USTA Iowa 2022 Year in Review Top Stories

Join us as we take a look back at the top tennis stories from 2022, from across the state!

January

Two former Coe College teammates develop their own Tennis Line Call App and won $3,000 for the invention at the Fifth Annual Young Entrepreneur Convention at Iowa State University. All you need is a smartphone.

https://www.usta.com/en/home/stay-current/missourivalley/iowa/former-coe-college-teammates-develop-tennis-app.html

February

USTA Iowa kicks off 2022 with a new president. Waterloo resident Brenton Kuchera coaches the Waterloo West High School girls’ tennis team and is active in the USTA. He hopes to build the volunteer base in Iowa, as well as increase junior tennis opportunities.

https://www.usta.com/en/home/stay-current/missourivalley/iowa/new-usta-iowa-president-comes-full-circle.html

March

For Women’s History Month, USTA Iowa profiles Jennifer Smith. The 47-year old works full-time for World Team Tennis office as the Director of WTT Community Tournaments.

https://www.usta.com/en/home/stay-current/missourivalley/iowa/women-s-history-month--jennifer-smith.html

April

Club Kids for a Cause is a unique nonprofit organization, because it’s run by kids. It all started when a member of the tennis community was diagnosed with cancer.

https://www.usta.com/en/home/stay-current/missourivalley/iowa/youth-led-nonprofit-reaches-fundraising-milestone.html

May

Ken Fu is an instructor at the Quad Cities Tennis Club. Ever since he was a kid growing up in China, he’s wanted to play tennis. That dream became a reality when he moved to Iowa.

https://www.usta.com/en/home/stay-current/missourivalley/iowa/ken-fu-finds-his-calling-in-tennis.html

June

June is Pride Month and USTA Iowa features local tennis legend, Bunny Bruning, who continues to make an impact and tennis players young and old alike.

https://www.usta.com/en/home/stay-current/missourivalley/iowa/tennis-professional-bunny-bruning-continues-to-inspire-through-t.html

July

Tennis pro Madison Keys puts on a tournament in Charles City to bring awareness to mental health. The Court of Dreams Celebration of Tennis Event took two years to plan, and was worth it for everyone involved as more than 600 people turned out for the historic tournament.

https://www.usta.com/en/home/stay-current/missourivalley/iowa/madison-keys-brings-charity-event-to-iowa.html

August

Groundstrokes for Strokes was a new event put on by healthcare professionals at the University of Iowa. All of the proceeds from the tournament went directly to a stroke and research fund to recruit and retain the best stroke research clinicians.

https://www.usta.com/en/home/stay-current/missourivalley/iowa/new-tournament-supports-stroke-research.html#tab=tournaments

September

September is Hispanic Heritage Month and USTA Iowa featured Fernando Garcia of Cedar Rapids. He owns the Vega Sports Academy and is co-founder of the Forever Strong Children’s Foundation. Read about how he went from a standout player to a standout coach.

https://www.usta.com/en/home/stay-current/missourivalley/iowa/fernando-garcia-goes-from-standout-player-to-standout-coach.html#tab=tournaments

October

Two Iowa college students are the latest to receive the Barbara J. Fackel Scholarship. One student attends Iowa State University, and the other is at John Carroll University. Both are proof that hard work pays off.

https://www.usta.com/en/home/stay-current/missourivalley/iowa/2022-barbara-j--fackel-scholarship-recipients.html

November

Three USTA Iowa adult tennis teams made it all the way to Nationals! Find out who made it and how they did at the year-end tournament.

https://www.usta.com/en/home/stay-current/missourivalley/iowa/three-usta-iowa-teams-compete-at-usta-league-nationals.html

December

Two Iowa tennis organizations recently won a cash raffle simply by hosting an L7 tournament and following all the requirements. It’s a win-win situation.

https://www.usta.com/en/home/stay-current/missourivalley/iowa/two-iowa-tennis-facilities-win-cash-raffle-by-hosting-l7-junior-.html#tab=tournaments