Award Winners Announced

The USTA Missouri Valley has announced its 2018 award winners. The awards honor the best players, events, coaches, volunteers and sportsmanship over the past year.  

The award winners will be recognized during the USTA Missouri Valley Annual Conference and Awards Luncheon on December 1 at the Olathe Conference Center adjacent to the Embassy Suites in Olathe, Kansas.

The award winners are as follows: 

Adult Player of the Year: Wilbur Jones (Kansas City)

Adult Recreational Player of the Year: Heather Blumel (Omaha, Nebraska)

Distinguished Service: Steve Henry (Oklahoma City, Oklahoma)

Facility of the Year: Woods Tennis Center (Lincoln, Nebraska)

Junior Female Player of the Year: Sami Remis (St. Louis, Missouri)

Junior Male Player of the Year: A.J. Woodman (Weldon Springs, Missouri)

Junior Female Recreational Player of the Year: Erin Coleman (Ferguson, Missouri)

Junior Male Recreational Player of the Year: Grant Dahl (St. Louis, Missouri)

Media Excellence: Mediacom (Springfield, Missouri)

USTA Member Organization of the Year: Dwight Davis Tennis Center (St. Louis, Missouri)

Outstanding Community Tennis Association: First Serve (Oklahoma City, Oklahoma)

Outstanding Adult/Senior Tournament: USTA 18 and Over Mixed Section Championship (Omaha, Nebraska)

Outstanding Contributor USTA League Tennis Program: Marcia Jacelone (Overland Park, Kansas)

Outstanding Contributor Youth High Performance Program: Eric Rand (Olathe, Kansas)

Outstanding Contributor Youth Tennis: Sara Rasmussen (Wichita, Kansas)

High School Coach: Patrick Huewe (St. Louis, Missouri)

Outstanding Junior Tournament: USTA L2 National Selection Tournament (Edmond, Oklahoma)

Outstanding Official: John Kelly (St. Charles, Missouri)

Tennis Family of the Year: The Minihan Family (Edmond, Oklahoma)

USTA Junior Team Tennis Organizer: Janet Glaser (Wichita, Kansas)

Outstanding Diversity Achievement: Kevin Heim (Lincoln, Nebraska)

President's Award: Surprise Announcement 

Junior Sportsmanship:

Boys 10s: Joey Fox (St. Louis, Missouri)

Boys 12s: Jai Patel (St. Louis, Missouri)

Boys 14s: Ayush Negi (St. Louis, Missouri)

Boys 16s: Colby Klotz (Arkansas City, Kansas)

Boys 18s: Nathan Turtledove (Leawood, Kansas)

Girls 10s: Emmy Kinder (Chesterfield, Missouri)

Girls 12s: Allison Wayne (St. Louis, Missouri)

Girls 14s: Megan Nguyen (St. Louis, Missouri)

Girls 16s: Lily Walther (St. Louis, Missouri)

Girls 18s: Emily Sloan Johnston (Tulsa, Oklahoma)