Rose Inc.Modell’s Sporting GoodsNew York SportimesMike Pavlides—Grant CommitteePilot Pen TennisProfessional Tennis Registry, PTRRobbie Wagner Tennis AcademyPoint Set Racquet ClubPort Washington Tennis Academy

Roger Wootton Tennis AcademySincerely Yours Party PlanningStarbuck’sStop & Shop SupermarketsTennis Industry AssociationThe Bayou Restaurant“The Billie Jean King” USTA National

Tennis Center, Home of the U.S. OpenUBS Financial Services Inc.USPTA Eastern DivisionUSTA Eastern SectionUSTA National QuickStart Program

Corporate Sponsors



Excellence AwardsTennis Professional of the Year ..........................................................................................Robert McKennaLong Island Tennis Players of the Year ..................................Bryan Koniencko, Cory Parr & Craig SchwartzNassau County Tennis Club of the Year ..............................................................................Sportime/RoslynSuffolk County Tennis Club of the Year....................................................................Eastern Athletic/MelvilleCorporate Award of the Year ................................................................................The Outback, Jenn Szewc Tennis Family of the Year ..................................................................................................The Talcott FamilyVolunteer of the Year ................................................................................................................Terry FontanaCommunity Special Service Award ..................................................................Long Island Tennis MagazineOutdoor Site of the Year Nassau ..........................................................Nassau County Parks—Jose LopezOutdoor Site of the Year Suffolk ................................................................Casamento Park—Greg DawsonNassau County Scholastic Coach of the Year ........................................................................Brian ParadineSuffolk County Scholastic Coach of the Year ........................................................................Dave WarmuthTennis Official of the Year ................................................................................................................Luis MiraAnuj Agarwal Boy’s Sportsmanship Award ............................................................................Spencer CohnJennifer Sherry Girl’s Sportsmanship Award ................................................................................Eliza BuddRetail Facility of the Year ..................................................................Advantage Tennis—Adam MoramarcoInnovative Tennis Program Introducing Those Afflicted With Multiple Sclerosis to Tennis ..........Dan DwyerPress Service Award......................................................................................................................Bill Mecca

Scholastic AwardsNassau County Boy’s Singles Champion..............................................................................Daniel KreymanSuffolk County Boy’s Singles Champion ..........................................................................Brendan Ruddock

Nassau County Boy’s Doubles Champions ..............................................................Matt Lam & Jason LiaoSuffolk County Boy’s Doubles Champions..........................................................Brett Byron & Andrew Won

New York State Girl’s Singles Champion ..............................................................................Jennifer KellnerNassau County Girl’s Singles Champion ................................................................................Jordana KonoSuffolk County Girl’s Singles Champion ..............................................................................Jennifer Kellner

New York State Girl’s Doubles Champions........................................................Jacqueline & Kelsey RaynorNassau County Girl’s Doubles Champions........................................................Jacqueline & Kelsey RaynorSuffolk County Girl’s Doubles Champions ........................................................Kara Caulfield & Jordan Lite

Prestigious AwardsHy Zausner Lifetime Achievement Award ................................Nancy McShea

Vitas Gerulaitis “For the Love of Tennis” Award..........................Dick Zausner

The Charles Karp Memorial Award for Overcoming Adversity........Jill Levine

Arthur Ashe Multicultural Award ............................................Jason Harewood

Eastern Section/Long Island Region Final RankingsBoy’s 10s #1............................................................Curran VarmaBoy’s 10s #2 ..................................................................Brian Shi

Boy’s 12s #1 ..........................................................Andrew BentzBoy’s 12s #2 ..........................................Cooper Spector-Salwan

Boy’s 14s #1 ......................................................Trevor S. MitchelBoy’s 14s #2 ........................................................Michael Freilich

Boy’s 16s #1..........................................................Jason HubsherBoy’s 16s #2..........................................................Jason Fruchter

Boy’s 18s #1..........................................................Jason HubsherBoy’s 18s #2 ..............................................................Bruce Grant

Girl’s 10s #1 ................................................Celeste Rose MatuteGirl’s 10s #2............................................................Alexa Graham

Girl’s 12s #1 ..............................................................Claudia RuizGirl’s 12s #2 ............................................Morgan Kelly Herrmann

Girl’s 14s #1 ..............................................................Ruth FreilichGirl’s 14s #2 ..........................................................Jessica Sickles

Girl’s 16s #1 ..........................................Elizabeth Caroline-RossiGirl’s 16s #2 ........................................................Andrea Arreguin

Girl’s 18s #1 ................................................................Eliza BuddGirl’s 18s #2 ........................................................Elaine Mantikas

Long Island Region Adult AwardsMen’s 75s ................................................................Phil MalamudMen’s 70s..............................................................Peter BostwickMen’s 65s..............................................................Harold GermanMen’s 60s ................................................................Robert LitwinMen’s 55s ..........................................................Jeffrey RosmarinMen’s 50s ............................................................Walter WinnitzkiMen’s 45s ..................................................................Kyle Permut Men’s 40s ................................................................Russell HeierMen’s 35s ................................................................Adrian ChiriciMen’s 30s ................................................................Adrian ChiriciMen’s 25s ..................................................................Viral Pandya

Women’s 60s ............................................................Peggy GluckWomen’s 55s..........................................................Sandy CooperWomen’s 50s ..........................................................Eileen WalkerWomen’s 45s ..........................................................Eileen WalkerWomen’s 40s ..........................................................Eileen WalkerWomen’s 35s ..............................................Joan Manfredi-CarterWomen’s Open............................................Joan Manfredi-Carter

USTA/Long Island Region League Awards2.5 Women’s Regional Champions ..................................................................................................Maureen Casaburi & Team Members3.5 Women’s Senior Regional Champions ............................................................................................Jody Accarino & Team Members4.5 Women’s Regional Champions ..............................................................................................Gina-Marie McNulty & Team Members4.5 Men’s Regional Champions ................................................................................................................Mark Weiner & Team MembersMen’s Open Regional Champions................................................................................................Martin Wostenholme & Team Members4.5 Men’s Senior Regional Champions ......................................................................................................Ed Wolfarth & Team Members4.5 Men’s Super Senior Regional Champions ............................................................................................Ed Wolfarth & Team Members

CongratulationsTo All The State Champions

And Award WinnersThe Lam Family

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�19th Annual Awards Dinner Program • www.longisland.usta.com

CongratulationsTo Dick Zausner

And Nancy McSheaFrom Robbie Wagner

Tennis Academy

�

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Roger Wootton Tennis AcademyJuniors • Adults

Muttontown-OutdoorJericho/Westbury Indoor Summer Camp June 22nd

[email protected]

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CongratulationsTo All The

Award WinnersFrom Huntington Indoor

Tennis Club

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CongratulationsTo The

Talcott FamilyFrom Robbie Wagner

Tennis Academy

�

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Best Wishes toDan Dwyer, The Best Teacher

From Your MS Group�

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Modell’s Sporting GoodsCongratulates the

USTA/Long Island Region�

�

Long Island Display ConnectionStore Fixtures for Pro Shops

516-376-5797 [email protected]

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CongratulationsTo Dan Dwyer

From Your Point Set Staff�

�

Congratulations to Jared RadaCongrats to the LI Winners

Kevin and Courtney Kowalsky

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Jared Rada – Roslyn SportimeCongrats on a job well done!Tina, Wally & Brian Slivonik

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Harold German, M.D., P.C.Internal Medicine Hematology

631-271-8700�

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Congratulations to theLI Region Award Winners

From The Bayou(516) 785-9263

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Congratulations To AllAward Winners

Sincerely Yours Party Planning(631) 292-2064

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Congratulations toFaith Reis and Her

National 3.5 Senior TeamSue, Roger, Jay and Daniel

�



Bethpage Park Tennis CenterAndrea Pappas-Manager

99 Quaker Meeting House Road #1Farmingdale, NY 11735

[email protected]

Carefree Racquet ClubKathy Miller-Manager

1414 Jerusalem AvenueMerrick, NY 11566

[email protected]

Deer Park Indoor Tennis ClubAfzal Ali-Director of Tennis

30 Burt DriveDeer Park, NY 11729

631-667-3476Fax: 631-667-7179

Glen Head Racquet ClubHeath Koch: 516-676-9849

Home of Early Hit Training CenterCarl Barnett: 516-455-1225

[email protected] Glen Head Road

Glen Head, NY 11545

Huntington Indoor Tennis ClubRich Rottkamp-Director of Tennis

100 BroadwayHuntington Station, NY 11746

631-421-0040

Long Beach Tennis Center899 Monroe BoulevardLong Beach, NY 11561

516-432-6060Fax: 516-897-0097

Point Set Indoor TennisDan Dwyer-Owner

3065 New Street • Oceanside, NY 11572516-536-2655

[email protected]

Robbie Wagner’s Tournament Training CenterAdrian Chirici-Director of Tennis

142 Glenwood RoadGlenwood Landing, NY 11547

516-676-9107www.rwtt.com

Robbie Wagner’s Tournament Training Center@ GLEN COVE

Stephen Alcala-Business Manager60 Sea Cliff Avenue

Glen Cove, NY 11542516-759-0505www.rwtt.com

Rockville Racquet ClubSusan Alvy-Manager

80 North Centre AvenueRockville Center, NY 11570

[email protected]

Smash Tennis ClubJimmy Riaz-Director of Tennis

575 Merrick AvenueWestbury, NY 11568

Business: 516-832-8010Cell: 516-477-1192

SPORTIME at AmagansettSue De Lara-Co General Manager

Hana Sromova-Director of Tennis/Co-General Manager

320 Abrahams Path • Amagansett, NY 11930631-267-3460

[email protected]

SPORTIME at Bethpage TennisPerry Aitchison-Director of Tennis

101 Norcross Avenue • Bethpage, NY 11714516-933-8500

[email protected]

SPORTIME at Bethpage Multi-SportRandy Louie-General Manager

4105 Hempstead TurnpikeBethpage, NY 11714

516-731-4432 www.SportimeNY.com

[email protected]

SPORTIME of the HamptonsMauricio Gattuso-Director of Tennis

Route 104East Quogue, NY 11959

631-653-6767www.SportimeNY.com

[email protected]

SPORTIME at Harbor IslandEric Fromm-General Manager,

Director of TennisIn Harbor Island Park

Mamaroneck, NY 10543914-777-5050

www.SportimeNY.com [email protected]

SPORTIME at Kings ParkPetr Perecinsky-Director of Tennis

275 Old Indian Head RoadKings Park, NY 11754


[email protected]

SPORTIME at LynbrookChris Morales-Director of Tennis

175 Merrick Road • Lynbrook, NY 11563516-887-1330

www.SportimeNY.com [email protected]

SPORTIME at MassapequaFayez Malik-Director of Tennis

5600 Old Sunrise HighwayMassapequa, NY 11758


[email protected]

SPORTIME at ProHealthJay Karl-General Manager

3 Delaware DriveLake Success, NY 11042

516-348-8463www.SportimeNY.com [email protected]

SPORTIME at Randall’s Island Ted Dimond-Director of Tennis

1 Randall’s IslandNew York, NY 10035


[email protected]

SPORTIME at RoslynJared Rada-Director of Tennis

Landing Road, PO Box 1Roslyn, NY 11576


[email protected]

SPORTIME at SchenectadyPhilippe Ceas

2699 Curry RoadSchenectady, NY 12303


[email protected]

SPORTIME at Syosset Tennis & Multi-Sport

Karl Sommer/Director of Tennis75 Haskett Drive

Syosset, NY 11791516-364-2727

www.SportimeNY.com

SPORTIME at Syosset Fitness & Racquetball

Joe Gazio-General Manager10 Gordon Drive • Syosset, NY 11791


[email protected]


USTA Junior Team Tennis Takes L.I. by Storm

Photo credits: Pat Mosquera

United States Tennis Association (USTA)Junior Team Tennis (JTT) is a national

youth tennis league in all 50 states. It’s notabout the individual. It’s about the kids get-ting together to play singles, doubles, andmixed-doubles against other teams within aleague. It promotes values you would expectfrom any sport fostering a spirit of coopera-tion, unity and individual self growth.

Long Island holds a JTT summer sessionthat runs from June through mid-August anda winter session that runs from Novemberuntil the end of April. Summer matches areusually played during the week after 4:00p.m. Winter matches are played on week-ends in the late afternoon or early eveningand players are required to be members ofthe USTA. There is a regional playoff at theend of both sessions. Regional winners ad-vance to the Eastern Sectional.

Long Island has three divisions: 12 andunder, 14 and under, and 18 and under. The14- and 18-year-old divisions have an inter-mediate and an advanced division. The 12and under has an intermediate division.

The following is a list of important up-coming playoffs and events:

� The 12 and under JTT Regional Playoffwill be held Saturday, May 2 at Eisen-hower Park in East Meadow, N.Y. at10:00 a.m. (rain date will be Saturday,May 9).

� 14 and under Intermediate JTT Re-gional Playoff will be held Saturday,May 2 at Robbie Wagner TournamentTraining in Glen Cove, N.Y. at 4:30 p.m.

� 18 and under Intermediate JTT Re-gional Playoff will be held Saturday,May 2 at Robbie Wagner TournamentTraining in Glen Cove, N.Y. at 4:30 p.m.

� JTT Eastern Sectional will be held theweekend of June 20 at the Billie JeanKing National Tennis Center in FlushingMeadows, N.Y.

United States Tennis AssociationWinter Junior Team Tennis Rosters12 and Under (Intermediate)Clay Time Indoor TennisEastern Athletic Blue PointEastern Athletic Dix Hills (2)Garden CityHuntington Indoor TennisLong Beach Tennis CenterRockville Racquet (2)

14 and Under (Intermediate)Eastern Athletic Blue Point (2)Eastern Athletic Dix HillsGlen Head RacquetHuntington Indoor TennisLong Beach Tennis CenterRockville Racquet (2)

18 and Under (Intermediate)Rockville Racquet (2)HicksvilleClay Time Indoor TennisEastern Athletic Melville (2)Huntington Indoor TennisGarden City (2)Eastern Athletic Blue PointGlen Head Racquet

For more information about Junior TeamTennis or to find about programs in yourarea, please contact JTT League Coordi-nator Steven Abbondondelo at (516)-457-4974 or e-mail [email protected].

Action from the 2008USTA Junior Team

Tennis Summer LongIsland Regional Championships

Members of the Rockville RacquetTeam having a great time during the

2009 winter season

A Rockville Racquet 12 and underteam member returns a volley duringa recent match

Players from the Rockville Racquet teamprepare for their match at the Billie JeanKing National Tennis Center

2008 USTA Junior TeamTennis Summer Long Is-land Regional Champs,

Sun and Surf Tennis,gather for a team photo

The team from RockvilleRacquet smiles for a photoprior to playing in the2008 USTA Team TennisWinter Sectional Champi-onship at Billie Jean KingNational Tennis Center inFlushing Meadows


Boys & Girls Long Island Rankings(as of 04/08/09)

BOYSLong Island Boys 10 SinglesRank Name ................................City1 ......Kyle Hudson Gower ........Oceanside, N.Y.2 ......Brian Shi ........................Jericho, N.Y.3 ......Curran Varma..................Manhasset, N.Y.4 ......Zane Siddiqui ..................West Babylon, N.Y.5 ......Daniel Shleimovich..........Merrick, N.Y.6 ......Rajan Jai Vohra ..............Glen Head, N.Y.7 ......Alan Delman ..................Great Neck, N.Y.8 ......Titus Syon Sung ..............Roslyn Heights, N.Y.9 ......Colin Francis Sacco ........Brightwaters, N.Y.10 ....Noah Reisch....................Floral Park, N.Y.11 ....Ethan Nussdorf ..............Old Westbury, N.Y.12 ....Jordan Michael Bennett ..Valley Stream, N.Y.13 ....Amani Siddiqui................West Babylon, N.Y.14 ....Brady Berman ................Glen Head, N.Y.15 ....Vincent Caracappa ..........Smithtown, N.Y.16 ....Giancarlo Cavallero ........West Hempstead, N.Y.17 ....Logan Beckerman ..........East Norwich, N.Y.18 ....Eli Grossman ..................Woodbury, N.Y.19 ....Terrill Cole Barnard ........Mill Neck, N.Y.20 ....David Ammendola ..........Massapequa, N.Y.21 ....Ronald P. Hohmann ........Oyster Bay, N.Y.22 ....Cannon Kingsley ............Northport, N.Y.23 ....Adita J. Dave ..................Syosset, N.Y.24 ....Neel Raj ..........................Oyster Bay, N.Y.25 ....Michael Medvedev ..........Oceanside, N.Y.26 ....Jack Aaron Briamonte ....Great Neck, N.Y.27 ....Ian Bank ........................Old Westbury, N.Y.28 ....Joey Austin ....................Hewlett, N.Y.29 ....Gardner Howe ................Locust Valley, N.Y.30 ....Patrick F. Maloney ..........Oyster Bay, N.Y.31 ....Cody Bograd ..................Huntington, N.Y.32 ....Parker Appel ..................Locust Valley, N.Y.33 ....James Grad ....................Westhampton, N.Y.34 ....Athell Patrick Bennett......Valley Stream, N.Y.35 ....William Dzanoucakis ......Hampton Bays, N.Y.36 ....Matthew G. Levine ..........Dix Hills, N.Y.37 ....Jacob Weiner ..................Oyster Bay, N.Y.38 ....Alexander Reiley ............Manorville, N.Y.39 ....Justin Ilan Lempert ........Roslyn Heights, N.Y.40 ....Keegan James Morris ....Franklin Square, N.Y.

Long Island Boys 12 SinglesRank Name ................................City1 ......Andrew J. Bentz..............Massapequa Park, N.Y.2 ......Bryant J. Born ................Manhasset, N.Y.3 ......Daniel Shleimovich..........Merrick, N.Y.4 ......Justin Park......................Huntington, N.Y.5 ......Kevin Alec Kowalsky........Oyster Bay, N.Y.6 ......Christopher White............Garden City, N.Y.7 ......Garrett Malave ................Laurel, N.Y.8 ......Evan Kober......................Wantagh, N.Y.9 ......Nikhil Raj ........................Locust Valley, N.Y.10 ....Daniel David Kafka..........Massapequa Park, N.Y.11 ....Zane Siddiqui ..................West Babylon, N.Y.12 ....Vincent P. Thompson ......Massapequa, N.Y.13 ....Andrew Walsh ................St. James, N.Y.14 ....Daniel Grunberger ..........Great Neck, N.Y.15 ....Faran Nazir ....................Deer Park, N.Y.16 ....Alex Brebenel..................Glen Head, N.Y.17 ....Giuseppe Loduca ............Great Neck, N.Y.18 ....Chirag Sharad Soni ........New Hyde Park, N.Y.19 ....Christian Moyer Ardito ....Rockville Centre, N.Y.20 ....Austin Langrock ..............Stony Brook, N.Y.21 ....Alexander Pintille ............Wainscott, N.Y.22 ....Sahil Massand ................Woodbury, N.Y.23 ....Hunter Lee ......................Great Neck, N.Y.24 ....Jacob Frisch ..................Sagaponack, N.Y.25 ....Finbar Talcott ..................Sea Cliff, N.Y.26 ....Noah J. Reisch ................Floral Park, N.Y.27 ....Kevin Cino ......................East Quogue, N.Y.28 ....Jacob Ross Pion..............Roslyn, N.Y.29 ....Oliver Ridgley Green........Locust Valley, N.Y.

30 ....Tyler Dunn ......................Manhasset, N.Y.31 ....Palmer T. Clare ................North Bellmore, N.Y.32 ....Sean M. Mullins ..............Lloyd Harbor, N.Y.33 ....Jake T. Gans....................Roslyn Heights, N.Y.34 ....Eric G. Ramsay................Bay Shore, N.Y.35 ....Spencer Killen Swanson..Remsenburg, N.Y.36 ....Jonathan C. Staudigel ....Northport, N.Y.37 ....Michael Schweitzer ........Old Westbury, N.Y.38 ....Jesse M. Levitin ..............Manhasset, N.Y.39 ....Robert James Gavigan ....Garden City, N.Y.40 ....Logan Dunn ....................Manhasset, N.Y.41 ....Jacob Lacks....................Woodbury, N.Y.42 ....Rajan Jai Vohra ..............Glen Head, N.Y.43......Brandon Todd Ronsenbaum..Kings Point, N.Y.44 ....Curran Varma..................Manhasset, N.Y.45 ....Marc Jesse Chehebar ....Roslyn, N.Y.46 ....Jack Ian Lindenman........Roslyn Heights, N.Y.47 ....Jonathan Paris ................Cold Spring Harbor, N.Y.48 ....Austin Lewis Kotler ........Plainview, N.Y.49 ....Henry Tell ........................Woodbury, N.Y.50 ....Jason Ackerman ............Roslyn, N.Y.

Long Island Boys 14 SinglesRank Name ................................City1 ......Drew F. Feldman ............Port Washington, N.Y.2 ......Dylan Ander ....................Hewlett, N.Y.3 ......Dylan Hobbs Appel ..........Locust Valley, N.Y.4 ......Daniel Sliwowski ............Islip, N.Y.5 ......Marcell Rengifo ..............Copaigue, N.Y.6 ......Nick Bauer ......................Great River, N.Y.7 ......Gregory M. Abrahams......Baldwin, N.Y.8 ......Sander Brenner ..............Port Washington, N.Y.9 ......Benjamin Q. King ............East Meadow, N.Y.10 ....Douglas Notaris ..............Wantagh, N.Y.11 ....Ethan Hayden Handa ......Rockville Centre, N.Y.12 ....Erik Johann Lobben ........Glen Head, N.Y.13 ....Andrew J. Bentz..............Massapequa Park, N.Y.14 ....Connor Daniel Jeran........Islip, N.Y.15 ....Erik Ujvari ......................Hauppauge, N.Y.16 ....Matthew R. Demichiel ....Hewlett, N.Y.17 ....Brandon T. Stone ............Melville, N.Y.18 ....Aaron Nussdorf ..............Old Westbury, N.Y.19 ....Zachary F. Stephan..........Sayville, N.Y.20 ....Alex J. Fontini..................Syosset, N.Y.21 ....Zachary E. Blank ............Roslyn, N.Y.22 ....Stephan Savin ................Valley Stream, N.Y.23 ....Samuel Hajibai ................Kings Point, N.Y.24 ....Dennis Uspensky ............Atlantic Beach, N.Y.25 ....Stone E. Mitchell ............Woodmere, N.Y.26 ....Aaron D. Lewis................Jericho, N.Y.27 ....Josh Young......................Old Bethpage, N.Y.28 ....Kyle Apler........................Dix Hills, N.Y.29 ....Mark Daniel Temporal ....Carle Place, N.Y.30 ....Gabriel P. Lazar ..............Hewlett, N.Y.31 ....Chris Casamassima ........Franklin Square, N.Y.32 ....Andrew Greener ..............Great Neck, N.Y.33 ....Matthew Cohen ..............Bay Shore, N.Y.34 ....Steven Marzagalli............Patchogue, N.Y.35 ....Alex Jake Ricciuti............Melville, N.Y.36 ....Addison J. Berniker ........Woodbury, N.Y.37 ....Jake Decker....................East Setauket, N.Y.38 ....Justin Park......................Huntington, N.Y.39 ....Michael Lustrin ..............Roslyn, N.Y.40 ....Jonathan Paris ................Cold Spring Harbor, N.Y.

Long Island Boys 16 SinglesRank Name ................................City1 ......Sloan Millman ................Woodmere, N.Y.2 ......Darren Reisch ................Floral Park, N.Y.3 ......JT Esposito ....................Rockville Centre, N.Y.4 ......Jason Hubsher ................Sands Point, N.Y.5 ......Eric Sumanaru ................Middle Island, N.Y.6 ......Jason A. Fruchter ............Lawrence, N.Y.7 ......Stephen Peng..................Woodbury, N.Y.8 ......Pasha Shapouri ..............Albertson, N.Y.9 ......Michael Granito ..............Wantagh, N.Y.10 ....Ryan White......................Wantagh, N.Y.11 ....Ryan Gary Wennberg ......Huntington Station, N.Y.12 ....Ryan Marcus ..................Merrick, N.Y.

13 ....Jordan A. Zecher ............Woodbury, N.Y.14 ....Richard Sipala ................Quogue, N.Y.15 ....Benjamin Q. King ............East Meadow, N.Y.16 ....Adam Fishelberg ............Plainview, N.Y.17 ....Kevin H. Kim ..................South Setauket, N.Y.18 ....Solomon Ofir ..................Plainview, N.Y.19 ....Zachary Daniel Krischer ....Pt. Jefferson Station, N.Y.20 ....Jacob Mishkin ................Woodbury, N.Y.21 ....Nick Wong ......................Jericho, N.Y.22 ....Jared Drzal ....................West Sayville, N.Y.23 ....Sander Brenner ..............Port Washington, N.Y.24 ....Douglas Notaris ..............Wantagh, N.Y.25 ....Jason Quintana ..............Bethpage, N.Y.26 ....Zachary Rotter ................Melville, N.Y.27 ....Alex Sands......................Roslyn, N.Y.28 ....Brett Uslaner ..................Oceanside, N.Y.29 ....Patrick Brosnan ..............Garden City, N.Y.30 ....Steven Ferrantello ..........Dix Hills, N.Y.31 ....Dylan Marsh....................Lloyd Harbor, N.Y.32 ....Spencer M. Cohn ............Roslyn, N.Y.33 ....Trevor S. Mitchel ............East Meadow, N.Y.34 ....Brett Ringelheim ............Atlantic Beach, N.Y.35 ....Ryan Zuckerman ............Valley Stream, N.Y.36 ....Matthew Zuckerman ......Valley Stream, N.Y.37 ....Blake Butler ....................Great Neck, N.Y.38 ....Luke Matthew Taylor ......Bay Shore, N.Y.39 ....Evan Ross Seidman ........Dix Hills, N.Y.40 ....Christian Thienel ............East Quogue, N.Y.

Long Island Boys 18 SinglesRank Name ................................City1 ......Jason Hubsher ................Sands Point, N.Y.2 ......Eric Dietsche ..................Bay Shore, N.Y.3 ......Evan Pincus ....................East Meadow, N.Y.4 ......Michael T. Puntillo ..........Sands Point, N.Y.5 ......Benjamin Bogard ............Lido Beach, N.Y.6 ......Bruce T. Grant ................Glen Head, N.Y.7 ......Sloan Millman ................Woodmere, N.Y.8 ......Dylan Matthew Roberts ..Holtsville, N.Y.9 ......Richard A. Ferguson ........Franklin Square, N.Y.10 ....Derek J. Wells ................Massapequa Park, N.Y.11 ....Justin Ziccardi ................Islip, N.Y.12 ....Christopher Sica..............Wantagh, N.Y.13 ....Brain Hui ........................East Meadow, N.Y.14 ....James Nandalal Prasad ..Lindenhurst, N.Y.15 ....Alex Tropiano ..................Syosset, N.Y.16 ....Darren Reisch ................Floral Park, N.Y.17 ....Alex Bessarabov..............Lindenhurst, N.Y.18 ....Herman Singh ................Syosset, N.Y.19 ....Brandon Burns ................Wheatley Heights, N.Y.20 ....Jeremy L. Pomerantz ......Sayville, N.Y.21 ....JT Esposito ....................Rockville Centre, N.Y.22 ....Jeffery H. Kornhauser......Wantagh, N.Y.23 ....Thomas Fischl ................Huntington, N.Y.24 ....Gary Gaudio ....................Miller Place, N.Y.25 ....Andrew Freedman ..........Great Neck, N.Y.26 ....Matthew J. Celentano ....Islip, N.Y.27 ....Jack Keenan ..................Water Mill, N.Y.28 ....Eric Rubin ......................Lido Beach, N.Y.29 ....Steven Ferrantello ..........Dix Hills, N.Y.30 ....Peter C. Colgan ..............Nesconset, N.Y.31 ....Dylan Marsh....................Lloyd Harbor, N.Y.32 ....Kevin Francfort................Islip, N.Y.33 ....Michael Lessing ..............Islip, N.Y.34 ....Sahil S. Ishar ..................Great Neck, N.Y.35 ....Jaewon Kim....................East Northport, N.Y.36 ....Shane B. Liebenthal ........Old Westbury, N.Y.37 ....Stephan Tolila ................Bellmore, N.Y.38 ....Kevin A. Burgess ............Freeport, N.Y.39 ....Christopher J. Hunter ......Melville, N.Y.40 ....Brett Byron......................Dix Hills, N.Y.

GIRLSLong Island Girls 10 SinglesRank Name ................................City1 ......Celeste Rose Matute ......Amityville, N.Y.2 ......Claire Handa ..................Rockville Centre, N.Y.3 ......Jeannie Lozowski............Amityville, N.Y.4 ......Courtney Kowalsky..........Oyster Bay, N.Y.

5 ......Ashley Bespechny ..........Hewlett, N.Y.6 ......Alexa Graham ................Garden City, N.Y.7 ......Vista Grinde ....................Sea Cliff, N.Y.8 ......Caitlin M. Cosme ............New Hyde Park, N.Y.9 ......Devika Kedia ..................East Norwich, N.Y.10 ....Hannah Rosalie Dayton ..East Hampton, N.Y.11 ....Stephanie Chikvashvili ....Syosset, N.Y.12 ....Jasmine Olivia Abidi ........Glen Head, N.Y.

Long Island Girls 12 SinglesRank Name ................................City1 ......Elena Nitsa Maria NastasiBayville, N.Y.2 ......Bridget Elaine Harding ....Northport, N.Y.3 ......Michelle Vancura ............New Hyde Park, N.Y.4 ......Brittany Burke ................Garden City, N.Y.5 ......Jeannie Lozowski............Amityville, N.Y.6 ......Katie Jean Cirella ............Woodbury, N.Y.7 ......Cameron Leigh Moskol....Wantagh, N.Y.8 ......Claudia M. Ruiz ..............Glen Head, N.Y.9 ......Olivia C. Funk..................Hicksville, N.Y.10 ....Julia Ciardullo ................Locust Valley, N.Y.11 ....Ola Mally ........................Franklin Square, N.Y.12 ....Shanice Nadia Arthur ......Glen Head, N.Y.13 ....Rachel Gastaldo ..............Syosset, N.Y.14 ....Morgan Kelly Herrmann ..Garden City, N.Y.15 ....Madison Courtney Appel..Locust Valley, N.Y.16 ....Vanessa Scott ................Dix Hills, N.Y.17 ....Aimee N. Manfredo ........Shoreham, N.Y.18 ....Emily K. Morgenbesser....Bayport, N.Y.19 ....Campbell Howe ..............Locust Valley, N.Y.20 ....Nicole Damaghi ..............Kings Point, N.Y.21 ....Alexandra Lipps ..............Roslyn, N.Y.22 ....Nicole Giannetti ..............Oyster Bay, N.Y.23 ....Rhea Malhotra ................Syosset, N.Y.24 ....Annelise Meyding............Port Washington, N.Y.25 ....Michele Shelia Lehat ......Great Neck, N.Y.26 ....Ashley Bespechny ..........Hewlett, N.Y.27 ....Lauren Ann Livingston ....Sands Point, N.Y.28 ....Courtney A. Digia ............Manhasset, N.Y.29 ....Alexa Graham ................Garden City, N.Y.30 ....Ariana J. Hwang..............New Hyde Park, N.Y.31 ....Celeste Rose Matute ......Amityville, N.Y.32 ....Marissa Luchs ................Roslyn, N.Y.33 ....Skyy Campbell ................Huntington, N.Y.34 ....Rachel L. Mintz ..............Roslyn, N.Y.35 ....Noa Alexandra Dubin ......Southampton, N.Y.36 ....Caroline Keating..............Huntington, N.Y.37 ....Kelsey Shields ................Old Westbury, N.Y.38 ....Caitlin M. Cosme ............New Hyde Park, N.Y.39 ....Victoria Macchia ............Seaford, N.Y.40 ....Nicole Koskovolis ............Manhasset, N.Y.

Long Island Girls 14 SinglesRank Name ................................City1 ......Veronica Paikin ..............Valley Stream, N.Y.2 ......Ruth Freilich....................Lawrence, N.Y.3 ......Jennifer C. Ferguson ......Franklin Square, N.Y.4 ......Zenat Rashidzada............Dix Hills, N.Y.5 ......Kathryn Herburger ..........Manhasset, N.Y.6 ......Megan M. Tamborrino ....Massapequa Park, N.Y.7 ......Mary C. Harding ..............Northport, N.Y.8 ......Olivia Bahou....................Lloyd Harbor, N.Y.9 ......Bianca Posa ....................Valley Stream, N.Y.10 ....Jennifer Glukhman..........Syosset, N.Y.11 ....Ola Mally ........................Franklin Square, N.Y.12 ....Zoe B. Lesperance ..........Southampton, N.Y.13 ....Alexa P. Sternschein ........Syosset, N.Y.14 ....Betty Ma ........................Dix Hills, N.Y.15 ....Karishma Ramesh Tank ..New Hyde Park, N.Y.16 ....Karen A. Serina ..............Islip Terrace, N.Y.17 ....Sarah Dionisio ................Shirley, N.Y.18 ....Christine Elizabeth Apicella ..Massapequa Park, N.Y.19 ....Amanda Marie Gaimaro ..Lynbrook, N.Y.20 ....Karen Singer ..................Setauket, N.Y.21 ....Holly Hubsher..................Sands Point, N.Y.22 ....Carli Feldman..................Valley Stream, N.Y.23 ....Aimee N. Manfredo ........Shoreham, N.Y.24 ....Remy May Kneski ..........Westhampton, N.Y.25 ....Madison Battaglia ..........Cold Spring Harbor, N.Y.

L O N G I S L A N D R A N K I N G S


26 ....Cameron Leigh Moskol....Wantagh, N.Y.27 ....Erica Bundrick ................Mattituck, N.Y.28 ....Allie N. Rothstein ............Plainview, N.Y.29 ....Sunaina Vohra ................Glen Head, N.Y.30 ....Anna Poslusny ................Centerport , N.Y.31 ....Emily Bentley ..................East Islip, N.Y.32 ....Jennifer A. Carnovale ......Massapequa, N.Y.33 ....Rachel Gastaldo ..............Syosset, N.Y.34 ....Taylor Rose Anderson......Locust Valley, N.Y.35 ....Haley Ann Schoeck ........Quogue, N.Y.36 ....Lara Fishbane ................Commack, N.Y.37 ....Danielle Giannetti ............Oyster Bay, N.Y.38 ....Kaitlin Ryan Miller ..........Manhasset, N.Y.39 ....Claudia M. Ruiz ..............Glen Head, N.Y.40 ....Laura Torsiello ................Bayport, N.Y.

Long Island Girls 16 SinglesRank Name ................................City1 ......Veronica Paikin ..............Valley Stream, N.Y.2 ......Andrea Arreguin ..............Hicksville, N.Y.3 ......Amy Ginny Naula ............East Hampton, N.Y.4 ......Robin R. Mehta ..............Manhasset, N.Y.5 ......Elan King ........................Baldwin, N.Y.6 ......Elizabeth Caroline Rossi ..Flanders, N.Y.7 ......Brett A. Lieb ....................Cutchogue, N.Y.8 ......Lauren Skolnick ..............Sayville, N.Y.9 ......Briel G. Smith..................Locust Valley, N.Y.10 ....Jessica Sickles ..............Massapequa Park, N.Y.11 ....Marysa Walsh ................St. James, N.Y.12 ....Zenat Rashidzada............Dix Hills, N.Y.13 ....Kelly Marie Benini ..........Northport, N.Y.14 ....Paige J. Mintz ................Roslyn, N.Y.15 ....Molly O. Nolan ................Montauk, N.Y.16 ....Abbott M. Brant ..............Shoreham, N.Y.17 ....Michelle Graziosi ............East Northport, N.Y.18 ....Brinti Ann Hinderhofer ....Oceanside, N.Y.19 ....Hannah Hinchcliffe ..........Mineola, N.Y.20 ....Alexandra L. Bentz ..........Massapequa Park, N.Y.21 ....Amanda Marano..............Hampton Bays, N.Y.22 ....Amanda L. Seeley ..........Sound Beach, N.Y.23 ....Casey L. Nicoletti ............East Hampton, N.Y.24 ....Devlin-Ann Ammendola ..Massapequa, N.Y.25 ....Bianca Posa ....................Valley Stream, N.Y.26 ....Samantha Gann ..............Massapequa, N.Y.27 ....Lindsay Hochberg ..........Oyster Bay, N.Y.28 ....Rachel Shenker ..............Rockville Centre, N.Y.29 ....Ludmila Yamus................Melville, N.Y.30 ....Ruth Freilich....................Lawrence, N.Y.31 ....Lauren Wagner................Roslyn Heights, N.Y.32 ....Marissa D. Lazar ............Hewlett, N.Y.33 ....Jessica Nowak................Huntington, N.Y.34 ....Christine Bender ............Amityville, N.Y.35 ....Alexandra Gerin ..............Glen Cove, N.Y.36 ....Ola Mally ........................Franklin Square, N.Y.37 ....Kelsey Lazio....................Brightwaters, N.Y.38 ....Jamie Hann ....................Westhampton, N.Y.39 ....Ashley Sandler ................Jericho, N.Y.40 ....Taylor Wilkins..................Glen Head, N.Y.

Long Island Girls 18 SinglesRank Name ................................City1 ......Eliza J. Budd ..................Locust Valley, N.Y.2 ......Aylin Mehter....................Massapequa, N.Y.3 ......Cassie Bender ................Amityville, N.Y.4 ......Elaine Mantikas ..............Manhasset, N.Y.5 ......Elan King ........................Baldwin, N.Y.6 ......Molly O. Nolan ................Montauk, N.Y.7 ......Sarin Siriamonthep ........Greenvale, N.Y.8 ......Lauren Johnson ..............Dix Hills, N.Y.9 ......Christine Bender ............Amityville, N.Y.10 ....Alexandra F. Esposito ......Bellmore, N.Y.11 ....Andrea Arreguin ..............Hicksville, N.Y.12 ....Shelby Goldman..............West Hempstead, N.Y.13 ....Stephanie Loutsenko ......Bellmore, N.Y.14 ....Arina Zanin ....................Oceanside, N.Y.15 ....Olivia Millie Santoro ........Commack, N.Y.16 ....Alexandra Rengifo ..........Copiague, N.Y.17 ....Talia Aviana ....................East Rockaway, N.Y.

Boys & Girls Sectional Rankings(as of 04/08/09)

Sectional Boys 10 Singles—Long Island RegionRank Name ................................City 4 ......Andy Zhou ......................Commack, N.Y.5 ......Giancarlo Cavallero ........West Hempstead, N.Y.7 ......Logan Beckerman ..........East Norwich, N.Y.8 ......Finbar Talcott ..................Sea Cliff, N.Y.10 ....Jordan Michael Bennett ..Valley Stream, N.Y.11 ....Rajan Jai Vohra ..............Glen Head, N.Y.12 ....Daniel Shleimovich..........Merrick, N.Y.13 ....Keegan James Morris ....Franklin Square, N.Y.15 ....Zane Siddiqui ..................West Babylon, N.Y.17 ....Curran Varma..................Manhasset, N.Y.19 ....Athell Patrick Bennett......Valley Stream, N.Y.24 ....Terrill Cole Bernard ........Mill Neck, N.Y.26 ....Alan Delman ..................Great Neck, N.Y.31 ....Noah J. Reisch ................Floral Park, N.Y.33 ....Kyle Hudson Gower ........Oceanside, N.Y.36 ....Brian Shi ........................Jericho, N.Y.40 ....Eli Grossman ..................Woodbury, N.Y.44 ....Ian Bank ........................Old Westbury, N.Y.46 ....Brady Berman ................Glen Head, N.Y.47 ....Titus Syon Sung ..............Roslyn Heights, N.Y.67 ....Colin Francis Sacco ........Brightwaters, N.Y.72 ....Patrick Hannity................Oyster Bay, N.Y.73 ....Patrick F. Maloney ..........Oyster Bay, N.Y.77 ....Alexander Reiley ............Manorville, N.Y.82 ....Michael Medvedev ..........Oceanside, N.Y.86 ....Amani Siddiqui................West Babylon, N.Y.87 ....Arjun Mehrotra................Woodbury, N.Y.88 ....Gardner Howe ................Locust Valley, N.Y.93 ....Adita J. Dave ..................Syosset, N.Y.97 ....David Ammendola ..........Massapequa, N.Y.98 ....Parker Appel ..................Locust Valley, N.Y.101 ..Ryan Goetz......................Greenlawn, N.Y.104 ..Ronald P. Hohmann ........Oyster Bay, N.Y.106 ..James Kyrkanides ..........Stony Brook, N.Y.108 ..Cannon Kingsley ............Northport, N.Y.109 ..Neel Raj ..........................Oyster Bay, N.Y.113 ..William Dzanoucakis ......Hampton Bays, N.Y.119 ..Joey Austin ....................Hewlett, N.Y.122 ..Blake Shaevitz ................Glen Head, N.Y.126 ..Pete Siozios ....................New Hyde Park, N.Y.129 ..Matthew Porges..............Sands Point, N.Y.132 ..Cody Bogard ..................Huntington, N.Y.142 ..Carl Grant ......................Water Mill, N.Y.143 ..Jake Koenigsberg ..........Glen Head, N.Y.145 ..Jacob Weiner ..................Oyster Bay, N.Y.148 ..Daniel Eric Pellerito ........Syosset, N.Y.150 ..Justin Ilan Lempert ........Roslyn Heights, N.Y.

Sectional Boys 12 Singles—Long Island RegionRank Name ................................City10 ....Lubomir T. Cuba..............Massapequa, N.Y.12 ....Josh Silverstein ..............Great Neck, N.Y.13 ....Alexander Lebedev..........Island Park, N.Y.14 ....Brenden Andrew Volk ......Dix Hills, N.Y.20 ....Jared R. Halstrom ..........Bellmore, N.Y.23 ....Eric Wagner ....................Roslyn Heights, N.Y.24 ....Conor Mullins..................Lloyd Harbor, N.Y.32 ....Dennis Uspensky ............Atlantic Beach, N.Y.40 ....Benjamin Rosen ..............Port Washington, N.Y.49 ....Daniel Grunberger ..........Great Neck, N.Y.53 ....Andrew Walsh ................St. James, N.Y.65 ....Palmer T. Clare ................North Bellmore, N.Y.71 ....Justin Park......................Huntington, N.Y.74 ....Chris Kuhnle....................Shoreham, N.Y.79 ....Finbar Talcott ..................Sea Cliff, N.Y.83 ....Joshua Williams Gordon ..Hicksville, N.Y.84 ....Faran Nazir ....................Deer Park, N.Y.85 ....Christopher Moyer Ardito Rockville Centre, N.Y.86 ....Nikhil Raj ........................Locust Valley, N.Y.99 ....Hunter Lee ......................Great Neck, N.Y.100 ..Christopher White............Garden City, N.Y.

106 ..Rajan Jai Vohra ..............Glen Head, N.Y.107 ..Vincent P. Thompson ......Massapequa, N.Y.108 ..Daniel Shleimovich..........Merrick, N.Y.110 ..Sean M. Mullins ..............Lloyd Harbor, N.Y.111 ..Zane Siddiqui ..................West Babylon, N.Y.113 ..Daniel David Kafka..........Massapequa Park, N.Y.122 ..Noah J. Reisch ................Floral Park, N.Y.124 ..Curran Varma..................Manhasset, N.Y.132 ..Kevin Alec Kowalsky........Oyster Bay, N.Y.135 ..Austin Langrock ..............Stony Brook, N.Y.136 ..Jesse M. Levitin ..............Manhasset, N.Y.138 ..Giuseppe Loduca ............Great Neck, N.Y.142 ..Andy Zhou ......................Commack, N.Y.147 ..Giancarlo Cavallero ........West Hempstead, N.Y.148 ..Alex Brebenel..................Glen Head, N.Y.150 ..Bryant J. Born ................Manhasset, N.Y.

Sectional Boys 14 Singles—Long Island RegionRank Name ................................City3 ......Noah Rubin ....................Merrick, N.Y.6 ......Aidan Talcott ..................Sea Cliff, N.Y.7 ......Samuel Lam....................Old Westbury, N.Y.8 ......Ethan Bogard ..................Lido Beach, N.Y.10 ....Vihar Shah ......................New Hyde Park, N.Y.18 ....Michael Paul ..................Baldwin, N.Y.20 ....Zain Ali............................Dix Hills, N.Y.29 ....Douglas Notaris ..............Wantagh, N.Y.33 ....Richard Mitchell ..............Franklin Square, N.Y.35 ....Austin P. Davidow............Glen Head, N.Y.37 ....Philip Daniel Antohi ........Glen Head, N.Y.50 ....Benjamin Pleat................Roslyn, N.Y.52 ....Lamar Remy ..................Roslyn, N.Y.53 ....Josh Silverstein ..............Great Neck, N.Y.54 ....Matthew R. Demichiel ....Hewlett, N.Y.60 ....John P. D’Alessandro ......Northport, N.Y.61 ....Julian Alexi Zlobinsky ......Greenvale, N.Y.62 ....Mark Daniel Temporal ....Carle Place, N.Y.63 ....Ethan Hayden Handa ......Rockville Centre, N.Y.70 ....Sander Brenner ..............Port Washington, N.Y.71 ....Conor Mullins..................Lloyd Harbor, N.Y.75 ....Brian W. Slivonik ............Oyster Bay, N.Y.76 ....Dylan Hobbs Appel ..........Locust Valley, N.Y.78 ....Tyler J. Hoffman..............Sayville, N.Y.81 ....Zachary A. Lessen ..........Roslyn Heights, N.Y.84 ....Conor Dauer....................Lloyd Harbor, N.Y.86 ....Alex C. Sacher ................Glen Head, N.Y.87 ....Brandon T. Stone ............Melville, N.Y.94 ....Gabriel P. Lazar ..............Hewlett, N.Y.98 ....Stephan Savin ................Valley Stream, N.Y.101 ..Nick Bauer ......................Great River, N.Y.103 ..Jared R. Halstrom ..........Bellmore, N.Y.105 ..Benjamin Q. King ............East Meadow, N.Y.116 ..Drew F. Feldman ............Port Washington, N.Y.120 ..Jeremy Dubin ................Southampton, N.Y.125 ..Aaron Nussdorf ..............Old Westbury, N.Y.126 ..Guanlongrichard Chen ....Northport, N.Y.129 ..Dylan Ander ....................Hewlett, N.Y.131 ..Marcell Rengifo ..............Copiague, N.Y.133 ..Michael A. Vera ..............Bethpage, N.Y.135 ..Josh Young......................Old Bethpage, N.Y.146 ..Benjamin Rosen ..............Port Washington, N.Y.148 ..Gregory M. Abrahams......Baldwin, N.Y.

Sectional Boys 16 Singles—Long Island RegionRank Name ................................City6 ......Bert Vancura ..................New Hyde Park, N.Y.8 ......Shaun Bernstein..............Plainview, N.Y.14 ....Alexander Friedlich..........Great Neck, N.Y.17 ....Oliver Loutsenko ............Bellmore, N.Y.19 ....Dennis Zlobinsky ............Greenvale, N.Y.22 ....Howard Weiss ................Great Neck, N.Y.26 ....Eric Rubin ......................Lido Beach, N.Y.29 ....Matthew O. Barry ............Long Beach, N.Y.30 ....Josh Levine ....................Syosset, N.Y.34 ....Eric Ambrosio..................Lloyd Harbor, N.Y.35 ....Shane Giannetti ..............Oyster Bay, N.Y.36 ....Jensen Reiter..................Syosset, N.Y.

41 ....Andrew Yaraghi ..............Mill Neck, N.Y.45 ....Jonathan Defrancesch ....Manhasset, N.Y.47 ....Zachary Morris................Garden City, N.Y.49 ....Jonahiby Tauil ................Valley Stream, N.Y.54 ....Austin Blau......................Roslyn, N.Y.56 ....Jason Hubsher ................Sands Point, N.Y.58 ....David Greenbaum ..........Great Neck, N.Y.60 ....Alan S. Pleat....................Roslyn, N.Y.61 ....Harrison Digia ................Manhasset, N.Y.68 ....Alex Tropiano ..................Syosset, N.Y.69 ....Zachary Mintz ................Roslyn, N.Y.71 ....Brandon Li ......................Jericho, N.Y.72 ....Douglas Hoch..................Glen Head, N.Y.73 ....Brian Hui ........................East Meadow, N.Y.87 ....Paul Abrudescu ..............Great Neck, N.Y.93 ....Richard Sipala ................Quogue, N.Y.95 ....Scott Rabinowitz ............Dix Hills, N.Y.107 ..Michael T. Puntillo ..........Sands Point, N.Y.108 ..Kevin Katz ......................Woodbury, N.Y.114 ..Michael Paul ..................Baldwin, N.Y.117 ..Michael Galatsky ............Bellmore, N.Y.120 ..Matthew Lam..................Old Westbury, N.Y.121 ..Ignacio Casali..................Farmingdale, N.Y.122 ..Adam S. Gottlieb ............Great Neck, N.Y.128 ..Matthew J. Richards ......Bayport, N.Y.130 ..Aidan Talcott ..................Sea Cliff, N.Y.135 ..Christian Thienel ............East Quogue, N.Y.136 ..Alex S. Werman ..............Roslyn, N.Y.137 ..Stephen Peng..................Woodbury, N.Y.138 ..Alexander Morris ............Garden City, N.Y.140 ..Constantinos L. Papavasiliou..Roslyn, N.Y.145 ..Daniel R. Grinshteyn........Hewlett, N.Y.146 ..Darren Reisch ................Floral Park, N.Y.149 ..Patrick Brosnan ..............Garden City, N.Y.150 ..JT Esposito ....................Rockville Centre, N.Y.

Sectional Boys 18 Singles—Long Island RegionRank Name ................................City3 ......Daniel Kreyman ..............Long Beach, N.Y.6 ......Shaun Bernstein..............Plainview, N.Y.19 ....Bryan Roberts ................Commack, N.Y.24 ....Joseph Michalisin ..........Melville, N.Y.29 ....Joseph Agler ..................North Bellmore, N.Y.30 ....Corey Morgenstern..........Old Bethpage, N.Y.35 ....Shane Giannetti ..............Oyster Bay, N.Y.44 ....Morgan Dauer ................Lloyd Harbor, N.Y.48 ....Zachary Weiss ................Great Neck, N.Y.53 ....Dennis Zlobinsky ............Greenvale, N.Y.56 ....Brendan Ruddock............Ronkonkoma, N.Y.57 ....Jason Simon ..................Roslyn, N.Y.60 ....Bruce Grant ....................Glen Head, N.Y.63 ....Ryan Fitzgerald ..............East Williston, N.Y.64 ....Brett Byron......................Dix Hills, N.Y.67 ....Steven Milo ....................Woodbury, N.Y.69 ....Joshua Katten ................Plainview, N.Y.73 ....Zachary A. Dean..............Commack, N.Y.75 ....Oliver Loutsenko ............Bellmore, N.Y.86 ....Alexander Friedlich..........Great Neck, N.Y.90 ....Eric Shyu ........................Great Neck, N.Y.111 ..Brandon Burns ................Wheatley Heights, N.Y.122 ..Dylan Matthew Roberts ..Holtsville, N.Y. 135 ..Adam D. Mernit ..............Huntington Station, N.Y.141 ..Brian Hui ........................East Meadow, N.Y.142 ..Allen C.D. Jebsen ............Lloyd Harbor, N.Y.145 ..Benjamin Bogard ............Lido Beach, N.Y.

Sectional Girls 10 Singles—Long Island RegionRank Name ................................City4 ......Celeste Rose Matute ......Amityville, N.Y.7 ......Alexa Graham ................Garden City, N.Y.11 ....Claire Handa ..................Rockville Centre, N.Y.13 ....Stephanie Chikvashvili ....Syosset, N.Y.15 ....Courtney Kowalsky..........Oyster Bay, N.Y.21 ....Caitlin Cosme..................New Hyde Park, N.Y.23 ....Dominique Woinarowski ..Syosset, N.Y.31 ....Ashley Bespechny ..........Hewlett, N.Y.41 ....Emily Kate Shutman........Huntington, N.Y.



41 ....Emily Kate Shutman........Huntington, N.Y.45 ....Jacqueline Rae Bukzin ....Manorville, N.Y.51 ....Devika Kedia ..................East Norwich, N.Y.61 ....Hannah Rosalie Dayton ..East Hampton, N.Y.63 ....Emma Alexis Weinberg....Port Washington, N.Y.68 ....Emily Austin ....................Hewlett, N.Y.70 ....Jasmine Olivia Abidi ........Glen Head, N.Y.

Sectional Girls 12 Singles—Long Island RegionRank Name ................................City8 ......Isabella Pascucci ............Oyster Bay, N.Y.9 ......Madison Battaglia ..........Cold Spring Harbor, N.Y.13 ....Mia Vecchio ....................Manhasset Hills, N.Y.18 ....Samantha Perri ..............Floral Park, N.Y.22 ....Rachel Gastaldo ..............Syosset, N.Y.24 ....Maria Korshunova ..........Oceanside, N.Y.28 ....Morgan Kelly Herrmann ..Garden City, N.Y.30 ....Danielle Giannetti ............Oyster Bay, N.Y.34 ....Karen A. Serina ..............Islip Terrace, N.Y.46 ....Nicole Giannetti ..............Oyster Bay, N.Y.48 ....Alexandra Lipps ............Roslyn, N.Y.49 ....Lauren Ann Livingston ....Sands Point, N.Y.51 ....Olivia Funk......................Hicksville, N.Y.57 ....Alexa Graham ................Garden City, N.Y.64 ....Jeannie Lozowski............Amityville, N.Y.70 ....Madison Courtney Appel..Locust Valley, N.Y.77 ....Taylor S. Cosme ..............New Hyde Park, N.Y.82 ....Aimee Manfredo..............Shoreham, N.Y.84 ....Brittany Burke ................Garden City, N.Y.86 ....Celeste Rose Matute ......Amityville, N.Y.89 ....Marissa Luchs ................Roslyn, N.Y.90 ....Michelle Vancura ............New Hyde Park, N.Y. 94 ....Elena Nitsa Maria NastasiBayville, N.Y.100 ..Ariana Hwang ................New Hyde Park, N.Y.103 ..Bridget Elaine Harding ....Northport, N.Y.109 ..Julia Ciardullo ................Locust Valley, N.Y.110 ..Katie Jane Cirella ............Woodbury, N.Y.111 ..Shanice Nadia Arthur ......Glen Head, N.Y. 114 ..Sarah Paul ......................Baldwin, N.Y.118 ..Caroline Keating..............Huntington, N.Y.121 ..Vanessa Scott ................Dix Hills, N.Y.126 ..Stacy Denbaum ..............Syosset, N.Y.131 ..Caitlin M. Cosme ............New Hyde Park, N.Y.138 ..Emily Morgenbesser........Bayport, N.Y.144 ..Annelise Meyding............Port Washington, N.Y.148 ..Courtney Digia ................Manhasset, N.Y.

Sectional Girls 14 Singles—Long Island RegionRank Name ................................City2 ......Julia Elbaba ....................Oyster Bay, N.Y.7 ......Stephanie Loutsenko ......Bellmore, N.Y.8 ......Hannah L. Camhi ............Woodbury, N.Y. 12 ....Claudia Li........................Jericho, N.Y. 14 ....Vivian Cheng ..................Woodbury, N.Y. 16 ....Sophie R. Barnard ..........Mill Neck, N.Y. 20 ....Morgan C. Feldman ........Glen Head, N.Y. 25 ....Nadia Smergut ................East Hampton, N.Y. 32 ....Lauren Wagner................Roslyn Heights, N.Y. 35 ....Sara R. Finger ................Saint James, N.Y. 42 ....Gabriella Nicole Leon ......Woodmere, N.Y. 48 ....Bianca Posa ....................Valley Stream, N.Y. 49 ....Paulina Tafler ..................Oceanside, N.Y. 63 ....Sunaina Vohra ................Glen Head, N.Y. 68 ....Rithika D. Reddy..............Syosset, N.Y. 69 ....Maria Korshunova ..........Oceanside, N.Y. 83 ....Laura Torsiello ................Bayport, N.Y.87 ....Veronika Paikin ..............Valley Stream, N.Y. 94 ....Courtney Keating ............Huntington, N.Y. 97 ....Ruth Freilich....................Lawrence, N.Y. 102 ..Julia Zhuang ..................Great Neck, N.Y. 105 ..Megan M. Tamborrino ....Massapequa Park, N.Y.111 ..Jennifer Ferguson ..........Franklin Square, N.Y.115 ..Zenat Rashidzada............Dix Hills, N.Y.132 ..Ola Mally ........................Franklin Square, N.Y.135 ..Karishma Ramesh Tank ..New Hyde Park, N.Y.136 ..Amanda Nowak ..............Huntington, N.Y.140 ..Zoe B. Lesperance ..........Southampton, N.Y.

149 ..Isabella Pascucci ............Oyster Bay, N.Y.150 ..Claudia Ruiz ....................Glen Head, N.Y.

Sectional Girls 16 Singles—Long Island RegionRank Name ................................City6 ......Katherine Yau ..................Manhasset, N.Y. 8 ......Julia Elbaba ....................Oyster Bay, N.Y. 9 ......Shelby Talcott..................Sea Cliff, N.Y. 13 ....Jacqueline Raynor ..........Garden City, N.Y. 18 ....Hannah L. Camhi ............Woodbury, N.Y. 31 ....Samantha Gann ..............Massapequa, N.Y. 32 ....Ashley T. Harel ................Roslyn Heights, N.Y. 43 ....Stephanie Loutsenko ......Bellmore, N.Y. 45 ....Devlin-Ann Ammendola ..Massapequa, N.Y. 46 ....Brooke Pottish ................East Quogue, N.Y. 48 ....Diana Vamvakitis ............Quogue, N.Y. 50 ....Deana Davoudias ............Rockville Centre, N.Y. 63 ....Taylor A. Diffley ..............Hampton Bays, N.Y.70 ....Sophie R. Barnard ..........Mill Neck, N.Y. 71 ....Paige J. Mintz ................Roslyn, N.Y. 72 ....Samantha Rosca-Sipot....Malverne, N.Y. 73 ....Morgan C. Feldman ........Glen Head, N.Y. 74 ....Jamie Hann ....................Westhampton, N.Y.76 ....Missy Edelblum ..............Roslyn, N.Y. 82 ....Tarrin Joslin ....................Hampton Bays, N.Y. 89 ....Emma Brenner................Great Neck, N.Y. 93 ....Carly Siegel ....................Dix Hills, N.Y. 97 ....Samantha Elgort ............Melville, N.Y. 102 ..Vivian Cheng ..................Woodbury, N.Y. 104 ..Ludmila Yamus................Melville, N.Y. 106 ..Robin R. Mehta ..............Manhasset, N.Y.107 ..Marissa Lazar ................Hewlett, N.Y. 113 ..Lauren Wagner................Roslyn Heights, N.Y. 118 ..Lauren Sickles ................Massapequa Park, N.Y.126 ..Elizabeth Caroline Rossi ..Flanders, N.Y.132 ..Veronika Paikin ..............Valley Stream, N.Y.137 ..Melissa Carlay ................New Hyde Park, N.Y.140 ..Elan King ........................Baldwin, N.Y. 142 ..Bianca Posa ....................Valley Stream, N.Y.146 ..Amanda Seeley ..............Sound Beach, N.Y.147 ..Hannah Hinchcliffe ..........Mineola, N.Y.149 ..Amy Ginny Naula ............East Hampton, N.Y.

Sectional Girls 18 Singles—Long Island RegionRank Name ................................City3 ......Jennifer Kellner ..............Smithtown, N.Y.6 ......Kristin Norton..................Port Washington, N.Y.10 ....Mollie Anderson ..............Melville, N.Y.12 ....Julia Elbaba ....................Oyster Bay, N.Y.13 ....Olivia Pascucci ................Oyster Bay, N.Y.14 ....Kelsey Raynor ................Garden City, N.Y.17 ....Blair Seideman................Glen Head, N.Y.19 ....Nicolle Stracar ................Jericho, N.Y.20 ....Aylin Mehter....................Massapequa, N.Y.27 ....Jessica Podlofsky............Port Washington, N.Y.32 ....Jordana Kono..................Glen Head, N.Y.35 ....Shelby Bates ..................Jericho, N.Y.37 ....Shelby Talcott..................Sea Cliff, N.Y.39 ....Jennifer Fridman ............Port Washington, N.Y.45 ....Katherine Hanson............Smithtown, N.Y.48 ....Andrea Samlin ................Merrick, N.Y.57 ....Ashley T. Harel ................Roslyn Heights, N.Y.65 ....Robyn Romanoff ............Centereach, N.Y. 72 ....Holly Reich......................Roslyn Heights, N.Y.89 ....Kristin M. Alotta ..............West Islip, N.Y.91 ....Amanda B. Halstrom ......Bellmore, N.Y.96 ....Ryann Cutillo ..................Kings Park, N.Y.99 ....Kara E. Caulfield..............Sayville, N.Y.103 ..Jessie Rubin ..................Merrick, N.Y.104 ..Cassie Bender ................Amityville, N.Y.107 ..Andrea Arreguin ..............Hicksville, N.Y.108 ..Brooke Pottish ................East Quogue, N.Y. 121 ..Eliza J. Budd ..................Locust Valley, N.Y.126 ..Marissa D. Lazar ............Hewlett, N.Y.132 ..Laura Chen ....................Port Washington, N.Y.133 ..Hannah L. Camhi ............Woodbury, N.Y. 149 ..Rachel Marc....................Woodmere, N.Y.

Boys & Girls National Rankings(as of 04/08/09)

National Boys 12 Singles—Long Island PlayersRank Name ................................City50 ....Noah Rubin ....................Merrick, N.Y.80 ....Julian Alexi Zlobinsky ......Greenvale, N.Y.97 ....Josh Silverstein ..............Great Neck, N.Y.114 ..Alexander Lebedev..........Island Park, N.Y.123 ..Conor Mullins..................Lloyd Harbor, N.Y.259 ..Lubomir Cuba ................Massapequa, N.Y.292 ..Eric Wagner ....................Roslyn Heights, N.Y.350 ..Dylan Hobbs Appel ..........Locust Valley, N.Y.373 ..Jared Halstrom ..............Bellmore, N.Y.406 ..Lamar Remy ..................Roslyn, N.Y.418 ..Zain Ali............................Dix Hills, N.Y.481 ..Benjamin Pleat................Roslyn, N.Y.492 ..Dennis Uspensky ............Atlantic Beach, N.Y.603 ..Brandon T. Stone ............Melville, N.Y.

National Boys 14 Singles—Long Island PlayersRank Name ................................City54 ....Howard Weiss ................Great Neck, N.Y.58 ....Josh Levine ....................Syosset, N.Y.75 ....Noah Rubin ....................Merrick, N.Y.82 ....Andrew Yaraghi ..............Mill Neck, N.Y.116 ..Ethan Bogard ..................Lido Beach, N.Y.141 ..Samuel Lam....................Old Westbury, N.Y.152 ..Matthew O. Barry ............Long Beach, N.Y.176 ..Aidan Talcott ..................Sea Cliff, N.Y.201 ..Alan S. Pleat....................Roslyn, N.Y.253 ..Vihar Shah ......................New Hyde Park, N.Y.297 ..Jensen H. Reiter..............Syosset, N.Y.381 ..Jonahiby Tauli ................Valley Stream, N.Y.441 ..Michael Paul ..................Baldwin, N.Y.642 ..Kevin Katz ......................Woodbury, N.Y.723 ..Zain Ali............................Dix Hills, N.Y.786 ..Eric Rubin ......................Lido Beach, N.Y.870 ..Brendan Henry ................Massapequa, N.Y.

National Boys 16 Singles—Long Island PlayersRank Name ................................City40 ....Shaun Bernstein..............Plainview, N.Y.104 ..Bert Vancura ..................New Hyde Park, N.Y.152 ..Oliver Loutsenko ............Bellmore, N.Y.191 ..Dennis Zlobinsky ............Greenvale, N.Y.225 ..Zachary Weiss ................Great Neck, N.Y.244 ..Alexander Friedlich..........Great Neck, N.Y.312 ..Shane Giannetti ..............Oyster Bay, N.Y.324 ..Brendan Ruddock............Ronkonkoma, N.Y.392 ..Howard Weiss ................Great Neck, N.Y.401 ..Eric Shyu ........................Great Neck, N.Y.433 ..Corey Morgenstern..........Old Bethpage, N.Y.468 ..Jonathan DeFrancesch....Manhasset, N.Y.512 ..Eric Ambrosio..................Lloyd Harbor, N.Y.564 ..Jensen Reiter..................Syosset, N.Y.624 ..Josh Levine ....................Syosset, N.Y.688 ..David Greenbaum ..........Great Neck, N.Y.807 ..Adam D. Mernit ..............Huntington Station, N.Y.868 ..Brandon Li ......................Jericho, N.Y.931 ..Ryan Fitzgerald ..............East Williston, N.Y.

National Boys 18 Singles—Long Island PlayersRank Name ................................City149 ..Daniel Kreyman ..............Long Beach, N.Y.186 ..Shaun Bernstein..............Plainview, N.Y.224 ..Bryan Roberts ................Commack, N.Y.248 ..Joseph Michalisin ..........Melville, N.Y.280 ..Joseph Agler ..................North Bellmore, N.Y.306 ..Zachary Weiss ................Great Neck, N.Y.489 ..Eric Shyu ........................Great Neck, N.Y.523 ..Brendan Ruddock............Ronkonkoma, N.Y.596 ..Morgan Dauer ................Lloyd Harbor, N.Y.

750 ..Brett Byron......................Dix Hills, N.Y.823 ..Ryan Fitzgerald ..............East Williston, N.Y.

National Girls 12 Singles—Long Island PlayersRank Name ................................City153 ..Paulina Tafler ..................Oceanside, N.Y.248 ..Isabella Pascucci ............Oyster Bay, N.Y.261 ..Rachel Gastaldo ..............Syosset, N.Y.312 ..Madison Battaglia ..........Cold Spring Harbor, N.Y.325 ..Maria Korshunova ..........Oceanside, N.Y.373 ..Mia Vecchio ....................Manhasset Hills, N.Y.497 ..Sunaina Vohra ................Glen Head, N.Y.530 ..Samantha Perri ..............Floral Park, N.Y.730 ..Claudia Ruiz ....................Glen Head, N.Y.

National Girls 14 Singles—Long Island PlayersRank Name ................................City14 ....Julia Elbaba ....................Oyster Bay, N.Y.60 ....Katherine Yau ..................Manhasset, N.Y.80 ....Hannah Camhi ................Woodbury, N.Y.146 ..Morgan Feldman ............Glen Head, N.Y.156 ..Stephanie Loutsenko ......Bellmore, N.Y.158 ..Claudia Li........................Jericho, N.Y.302 ..Vivian Cheng ..................Woodbury, N.Y.331 ..Sophie Barnard ..............Mill Neck, N.Y.339 ..Lauren Wagner................Roslyn Heights, N.Y.419 ..Nadia Smergut ................East Hampton, N.Y.621 ..Samantha Rosca-Sipot....Malverne, N.Y.718 ..Taylor Diffley ..................Hampton Bays, N.Y.721 ..Devlin-Ann Ammendola ..Massapequa, N.Y.

National Girls 16 Singles—Long Island PlayersRank Name ................................City12 ....Jennifer Kellner ..............Smithtown, N.Y.175 ..Shelby Talcott..................Sea Cliff, N.Y.243 ..Jessica Podlofsky............Port Washington, N.Y.248 ..Amanda B. Halstrom ......Bellmore, N.Y.320 ..Olivia Pascucci ................Oyster Bay, N.Y.378 ..Jacqueline Raynor ..........Garden City, N.Y.397 ..Julia Elbaba ....................Oyster Bay, N.Y.548 ..Ashley Harel....................Roslyn Heights, N.Y.635 ..Samantha Gann ..............Massapequa, N.Y.644 ..Hannah Camhi ................Woodbury, N.Y.668 ..Aylin Mehter....................Massapequa, N.Y.

National Girls 18 Singles—Long Island PlayersRank Name ................................City10 ....Blair Seideman................Glen Head, N.Y.30 ....Kristin Norton..................Port Washington, N.Y.73 ....Jennifer Kellner ..............Smithtown, N.Y.82 ....Jordana Kono..................Glen Head, N.Y.110 ..Nicolle Stracar ................Jericho, N.Y.163 ..Mollie Anderson ..............Melville, N.Y.337 ..Olivia Pascucci ................Oyster Bay, N.Y.386 ..Jessica Podlofsky............Port Washington, N.Y.398 ..Katherine Hanson............Smithtown, N.Y.407 ..Shelby Bates ..................Jericho, N.Y.439 ..Kelsey Raynor ................Garden City, N.Y.541 ..Ryann Cutillo ..................Kings Park, N.Y.566 ..Kristin M. Alotta ..............West Islip, N.Y.579 ..Amanda Wu ....................Great Neck, N.Y.600 ..Jennifer Fridman ............Port Washington, N.Y.644 ..Aylin Mehter....................Massapequa, N.Y.



MAY 2009Friday-Sunday, May 1-3L3 LBTC Eastern UPS ChampionshipLong Beach Tennis Center899 Monroe Boulevard • Long Beach, N.Y.Divisions: BG (16-18)s, RREntry Fee: $43.50 per player (deadline for entries is Monday, April 27 at 1:00 p.m.) For more information, call (516) 432-6060.

Friday-Sunday, May 1-3 & Friday-Sunday, May 8-10Marvelous MayThe Tennis King • 25 The Tulips • Roslyn, N.Y.Divisions: Ranked M (30, 40, 50, 60, 70)sdEntry Fee: $60 for singles, $60 for doubles,add $8 for late fee (deadline for entries isMonday, April 27 at 10:00 a.m.)For more information, call (516) 551-4389.

Friday-Sunday, May 1-3 & Friday-Sunday, May 8-10L2R Long Island Wilson Regional Championship Ryan Kelly Memorial Huntington Indoor Tennis100 Broadway • Huntington Station, N.Y.Divisions: BG (10-18)s, SEEntry Fee: $48.88 per player (deadline forentries is Friday, April 17 at 1:00 p.m.)For more information, call (631) 421-0040.

Friday, May 8Men’s Clay ChampionshipsSportime RoslynLanding Road, P.O. Box 1 • Roslyn, N.Y.Divisions: M (35, 45, 55)s, SEEntry Fee: $59.63 per player (deadline forentries is Friday, May 1 at 11:59 p.m.)For more information, call (516) 484-9222.

Friday-Sunday, May 8-10L1 LBTC ChampionshipLong Beach Tennis Center899 Monroe Boulevard • Long Beach, N.Y.Divisions: BG (12)s, SEEntry Fee: $48.88 per player (deadline forentries is Friday, April 24 at 1:00 p.m.)For more information, call (516) 432-6060.

Friday-Sunday, May 8-10Long Island Championship Anuj Agarwai MemorialDeer Park Tennis Center Inc.30 Burt Drive • Deer Park, N.Y.Divisions: BG (14)s, SEEntry Fee: $48.88 per player (deadline forentries is Friday, April 24 at 1:00 p.m.)For more information, call (631) 667-3476.

Friday-Sunday, May 8-10L2R Long Island Regional Westhampton ChampionshipWesthampton Beach Tennis & Sport Club86 Depot RoadWesthampton Beach, N.Y.Divisions: Ranked BG (12-16)s, SEEntry Fee: $48.88 per player (deadline forentries is Friday, April 24 at 1:00 p.m.)For more information, call (631) 288-6060.

Friday-Sunday, May 8-10L1 Nick Brebenel ChampionshipNick Brebenel Tournament Training Center262 Knoll Lane • Glen Head, N.Y.Divisions: Ranked G (16)sd, SEEntry Fee: $48.88 per player (deadline forentries is Friday, April 24 at 1:00 p.m.)For more information, call (516) 852-0591.

Friday-Sunday, May 8-10L3 Sportime Eastern UPS ChampionshipSportime Massapequa5600 Old Sunrise HighwayMassapequa, N.Y.Divisions: Unranked BG (10-18)s, RREntry Fee: $43.50 for one event, $46.50 fortwo events per player (deadline for entries isFriday, May 1 at 1:00 p.m.)For more information, call (516) 799-3550.

Friday-Sunday, May 15-17 & Friday-Monday, May 22-25+L1 Eastern Designated Closed Championship, USTA L3 FICSportime Tennis Bethpage101 Norcross AvenueBethpage, N.Y.Divisions: Championships B (14)sd, FICEntry Fee: $54.25 for singles, $28 per dou-bles player, an additional $25 for playersqualifying or accepted directly to the maindraw (deadline for entries is Friday, May 1 at 1:00 p.m.)For more information, call (516) 933-8500.

Friday-Sunday, May 15-17 & Friday-Monday, May 22-25+L1 Eastern Designated Closed Championship, USTA L3 FICSportime Tennis Lynbrook175 Merrick RoadLynbrook, N.Y.Divisions: Ranked G (18)sd, FICEntry Fee: $54.25 per singles, an additional$25 for players qualifying or accepted di-rectly to the main draw (deadline for entriesis Friday, May 1 at 1:00 p.m.)For more information, call (516) 887-1330.

Friday-Sunday, May 15-17 & Friday-Monday, May 22-25+L1 Eastern Designated Closed Championship, USTA L3, FICRobbie Wagner’s Tournament Training Center60 Sea Cliff AvenueGlen Cove, N.Y.Divisions: G (16)sd, FICEntry Fee: $54.25 per singles, $28 per dou-bles, an additional $25 for players qualifyingor accepted directly to the main draw (dead-line for entries is Friday, May 1 at 1:00 p.m.)For more information, call (516) 759-0505.

Friday-Sunday, May 15-17 & Friday-Monday, May 22-25+L1 Eastern Designated Closed Championship, USTA L3 FICSportime RoslynLanding Road, P.O. Box 1 • Roslyn, N.Y.Divisions: B (12)sd, FICEntry Fee: $54.25 per singles, $28 per dou-bles, an additional $25 for players qualifyingor accepted directly to the main draw (dead-line for entries is Friday, May 1 at 1:00 p.m.)For more information, call (516) 484-9222.

Friday-Sunday, May 15-17 & Friday-Monday, May 22-25+L1 Eastern Designated Closed Championship,USTA L3 FICPoint Set Indoor Racquet Club3065 New StreetOceanside, N.Y.Divisions: B (16)sd, FICEntry Fee: $54.25 per singles, $28 per dou-bles, an additional $25 for players qualifyingor accepted directly to the main draw (dead-line for entries is Friday, May 1 at 1:00 p.m.)For more information, call (516) 536-2323.

Friday-Sunday, May 15-17L20 Open ChallengerNick Brebenel Tournament Training Center262 Knoll Lane • Glen Head, N.Y.Divisions: Ranked BG (18)s, SEEntry Fee: $48.88 per player (deadline forentries is Friday, May 1 at 1:00 p.m.)For more information, call (516) 852-0591.

Friday-Sunday, May 15-17L2R Long Island Atlantic Beach Junior ChallengerAtlantic Beach Tennis Center60 The Plaza • Atlantic Beach, N.Y.Divisions: Ranked BG (10-16)s, SEEntry Fee: $43.50 per player (deadline forentries is Sunday, May 10 at 1:00 p.m.)For more information, call (516) 239-3388.

Friday-Sunday, May 15-17 & Friday-Monday, May 22-25+L1 Eastern Designated Closed Championship, USTA L3 FICPort Washington Tennis Academy100 Harbor RoadPort Washington, N.Y.Divisions: Ranked G (14)sd, FICEntry Fee: $54.25 per singles, $28 per dou-bles, an additional $25 for players qualifyingor accepted directly to the main draw (dead-line for entries is Friday, May 1 at 1:00 p.m.)For more information, call (516) 883-6425.

Thursday-Monday, May 21-25North Shore Long Island Memorial Day ChampionshipThe Tennis King 25 The TulipsRoslyn, N.Y.Divisions: Ranked M (35, 45)s, FMLC; M(55)s, FICS; M (60, 70)s, FMLC; M (35, 45,55-60, 70)d, FMLCEntry Fee: $60 for singles, $60 for doubles,add $8 for late fee (deadline for entries isMonday, May 18 at 10:00 a.m.)For more information, call (516) 551-4389.

Thursday-Saturday, May 21-23North Shore Memorial Open 2009 by Maverick Tennis CPClub to be determinedDivisions: Unranked NMW (4.0)s; NM (3.5-4.0)d; NW (4.0)dEntry Fee: $38.13 for singles, $28 per playerfor doubles (deadline for entries is Tuesday,May 19 at 11:59 p.m.)For more information, call (516) 807-3716.

Thursday-Monday, May 21-25L2R Long Island Wilson Regional ChampionshipHuntington Indoor Tennis100 BroadwayHuntington Station, N.Y.Divisions: Ranked B(10-18)s, SEEntry Fee: $48.88 per player (deadline forentries is Friday, May 8 at 1:00 p.m.)For more information, call (631) 421-0040.

Friday-Sunday, May 22-24L1 Nick Brebenel ChampionshipNick Brebenel Tournament Training Center262 Knoll LaneGlen Head, N.Y.Divisions: Ranked BG (10)sd, SEEntry Fee: $48.88 per player (deadline forentries is Friday, May 8 at 1:00 p.m.)For more information, call (516) 852-0591.

USTA/Long Island Region 2009TOURNAMENT SCHEDULE

For detailed information on these and all USTA tournaments, visit tennislink.usta.com/tournaments.


USTA/Long Island Region 2009TOURNAMENT SCHEDULE

For detailed information on these and all USTA tournaments, visit tennislink.usta.com/tournaments.

Friday-Sunday, May 22-24L3 Sportime Lynbrook Eastern UPS ChampionshipSportime Tennis Lynbrook175 Merrick Road • Lynbrook, N.Y.Divisions: Unranked BG (14-10)s, RREntry Fee: $43.50 per player (deadline forentries is Friday, May 8 at 1:00 p.m.)For more information, call (516) 887-1330.

Friday-Sunday, May 29-31L1 Sportime Kings Park Summer ChampionshipSportime Kings Park275 Old Indian Head Road • Kings Park, N.Y.Divisions: Ranked G (16-12)s, SEEntry Fee: $45 per player (deadline for en-tries is Friday, May 15 at 1:00 p.m.)For more information, call (631) 269-6300.

Friday-Sunday, May 29-31L1 Sportime Bethpage Summer ChampionshipSportime Tennis Bethpage101 Norcross Avenue • Bethpage, N.Y.Divisions: Ranked B(14)s, SEEntry Fee: $48.88 per player (deadline forentries is Friday, May 15 at 1:00 p.m.)For more information, call (516) 933-8500.

Friday-Sunday, May 29-31L1 Sportime LR Summer ChampionshipSportime RoslynLanding Road, P.O. Box 1 • Roslyn, N.Y.Divisions: Ranked B(12)s, SEEntry Fee: $45 per player (deadline for en-tries is Friday, May 15 at 1:00 p.m.)For more information, call (516) 484-9222.

Friday-Sunday, May 29-31L1 Long Beach ChampionshipLong Beach Tennis Center899 Monroe BoulevardLong Beach, N.Y.Divisions: Ranked BG (18)sd, SEEntry Fee: $48.88 per player (deadline forentries is Friday, May 15 at 1:00 p.m.)For more information, call (516) 432-6060.

JUNE 2009Friday-Sunday, June 5-7L2R Long Island Regional Long BeachChampionshipLong Beach Tennis Center899 Monroe BoulevardLong Beach, N.Y.Divisions: Ranked B(10-18)s, SEEntry Fee: $48.88 per player (deadline forentries is Friday, May 22 at 1:00 p.m.)For more information, call (516) 432-6060.

Friday-Sunday, June 5-7L2R Long Island Regional Westhampton ChampionshipWesthampton Beach Tennis & Sport Club86 Depot RoadWesthampton Beach, N.Y.Divisions: Ranked BG (16-12)s, SEEntry Fee: $48.88 per player (deadline forentries is Friday, May 22 at 1:00 p.m.)For more information, call (631) 288-6060.

Friday-Sunday, June 5-7Nick Brebenel Eastern UPS ChampionshipNick Brebenel Tournament Training Center262 Knoll LaneGlen Head, N.Y.Divisions: BG (18-10)s, RREntry Fee: $48.88 per player (deadline forentries is Friday, May 22 at 1:00 p.m.)For more information, call (516) 852-0591.

Friday-Sunday, June 5-7L2R Long Island Regional Atlantic BeachGirls ChampionshipAtlantic Beach Tennis Center60 The PlazaAtlantic Beach, N.Y.Divisions: Ranked G (18-10)s, SEEntry Fee: $45 per player (deadline for en-tries is Friday, May 22 at 1:00 p.m.)For more information, call (516) 239-3388.

Friday-Sunday, June 5-7M40, 50, 60sd Har-Tru ChampionshipSportime RoslynLanding Road, P.O. Box 1Roslyn, N.Y.Divisions: Ranked M (40, 50, 65)sd, SEEntry Fee: $65 for singles, $33 per player fordoubles (deadline for entries is Friday, May29 at 11:59 p.m.)For more information, call (516) 484-9222.

Saturday-Saturday, June 6-13Glamorous Affaires by Felicia Sportime in theHamptons Tennis OpenSportime of the HamptonsP.O. Box 965Quogue, N.Y.Divisions: Ranked M (Op, 45, 60)s; W (Op)sd; M (Op)dEntry Fee: $75 for singles players, $100 fordoubles (deadline for entries is Thursday,June 4 at 11:59 p.m.)For more information, call (631) 653-6767.

Friday-Sunday, June 12-14Summer Championship IWesthampton Beach Tennis & Sport Club86 Depot Road • Westhampton Beach, N.Y.Divisions: M (Op, 50, 65)sdEntry Fee: $59.63 per singles player, $33 perplayer for doubles (deadline for entries is Fri-day, June 5 at 11:59 p.m.)For more information, call (631) 288-6060.

Friday-Sunday, June 12-14 & June 19-21L2R Long Island Regional Point Set Champi-onshipPoint Set Indoor Racquet Club3065 New StreetOceanside, N.Y.Divisions: Ranked BG (10-18)s, SEEntry Fee: $43.50 per player (deadline forentries is Saturday, June 6 at 1:00 p.m.)For more information, call (516) 536-2323.

Friday-Sunday, June 12-14L3 Huntington Eastern UPS ChampionshipHuntington Indoor Tennis100 BroadwayHuntington Station, N.Y.Divisions: Unranked BG (10-18)s, RREntry Fee: $43.50 per player (deadline forentries is Friday, May 29 at 1:00 p.m.)For more information, call (631) 421-0040.

Friday-Sunday, June 12-14L1B Sportime Bethpage ChallengerSportime Tennis Bethpage101 Norcross AvenueBethpage, N.Y.Divisions: Ranked BG (16-18, 10)s, SEEntry Fee: $48.88 per player (deadline forentries is Friday, May 29 at 1:00 p.m.)For more information, call (516) 933-8500.

Friday-Sunday, June 19-21 & June 26-28Summer SolsticeThe Tennis King25 The Tulips • Roslyn, N.Y.Divisions: Ranked M (25, 35-40, 55, 70)sd, FMLCEntry Fee: $60 for singles, $60 for doubles,add $8 for late fee (deadline for entries isMonday, June 15 at 10:00 a.m.)For more information, call (516) 551-4389.

Friday-Sunday, June 19-21L3 LBTC Eastern UPS ChampionshipLong Beach Tennis Center899 Monroe Boulevard • Long Beach, N.Y.Divisions: Unranked BG (10-16)s, RREntry Fee: $43.50 per player (deadline forentries is Friday, June 5 at 1:00 p.m.)For more information, call (516) 432-6060.

Friday-Sunday, June 26-28L3 Deer Park Tennis Eastern UPS ChampionshipDeer Park Tennis Center Inc.30 Burt DriveDeer Park, N.Y.Divisions: Unranked BG (10-18)s, RREntry Fee: $43.50 per player (deadline forentries is Friday, June 12 at 1:00 p.m.)For more information, call (631) 667-3476.

Friday-Sunday, June 26-28L1 Long Beach ChampionshipLong Beach Tennis Center899 Monroe BoulevardLong Beach, N.Y.Divisions: Ranked BG (10)s, SEEntry Fee: $48.88 per player (deadline forentries is Friday, June 12 at 1:00 p.m.)For more information, call (516) 432-6060.

Friday-Tuesday, June 26-30L1 Port Washington ChampionshipPort Washington Tennis Academy100 Harbor RoadPort Washington, N.Y.Divisions: Ranked BG (12-18)s, SEEntry Fee: $48.88 per player (deadline forentries is Friday, June 12 at 1:00 p.m.)For more information, call (516) 883-6425.

Friday-Sunday, June 26-28L2R Long Island Regional Sportime LRChampionshipSportime RoslynLanding Road, P.O. Box 1Roslyn, N.Y.Divisions: Ranked BG (10-18)s, SEEntry Fee: $48.88 per player (deadline forentries is Friday, June 12 at 1:00 p.m.)For more information, call (516) 484-9222.

Monday-Sunday, June 29-July 5L2O NB Open ChallengerNick Brebenel Tournament Training Center262 Knoll LaneGlen Head, N.Y.Divisions: Unranked G (10-18)s, SEEntry Fee: $45 per player (deadline for en-tries is Monday, June 15 at 1:00 p.m.)For more information, call (516) 852-0591.

Monday-Friday, June 29-July 3L2O Long Beach OpenLong Beach Tennis Center899 Monroe Boulevard • Long Beach, N.Y.Divisions: Ranked B (10-18)s, SEEntry Fee: $48.88 per player (deadline forentries is Monday, June 15 at 1:00 p.m.)For more information, call (516) 432-6060.

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