Hey Tennis Friends!
Last weekend, I was invited to yet another local tennis event that had so much going on, that I couldn’t have possibly included everything that was happening in this video report. This is why I always encourage you to get out to these events, to choose for yourself the matches that you want to watch!
This tournament also featured the National 40 Mixed, Father/Son, and Grandfather/Grandson tournaments.
There was way too much to try to fit into this report. However, I did get to sit courtside, right on the court, on Court 2, and watch a very exciting match featuring Rowe/Rowe versus Ginepri/Ginepri! That’s right, current ATP Tour player Robbie Ginepri entered the tournament with his dad, Robert, and put on an amazing show for the appreciative crowd.
The results for the matches that I featured in the video report are:
WOMEN’S 40 SINGLES CHAMPIONSHIP
Jennifer Dawson d. Dina McBride 3-3, retired
Dina McBride was unseeded, and Jennifer Dawson was the #2 seed.
MEN’S 40 SINGLES SEMIFINAL
Oren Motevassel d. Jeff Greenwald 3-6, 6-3, 6-1
Jeff Greenwald, seeded #3, had reached an ATP Tour career high of 796 in 1990.
Oren Motevassel, seeded #2, had reach an ATP Tour career high of 161 in 1997.
WOMEN’S 40 DOUBLES CHAMPIONSHIP
Alissa Finerman / Erika Smith
d. Gretchen Magers / Ros Nideffer 6-4, 6-3
Here is a press report from the Sunday finals:
In a singles final featuring two former touring professionals, second-seeded Oren Motevassel of Sunnyvale, Calif., defeated defending champion and top-seed Jeff Tarango of Manhattan Beach, Calif., 6-4, 6-3, to win the USTA National 40 Hard Court Championships men’s singles title.
It was a year ago when these same two left-handed players met in the tournament final as Tarango dropped the first set of the 2010 title match before coming back to win the next two sets and capture the championship.
In this year’s final, which was played on Court No. 1, Tarango and Motevassel each fought off break points early in the first set, but with the scored tied at 3-3, Tarango hit two straight double faults to lose serve and give Motevassel a 4-3 lead.
Two games later, Motevassel served for the set and at 40-15 Tarango smacked a crosscourt forehand long to give Motevassel the first set in 59 minutes.
Despite losing his serve to open the second set, Tarango came back to take a 2-1 lead but Motevassel, playing solid, steady tennis from the baseline broke Tarango twice and won four straight games to take a 5-2 lead.
Tarango got one of the breaks back when Motevassel’s crosscourt forehand passing shot landed wide to make the score 5-3. As Tarango served to stay in the match and get back on serve, he fell behind 15-40 and faced two match points.
On the first match point, Tarango approached the net, but Motevassel responded with a near perfect lob which Tarango pushed wide with a high backhand to end the match in one-hour and 45 minutes.
After being awarded a USTA gold ball for winning the national championship, Motevassel spoke about the difference between losing last year’s three-set final and winning the title this year.
“After last year I was kind of upset. I had the match. I was up a set and I was up a break. I just lost a little focus.
I was playing too defensive from the back and allowed him (Tarango) to dictate. I played too tentative last year,” he said.
“I was focused today. I had a good game plan and it worked fine,” Motevassel said. “I took the ball a little earlier. I put him on the defense more. Getting the ball more on the rise helped me a lot today.”
Motevassel plans to return to the La Jolla Beach & Tennis Club to defend his title next year. “I plan to come back. I like coming here. It’s a nice place and a good venue. It’s fun to play here,” he said.
Top-seeded Brett and Brian Joelson of Beaverton, Ore., the eight-time defending Father and Son National Hard Court champions saw their eight-year winning streak come to an end as they dropped a thrilling 6-7 (9), 7-6 (5), 7-5 decision in the semifinals to fourth-seeded Peter and Tanner Smith of Los Alamitos, Calif. before a large crowd on Court No. 2.
Peter Smith, the head coach of the University of Southern California men’s tennis team, and his 16-year-old son Tanner, fell in the Father and Son final to third-seeded Travis Rettenmaier of Las Vegas, Nev. and Tom Rettenmaier of Fountain Valley, Calif., 6-4, 3-6, 6-4.
MEN’S SINGLES CHAMPIONSHIP
Oren Motevassel d. Jeffrey Tarango 6-4, 6-3
FATHER/SON DOUBLES CHAMPIONSHIP
Travis Rettenmaier / Tom Rettenmaier
d. Peter Smith / Tanner Smith 6-4, 3-6, 6-4
For more information about the La Jolla Beach & Tennis Club, follow this link:
La Jolla Beach & Tennis Club
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I’ll see you next time, with more tennis, . . . outside the lines!
– Marcus Tennis
