The Women’s 3.5 Doubles League has 11 teams but only 4 teams make it to the playoffs. The top two teams ended the regular season with a 75% and 71.79% win percentage with most of the rest falling in the 40-55% win percentage range. Midtown-Chicago and Midtown-Palatine both had a stellar season. Midtown-Palatine is the defending Champions and despite moving several players from last year’s team up a level, they still managed to end the season in 2nd place. Midtown-Chicago lost to College Park last year during the semis losing by sets. This year, Midtown-Chicago played Lakeshore and won 6-0. Midtown-Palatine played against College Park and won 5-1. The Finals will take place on May 10th at Glenbrook RAcquet Club at 10am.

Midtown-Palatine has two teams in the NC Womens’ 3.0-3.5 Singles league. Last year, they only had one team and won their match against RC Lake Bluff. This year, MTP not only moved some players up to the 4.0-4.5 singles league but managed to recruit a few more players to play in the 3.0-3.5 singles league. Why is singles important? If you want to improve your game and fitness, singles is the way to go. Coming up against players with different styles of play, fitness levels, mental focus and game plans make singles fun and frustrating at the same time. This year Midtown-Palatine 2 was in 1st place in the regular season and went up against Libertyville. Midtown-Palatine 1 was in 2nd place in the regular season and went up against RC Lake Bluff, who was the finalist last year. In both cases, Midtown-Palatine came out ahead winning 4-0 in matches. Midtown-Palatine’s singles coach, Krisztina Anderko should be proud of her player’s accomplishments. Her two teams will play each other in the finals on May 9th at The Racquet Club of Lake Bluff at 11am.

Libertyville and Midtown-Palatine will face off against each other in the Finals! Libertyville played North Shore and won decisively 4-0. Midtown-Palatine came up against College Park. One of CPAC’s players was ill before the match so MTP was up a match at the get go. But even without the default on court 2, they won the other 3 matches. The finals will take place at The Libertyville Club on May 7th at 7:30am.

RC Lake Bluff’s Men’s 4.5 Singles team has dominated this league over the last few years so it was no surprise to see them end the regular season in the top spot. Libertyville has usually ended up in the finals against RCLB but this year they met them in the playoffs and was not able to unseat the defending champions. This year North Shore, who played against Lincolnshire in the playoffs, will challenge RCLB. Despite coming up short with eligible players, NSRC managed to squeak out a win against LINC with an extra set win. The finals will take place on May 7th at The Lincolnshire Club at 7:30am.

NCM4.0 Singles – playoffs on 4/30/17
In the last regular season match, College Park needed to win 7 points to tie the 1st place team, Libertyville, who had a Bye and 7.5 points to take the lead. As it turned out, North Shore thwarted their plans and only gave CPAC-E 6.5 points. The playoff pairings are as follows: Libertyville vs. North Shore and College Park East vs. Midtown-Palatine.

We are on a break this week in order for all of us to gather together with our family and friends and perhaps even some strangers (for now) to celebrate Thanksgiving. Give thanks, enjoy and after you’ve had your fill of food and more food, work off those calories with a game of tennis. Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

One of the messages I take with me on the court is from the movie Galaxy Quest where Tim Allen famously says over and over again, “Never give up, never surrender”. If you watched the Cubs last night, that was clearly evident in the 9th inning. How many times have you been in a 2-5 down situation and have come back to win the set? Your mental strength will play an important role in getting you out of those bleak situations. If you haven’t seen the movie, go see it. Have a laugh and remember – “Never give up, never surrender.”

CITA leagues begin on September 7th. Are you ready? Schedules are available online.

NCW3.5 Champions- Midtown-Palatine

Last year Midtown-Palatine was in first place and had a significant lead in the standings only to lose in the semis against Lincolnshire by a set. This year Midtown-Palatine had a significant lead in the standings and won in the semis against Libertyville and won in the finals against College Park. In both cases, MTP won decisively 5-1. Midtown-Palatine has a “deep” team with 25 eligible players for the playoffs. This allowed them some flexibility on who to play and kept the other teams guessing. College Park East came into the playoffs in 3rd place and pulled a one set win over Midtown-Chicago in the semis to get to the Finals. CPAC-E’s top court team, Nikki Krakowski and Tiffany Simanek, did not disappoint and kept their winning record intact beating MTP’s Erica Donofrio and Megan Elwell. Court 1 was CPAC’s only win. On courts 2-6 MTP won all but one court in 2 sets. MTP’s Davida Kozlowski and Beth Zawlenski played CPAC-s Stephanie Cohen and Heather Curtis. On court 3, MTP’s Alaina Murawski and Amanda Patten played CPAC’s Rita Manka and Kim Walder. On court 4, MTP’s Sally Fessenden and Bev Vacval played against CPAC’s Karen Borgerding and Susan Chaplik. On court 5, MTP’s Elizabeth Jimenez and Wendy Farley see-sawed a win against CPAC’s Angelee Boyd and Anne Douglas in a 3 set match. And on court 6, MTP’s Kim Lee and Lara Berry played against CPAC’s Julie Mangione and Andrea McArdle. Pictured from left to right: Lara Berry, Gina Quatrochi, Kim Lee, Amanda Patten, Karen Johnstone, Alaina Murawski (captain), Beth Zawilenski, Liz Jimenez, Coach Todd Johnson, Bev Vacval, Sally Fessenden, Wendy Farley, Kelly Thut, Megan Elwell, Erica Donofrio. Not pictured: Holly Belconis, Cynthia DeStefano, Joanne Elliott, Susie Kilayko, Bonnie Kipperman, Davida Kozlowski, Lisa Nora, Allyn Selesky, Stacy Simpson-Logan, Kitty Skor, Alicia Tisbo, Jessica Trzop

Libertyville’s Girls High School team came into the finals with the lead when North Shore’s team came up short a player. But even without that gift, Libertyville was able to win on their own merits. On court 1 LIB’s Isabel Alviar/Kalli Majewski played a close match against NSRC’s Abbey Reinhart/Caroline Chatas winning 6-4, 7-5. On court 2 LIB’s Sabrina Mella/Karina Falkstrom came away with a win against NSRC’s Nina Leutz/Emily Langsam. On court 3, the 3 players from LIB and NSRC played round robin singles for the experience, with the doubles win going to LIB by default. Libertyville won 3-0.

Midtown-Chicago has once again won the Men’s Open Final. Their challenger was College Park who was in danger of dropping out of the league at the start of the season. With only 4 teams in this league, there is always that risk. This year, before the start of the season, some accommodations and conversations occurred for the good of the league. When possible, we continued to have 6 courts of doubles but accommodated for 4 courts only if needed. We allowed the players on the Men’s 4.5 team the ability to play on the Open team an unlimited number of times. We monitored and addressed situations as the came up with an eye towards the following season. Our hope is the juniors we helped cultivate will return, and by having a Men’s Open league available to them, they will be challenged and find new social connections as the current Men’s Open players have been able to forge. The Men’s Open Finals was played with College Park coming up one player short. They needed to default a court which did not bode well for them. However, on court 1, CPAC’s Alex Lambropoulos/Lawon Barter eeked out a very close win against MTC”s Adham Alaily/Ryan Edlefson winning 7-5, 7-6(6). But Midtown’s strength continued down the lineup. On court 2, MTC’s Kris Braaten/Sinisa Rashberger found their rhythm over CPAC’s Chris Nowak/Scott Foster winning 6-4, 6-2. On court 3MTC’s Jared Dorfman/Jeff French pulled out a close match against CPAC-s Andrew Kolesnikov/Mark Vaverka 6-4, 6-3. On court 4, MTC’s Dave Clark/Thanos Kantarelis overwhelmed CPAC’s Trevor Desilva/Steve Mutchnik 6-0, 6-1. On court 5, as a result of matches being decided, the 3rd set was at 10 point match tie-breaker going to CPAC. CPAC’s James Forster/Geoff Butler won against MTC’s James Moultan/Chris Tkach 3-6, 6-3, 1-0(3). Midtown-Chicago won 4-2.

The Racquet Club of Lake Bluff has won the NC Men’s 4.5 league finals two times in a row. Last year they were able to squeak out a win with an extra set. This year they came away with a 4-2 win over Libertyville. Three of the 6 matches went to 3 sets. And all but one match was fairly close, which means that on another day there could have been a reversal of fortunes and Libertyville might have come away the winner. On court 1, LIB’s Gian Remigio/Alex Donkor sweated it out against RCLB’s Enoch Leung/Peter Morawiecki winning 4-6, 6-3, 7-5. On court 2, RCLB’s Nick Andres/Mike Raymond had a nail biter against LIB’s Dan Kiernan/David Currie winning 7-5, 7-6. On court 3, RCLB’s Peter Krizman/Steve Paulson took out LIB’s Matt Deans/Kip Olson 6-2, 6-0. On court 4, LIB’s Sydney Mella/David Sitko started out slow against RCLB’s Nejd Alsikafi/John Pucin but ended up winning 1-6, 6-4, 6-2. On court 5, RCLB’s Scott Holdebrecht/Dennis Dobrin won against LIB’s Jon Stauffer/Scott Cornehles 6-3, 7-5 and on court 6, RCLB’s Johannes Tauscher/Jon Laven played a tight 1st set against LIB’s Arvind Sreedharan/Alex George before winning 4-6, 6-1, 6-2.

NC Men's 4.0 Champions - Northbrook

It has been a long while since Northbrook’s Men’s 4.0 team has made it to the Finals. So the grin and look of relief on Richard Michalski’s face was understandable. For River Trails, a couple of key players on their team had to make a choice. Do they play in the Finals of CITA’s Men’s 4.0 league or do they represent the USTA Chicago District team in the Midwest Senior Team Championships in East Lansing? Bob Zumph and Bob Shineflug opted to play the Midwest Seniors and ended up coming out winners in their age division there. Here at CITA’s finals, on court 1, NRC’s Mark Rawlins/Dennis Weil took on RTTC’s Les Kero/Bill Johnston. Bill Johnston opted to stay in town to try to help his team but NRC ended up winning 6-3, 6-4. On court 2, NRC’s Mark Campanile aka The Racquet Man/Jeff Callen played against RTTC’s Mike Boyle/Jon Erickson and won 6-2, 6-4. On court 3, NRC’s Sebastian Sabbione/Dani Barron have had a solid year playing against RTTC’s veteran players John Wentworth/Brooks Male who have also had a solid year. NRC pulled ahead and didn’t look back winning 6-2, 6-1. On court 4, NRC’s David Perez/Dale Hsu played well together against RTTC’s Warren Erland/Dan Robin. And then the tides turned in River Trails’ favor. On court 5 and court 6, RTTC’s Phil Dlouhy/Brian Lowy and Renato DiSandro/Michael Schultz pulled ahead themselves and didn’t look back against NRC’s Kent Donewald/Rick Murray (ct. 5) and Andy Doppelt/Andrew Rubanovich (ct. 6) winning on both courts 6-2, 6-1. Northbrook won 4-2 against River Trails

NC Men's 3.5 Champions - River Trails

River Trails has been in the finals of the Men’s 3.5 league for the last three years. Before that, in 2013, Midtown-Palatine held the trophy. While Midtown-Palatine has been in the playoffs in the intervening years, they knew River Trails was going to bring game, and they did. As Bill Johnston wrote: “Our CITA Men’s 3.5 travel team finished the regular season in 1st place and took on Midtown-Palatine for the playoff final. The team started off looking a little nervous for the first 15 minutes or so, but then settled in to control their own destiny. They won 3 out of 4 matches to win the traveling trophy. This marks 3 consecutive years of winning the year-end title for this team!” On court 1, RTTC’s Howard Braun/Vito Demonte won against MTP’s David Olson/Ryan Kluck 6-2, 6-1. On court 2, Midtown Palatine’s only win, MTP’s Malcolm Rosenfel/Michael Waks won against RTTC’s Jared Simon/Bill Schnur 7-6(6) 6-2. On court 3 RTTC’s Alan Halleck/Mark Gruhike had a tough 1st set against MTP’s Dave Moslander/Greg Morin before closing it out 7-6(5), 6-3. On court 4, RTTC’s Bob Harrald/Frank Stanhope took on MTP’s Tom Fletcher/Jerry Hampton and won 6-2, 6-4.

The Open Red league has a variety of levels and styles of play. On court 1, you can meet up against world class players, college level players or players who used to play junior level tennis. When power meets power all the weapons come out. This year College Park East advanced into the Finals disrupting the rhythm of the Northbrook vs. North Shore rivalry. Each team brought their best players on court 1. College Park had Tina Pisnik and Mira Radu. North Shore had Leanne Baker and Becky Moffatt. Both teams were well versed in doubles strategies, in movement, in shot selection. CPAC-E came out the winner with a close 7-6, 6-3 win. On court 2, CPAC’s Julia Sapozhnikova/Michelle Granger played against NSRC’s Judy Bavlsik/Kelly Chestnut and pulled out a 7-5, 6-4 win. On court 3, NSRC’s Lisa Culp/Maria Fernitz played against CPAC’s Suzanne DeMirjian/Juliet Plosnker and won 6-4, 6-2. On court 4, NSRC’s Jan Karzen/Amy Cummingham gave NSRC a win over CPAC’s Debbie Fisch/Kathrina Busse. Debbie Clark/Lynn Oddi played a 3 set match against NSRC’s Stephanie Hill/Roberta Goodman winning 6-1, 4-6, 6-1. On court 6, CPAC’s Susie Selbst/Judy Morgan played a long 3 set match against NSRC’s Beth Robitaille/Carla Young winning 6-1, 6-7, 7-6. Judy Morgan felt some pain in her hand but played through it not knowing she had torn a tendon in her hand. What a team player! College Park won 4-2.

Midtown-Palatine has been in the finals of the NC Women’s Open Green league for three years in a row. But until this year they never came away with a trophy. In 2014 they lost to Midtown-Bannockburn 4-2. In 2015 they lost to RC Lake Bluff in sets. But this year was finally their year. Their opponent was the same as last year and many of the players on both teams were the same but the outcome was different. On court 1, the match went to 3 sets with MTP’s Maggie Tepas/Shannon Crowther taking on RCLB’s Zinnia Leamana/Beth Jones. RCLB won the 1st set 6-1 but couldn’t sustain the momentum. MTP won sets 2 & 3 6-3, 7-5. On court 2, MTP’s Laura Nerup/Janet Williams played against RCLB’s Debbie Springgate/Kerry Nowicki. Last year RCLB won. But this year, Laura and Janet pulled out a 6-2, 6-2 win. On court 3, MTP’s Kristin Lueken/Karen Morand played against RCLB’s Catherine Batinovic/Julia Miller. Both teams moved up a court from last year. RCLB won last year but this year MTP won 6-4, 6-3. On court 4, RCLB’s Michelle Ihlandfeldt/Pam Click won their only match for RCLB against MTP’s Gayle Dominicis/Vicki Lorenzo. Michelle and Pam won 6-2, 6-1. On court 5, MTP’s Mary Etherington/Lea Regan played a tough match against RCLB’s Lynn Bruch/Laurel Bufe winning 6-4, 6-4. On court 6, MTP’s Julie Fischer/Emily Wittenberg won 6-2, 6-1 against RCLB’s Leslie McPeek/Linda DeBiase.

Last year, Midtown-Chicago had a substantial regular season lead only to lose to Lakeshore in the finals. This year Midtown-Chicago was facing a similar scenario-a substantial regular season lead and their long-time rival Lakeshore in the finals It came down to court 3’s 3 set match. All other matches were dispatched in 2 sets. On court 1, LSSF’s Sara Aldinger/Taylor Wade played a closed match against MTC’s Cheryl Imo/Elizabeth Burns winning 6-4, 6-4. On court 2, LSSF’s Nancy Gaspadarek/Gwen Pontikes played a close 1st set then stretched on the lead against MTC’s Sophia Naiditch/Jill Siegel winning 6-4, 6-1. On court 3, LSSF’s Kristin Davin/Tina Chang won in 3 sets against MTC’s Sarah Rothman/Kristina Hilb but it was the 2nd set win by MTC that gave them the edge when the scores were tallied. LSSF won this match 6-1, 2-6, 6-4. On court 4, MTC’s Colette Kelsey/LorRonda Miller won against LSSF’s Sandy Wang/Hilary Bruce. On court 5, MTC’s Rebecca Bacote/Kathy Rain won against LSSF’s Emily Emmerman/Vina Maniquis 6-2, 6-3. And on court 6, MTC’s Corinne Pinsof-Kaplan/Cheryl Cutinho won against LSSF’s Tina Leopardo/Deirdre Jameson 6-1, 6-3. So while Lakeshore took the top courts and Midtown-Chicago took the bottom courts, it was court 3 that determined the winner by sets. Midtown-Chicago won 3(7)-3(6).

At some point in time between the end of the previous season and the start of the current season each club determines what they should do with their teams. Should they move up or down a level? Should they move a couple of players up or down a level? All the while they are hearing from their players who can be vociferous in their demands. The 4.5 levels are probably the most difficult to navigate the conversation. The 4.5 Green league is the league where clubs can test the waters. While most teams don’t want to move down a level, sometimes it is best to do so in order to understand the game and why you are winning some matches and losing others. Five Seasons looked at their results from the previous season and decided it was time to rebuild the confidence of their players by moving their team from the 4.5 Red league to the 4.5 Green league. As a result, their team made it to the finals of the 4.5 Green league. Their competitor College Park East also made some adjustments to their teams adjusting some players to better suit the competition they were facing. On 5/13, College Park East faced off against Five Seasons. On court 1, CPAC’s Kauri McHendry/Kirsten Surber played against Karen Sabo/Linda Ross. Kauri and Kirsten have had a stellar season and this match was no exception. They won 6-2, 6-1. On court 2 CPAC’s Anne Marie Johnson/Molly Shapiro toughed it out against FSSC’s Barbara Eastman/Dawn Kenny. Every player gave it their all but in the end CPAC took the win in the 3rd set tie-breaker winning 7-5, 5-7, 7-6(4). On court 3, CPAC’s Marisa Urkovich/Masayo Kobashi played a 3 set match against FSSC’s Misela Garcia/Karen Hirsch. Misela and Karen won the 1st set 6-4 but Marisa and Masayo were able to come back and take the 2nd and 3rd sets 6-1, 6-4. On court 4, CPAC’s Carolyn Adler/Helen Berland found the right strategy against FSSC’s Jennifer Brown/Sandra Mejia and won 6-0, 6-2. On court 5, FSSC’s Linda Bottomlee/Wendy Kaegi gave FSSC their only win against CPAC’s Chris Bunning/Mindy Warren with a tight 7-6(6), 6-3 win. On court 6, CPAC’s Leslie Fleming/Wendy Roddam also had a tight match against FSSC’s Funda Kahn/Judy Noe winning 6-3, 7-6(3). College Park East won 5-1 against Five Seasons.

Lakeshore and Midtown-Palatine came together once again in a space of 2 days to vie for the NCW4.0 Friday trophy. Lakeshore pulled together a 4-2 win over Midtown-Palatine in the NCW4.0 Wednesday league so in the back of both teams minds was the question, “Will the outcome be different this time?” Some of the players played with the same partner and some of the players played with someone different. Some played up a court and some played down a court. But in the end, Lakeshore remained dominant pulling together a 5-1 win over Midtown-Palatine. On court 1, LSSF’s Melanie Liss/Rachel Ellis struggled but prevailed in a 3 set match against MTP’s Karen Majerczak/Joanna White winning 4-6, 6-2, 6-2. On court 2, LSSF’s Beth Milligan/Jessica Arnold played against MTP’s Dina Skinner/Wendy Rowden and won 6-3, 6-3. On court 3, LSSF’s Jennifer Roche/Annie Hesser had a close match against MTP’s Maureen Ahern/Sue Levy. On court 4, LSSF’s Sarah Koleno/Alissa Wiedelman took on MTP’s Liz Freeman/Shelly Cohen winning 6-2, 6-3. On court 5, LSSF’s Tracey Sartino/Laura Keener remained focused in their win over MTP’s Jennifer McKenna/Brigid Quint. And on court 6, MTP’s Robin Mussar /Tomoko Sekigami pulled out MTP’s only match win, with a 6-2,6-3 win over LSSF’s Sue Smith/Joan Hoese.

NCW4.5-Open Singles Champions-NRC

Singles is a great way to see your strengths and weaknesses. No partner to blame. There’s only yourself to figure out how you are going to counter your opponent. In some cases, you’ve played your opponent multiple times and you know what you need to do but sometimes the execution is difficult to implement. In other cases, you’ve never encountered your opponent but have been given some tips on how to play them. Such was the case in the matchups in the NCW4.5-Open Finals. Northbrook was meeting Midtown-Bannockburn 2 for the 2nd year in a row. On court 1, MTB’s Sunatcha Breslow played a long match against NRC’s Terri Gordon. Both know each other’s game well. As Terri put it, “Sunatcha’s going to bring me into the net and then lob me.” Sunatcha’s strategy worked but she had to work hard for every point 7-6(7), 5-7, 1-0(2). On court 2, NRC’s Linda Traeger and MTB’s Megumi Grove had never played each other before. Both players have a great all-around game with pinpoint groundstrokes and the ability to take time away from their opponent. After being down most of the 1st set Linda pulled ahead to win 7-5 only to lose some steam in the 2nd set, losiing 2-6, before winning the match tie-breaker 10-8. On court 3, NRC’s Ann Taylor (yours truly) played against MTB’s Susan Heiser. Susan has been working on her game and came on like gangbusters. She took the lead and was ahead 3-0, when Ann buckled down and closed out the set and match 6-3, 6-2. On court 4, NRC’s Liesel Jankelowitz played against Karyn Sardar. Karyn suffered her only loss against Liesel during the regular season. Liesel played aggressively in the 1st set and won 6-0 but Karyn pushed back only to succumb 6-3 in the 2nd set. Pictured from L-R: Linda Traeger, Terri Gordon, Ann Taylor, Liesel Jankelowitz