Volume 3, Issue 4 USTA Eastern Long Island December 2014 On The Ball: News From LI Happy Holidays! Eastern Section Honors The USTA Eastern Section will honor several Long Islanders at its Awards Dinner on Saturday, January 31, 2015. The Section will recognize “greatness not only in attitude, but also in performance and dedication.” GOT NEWS? Information about attending the awards dinner as well as the Eastern Section Annual Meeting is available at Email us at: www.eastern.com. Please join us in congratulating these deserving honorees! ustaonlongisland @gmail.com Long Island Adult Honorees are: Tennis Woman of the Year Kathy Miller INSIDE Regional Volunteer of the Year (Long Island) Bob Coburn Bob Coburn P. 2-3 USTA League Kathy Miller 10 & Under Tennis Award Tito Perez Teams Compete at Na- tionals Jr. Team Tennis Award Pat Mosquera Ron Smyth Parent Sportsmanship Award Sean Hannity P. 3 Remembering Susan Alvy and Al 2014 LI Junior Awardees are: Sean Hannity Kaplan Richard D. Lynch II Boys' 12 Sportsmanship Award P. 4 Jokers Take On Tito Perez Ian Kaish Bethpage Lawrence A. Miller Girls' 16 Sportsmanship Award P. 5 Kids Serving Kids Esther Chikvashvili P. 6 Girls’ High School Pat Mosquera Tennis Recap Seeking Nominees Coming Soon The 25th Annual USTA Long Island To nominate your selections for these For details on LI tennis Region Awards Dinner is fast awards, please visit events, visit approaching! www.longisland.usta.com and click on Annual Awards Dinner. www.longisland.usta.com. Mark your calendars — May 6, 2015 at the Crest Hollow Country Club — for 1/30-31, 2015: Eastern Tennis what promises to be a fabulous event Conference and Awards Cere- recognizing all of the hard work, mony volunteerism and strong tennis play Volunteers of the Year, Tennis Family that make Long Island the best tennis of the year and much more. Also being 5/6/2015: 25th Annual LI community. recognized will be USTA League teams, high school tennis players and high- Region Awards Dinner Nominations are now open for the achieving adult and junior players. awards, which include Lifetime Achievement, Adult and Junior On The Ball: News from LI Page 2 Tennis for Teens: Rikers Island USTA Leagues: LI Teams Head to Nationals USTA Long Island Region board members and pros from Sportime’s John McEnroe Tennis Academy TEAM SUMO CITRUS there by organizing fundraisers and raffles and designing sweatshirts to joined forces to run the first Team Sumo Citrus, captained by sell. -ever tennis clinic at the Michelle Stoerback and Diann Starcke Juvenile Jail at the Rikers “I hope those that are deserving get and coached by Tina Buschi, swept its to experience (Nationals) at least Island Correctional Center. flight at Nationals 4-0. The team once in their lives. Every team is reached the semi-final and ended in Team Sumo Citrus, 18+ Rikers Deputy Chief Greg thrilled to be there and (the players) 4th place. Women 4.0 Kings Park McLaughlin and Warden are so nice. You find yourself James Perrino coordinated After Stoerbeck became League applauding good points for other teams and giving high fives to this effort with LI Region Director at Sportime Kings Park last winter, Stoerback says she met strangers. That's really what it's all Buschi, Sportime’s Adult Director, TEAM CAMACHO about.” and the two worked together to form “It was an incredible experience getting Team Members are: (photo, top row, a team made up of tennis friends to play at Nationals,” said Andrew from left) Adam Jaskowski, Terry from Sportime. “Our leadership, Camacho, tennis coordinator/league Kossegi, and Casey friendship, shared love of the game director at Long Beach Tennis Schnabel. (Bottom row, from left) and competitive spirit unified this Center. “Just the beauty of the Andrew Camacho, Cristina Camacho, team,” Stoerback said. To raise scenery and the background made it so Lori D'Antonio, Nancy Wisniewski and money for the trip to Nationals, the special. Our team, and most others, team organized a fundraising event, Paul Schnabel. had issues with it being so cold for the Board Member Bob Coburn. Oktober-Tennis-Fest. We had over 150 morning matches. So we didn't start It took many months to clear people attend and we raised $7,500.” out how we wanted to but we picked it the way for this event to During practices, Stoerback said, right up and swept our next two take place. “This was a wish “the team focused on its positive matches… In our final match, we for a long time and only team mentality. Despite living in needed to win one more court to win came about because of our different places ... members have our flight. Instead, we … finished 4th terrific volunteers and the become close friends.” in the flight. It's crazy to be that close to finishing 1st and then getting great leaders at Rikers who Team members are (photo, from left): knocked to 4th… realized the benefits of Tina Buschi (coach), Connie offering tennis to their Insignares, Erin Anderson Katzman, “The highlight had to be winning the Team Camacho, 18+ inmates,” Coburn said of the Nicole Tavernier, Maritoni Carlos, 8.0 Captain's Sportsmanship Award,” Mixed 8.0 Long Beach event, in which many boys Marie Woitach, Stacy Fleischman, Camacho said. “It was a real Diann Starcke (co-captain), Sue honor. We received a big banner for participated. The LI Region Bacey, Halle Turk, Sharon Erb, the club. And you can't win that kind of also donated new racquets Michelle Stoerback (co-captain) and award without an awesome team of and balls to the facility. Debbie Polen. Not pictured: Joanne people behind you. Lori D'Antonio, Discussions are underway to Flatley, Andrea Trapani, Carole Quinn, especially, helped out so much behind develop an ongoing tennis Patty Serpe, Pilar Medina and the scenes to make sure we program at this facility. Christine Klouda. represented our section really well. She also helped get our team Volume 3, Issue 4 Page 3 Head to National Championships Remembering USTA Leagues: Susan Alvy & Al Kaplan LI Teams Head to Nationals Team Sotomayor, 18+ Mixed 3.0 team out of Eastern Athletic Blue TEAM SOTOMAYOR 7.0, Christopher Morley Point captained by Jen Suh- McCormack and the 55+ 7.0 team out of Point Set captained by Ann Susan H. Alvy, 67, passed According to Team Captain Darlene McGrath. away in November. Manag- Sotomayor: “Our 6.0 mixed doubles er of Rockville Racquet Club Interested to taking your tennis to team out of Christopher Morley came for 20 years until her re- the next level? Consider joining a in 2nd place in our flight. Our players tirement at the end of 2012, USTA League team. League teams fought hard and the competition was Alvy received the Hy Zaus- play at all levels and represent very strong as was expected. We met ner Lifetime Achievement member clubs across Long Island. award from the USTA LI a lot of nice people and made new Deena Mavroudis, Allie Spector, Not sure what team to join? Visit Region in 2013 in recogni- friends. A good time was had by all.” Shanon Blue, Marley Spector www.longisland.usta.com or email tion of her lifetime of and Maria Gonzales. Team members are: (photo, back row, USTA Long Island Leagues achievement both on and Coordinator Kathy Miller at off the tennis court. Under from left): Terrence Donohue, Steven More Sectional Success Waters, Gary Spector, Shaun Willis and [email protected]. her leadership, Rockville Adam Moramarco; (front, from left): Additional teams that represented Racquet received the LI Region’s Special Community Todd Greenwald, Darlene Sotomayor, the Section at Nationals are the 18+ Service Award for opening its doors to the community for hot showers, cell phone Celebrating 5o Years of Tennis in charging and Wi-Fi access in the aftermath of super Roosevelt storm Sandy. Friends of the late Al Kaplan What do actors and comedians Eddie Murphy (Trading Places, Beverly Hills Cop) and Steve recently held a luncheon in White (Do the Right Thing, Coming to America), and tennis pros Hemel Megahni Cosme and memory of the former John Cosme (Alley Pond Tennis Center) have in common? Baldwin Park Recreation Director of 44 years who All grew up in Roosevelt and learned to play tennis through the Alliance Junior Tennis passed away earlier this th Development Program, Inc., which will celebrate its 50 anniversary this month with a year. Hempstead Town dinner at Roosevelt High School. Councilman Anthony J. Santino and Nassau County Alliance Junior Tennis was created and continues to be led by local tennis pioneer and advocate Ms. Emily Moore, its Legislator Laura Curran executive director. The program uses tennis as a vehicle for change and progress in the community, by primarily sup- made presentations to Mr. porting and developing children from ages 4-18 through an annual Kaplan’s wife, Irene. summer tennis camp and year-round weekend programs. Alliance kids play tennis at the Rev. Arthur Mackey Sr. Park in Roosevelt, Susan and Al will be sorely which has seen thousands of children pass through the program missed. over the years. In 1988, tennis great Arthur Ashe honored Ms. Moore with his Jun- ior Tennis Development Award. She received the Hy Zausner Life- time Achievement Award from the USTA LI Region in 2006. Congratulations to Ms. Moore and Alliance Junior Tennis on their golden anniversary. On The Ball: News from LI Page 4 USTA Grant Recap: Jokers Take on Bethpage LIFTALL This past September, Bethpage Park This past summer, the Long club) was a perfect location.” Kaplan Topspin Pro Shop, Karen Camhi and Beach Martin Luther King Tennis Center made its nationwide asked around and “it seemed like every her daughter, Sara, a college student, (MLK) Youth Center added television debut on TruTV’s kid said ‘Oh my god, that’s my favorite and Long Island Tennis Magazine’s tennis to its children’s “Impractical Jokers.” For those who show.’“ The show’s premise – three Andrew Berman.