Lee County Men in USTA/FL Playoffs
One Men’s Team Advanced to Sectional Championship, August 10 - 12
The Men's 3.0 team from Fort Myers Racquet Club will represent Lee County in Daytona Beach at the USTA/Florida sectional team playoffs to determine who goes to Nationals.
Lee County’s men took to the courts at the Naples Tennis Club & Resort to compete in the USTA/Florida Southwest Regional Championship held July 13 – 15. Six men’s teams (along with the 6 women’s teams) affiliated with Lee County Community Tennis Association (LCCTA), from 3.0 through 4.5, represented Lee County’s tennis community.
Fort Myers Racquet Club a Winner in 3.0
While no women’s teams made it to the sectional playoffs, Fort Myers Racquet Club’s (FMRC) Men’s 3.0 team, captained by Kevin Gaines, advanced to sectionals in Daytona Beach, August 10 - 12. They beat Naples (the only other team in that division) two of three times in contests that were decided by one match each time. FMRC lost 2-3 on day-three when the backbone of the team, the doubles team of Roosevelt Kerr and Bernie Ivens, sat out with a Sectionals berth already secured.
Mid Cape Struggles in 3.5
Despite a strong regular season, Tom Ryan’s Mid Cape Racquet and Health Club team, Lee’s sole entry in the Men’s 3.5 division, didn’t fare very well. They won only three of their 15 individual matches and lost all three team matches. The result was understandable given the strong players fielded by the teams from Bradenton, Charlotte (Punta Gorda) and Naples. Those three teams finished 2-1, but Bradenton advanced to Sectionals on the strength of 12 individual matches won.
Ramsey Edges Palmon for 4th in 4.0
Rick Palmon captained a team playing out of Gateway Golf and Country Club and John Ramsey led a team from Fort Myers Racquet Club to place two Lee County-based teams in the men’s 4.0 division. The teams tied in team wins and losses (1-3), and in number of individual matches won and lost (8-12).
The two teams were so close that Ramsey’s team finished with 26 sets lost to Palmon’s 27, and 205 games lost to Palmon’s 206. FMRC edged Gateway for the fourth spot of five teams. Within Lee County, FMRC has bragging rights in men’s 4.0, but although Sarasota and Bradenton both finished 3-1, Sarasota advanced to Daytona Beach with a 14-6 record in individual matches to 11-9 for Bradenton.
Ramsey's 4.5 Squad Falls Short
Ramsey also fielded a men’s 4.5 team playing out of Grandezza Golf & Country Club that he thought would be a serious contender to make it to Sectionals. The team’s record was 2-2 along with two of the other four teams in the division, but it finished fourth of five due to the number of individual matches won and lost (9-11).
Doubles an Achilles Heel
Doubles appeared to be the team’s Achilles heel, going 5-3 in singles but only 4-8 in doubles. On the other hand, Naples, the winning team, went 12-2 in doubles and 5-3 in singles, and the second place team, Sarasota went 12-4 in doubles and 4-4 in singles.
See & Gagnon Win for Mid Cape 4.5
The other Lee County representative in the Men’s 4.5 division was Captain Lee Casola’s Mid Cape team. The team went 0-4 in team matches and amassed just three individual match wins. All three wins came from the seasoned duo of Terry See and Larry Gagnon, who lost only once during the regular season. The two didn’t play in the team’s final match against Naples.
LCCTA Offers Quality & Quantity Tennis
There’s little question that, with only one team of 12 advancing to the Sectional Championship, the LCCTA will continue to work to advance the level of tennis in Lee County. Nevertheless, with almost half of the teams at the competition representing Lee County, the LCCTA won’t be too unhappy if quantity is slightly ahead of quality.
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