10 MARYLAND JTT STATE CHAMPIONS CROWNED,
22 TEAMS EARN SECTIONAL INVITATIONS
July 21 – 22 – Over the weekend, 45 junior tennis teams from 12 local leagues across the state came to the Tennis Center at College Park to compete at the 2012 USTA/MARYLAND Jr. Team Tennis (JTT) State Championships.
Through torrential rain and very little sunshine, 55 team matches played out over the course of the weekend. More than 300 players age six to 18 participated, marking the largest Maryland JTT championship to date.
The 18 and Under Intermediate Flight was the biggest in the tournament, with 12 teams divided up into four flights. By the end of day one, we held our first play off between the winners of Flights A & B, in which St. Mary’s Team Blue defeated the MCTA Spartans by just three games! The winners of Flights C & D were GSRC Team Shocks and the MCTA Baseliner Monsters. GSRC Team Shocks prevailed, advancing to the finals and defeating St. Mary’s Team Blue to win their division.
Comprised of just two teams, the 18 and Under Advanced flight played out in one match, with the GSRC Servivors defeating MCTA Carderock.
With seven teams in 14 and Under Intermediate, we had one flight of three teams and one flight of four. GSRC Team Static Noize came out on top of flight A with 120 games and ready to take on PG Blue of Flight B on Sunday. GSRC Team Static Noize rolled into first loud and clear.
Three teams competed in 14 and Under Advanced with GSRC Team Eclipse earning decisive wins over MCTA Team Laser Shots and TCCP Red Lions. (The TCCP Red Lions had actually advanced to states as an Intermediate team after receiving a Wild Card from the Mid-Atlantic Section Jr. Team Tennis Invitational held last February. Not wanting to advance without match play, they agreed to jump into the 14 and Under Advanced age bracket and barely lost by 4 points against the MCTA Laser Shots!)
With four teams in the 12 and Under Intermediate flight, GSRC Team Racket won all three of their matches, with the closest being a 32-25 win over runner-up MCTA Aspen Hill Dragons.
A new division of competition this year was 12 and Under Beginners playing with the “green dot” ball. As the last division of play for the weekend, the Westminster Red Stars battled the Howard County Ravens after everyone else had gone home. These kids rallied their hearts out for a full two hours and finished three out of four matches in tie breaks! At the end of the day and separated by just a few points, the Howard County Ravens won the division 28-26.
In the 10 and Under Advanced division, the TCCP Terminators finished first with wins over the MCTA Blue Jays and GSRC Electric Surge.
Seven teams battled it out in the 10 and Under Intermediate division. In Flight A, the TCCP Tornados won a total of 64 games against PGTEF Team Burgundy and GSRC Future Stars. Flight B saw similar results with the TCCP Aces earning 76 total games against the Howard County Raiders, GSRC Star Bursts and the St. Mary’s Blue Hot Shots. On Sunday, the TCCP Tornados came in like a whirlwind beating the TCCP Aces 29-19.
A talented and enthusiastic division of 8 and Unders played 14 singles matches in a “Star Catcher” format to seven points which accumulated into a total team score. Howard County Team Purple came in first with a total of 100 points. PGTEF Team Red came in second with 77 points. St. Mary’s Team Awesomeness came in third with 70 points. Howard County Team Green came in fourth with 69 points. And St. Mary’s team Rango came in last with only 56 points but they were playing with only two kids on their team. We had junior scorekeepers on every court helping the players to keep track of the score. Parents and coaches stayed back in the bleachers to watch and cheer their rising tennis stars compete. At the end, the parents formed a long double line and made a bridge with their hands as each team was called out to run down the victory aisle. Each player received a goodie bag and “good effort” medal, and the first place team members earned a special “state champions” medal.
Special Thanks goes out to:
Our 1st time host site The Tennis Center At College Park. Ajay Pant and his tireless crew constantly made adjustments for us during this HUGE event and the complications brought on by the full day of rain on Saturday.
USTA Officials – Sharon Spangenberg, Winkie Overton, Connor Newton and Dorothy Penner.
Trainers – Michael Rossen and William Plum.
Jr. Volunteers – Kaitlin Pang, Eric Li, Jonny Alterman, Camillia Salamati, Rodrigo Pedraza, Hannah Smith, Brian Machovec and Liam Poole.
Adult Volunteers – Elizabeth Fratt, Sol Lopez, Min Pang, Caroline Cergnillia, Ferdinand & Emily Batoon, and Natasha Moulton-Levy.
ALL Coaches, Captains and parents: Without your help and support this would not be possible.
Food Vendors and Extras: Bob’s BBQ ribs, Smoothie King, Rita’s, Erin Cassell (Tye-Dye), and Irene Sitoski (face painter).
Sponsers: Wilson, Dunlop, NetKnacks and Honest Tea.
Last but not least: TO MY CORE STAFF – Alicia von Lossberg (my right arm), Lynn Gertzog, Alanna Broderick, Jeff Fowle, Jennifer Gregg and Lynn Coddington. This is the best team I have ever been on!
2012 MD JTT STATE CHAMPIONSHIP RESULTS
18 and Under Advanced (2 teams)
· Champion – The Servivors (Green Spring Racquet Club)
· Finalist – Carderock (Montgomery Co. Tennis Assn.)
18 and Under Intermediate (12 teams)
· Champion – Team Shocks (Green Spring Racquet Club)
· Finalist – Team Blue (St. Mary’s Team Blue)
· Sectional Wild Card – Team Eclipse (Howard County)
14 and Under Advanced (3 teams)
· Champion – Team Eclipse (Green Spring Racquet Club)
· Finalist – Laser Shots (Montgomery Co. Tennis Ass.)
14 and Under Intermediate (7 teams)
· Champion – Static Noize (Green Spring Racquet Club)
· Finalist – PG Blue (Prince George Tennis and Education Foundation)
· Sectional Wild Card – Awesome Aces (Howard County)
12 and Under Advanced (1)
· Champion – Red Lions (Tennis Center at College Park)
12 and Under Intermediate (4 teams)
· Champion – Team Racket (Green Spring Racquet Club)
· Finalist – Aspen Hill Dragons (Montgomery Co. Tennis Association)
· Sectional Wild Card – Warriors (Howard County)
12 and Under Beginner (3 teams)
· Champion – Ravens (Howard County)
· Finalist – Red Aces (Westminster)
10 and Under Advanced (3 teams)
· Champion – The Terminators (Tennis Center at College Park)
· Finalist – Electric Surge (Green Spring Racquet Club)
· Sectional Wild Card – Blue Jays (Montgomery Co. Tennis Association)
10 and Under Intermediate
· Champion – Tornados (Tennis Center College Park)
· Finalist – Aces (Tennis Center College Park)
8 and Under Open
· Champion – Team Red (Prince Georges Tennis and Education Foundation)
Advancement to Sectionals goes to 10U, 12U, 14U and 18U teams in the Intermediate and Advanced Divisions. Sectionals will be held at The Tennis Center at College Park on August 10-12, 2012.