ºÚÁÏÉçÈë¿Ú

The Grand Strand Tennis League kicked off its 2016 Spring League season Feb. 2 with approximately 1,006 players participating in three different divisions.

They were the USTA Adult 18 & Over league, the USTA Adult 40 & Over league and the USTA Adult 55 & Over league. All leagues will have completed their seasons by May 11.

Listed below are the three divisions, their teams and captains:      

—18 & Over league with 447 players on 36 teams

• Adult 2.5 Women: The Dunes Tennis Club with captain Jeanne Bennett and Stables Park with captain Melanie Leonard.  

• Adult 3.0 Men: The Dunes Tennis Club with captain Christopher Garrett Boullion and the Grande Dunes Tennis Club with captain Terry Walden.  

• Adult 3.0 Women: Stables Park Strings with captain Bonnie Bayley; Stables Park Angels with captain Danelle Renee Greer; Grande Dunes Tennis Club with captain Laurie Denny; Riverfront Tennis Club with captain Angela Johnson; Dunes Tennis Club with captain Susan Sparks and the Prestwick Tennis Club with captain Beth Andrews.         

• Adult 3.5 Men: Grande Dunes Tennis Club with captain Terry Walden; Stables Park with captain Bruce Reed Gallup; Prestwick Tennis Club with captain Daniel James Fedele; Riverfront Tennis Club with captain Cheevin Lex Gardner and the Dunes Tennis Club with captain Brian Piercy.             

• Adult 3.5 Women: Dunes with captain Wendy McCauley; Stables Park Run with captain Valerie Hawkins;           Stables Park Chicks with captain Linda Lane; Prestwick with captain Shital Patel and Riverfront with captain Ashley Gwin.

• Adult 4.0 Men: Grande Dunes with captain Gary Bullock; Dunes with captain Steve Starnes; Stables Park with captain Tim McCoy; Riverfront with captain Eddie Bushong and Prestwick with captain Darren Stack.  

• Adult 4.0 Women: Dunes with captain Kristin Boullion; Stables Park with captain Caitlin Negethon; Grande Dunes with captain Karen Swartling; Stables Park Point with captain Wendy Mercado and Riverfront with captain Rene Smith.   

• Adult 4.5 Men: Prestwick Wizards with captain Larry Rizzo and Prestwick Strand with captain Chris Collins.

• Adult 4.5 Women: Stables Park with captain Amanda Gallup and the Florence Tennis Center with captain Kim Osborne. 

• Adult 5.0+ Men: Grand Strand (Independent) with captain Will Bull.   

 — 40 & Over league with 295 players on 21 teams                          

• Adult 3.0 Women: Grande Dunes with captain Teri Arrington; Dunes with captain Denise Apple and the City of Myrtle Beach Tennis Center with captain Linda Rock.

• Adult 3.5 Women: Wachesaw Plantation Club with captain Janet Hunter; Grande Dunes with captain Lou Preston; Stables Park Swingers with captain Laurie Porter; Stables Park Spring with captain Lisa Gabay; Prestwick with captain Gwen Murray; Riverfront with captain Mary Stokes and the Dunes with captain Donna Digeronimo.

• Adult 4.0 Men: Grande Dunes with captain Reggie Caulfield; Stables Park with captain Tim McCoy and Riverfront with captain Lance Dent.                 

• Adult 4.0 Women: Stables Park with captain Holly Cox; Grande Dunes with captain Cyndi Moran; Riverfront with captain Joanne Comb and the Dunes with captain Linda Smith.     

• Adult 4.5+ Men: Stables Park with captain Greg Bender and the Dunes with captain Doug Warstler. 

• Adult 4.5+ Women: Prestwick with captain Tonya Barr and the Florence Tennis Center with captain Gayle Hughes.

 — 55 & Over league with 264 players on 23 teams

• Adult 3.0 Women: Grande Dunes with captain Teri Arrington; Stables Park with captain Judy Price; Wachesaw with captain Cherie Gerstmyer and Ocean Creek Tennis Center with captain Elizabeth Cole.

• Adult 3.5 Men: Litchfield Racquet Club with captain Ed Boettcher; Ocean Creek with captain Richard Jones; Grande Dunes with captain Conrad Hetzer and Riverfront with captain Ralph Horning.      

• Adult 3.5 Women: Grande Dunes with captain Donna Edwards; Litchfield with captain Jackie Hallock; Wachesaw with captain Celia Shaw; Stables Park with captain Linda Howard; Riverfront with captain Beth Smith; Riverfront Conway with captain Lana Hudson and Prestwick with captain Linda Bianca.

• Adult 4.0 Men: Litchfield with captain Doug Costin; Grande Dunes with captain Roger Caulfield and Riverfront with captain Sonny Phillips.  

• Adult 4.0 Women: Grande Dunes with captain Rita Gray; Litchfield with captain Ann Martin and Riverfront with captain Jeri Lindsey.

• Adult 9.0 Men Combined: Wachesaw with captain Mike Mitchell.  

• Adult 9.0 Women Combined: Riverfront Grand Strand with captain Cynthia Huggins.

Southern Championships

USTA Southern Level 1A Championships BG 16 & 18 was held Feb. 5-8 at the Baylor School in Chattanooga, Tenn. This National Level 4 tournament had 260 players including two from the Grand Strand.

Their results were:

— Elizabeth Truluck, seeded No. 5, won her first round 2-6, 6-2, 6-2 over a player from Charlotte in the Girl’s 16 Singles. Then she won 6-2, 6-1 over a player from Gastonia, N.C., and next defeated the No. 9 seed from Summerfield, N.C., 6-3, 6-3. In the quarterfinals, Truluck won 6-3, 4-6, 6-4 over the No. 3 seed from Spartanburg to reach the semifinals where she lost 6-3, 6-0 to a player from Suwanee, Ga. In the playoff for third and fourth, Truluck lost 6-3, 6-2 to the No 4 seed from Birmingham, Ala.

Girl’s 16 Doubles: No. 5 seeds Elizabeth Truluck/Lauren Quinn (Charleston) won their first round 8-3 over a team from Alabama and then won 8-6 over a team from Arkansas/Tennessee. But in the quarterfinals they lost 8-4 to the No. 2 seeds from Prosperity/Spartanburg.   

— Ali Despain lost in the first round 6-4, 6-1 to the No. 1 seed from Atlanta of the Girl’s 18 Singles. In the consolation, Despain won her first round 6-0, 6-2 over a player from Huntersville, N.C., and her second opponent withdrew due to injury. Next, she won 6-1, 6-0 over a player from Alpharetta, Ga., and then won 6-0, 6-0 over a player from Asheville, N.C. Her quarterfinal and semifinal opponents withdrew due to injury and Despain was awarded the consolation title when her opponent in the finals retired due to injury at 1-0 in their match.  

Hartsville tournament

Wendy’s Adult Tennis Tournament (STA 75 PT) was completed Feb. 5-7 at the Hartsville Country Club in Hartsville. This Level 3 sanctioned event had 88 players including five local adults.

Their results were:

— NM 4.0 Singles: Gabriel Concha won his first match 6-2, 6-2 over a Hartsville player and then won 6-2, 6-4 over a Columbia player to reach the finals where he defeated the No. 1 seed from McBee 6-0, 6-1 to take the title.     

— NW 3.5 Singles: Tammie Miller won her first match 6-2, 6-3 over a Camden player and then lost in the finals 6-3, 6-0 to a Florence player.    

— Combo Mixed 6.0 Doubles: Tammie Miller/Douglas Ayer won their first round match 6-3, 2-6, (10-1) over a Sumter team and then defeated a Manning team 6-4, 6-0 to advance to the finals where they won 6-4, 6-3 over a Hartsville team to claim the championship. Gail Romano/Christopher Romano lost in the first round 6-4, 6-1 to a Hartsville team and withdrew from the consolation due to illness. 

Prestwick news

Prestwick Tennis Club will be offering a Valentine’s Day Mixer this Friday, Feb. 12 from 6 - 8 p.m. Costs is free to members and $20 for nonmembers. Light snacks provided and BYOB. Wear red.

For more information, check out their website  or call the new Prestwick Tennis Club number 843-831-0117. Also, upon entering the gated community there is a new tennis number found on the box.  

Upcoming local tournaments

— MBTC Challenger  

The City of Myrtle Beach Junior Challenger will be held March 4-6 at the City of Myrtle Beach Tennis Center. This Level 4 sanctioned event offers singles and doubles for all juniors up to 18 years old. Entry fee is $38.13 for first event and $8 for second event for juniors 12 to 18 years old and $8 for additional event. Boys and girls 10 and under are $28 for first event and $8 for second event. Deadline is Feb. 29.

For more information, check out their Tournament ID: 700040616 or call 843-918-2440.

— Litchfield’s McKissick

The A. Foster McKissick Tennis Tournament will be held March 10-13 at the Litchfield Racquet Club in Pawleys Island. This Level 2 sanctioned tournament will offer singles, doubles and mixed events. Entry fee is $43.50 for first event and $18 for additional events. Deadline is March 3.

For more information, check out their Tournament ID: 704103516 or call 843-237-3983.

— Stables Park Classic

The Mercom Junior Classic at Stables Park will be held March 18-20 at the WRTC at Stables Park in Pawleys Island. This Level 3 sanctioned tournament offers singles and doubles for all juniors up to 18 years old. Entry fee is $43.50 for one event and $46 for two events.

Deadline is March 13.

For more information, check out their Tournament ID: 700030216 or call 843-545-3450.   

Neal Peterson, a former college tennis player, has been writing about the local tennis scene for more than a decade. He can be reached at 650-5505 or email neal.peterson@hotmail.com.