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Tennis: Local players qualify for USTA nationals
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San Angelo put itself on the map again this past week when our own 6.0 mixed doubles sectional team blazed through the competition to earn a trip to the National Championships held in Sacramento, Calif., on Nov. 20-23.
USTA leagues are great because they give recreational players the ability to advance through an organized qualification process with the pinnacle being the ability to compete against the best players in the United States in their level in a national format.
The San Angelo team is made up of a great group of players. Tobin Lefler is the team captain, a local probation officer by day and national championship veteran on the courts at night. Tobin also captained the 2007 mixed doubles Texas section winner. This will be his second straight trip to nationals. Tobin is an avid tennis player who captained the local 3.5 men's team that advanced to sectionals this year. Tobin played this season with partner Danielle Harrison. Danielle is a pharmaceutical sales rep and a newcomer to USTA leagues.
Though this is her first USTA experience, she played like a veteran and, with partner Lefler, has put together a great season. Brian Narvid works at Goodfellow Air Force Base and is a veteran of USTA league tennis. He has played league for many years and has competed in many sectional championships. This will be his first trip to nationals, though he has been close on several occasions. Brian's partner is Jen Moore. Jen is a stay-at-home mom who also joined USTA this year and began playing league tennis. Jen is a fierce competitor who plays with great determination. Having new players like Jen and Danielle come into the league is no doubt one of the reasons San Angelo is having more success at the sectional level.
Steve Motl is a pharmacist at Walgreens. He has played USTA League for many years and is no stranger to sectional competition. Steve is a steady player and is known for his calm demeanor on the court. Steve is teamed up with Lora Narvid. Lora is a legal assistant at the Webb, Stokes, and Sparks law firm. Lora has played USTA league for several years, having success in several levels. Lora's 3.0 ladies team advanced to Texas sectionals this year and won their flight, earning them a spot in the semifinals. Lora also serves on the Board of Directors for the Concho Valley Tennis Association and College Hills Swim & Racquet Club.
San Angelo began the sectional tourney in a flight that was made up of teams from Fort Worth, Corpus Christi, and a wild-card team from Lubbock. During the opener against Fort Worth, Tobin and Danielle lost a thriller of a match in a third set tie-breaker. However, the other two San Angelo doubles teams won, giving them the team win. During the second match versus Corpus Christi, Brian and Jen fell short in a third set tiebreaker, but once again, the other two teams were successful and Corpus went down 2-1.
In the last team match of flight play, San Angelo swept the Lubbock wild card team 3-0 without dropping a set. San Angelo had secured a spot in the semifinals to play the Lubbock Premiere team. In the semifinals match versus Lubbock, Steve and Lora fell to a very strong Lubbock team. Brian and Jen pulled out a nail-biter with a 10-8 in a third-set tiebreaker victory. Tobin and Danielle's match was delayed and started late due to court availability issues. They struggled in the first set but pulled off the victory 7-6, 6-0, propelling San Angelo into the finals.
San Angelo faced a team from Tyler in the finals. Steve and Lora lost their match in the finals to a tough team. However, the duos of Brian/Jen and Tobin/Danielle took charge and came away with straight-set victories, clinching the mixed doubles championship for San Angelo. During the course of the championship, when one doubles team did not win, the other two doubles teams would come to the rescue and secure victories. No doubt this complete team effort was the key to the players' success. Best of luck to all the players. We will be hoping for a national championship for San Angelo.
Texas Tech in Town
The Texas Tech men's and women's tennis teams will be at Bentwood Country Club for a one-day team fundraiser on Oct. 19. The Red Raiders will be in town from 9:30 a.m. to 4 p.m., playing with local tennis enthusiasts. The Tech teams are great this year, and with local player Jeff Bryan on the men's side and head women's coach Todd Petty involved, it will have a real local flair. All proceeds from the event will go to help the Tech tennis teams. Sponsorships are still available. Call the Bentwood tennis shop for more details at (325) 949-1534.
Upcoming events
Oct. 14: Central varsity vs. Wylie Central
Oct. 17: Lake View vs. Andrew Andrews
Oct. 21: Lake View vs. Snyder in Snyder
Oct. 24: Central district tourney in Odessa
Kevin Collins is the tennis pro at Bentwood Country Club. His column appears every other Monday. Contact him at kcollins@bentwoodcc.com.
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