by John Lumley
With a start to the tournament having Henry Smith (#2 seed) pull out due to illness it shook up the event from the get-go! To kick off the day Krish Chawla (St. Joes prep player) took on another St. Joes prep – Michael Barton. Barton, a much more experienced player, played a good game with Krish crushing some volleys but it wasn’t enough as Barton cruised through 6-2 6-0. To follow Luke Snyder (another St. Joes prep player) played Chase Motz but Motz was too strong for Snyder and took it 6-0 6-1. In the quarterfinals, things went to seeding as Chase, who would have played Smith, now breezes into the semifinals. Spencer Yager had some excellent points against Ben Dickinson in the second set, but Dickinson did just enough to hang on and close out the match. Michael Barton had a great second set against #1 seed Noah Motz losing out 6-3 6-4! Erik Barker played some incredibly steady tennis against Pete Dickinson to secure his spot in the semifinals.
Noah Motz against Ben Dickinson was the first semifinal on Sunday. Motz came out of the blocks quickly, but Dickinson fought back narrowly missing out on the first set 6/4! Both played bringing some extreme heat and pace made for some entertaining and nerve-racking court tennis. Dickinson played superbly in the second set and took it 6-0 bringing it down to the final set. Motz keen to get back on top flipped the script and took the last set 6-0 to play in the final. In the second semi, Erik Barker took on Chase Motz. Barker controlling play looked excellent moving the ball around nicely to take the first set 6/3. Keen to keep the pressure on Barker serving well with Motz hitting some great forces couldn’t keep Barker at bay, and Barker kicked himself into the final with a 6-3 6-3 win!
In the final Noah Motz and Erik Barker took to the court, both players looking on top form ready to go. Motz came out the blocks quick to take a 4-1 lead, but Barker fought back with some formidable volleys and snuck the first set 6-5! Motz took a breath and composed himself and found his force to take the second set 6/0. Tied at 1 set all Motz kept the pressure on, both players crushing the ball about the court hitting targets galore but in the end, Motz took it 5/6 6/0 6/3! Massive congrats to both players on a great match!
In the doubles final, Noah & Chase Motz took on Erik Barker & Spencer Yager. Both teams with a lot of talent and hand to eye set up for a great match. The balls were flying about the court with extreme pace and accuracy, but in the end, the Motz team took it 6-4 6-4!!
In the consolation final, Spencer Yager moved beautifully to cover and track down Pete Dickinson’s forces and shots. Both players retrieving fantastic balls but in the end, Yager took it 8-5.
A big thank you to all the players for making an effort to come and play. Also to the USCTPF/USCTA Player Development Fund for supporting the event and making it possible. Great to see junior court tennis making strides in the right direction!
