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Congratulations to the 2011 USTA Northern Hall of Fame class featuring Thomas Boice (Wayzata, Minn.), Tim Butorac (Rochester, Minn.), John Desmond (Minneapolis, Minn.),

Nick Pappas (Minneapolis, Minn.), Mary Thompson (Sioux Falls, S.D.) and Greg Wicklund (Edina, Minn.). These six tennis legends

were honored October 14 at International Market Square in Minneapolis. Former two-time Minnesota Boys State Singles Champion and current KFAN Radio personality Justin Gaard emceed the evening which also featured a silent auction benefit-ting the Northern Tennis Foundation.

USTA Northern Hall of Fame Class of 2011

Thomas Boice Boice has been one of USTA Northern’s most innovative ten-nis professionals for over 40 years, while also being an out-standing player. Boice earned #1 section rankings in Men’s Open Doubles, Open Mixed, and Men’s 35, 45, 55 and 60 Doubles and is currently ranked #1 in the nation in doubles amongst teaching professionals in his age group. Professionally, Boice has taught at many clubs throughout the country and served as the first Tennis Director at Hazeltine National Golf Club, White Bear Racquet Club, Flagship Athletic Club and the Rochester Athletic Club. He also was the head coach of Pierce College in Los Angeles, where his teams won two state championships and he was named the Women’s Tennis Coach of the Year by the California Community College Association. Very active within the USPTA, Boice has served as the President, Vice President and Treasurer of the Northern Division and was the Regional Vice President. He also founded and published the state’s first tennis newspaper – Minnesota Tennis News. Tim Butorac For Butorac, tennis is his passion and profession as he is a great player, tennis entrepreneur and volunteer. As a 1975 graduate of Gustavus Adolphus, he was a three-time All-American, and he and partner Dave Peterson won the NAIA Men’s Doubles championship in 1973, and were finalists in 1974. He was the Northwest Section Player of the Year in 1988, and was ranked #34 in the United States in 35 Singles and #13 in 35 Doubles. In 1992, Butorac won the Men’s 40 Doubles Section title and the National Public Parks Championship Men’s 35 and 40 Doubles. In 1995, he was inducted into the Gustavus Adophus Hall of Fame, and that same year, won

both the Men’s 35 Singles and Men’s 35 Doubles Section cham-pionships. He has also had great success playing doubles with his son, Eric, winning two USTA National Father/Son Grass Court Championships and three Section titles. Butorac has been the Director of Tennis at the Rochester Tennis Connection since 1979 and part owner since 1989. He also spent 24 years as the head coach of the Rochester John Marshall High School girls tennis team. He has served on the USTA Northern Board of Directors (1982-90) and is also a member of the USPTA.

John DesmondA Minnesota state doubles champion while playing high school tennis at Minneapolis John Marshall, Desmond went on to play tennis at the University of Minnesota from 1959-62. A captain of the Gopher tennis team, he played #1 singles and #1 doubles in 1962 and was a two-time NCAA Tournament participant as a junior and senior. He became the head Men’s Tennis Coach at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and then managed and taught at the L.E. Phillips Tennis Center in Eau Claire, Wis., (1972-74) before moving back to Minnesota and working at the Northwest Racquet Clubs. He would spend the next 27 years as a Director of Tennis where he developed the tennis program at many Northwest clubs. While coaching, Desmond achieved great success as a player as well. He was ranked in the top five from 1968-74 in Wisconsin. When he moved back to Minnesota, he was ranked #1 in 35 & Over singles three times. Very active with the USPTA, Desmond volun-teered as the head of the testing program for those who wanted to become certified. He also volunteered many hours teaching urban youth. In 1984, he was named the Northern Section USPTA Pro of the Year. Nick PappasPappas has dedicated the majority of his life to the game of tennis as a player, coach, official and volunteer. He was crowned the Intramural Tennis champion at the University of Iowa and spent time at Prince George Country Club in Washington D.C. as a teaching professional

USTA Northern Hall of Fame Class of 2011

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Please See Hall of Fame, 4.

from 1957-62. For 29 years, he was a tennis instructor with the Minneapolis Public Schools and Community Education where he taught school year and summer programs at 14 different schools and evening classes for Edina Community Education. Pappas was a co-founder of Minneapolis Urban Tennis and assisted with the founding of the Senior Tennis Players Club. He has also served as the President of USTA Northern (1969-70) and was on the Board of Directors until 1985. He was the Tournament Director of the Aquatennial Junior Tournament for 14 years, and in 1971, he was awarded with the Ward C. Burton Junior Development Award. Pappas has worked at the US Open as an official at both Forest Hills and the Billie Jean King National Tennis Center (1975-82), as well as an official at numerous local tournaments. He was a USTA volunteer for 32 years.

Mary ThompsonThompson has been a lifelong tennis teacher, player, coach, administrator and volunteer. She was the Director of Tennis at Woodlake Athletic Club from 1982-93, while also serving as the head coach of the Augustana College men’s and women’s tennis teams from 1985-92. In 1999, she was named the Iowa Intercollegiate Athletic Association’s Women’s Tennis Coach of the Year while at Luther College, before coming back to Sioux Falls as the Assistant Director of Tennis at Westward Ho Country Club. In 2002, she won the Professional Tennis Registry South Dakota Member of the Year Award, the USTA Northern Wolfenson/Ratner Community Service Award, and was one of 28 people named to the USTA All-American Team. In 2003, she was inducted into the South Dakota Tennis Hall of Fame, and in 2004, won the USTA/PTR Community Service Award. In 1991, she was named Executive Director of the Sioux Falls Tennis Association and served in that capacity for almost 20 years. Thompson was a member of the USTA Northern Board of Directors from 2000-08, including President in 2005-06. She also was the Regional Coordinator for the USTA Pilot Program called One Player At A Time, is a member of the National Public Parks Tennis Association Board of Directors and is on the USTA Northern Nominating Committee. She has won nine titles playing at the National Public Parks Tournament as well.

Greg WicklundWicklund was a four-year letterwinner at the University of Minnesota where he was a Big Ten Singles Champion in 1981 and helped lead his team to its first Big Ten Championship since 1933. He went on to be an assistant coach at Minnesota from 1982-88 and helped lead the Gophers to two Big Ten Team Championships, four run-ner-up titles and a #9 national ranking in 1986. He was ranked first in USTA Northern in Men’s Open Singles and Doubles four times. He achieved a world ranking of #482 and won the Houston Open. Wicklund has won the Northwest Tennis Association Player of the Year Award and is a two-time winner of the USPTA Player of the Year. He is currently the Tennis Director and Head Pro at the Edina Country Club and a teaching professional at Life Time Fitness - Bloomington South. One of the most highly regarded coaches in Minnesota, he has worked with many of the Section’s best players over the years, and in 2010, was named the USTA Northern Frank Voigt Pro of the Year. Also an avid writer, Wicklund produced Edina Country Club’s first tennis newsletter and has appeared in such publications as the Edina Sun Current, Tennis Midwest, Service Line, and TennisLife magazine. In 2005, he won the USTA Northern Bob Larson Media Award.

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1001 West 98th Street, Suite 101Bloomington, MN 55431

(952) 887-5001 • (800) 536-6982Fax: (952) 887-5061

Kristi Bushinski (952-358-3280)Adult and Junior Tennis [email protected] Buysse (952-358-3290)Community Tennis Assistant/Jr. Team Tennis [email protected] Cantellano (952-358-3291)Community Development [email protected] Colbert (952-358-3283)Assistant Executive Director and Junior Competition [email protected] Egart (952-358-3292)Corporate and Collegiate Tennis [email protected] Goldammer (952-358-3284)Executive [email protected] Haugen (952-887-5001, ext. 110)Administrative [email protected] Johnson (952-358-3285)Adult Competition [email protected] Lundberg (952-358-3286)Community Tennis Assistant/Adult Tournament [email protected] Mushett (952-358-3282)Director of Marketing and [email protected] Okerman (952-887-5001, ext. 110)Administrative [email protected] Poehler (952-358-3281)Administration [email protected] Horning Shibley (952-358-3295)Tennis Service [email protected] Shute (952-358-3287)Twin Cities Area League [email protected] Smith (952-358-3288)Director of Membership and [email protected] Stingley (952-358-3289)Diversity [email protected]

STAFF DIRECTORY

14 TennisLife magazine OCTOBER/NOVEMBER 2011

Kristi Bushinski (952-358-3280)Junior and Officials Programming Assistant [email protected]

Becky Cantellano (952-358-3291)Director of Tennis Programs and [email protected]

Pat Colbert (952-358-3283)Assistant Executive Director/Director of Junior [email protected]

Chris Dummermuth (605-496-1612)Tennis Service Representative – South [email protected]

Jean Forbes (952-358-3292)Junior Teams [email protected]

Mike Goldammer (952-358-3284)Executive [email protected]

Cory Haugen (952-887-5001, ext. 110)Administrative [email protected]

Hayley Horning Shibley (701-306-8997)Tennis Service Representative – North [email protected]

Nancy Lundberg (952-358-3286)Director of Adult [email protected]

Lisa Mushett (952-358-3282)Director of Marketing and [email protected]

Christine Nickels (952-358-3290)Director of Junior [email protected]

Kelley Okerman (952-358-3287)Adult Competition Specialist/Twin Cities Area League [email protected]

James Poehler (952-358-3281)[email protected]

Sandy Smith (952-358-3288)Director of Membership & [email protected]

Tony Stingley (952-358-3289)Director of Training and [email protected]

Carol Thies (952-358-3285)USTA League Matchline [email protected]

Hall of Fame, Continued from Page 13.

Belmar Gunderson Wins USTA Service Bowl Award


Belmar Gunderson of River Falls, Wis., was honored with the 2011 USTA Service Bowl Award as part of the USTA Semiannual Meeting September 5 at the Grand Hyatt in

New York City. The USTA Service Bowl Award annually honors a female player who makes the most notable contribution to the sportsmanship, fellowship and service of tennis. Since its inception in 1940, award recipients have included Billie Jean King, Chris Evert, Barbara Williams, Pam Shriver and Mary Joe Fernandez. Gunderson has dedicated at least 50 years to the game and has left a legacy not just in tennis, but in all women’s sports. She has played tennis at the highest level, as well as encour-aged and developed new players and leaders in the sport. She has competed in several Grand Slam tournaments, including the US Open, Wimbledon and the French Open. She achieved a No. 11 national ranking in women’s singles and No. 2 in doubles. Her titles include the 1961 Indoor Women’s Doubles and Mixed Doubles Championship, as well as the Swedish International Championship and Frankfort International Championship in sin-gles and doubles. In her later years, Gunderson’s tennis achievements continued to build. She represented the United States at the ITF World Senior Team Championships. Additionally, she won the USTA National Doubles titles in 55s, 60s, 65s and 70s and has won eight ITF World Doubles Championships.

As a tennis coach, Gunderson captained the Junior Wightman Cup Team in the late 50s and early 60s. When she went back to school as a teacher and coach at the University of Minnesota, she used her competitive spirit to improve women’s sports. She was the first official coach of the women’s tennis team and oversaw the creation of 10 women’s varsity sports. Gunderson was a force in creating women’s college athletics as we know it today. In 2004, she was inducted into the Intercollegiate Tennis Association Hall of Fame. Her service to the game is exemplified through her many years of dedication as a volunteer. She served on the USTA Women’s Collegiate and Educational Research committees in the 1960s and she was the AAPHERD representative to the USTA Joint Committee on Tennis and she later served as chair of the com-mittee. Since 1990, Gunderson was on the USTA Florida Adult Competitive Committee and organized and captained the Florida Intersectional Teams. She instigated the initiation of the 80s as a new age group in the Intersectional Team Competition and has been actively involved in the National Senior Women’s Tennis Association since its inception. “Belmar’s outstanding achievements as an advocate, coach, player and mentor is truly an inspiration,” said USTA Chairman of the Board and President Jon Vegosen. “She has left a legacy in tennis, and we proudly honor her lifetime of achievement and dedication to tennis with this award.”

USTA Service Bowl winner Belmar Gunderson (center) with USTA President Jon Vegosen and USTA Awards

Chair Nancy Rasgado.

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USTA NORTHERNScholarship News


Four Win USTA Serves Scholarships USTA Northern junior players Ryan Shogren (Sioux Falls, S.D.),

Michelle Roiger (Springfield, Minn.), Bailu Huang (Eden Prairie, Minn.) and Jennie Hartjes (Woodbury, Minn.) won scholarships from USTA Serves, the National Charitable Foundation of the United States Tennis Association.

Shogren, Roiger and Huang each won $6,000 College Educational Scholarships and Hartjes received a $1,000 College Textbook Scholarship. The honorees were selected from applicants through-out the country on the basis of their commitment to academic suc-cess, their local community and their participation in tennis.

USTA Serves awards College Educational Scholarships annually to high school seniors who have excelled academically, demonstrated community service and participated in an organized tennis pro-gram. This year, 55 students from across the nation, totaling more than $400,000, received scholarships.

Shogren, who attended Sioux Falls Roosevelt High School, was on the honor roll and held a perfect attendance record. He played USTA tournaments and managed the girls tennis team at Roosevelt. He is attending the University of Nebraska and is majoring in biology.

Roiger, of Springfield High School, was a member of National Honor Society, captain of the girls tennis team and received the Girl Scout Silver Award Lions Student of the Month. She is at the University of South Dakota, majoring in secondary education.

Eden Prairie High School’s Huang was named all-state orchestra and the participated in Page School for the House of Representatives during her junior year. She played USTA Jr. Team Tennis and for her school’s varsity tennis team.

Hartjes attended Cretin-Derham Hall High School and is among the 16 scholarship winners selected from across the nation for this award. She is currently playing tennis at Creighton University.

“USTA Serves is proud to have contributed over $3 million in scholarships since 2001, including over $400,000 in 2011, to help these deserving students across the country begin their college careers,” said Deborah Slaner Larkin, Executive Director, USTA Serves. “Each year we are inspired by the students’ ability to balance outstanding academic achievements with community service and an involvement in tennis. It is our hope and firm belief these young men and women will continue to positively impact the sport of ten-nis and the world at large throughout their lives.”

21 Kids Receive Scholarships From The Northern Tennis Foundation

The Northern Tennis Foundation, the new 501 (c)(3) arm of USTA Northern, awarded 21 scholarships totaling almost $11,000 to deserving juniors in the Section including: Taite Drew-Jones (Minneapolis), Soua Yang (St. Paul), Betty Yang (St. Paul), Nikita Snezhko (Plymouth, Minn.), Nicole Snezhko (Plymouth, Minn.), Taylor Jackson (Minneapolis), Chuck Tang (Rapid City, S.D.), Joshua Gearou (Zimmerman, Minn.), Samuel Gearou (Zimmerman, Minn.), Stephen Ku (Roseville, Minn.), Maxim Zagrebelny (Eagan, Minn.), Joey Richards (Eden Prairie, Minn.), Jordan Schenck (Eden Prairie, Minn.), Brandon Schenck (Eden Prairie, Minn.), Jose Williamson III (Minneapolis), David Bergstrom (Grand Marais, Minn.), Grace Sarkar (New Ulm, Minn.), Maya Sarkar (New Ulm, Minn.), Yadani Asefa (Eagan, Minn.), Ahmed Busuri (Mankato, Minn.) and Mouyheang Bun (Burnsville, Minn.).

Nine Receive Tennis Camp Scholarships Congratulations to the following winners of USTA Northern Tennis

Camp Scholarships. All recipients received invitations to attend spe-cific tennis camps over the summer. Winners were Christian Ruas (Minneapolis), Ryan Schenck (Eden Prairie, Minn.), Jordan Schenck (Eden Prairie, Minn.), Dannick Boyogueno (Shakopee, Minn.), Loic Boyogueno (Shakopee, Minn.); Colin Bergmann (Stillwater, Minn.); Jose Williamson III (Minneapolis); Taylor Jackson (Minneapolis) and Lisa Anderson (Aitkin, Minn.).

Ryan Shogren

Bailu Huang

Michelle Roiger

Jennie Hartjes

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St. Paul Named 10 and Under Target Market

The city of St. Paul, Minn., is one of 26 communities across the country, named

by the USTA as part of its ongoing efforts to encourage kids 10 and Under to get active and start play-ing tennis. Specifically, St. Paul Urban Tennis (SPUT) has been identified as the local performer in helping grow 10 and Under Tennis city-wide. “St. Paul Urban Tennis has been onboard with USTA’s 10 and Under Tennis push since day one,” Becky Cantellano, USTA Northern Director of Tennis Programs and Services, said. “There is certainly room to grow 10 and Under Tennis in St. Paul, and we are excited to work with SPUT as a partner to do just that.” Each of the 26 communities receive $50,000 in matching grants and resources from the USTA. The grant money can be used for 10 and Under Tennis infrastructure, marketing efforts, equipment, or training. In 2011, SPUT has focused energies into adding 10 and Under blended lines to sev-eral park courts and filling those courts with more kids through outreach efforts to local elementary schools. Each summer, St. Paul Urban Tennis brings tennis to over 4,000 kids and has 85 instruc-tors implementing the QuickStart Tennis Play Format at over 55 sites in St. Paul. They also offer a reading program to over 1,200 kids at 10 different sites, a component of the program that has been instrumental in establishing a strong partnership with the local school dis-trict. Through this relationship, SPUT is extend-ing its reach to year-round tennis and academic offerings through use of district-owned gym space. “The USTA’s 10 and Under initiative is allow-ing us to also focus our efforts on “in-school” programs in addition to our “out-of-school” programs,” St. Paul Urban administrator Lori Beath said. “This year, we hope to provide some type of tennis program to 20 or more of the 80 elementary schools in St. Paul.” The $50,000, which is matched with a $25,000

grant from USTA Northern and $25,000 from St. Paul Urban Tennis, is provided over a three-year period for communities to add new programs. A total of $2.6 million will be invested by the USTA in the 26 communities nationwide to ensure future gen-erations will continue to play the sport for a lifetime. “10 and Under Tennis allows thousands of youngsters to have more success and more fun in learning and playing the game,” said Kurt Kamperman, Chief Executive, Community Tennis, USTA. “With this approach, tennis has become the newest ‘pick-up’ sport, and we expect to see par-ticipation numbers increase dra-matically in the very near future with this new target market ini-tiative.” In addition to St. Paul, the 26 other markets nationwide are Amarillo, Texas; Hillsborough County, Fla.; San Diego, Calif.; Bay Area, Calif., Indianapolis, Ind.; Seminole County, Fla.; Boise, Idaho; Lexington, Ky.; Shreveport, La.; Bridgeport, Conn.; Louisville, Ky.; Cary, N.C., Midland, Mich.;

Stockton, Calif.; Charlottesville, Va.; Milwaukee, Wis.; Trenton, N.J.; Columbus, Ohio; Montgomery County, Md.; Wellington, Fla.; Corpus Christi, Texas; New Orleans, La.; Yonkers, N.Y.; Greenville/Spartanburg, S.C.; and Portland, Ore. For more information on 10 and Under Tennis, visit www.10andundertennis.com.


St. Paul Urban Tennis hopes to enter over 20 schools in 2011.

The kids at the East Side Pride Festival show tennis can be played anywhere.

St. Paul Urban Tennis is funding the addition of blended lines

to many courts, including Groveland Park,

in St. Paul.

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Tennis Play Days! Because Kids Just Want To Have Fun!


Parents, if you have a child that is age 10 and under, bring them to a Tennis Play Day. These local, rally-based events are designed for kids to experience low-key competition in

a non-threatening atmosphere. Play Days are a fun way for kids to get ready for that next step of playing USTA Junior Tournaments. Play Days are designed to last a few hours and during that time kids experi-ence rallying and scoring all in an infor-mal competition. Emphasis is placed on participation, effort and sportsmanship. With equipment sized right and play that is appropriate, kids can build confidence, make friends, improve their skills, stay physically active and the entire time they will just think they are having fun! Kids who participate in a Play Day receive prizes, refreshments and participa-tion awards, while doing it in a format that is fun and non-intimidating and hopefully will keep the child want-ing to come back for more. What’s not to love about that?

USTA Northern is now working with 10 and Under Tennis pro-viders to set up Tennis Play Days in communities throughout the Section. Just because the winter months are upon us does not mean you cannot organize a play day in a local gym, community

center or common space. And the best reason to host a Play Day … your organiza-tion receives FREE stuff including: l 12 red foam ballsl 12 orange ballsl 25 parent guidesl 1 bannerl Play Day Organizers Guide

It is a win-win for both the orga-nizer and the kids! For more information on how to host a Play Day in your area, contact Jean Forbes at [email protected] and don’t forget to tell the world about your event by registering your Play Day at www.10andundertennis.com.

For a complete list of Tennis Play Days in USTA Northern, keep checking at www.northern.usta.com.

Over 60 kids participated in a 10 and Under Play Day at the Baseline Tennis Center on August 3 as part of the 2011 National Public Parks Championships. The boys competed in the morning and the girls in the afternoon with a pizza party between the two

events for all the participants. The kids played match formats suited for their particular age and ability levels, while coaches and parents helped on all the courts to ensure the matches pro-gressed smoothly throughout the event.

Baseline Tennis Center Hosts Play Day

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Congratulations Jr. Team Tennis Section Champions!

USTA Northern Jr. Team Tennis continues to grow at a record pace as almost 2,750 players have participated in the pro-gram in 2011, including 2,263 in summer leagues. This is up

14 percent from 2010! The number of JTT teams has gone from 248 in 2010 to a whopping 299 as of October 1 in 2011 - a 21 percent increase - and this year 174 teams played in Area Championships with 64 advancing to Sectionals compared to 144 and 60 teams, respectively, in 2010. The USTA Northern JTT Section Championships were held July 24-28 at Baseline Tennis Center in Minneapolis. Congratulations to the 2011 USTA Northern Jr. Team Tennis Section Champions who will play at the JTT National Championships in Surprise, Ariz. The 14s play October 21-23, while the 18s hit the courts October 28-30.

14s & 18s Advanced TournamentFred Wells Tennis and Education Center won its first-ever

18 and Under title, defeating Life Time Fitness – Fridley 32-25 in the championship match. The two teams were tied after the singles and boys doubles, but Fred Wells took the lead when Lacey Sprinkel and Tacy Lay defeated Faith Lee and Patty Zhao 8-6. In the deciding mixed doubles match, Noah Sprinkel and Jennifer Hartjes defeated Michaela Schulz and Dusty Boyer 8-3 for the title. Members of the winning team are Sprinkel, Sprinkel, Hartjes, Lay, Martin Beck, Erika Williams, Matt Baker, Maalik Konop-Defreitas, Danielle Donahue, Luke Elifson and Nicole Pothen.

Eden Prairie also claimed its first JTT Section title upending defending JTT National Champion Life Time Fitness – Fridley 40-17 in the 14s Advanced Tournament. Eden Prairie jumped out to an early 16-9 win after the singles and never looked back losing only eight games total in the three doubles matches. Members of the winning team include Katie Engelking, Haley Lickfold, Jackson Allen, Lindsey Tibbles, Anthony Rosa, Paige McLeod, Evan Cater, Austin Wong, Brett Erickson, Nick Beaty, Jonas Salita, Sophia Reddy, Taylor McLeod, Hannah Hankinson, Kavir Kumar and Grayce Petersen. The Powderhorn Park Eagles won the 18U Silver Flight Championship by 2 games over Saint Peter 108-106 and the Eau Claire Elite won the 18U Consolation title. The Metro Valley Players from Fargo won the 14U Consolation championship.

14s & 18s Intermediate Tournament Sioux Empire Fitness from Sioux Falls, S.D., and the Shakopee Corsairs won the USTA Northern Jr. Team Tennis 18s and 14s Intermediate championships. Sioux Empire Fitness is returning to the 18s National Championships where they placed second in 2010. Sioux Empire Fitness defeated Longview 30-26 in the championship. Shakopee won its first-ever Jr. Team Tennis title, defeating Powderhorn Park 34-26 in the championship. Down 14-10 after the singles, Shakopee dominated the doubles winning the boys 8-1, the girls 8-6 and mixed 8-5. Chaska/Chanhassen won the 18U Silver Flight Championship and the Grand Forks Gripsters won the 18U Bronze Championship. The 18s Consolation title went to Cambridge-Isanti. In the 14s, Reed Sweatt Family Tennis Center won the Silver Flight, while

the Brainerd Topspins won the Bronze. The AAAs won the 14U Consolation championship.

12 and Under Tournament Longview (Duluth, Minn.) and the Reed Sweatt Family Tennis Center (Minneapolis) won the USTA Northern Jr. Team Tennis 12s Intermediate and Advanced championships. Longview, competing for the first time at the Northern Jr. Team Tennis championships, defeated Sioux Empire Fitness in the finals 28-24. It was 22-20 Longview leading going into the final mixed doubles match where Joe Lipovetz and Maya Calloway prevailed 6-4. Fred Wells Tennis & Education Center was third. Members of the winning team include Ava Peterson, Brynne Hauer, Daria Deibele, Elizabeth Karakas, Elliot Schneider, Ethan Hietala, Joe Lipovetz, Josie Humphries, Luke Hietala, Maya Calloway and Nolan Humphreys. Reed Sweatt defended its 2010 Advanced title, defeating Eau Claire in the finals. Members of the team were Jack McGrath, Noah Shane, Ben Ingbar, Jose Williamson, Annika Iverson and Britta Iverson.

Thanks For Being A Good Sport! Congratulations to the following players who won Sportsmanship Awards at the Jr. Team Tennis Section Championships. 18s Advanced: Rachel McGuigan (Fargo Metro Valley Players), Jordan Randall (Rosemount Irish Gold) 18s Intermediate: Danielle Tobroxen (Valley Athletic Association), Kai Salentiny (Grand Forks) 14s Advanced: Jill Weinzettel (Hastings), Michael O’Neil (Reed Sweatt Family Tennis Center) 14s Intermediate: Mira Yousef (Sioux Fitness Empire), Chase Driscoll (Sioux Falls/Brandon) 12s: Marissa Weller (Reed Sweatt Family Tennis Center), Garrett Springer (Fred Wells Tennis & Education Center)

Lisa Salo Named JTT Organizer of the Year Lisa Salo (Pillager, Minn.) is the 2011 USTA Northern JTT Organizer of the Year. The award recognizes an individual for his or her efforts in expanding an existing Jr. Team Tennis league or developing a new league within the Section. Salo, who was the 2008 USTA Northern Ward C. Burton Junior Development Award winner, has built the Jr. Team Tennis program in the Brainerd Lakes area from one team in 2005 to a full league with six teams from Brainerd and one from Staples in 2011. This year, three teams advanced to the 2011 USTA Northern Section Championships. Since 2005, JTT in the Brainerd Lakes area continues to grow each year with the numbers jumping from 40 to 55 in 2011. “Tennis passion radiates from Lisa,” program parent Angela Headlee said. “I have never in my life met anyone who lives as vibrantly her passion and has passed that passion on to hundreds, if not thousands, of kids through her Community Ed and USTA Jr. Team Tennis programs. My two daughters are perfect examples of the passion that has been passed through Lisa.” Salo is now eligible for the 2011 Janet Louer National JTT Organizer of the Year Award to be announced in December.

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Front Row L to R: Raghu Inturi, Alex Exsted, Brooks Allen, Grayce Petersen, Alison Wagner. Back Row L to R: Raja Arul, Donovan Malsom, Steffon Mitchell, Taylor Koenen, Grace Sperr.

L to R: Coach Nancy Akpan, Jack McGrath, Noah Shane, Ben Ingbar, Jose Williamson, Annika Iverson, Britta Iverson, Coach Taylor Hanson.

Front Row L to R: Maalik Konop DeFrietas, Lacey Sprinkel, Tacy Lay, Erika Williams, Jennie Hartjes. Back Row L to R: Martin Beck, Noah Sprinkel, Luke Elifson, Matt Baker, Danielle Donahue, Nicole Pothen.

Front Row L to R: Elizabeth Karakas, Nolan Humphreys, E.J. Hietala, Maya Callaway. Back Row L to R: Josie Humphreys, Brynne Hauer, Joe Lipovetz, Luke Hietala, Elliot Schneider.

Front Row L to R: Jackson Allen, Jonah Salita, Anthony Rosa, Brett Erickson, Nick Beaty. Back Row L to R: Haley Lickfold, Hannah Hankinson, Katie Engelking, Taylor McCleod, Paige McCleod, Sophie Reddy, Susan Allen.


2011 JTT Section Champions

Front Row L to R: Christina Eriksen, Berkley Darr, Kasey Shogren, Brittany Kortan. Back Row L to R: Coach Mark Vellek, Jonah Snyder, Michael Schroeder, Nate Ackert, Coach Marc Kurtz..

Longview 12U IntermediateReed Sweatt 12 Advanced Eden Prarie 14 Advanced

Sioux Empire Fitness 18U IntermediateShakopee 14U Intermediate Fred Wells 18 Advanced

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David Wheaton Wins Renaissance Award David Wheaton (Tonka Bay, Minn.) won the 2011 Eugene L. Scott Renaissance Award which was presented at the 2011 National Public Parks Tennis Championships held at the Baseline Tennis Center. The award is given to a national/international tennis cham-pion who demonstrates excellence in promoting and developing the sport of tennis in public parks. The award was created in 2006 in the memory of Scott, who was a great supporter of the National Public Parks Tennis Championships. Past recipients include Chris Evert (2007), Chanda Rubin (2008) and Stan Smith (2009).

Three Northern Members Win USPTA National HonorsSteve Wilkinson (St. Peter, Minn.), Matt Boughton (Eau Claire,

Wis.) and Tony Larson (Brooklyn Park, Minn.) were honored by the United States Professional Tennis Association for standing out and going above and beyond in all aspects of the tennis industry, from tennis coaches to players to volunteers during its annual national awards breakfast during the USPTA World Conference on Tennis at Saddlebrook Resort in Wesley Chapel, Fla. Wilkinson, won the USPTA’s Presidential Award, while Boughton won the USPTA Industry Excellence Award and Larson was named USPTA Men’s Open Player of the Year.

Cason Hiers Wins Junior Fishing TitlesJunior tennis player

Cason Hiers, a 13-year old from St Paul, Minn., won both the B.A.S.S. and T.B.F Minnesota Youth Bass Fishing Championships (11-14 age division) over the summer. This feat has been accomplished only one other time in history.

Hiers qualified for the B.A.S.S. Northern Divisional, where he fin-ished in the top 100, and will compete in the Junior Division of the Forest Wood Cup, the “Super Bowl” for FLW pro bass anglers, in Arkansas next August.

Hiers played Jr. Team Tennis this past summer and was the #1 player on his high school team as a seventh grader.

Two Represent USTA Northern At NJTL Leadership CampCoral Gordon of Minneapolis and the Fred Wells Tennis &

Education Center and Steven Yang of Coon Rapids, Minn., and InnerCity Tennis represented USTA Northern at the 27th annual USTA/NJTL Tennis Leadership Camp in Sonoma Valley, Calif. The camp was for youth ages 12-14 who participated in National Junior Tennis and Learning (NJTL) network chapters nationwide. During

the camp, instructors emphasized the importance of individual skill development, physical fitness, proper nutrition and good sports-manship. The students received tennis lessons from several of the most experienced coaches in the game; heard from 12-time Olympic medal winner and first paraplegic to summit Mt. Kilimanjaro Chris Waddell; and visited many popular tourist attractions in and around San Francisco.

Wischer, Kumar and Dobbs Win Titles At Rapid City Regional Event

Gregory Wischer (Grand Forks, N.D.) won the Boys 14s sin-gles title and Kaleb Dobbs (Sioux Falls, S.D.) the Boys 12s at the USTA Regional event in Rapid City, S.D. Wischer and Dobbs led a great showing by a number of USTA Northern par-ticipants in Rapid City, which was hosting the event for the first time in history. Top-seeded Wischer defeated second-seeded Kavir Kumar (Minneapolis, Minn.) 6-1, 6-2 in the finals. Wischer and Kumar then teamed together to win the Boys 14s Doubles title with a walkover win over Peter Litsky (St. Petersburg, Fla.) and Jake Van Emburgh (Verona, Wis.). In Boys 12’s, top-seed Dobbs beat second-seed Nikita Snezhko (Plymouth, Minn.) 6-3, 6-2.

Aney/Nelson Advance To Semis Of National Clay Courts Jessie Aney (Rochester, Minn.) and Alexis Nelson (St. Paul, Minn.) advanced to the semifinals of the Girls 14s draw at the USTA National Clay Court Championships in Plantation, Fla. Nelson also advanced to the quarterfinals of the singles draw and won her compass draw flight, while Aney made it to the round of 32. Nelson was also named the Sportsmanship Award winner at the tournament.

Larson, Donley/Reimers Advance To US Open National Qualifier Quarters

Tony Larson (Brooklyn Park, Minn.) and the mixed doubles team of Erik Donley (Minneapolis) and Imke Reimers (Minneapolis) won their first-round matches before losing in the quarterfinals at the 2011 US Open National Qualifier in New Haven, Conn. Larson

Kavir Kumar (left) and Gregory Wischer

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defeated Angelo Faustino in the first round 6-1, 6-1, before falling to top-seeded and defending champion Blake Strode 6-1, 6-2. Donley and Reimers beat Harrison and Samantha Adams in the first round 1-6, 6-4, 1-0 (7), before losing a heartbreaker to Yasmin Schnack and Eric Roberson 6-4, 6-7 (6), 1-0 (10).

Jeff Nelson & Linda Kopriva McClanahan Inducted Into S.D. Tennis Hall of Fame; Bloomberg Wins Achievement Award

Sioux Falls teaching professional Jeff Nelson and former Rapid City state champion Linda Kopriva McClanahan were inducted into the South Dakota Tennis Hall of Fame on Sunday, July 24 at McKennan Park tennis complex in Sioux Falls.

Kopriva McClanahan was a state high school #1 singles cham-pion in 1974 at Rapid City Stevens, then went on to play tennis at the University of New Mexico. After graduating in 1980, Kopriva McClanahan’s love for tennis and interest in spinal cord injuries led to her involvement in wheelchair tennis and the Albuquerque Wheelchair Tennis Association. For 12 years, she coached, directed team tournament and organized team travel, focusing on athleti-cism and camaraderie rather than disability.

Nelson has practically done it all for the entire USTA Northern

Thank you to the 2011 Aquatennial Plaza Tennis Classic sponsors including (from L to R): Erik Donley (Baseline Tennis Center); Craig Jones (Sport Court North); Mark Ginder (Dorsey & Whitney); Gordon Reid (Life Time Fitness); Dr. Michael Oste (Take Care Chiropractic and Wellness); Paul Skram (Welsh Companies); Steve Hartwig (K & B Document Technologies); Jeff Anscomb (Implex), Stuart DeVaan (Implex).

Section including teaching and coaching tennis, running tourna-ments and clinics, and training tennis leaders while focusing on junior development. Nelson coached the University of Sioux Falls tennis teams to seven national NAIA tournaments. He was named the 2010 USTA Northern Section Jr. Team Tennis Organizer of the Year, and in 2006, was the USTA Northern Frank Voigt Pro of the Year.

The 2011 South Dakota Tennis Achievement Award goes to Pierre’s Jeff Bloomberg. An attorney, Bloomberg has worked in several lead-ership positions with South Dakota state government for nearly 20 years. Taking the court for tennis, however, has made the difference in hundreds of tennis playing athletes as Bloomberg has served as both a coach and event and tournament director.

Larson, McCollom Lead Aquatennial WinnersTeaching professionals Tony Larson (Brooklyn Park, Minn.) and

Marina McCollom (West Des Moines, Iowa) took home the men’s and women’s singles titles, respectively, at the 2011 Aquatennial Plaza Tennis Classic at One Financial Plaza July 7-22 in downtown Minneapolis. Other winners of the 13-day event which offered almost $6,000 in prize money included Andres Osorio/Sion Wilkins (men’s doubles), Imke Reimers/Lindsay Risebrough (women’s doubles) and Erik Donley/Reimers (mixed doubles).

Top-seeded Larson won his second consecutive Aquatennial championship and third in four years with a 6-4, 6-3 win over #2 seed Harsh Mankad. Larson and Mankad then teamed on the same side of the net, but fell in the finals to former Gopher standouts Osorio and Wilkins 6-2, 6-4.

McCollom, who played collegiately at DePaul, claimed her first Aquatennial singles titles, by defeating Gustavus Adolphus senior Megan Gaard (Edina, Minn.) 6-2, 6-0.

Reimers, who was the 2010 singles champion and is currently a Ph.D. student at Minnesota, focused on doubles this year teaming with Risebrough in defeating former Gustavus players Marianne Barau and Samantha Frank 6-2, 4-6, 1-0 (5) in the champion-ship. Reimers then partnered with Donley to win the mixed title over qualifiers and Golden Valley Country Club teaching pros Dan Nabedrick and Kathryn Schmidt 6-1, 6-4.

For the first time in tournament history, the entire event was streamed live and available on both the internet and your mobile device by Minneapolis-based-company Implex. Over 5,000 people tuned into the tournament worldwide, including viewers from as far away as England, German, Japan, Australia and Bulgaria.

USTA Northern would like to thank the 2011 Aquatennial Sponsors for making the event possible including Sears Imported Autos/Mercedes Benz, Dorsey & Whitney, Implex, Sport Court North, Welsh Companies, Life Time Fitness, Take Care Chiropractic, K&B Document Technologies and Baseline Tennis Center.

Erik Donley (left) and Imke Reimers

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Tennis Happenings With Bruce by Bruce Gullikson

T his has been quite a year for the Butorac clan as Tim Butorac, long time teaching

pro in Rochester, is being inducted into the USTA Northern Hall of Fame and his son, Eric, besides having a great year in doubles on the ATP tour (#18 ranked player in the world as of this writing) and still in the hunt to qualify for the year end Barclay’s World Championships, got married to Maggie Suydam in September.

The Pine Tree Apple Tennis Classic raised over $168,000 for children’s cancer research. Congratulations to all those involved, especially the tournament and player sponsors. Special recognition should go out to Allison Balfanz and Barbie Hentges, as well as Life Time Fitness – White Bear teaching pro Mary Cornell, who raised over $18,000!!!!!

Interesting stat about the LeeAnn Chin Tennis Challenge with Jim Courier, John McEnroe, Andre Agassi and Michael Chang … between the four of them no one had a career winning record against the other three. Courier did the best as he had a winning record against McEnroe and Agassi, but was tied 12-12 with Chang. McEnroe was tied with Agassi and had a winning record with Chang, but a losing record to Courier.

Novak Djokovic, with his win at the US Open, set a new single-sea-son prize money record for the men, winning over 10 million dollars so far this year. It looks like gluten-free might get more converts with a record and bank account like that.

Tony Larson, USPTA pro at the Life Time Fitness - Fridley, was named USPTA National Men’s Open Player of the Year. Steve Wilkinson, legendary Gustavus coach, was the winner of a special national award from the USPTA as well and Eau Claire’s Matt Boughton won the Service Industry Award. Wilkinson has also been very busy in his retirement as he submitted an article about sportsmanship to Tennis magazine that hopefully every tennis player gets a chance to read.

Former two-time state tennis champion Justin Gaard has added sideline reporter for the Minnesota Golden Gopher football games to his ever-expanding resume at KFAN. This columnist predicts it will not be long before “JG” has his own radio show.

Everyone should read Build a Better Athlete: What is Wrong with American Sports and How to Fix It by Dr. Michael Yesis. Dr. Yesis con-tends that kids are specializing in one sport far too early and thus los-ing out on basic fundamental athletic skills that come from playing a variety of sports. One of America’s best players, John McEnroe, must feel the same way as kids have to play another sport at his academy in New York where they encourage cross training and athletic develop-ment. Johnny Mac played soccer and basketball, as well as tennis as a kid and he seemed to have good success on the court.

US Open Quotes and Observations …

“I wish I was playing now. The pay is bigger and the fines are smaller.” - John McEnroe

“His defense is his offense.” - Mary Carillo commenting on Djokovic’s amazing court coverage.

“He has gotten into my head.” - Rafael Nadal commenting on los-ing six finals to Djokovic this year.

Things to learn from the men’s and women’s winners … • Improve your fitness - this not only helps one cover the court better, but helps one’s mental game and shot tolerance as well. • No ROSES (return of serve errors) - make your opponent play another shot after the serve and punish a second serve. • Matches are not played on paper-Samantha Stosur was a heavy underdog in the finals but won in convincing fashion. • Enjoy the moment - both champions played with passion and enjoyed themselves. Being negative on the other hand, such as Andy Murray, never seems to help any situation. • Work on your serve - last year, Djokovic had more double faults than aces … this year he is having one of the best years in the Open era.

Highly recommended is the Court of Dreams –the grasscourt in Charles City, Iowa. Here is a photo of USTA Northern league players Jodi and Dennis Kortsha visiting there. For more information, visit alliowalawntennisclub.com/gal-lery.html

Tennis Humor: A zookeeper who plays tennis is having problems deciding on a racket. His boss tells him to get the dolly and move the animals to different cages. So he gets the lion and moves it to another cage and the whole time he’s saying to himself, “What frame should I use?” Then he gets the tiger and moves him to another cage and he’s muttering, “Tweener or player’s frame?” Then he gets the llama and as he’s moving the llama he’s saying, “Thick beam or thin beam?” Suddenly the llama speaks up and says “Just use the Prince Original Graphite Oversize, it’s the best damn frame ever made.” Needless to say the zookeeper is shocked that the llama can talk, but he orders the racquet and all his problems are solved. MORAL: IF YOU SEEK ENLIGHTENMENT, ASK THE DOLLIED LLAMA.

As always if you have some information you would like to see high-lighted please send it to me at [email protected].

2011 USTA League Section Champions


3.0 Women: Twin Cities (Captains: Megan Ecker, Maria Aranda)

2.5 Women: Rochester (Captain: Darlene Bannon)

3.5 Women: Twin Cities (Captain: Sue Wick) 4.0 Women: Twin Cities (Captains: Angie Beissel, Marcela Palavecino)

4.5 Women: Twin Cities (Captains: Angie Fischels, Jessica Heiring) 3.5 Men: Rochester (Captains: Bob Hubert, David Schaffner)

Congratulations to the Section League Champions who will represent USTA Northern at the 2011 USTA League National Championships throughout October and November in

Rancho Mirage, Calif., Indian Wells, Calif., or Tucson, Ariz.

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4.0 Men: Twin Cities (Captain: Ahto Niemioja) 4.5 Men: Twin Cities (Captain: Eric Gleason)

5.0 Men: Twin Cities (Captain: Adam Beduhn)

2011 NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS SCHEDULE

4.0 Senior Women – Twin Cities (Captain: Mary Rolston)

3.5 Senior Women – Bismarck (Captain: Diane Roller) 3.5 Senior Men – Twin Cities (Captain: Jim Ulrich)

4.0 Senior Men – Twin Cities (Captain: Paul Dalton)

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Good things come to those who wait … or at least Minneapolis’ William Kopp tried to remind himself of that over the years. He first played USTA League Tennis in 1980, which incidentally, was the first year of the pro-gram and sponsored by Michelob Light. That year, the 40-year-old Kopp and his teammates advanced to Adult 4.5 Regional Championships in Indianapolis, which they won, and qualified for the National Championships in Chicago, where they earned finalist honors to a team from Hawaii. That team, comprised of the minimum num-ber for a team - eight guys - stayed together for two more years. The group once again advanced to the Regional Tournament at the clay courts in Indy both years, but fell just short of a return trip to Nationals. Finally, after the third year, they broke up when a majority of the team was moved up to the 5.0 level. “We had only eight guys on our team and we all played every match for three straight years,” Kopp said. “But when we were moved up to 5.0, we felt we just couldn’t compete each week at the level we were used to.” At that point, Kopp took a break from League tennis until he retired from his teaching position in 1998. Resigned to the fact he could not play singles any longer because of his age, he joined a senior USTA League team and played doubles. That team won its

league and advanced to the Section tourna-ment a number of times, but never could win the big one. That was until this year! Almost 31 years later at the ripe old age of 71, Kopp is going back to Nationals as his 3.5 senior men’s team, cap-tained by Jim Ulrich, plays October 21-23 in Indian Wells, Calif. They are in the same flight as teams from Texas, Southwest, Intermountain and New England. “We are all excited to play in Indian Wells,” Kopp said. “We are really looking forward to seeing the stadium where they play the pro tournament (BNP Paribas Open). It will be nice to see something different, as this might be our last chance to ever experience this since we are getting to ‘that age....’” At 71, Kopp is not even the oldest on his team as teammate James Lewis is 76 and Robert Gillitzer is close at 70. Young at heart, Kopp and his teammates appreciate USTA League Tennis and the opportunities it has afforded them over the years. “It is always fun to play tennis with your friends,

but when you play in a league, you get to play against other people. It makes tennis more interesting and gives you reasons to work on your game and get better. We are lucky that we are still able to play tennis at this age, and to be honest, I think it is neat that we were able to do so well against teams with younger guys!”

Good Things Come To Those Who Wait

9.0 Mixed – Twin Cities (Captain: Connie Palacio)8.0 Mixed Doubles – Fargo (Captain: Kyle Christianson)

William Kopp

6.0 Mixed – Twin Cities (Captain: Carl Bigby) 7.0 Mixed – Rochester (Captains: Bob Hubert, Katherine Fish)

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