The air was brisk but the courts were on fire at the Netherwood Tennis Club in Plainfield, NJ. The club hosted the second annual Clash of the Clays on Saturday, October 8, 2022. The event brought together 62 players from the Netherwood Tennis Club, the Maplewood Country Club and the Berkeley Tennis Club for a little friendly competition. Each club fielded a team at the 3.0, 3.5 and 4.0 level in men's doubles, women's doubles and mixed doubles contests for a total of 27 matches played.
Netherwood Club President Chuck Freyberger manned the barbecue grill and served up hot dogs, burgers and chicken wings. Club members donated delicious side dishes and desserts, and of course, there was no shortage of adult beverages and soft drinks. Hollis Williams managed the tournament desk and provided soulful tunes to keep the atmosphere electric, and players were also given commemorative t-shirts and USTA tote bags.
At stake was the coveted Clash of the Clays Banner and of course, bragging rights. The matches were closely contested all day. In Round 1, Netherwood got the better of Berkeley by a scoreline of 5-4. Maplewood then overcame Berkeley, 6-3. The third and final round between Netherwood an Maplewood stood at 4-all leading into the final match of the day in mixed doubles. Marc and Wendy Mayer, a husband-wife pairing from Netherwood, ultimately prevailed to give their club a 5-4 edge, resulting in a tie at 10-all between Netherwood and Maplewood. A tally of total games won found Netherwood at 105 and Maplewood at 93, which granted Netherwood the championship.
USTA Eastern thanks all of the volunteers and staff who worked so hard to make this event a success.
Netherwood: Chuck Freyberger (President), Ingrid Floyd (Team Captain), Hollis Williams (Secretary)
Berkeley: Matthew Mehr (President), Bob Bynum (Club Pro), Juan Davies (Team Captain), Louise Arkel
Maplewood: Florian Mihai (Director of Racquets), Emily Jaffee (Team Captain)
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