by James Greenley
The Hickey Cup was played at Georgian Court University in Lakewood, NJ. There was a full draw of 16 players from Washington, Philadelphia, Boston, Tuxedo and Newport. There was some superb tennis from everyone in the tournament. There were two draws. Those who didn’t get through the first round were entered into the plate draw.
In the plate, the final involved the young and upcoming player Kurt Mueller and Randy Barr. Randy got off to a good start, taking the lead 6-1. Kurt fought back into the match, hitting targets and some fantastic winners. Kurt ended up winning the plate 10-6.
In the main draw, the semifinalists involved Jim Larocca (Washington), playing against the number one seed, Peter Kapsimalis III (New York). Peter got off to a good start, taking the first set 6-0. Jim got a good start in the second set and adapted to Peter’s cut side walls. However, this wasn’t enough for Jim to come back. Peter won the second set 6/3 to win the match 6-0, 6-3.
Nick Kapsimalis (New York) played Aidan Bae (Washington) in the bottom half of the draw. Nick got off to a 4-0 start, serving some killer railroads. Aidan found his way back in 2-4, hitting targets and getting low chases to win the serve. Nick took the first set 6-2. In the second set, Aidan took a 5-2 lead, playing some fantastic tennis; Nick remained on the service end with his railroads falling into the nick and remained consistent to level the set to 5-all. Nick kept his consistency going and won the set 6-5, winning the match 6-2, 6-5.
In the final, it was the battle of the two Kapsimalis brothers. Nick took a 4-0 lead, continuing with his railroads, which were very effective on the Lakewood court. Peter found a way back to level the match 4-4. Nick remained on the service end, making a few unforced errors and taking the first set 6-4. In the second set, both brothers took one game after the other, taking the score to 3-3. Nick kept serving railroads, which resulted in him taking the next three games to win the Hickey Cup.
Nick Kapsimalis & Peter Kapsimalis
Kurt Mueller & Randy Barr
