Northern California Men’s Tennis Team Wins Title at USTA League National Championships
Alameda, CA (PRWEB) April 09, 2014 -- The USTA Northern California Section is pleased to announce that a local men’s tennis team from Oakland, Calif., captured the national title on April 6 at the USTA League Adult 55 & Over 6.0 Championships held at the Surprise Tennis and Racquet Complex in Surprise, Ariz.
The team, which plays at Laney College, defeated a team from Greer, S.C., 2-1 in the championship match. Earlier the same day, they defeated a team from Indio, Calif., 2-1 in the semifinals.
The team is captained by Henry Chang and includes Roger Lambert, Robert Huberman, Arkadiy Boyarshinov, Steve Tao, David Dunetz, Jerry Eisman, David Ma and Alex Cheung.
“It was an exciting tournament because all of the matches were so close,” said Chang. “We had to fight hard to win and it just made the experience that much sweeter.”
Two other local teams also placed in their respective divisions in the national competition as well.
In the Women’s Adult 55 & Over 6.0, the Mt Tam Racquet Club of Larkspur, Calif. defeated a team from San Juan, P.R., 2-1, taking third place.
In the Women’s Adult 55 & Over 8.0 Clubsport Valley Vista of Walnut Creek, Calif. took third place defeating a team from Mayfield, Ky., 2-1.
The USTA League Adult 55 & Over division is for men and women 55 years of age and older. Teams are formed by combining the two player’s individual National Tennis Rating Program (NTRP) ratings. The team’s total rating must equal: 6.0, 7.0, 8.0 and 9.0. The total NTRP rating cannot exceed the level of the team. For example, a 7.0 team could be a combination of two 3.5 players, or one 4.0 partner and one 3.0 partner. Play format consists of three doubles matches.
Established in 1980, USTA League has grown from 13,000 participants in a few parts of the country in its first year, to over 820,000 players across the nation today, making it the world’s largest recreational tennis league.
USTA League was established to provide adult recreational tennis players throughout the country with the opportunity to compete against players of similar ability levels. Players participate on teams in a league format, which is administered by the USTA through its 17 Sections. The league groups players by using six National Tennis Rating Program (NTRP) levels, ranging from 2.5 (entry) to 5.0 (advanced). USTA League is open to any USTA member 18 years of age or older.
Last year, USTA League changed its structure and format. The change offers USTA League participants three age categories (Adult 18 & Over, Adult 40 & Over and Adult 55 & Over and Mixed 18 & Over) to better align participants with players their own age. The restructuring guarantees more frequency of play opportunities at more appropriate age groups.
USTA Northern California, headquartered in the San Francisco Bay Area, is the 4th largest section of the United States Tennis Association. With 51,000 individual members, hundreds of organizational members, volunteers, and a professional staff, USTA NorCal is devoted to promoting and developing the growth of tennis as an inclusive and inviting lifetime activity in Northern California and Northwest Nevada.
The United States Tennis Association (USTA) is the national governing body for the sport of tennis and the recognized leader in promoting and developing the sport’s growth on every level in the United States, from local communities to the crown jewel of the professional game, the US Open.
Brooke Fishel, USTA Northern California, http://www.norcal.usta.com, +1 510-263-0470, [email protected]
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