It was a weekend full of Mid-Atlantic pride. 

 

USTA Mid-Atlantic sent eight teams to represent the Section on October 18-19 for week three of the USTA League National Championships, and two teams came home with the National Championship titles. 

 

The LEEague of Our Own women’s tennis team, from Montgomery County, Md., secured the Adult 40 & Over 3.5 National Championship title in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma; and Washington, D.C. Men’s tennis team was crowned the 18 & Over 4.5 National Champion in Surprise, Arizona. Each team practiced and prepared throughout the league season in hopes for this moment; for the glory to come home with a championship title. And it is moments like these that they will remember forever. 

 

“The LEEague of Our Own ladies had the privilege of qualifying for both 18 & Over and 40 & Over 3.5 Nationals, which were two weeks apart,” said team captain Chris Lee. ADVERTISEMENT “After finishing in sixth place at the 18 & Over championships, we came back with a new goal. Our plan was to win it all and have fun while doing it.”

 

And they did just that. The ladies came back to the National Championship stage with their eyes set on the prize. After defeating USTA Midwest 5-0 in the semi-finals, the League of Our Own women played their finals match against USTA Southern and won 4-1, which crowned them the Women’s 40 & Over 3.5 National Champions. 

 

Captained by Chris Lee, the team players include: Evelyn Chan, Angela Thorpe, Jina Lin, Joanna Tice, Hiromi Vecerek, Bree Bell, Rebecca Stewart, Anne Sherman, Wannapa Siriamnuaypas, Julia Latein-Kimmig, Sharon Huang, Ann-Lee Chen, Laura McInerney, Angela Lee, Michele Brammer, Bernadette Walker, Donna Fitzgerald, Rani Jeeva Nguyen-Khoa, Stacey Carey and Mesanie Lee. 

 

“We will remember Oklahoma City forever,” says Lee. “We will cherish these memories with our fellow champions, who’ve become much more than teammates.”

 

Victory continued for an additional Mid-Atlantic team at Nationals. While the Mid-Atlantic women were receiving their championship awards, a men’s 18 & Over 4.5 league team was also being crowned champions on the court in Surprise, Arizona. 

 

The Mid-Atlantic team from Washington, D.C. secured their spot in the finals after winning 3-2 in the semi-finals in an exciting match against USTA Middle State. The final match was a nail-biter with Mid-Atlantic winning 3-2 against USTA Southern.

 

"This weekend was the culmination of a magnificent three-year journey for this team," co-captain Victor Burga states.  "The team started as a way to have fun playing tennis and hanging out afterward with a close group of friends, and overtime as we recruited more talent we began to set our aspirations higher."

 

The team is co-captained by Victor Burga and Vivek Hariharan and features players: Todd Campbell, Jonathan Vissering, Gabe Zakkak, Chris Ryan, Laith Layous, Eric Ripkin, Kyle Sprow, Taimi Ando, Chell Lamm, Thibaut Perol, Jimmy Sherpa, Tariq Al-Agba, Hung Nguyen, Nicholas Fenichell, Simon Miller, Alex Braksator, Christopher Cosca and Michael Liu. 

 

"I believe that strong bonding led to the huge success we had on the court this weekend," Burga says. "Thank you to USTA Mid Atlantic for fostering a strong league tennis community - and most of all thank you for facilitating an environment where I got to make some of my dearest friends". 

 

Alongside these two teams that went on to secure National Championship titles, USTA Mid-Atlantic had two additional teams that played their way to the final four. The Women’s 18 & Over 4.0 team, captained by Cherie Lane, placed fourth in Las Vegas, Nevada. As well as, the Men’s 40 & Over 3.0 team, captained by Jim Albert, placed fourth in Orlando, Florida. 

 

Congratulations to all Mid-Atlantic teams at USTA League Nationals, and great job on an incredible season. USTA Nationals continues next on October 25-27 as Mid-Atlantic will send 40 & Over 4.5+ teams as well as 55 & Over 7.0 teams to represent the section. 

 

To follow Mid-Atlantic’s journey at Nationals make sure to visit our Facebook, Instagram or Twitter for updates. Also, if you’re feeling inspired by these victories and want to get out on the tennis court, you can find a USTA League near you by viewing the local league calendar or by contacting us and we will help you find a team.