League Teams Have Special Bond

Two USTA St. Louis League teams advancing to the Adult 40 & Over Men & Women 3.0, 4.0 USTA Missouri Valley League Section Championships in Tulsa, Okla., September 5-8 had a special relationship. Five of the 4.0 Men's team members had either a spouse or mixed doubles partner on the Women's 3.0 team.

We caught up with the captains of the two teams, Peter Albrecht (4.0 Men’s) and his wife Rose Albrecht (3.0 Women’s), for a brief interview regarding their experiences competing in the section championships together. 

USTA: How is it different to travel and play in a tournament that your spouse is also playing in?

R. Albrecht: It made the tournament even better having my husband's 4.0 Men's team there too! I really appreciated having Peter at the tournament. The drive to Tulsa was fun because we were able to share this road trip with my teammate, Kim, and Peter's teammate, Marvin Bohnenkamp. This couple also plays on our Mixed 18 & Over team and we have previously traveled with them for mixed doubles tournaments. Having Peter at the tournament was also very beneficial because he knows many of my teammates. It was really good to have him there to help with everything from logistics like transportation to the courts to scouting reports on our opponents. Since we both play and have the role as captain, we understand each other's challenges and concerns and our desire for our players to enjoy the experience.

USTA: With so many people on your team having spouses or mixed partners on the other team, how do they support each other throughout the tournament?

R. Albrecht: My team drew the 7 a.m. time slot for our first match. I was really touched when David Kraft from Peter's team and mixed doubles partner of Victoria Winn from my team, came to watch that match! Peter's team wasn't playing until later in the morning, but David was up and thought he would just come to the courts to cheer us on. It was great to have his support at that early morning match! Throughout the tournament, both teams were there to cheer for each other and take team photos, as well as attend to each other's needs such as refilling water jugs or fetching snacks. Off the court we shared evening meals and snacks as well as good conversations and thoughts on the US Open.

Peter's team had some stiff competition at this tournament and did not do as well as mine in the pool play, but his guys stuck around to cheer us on. My team finished second in our pool and Saturday evening we played in the quarterfinals. We really appreciated the support of Peter's team during that match. I am sure that it was their support that spurred us on to our win! I was still playing when the team had won three courts. Seeing Peter's thumbs up settled my nerves and gave Shashi Pathak, my partner and the spouse of Trevor Rees who plays on Peter's team and was also watching our match, the push we needed to win our match, too.

USTA: How long have you two played tennis together?

R. Albrecht: Peter and I started playing tennis early in our marriage more than 40 years ago. I had not played sports as a kid, but had always thought tennis looked like a lot of fun and believed it was a game I could learn to play. Peter had played other sports and hit a few tennis balls. There was a local club near our home and tennis was an activity that we could do together. We signed up for some clinics and started playing mixed doubles on Friday night. We have had our ups and downs, but I could not ask for a better partner both on and off the court!

USTA: How do you two push each other's tennis games?

R. Albrecht: Peter has always been very supportive of my tennis and willing to hit with me to help me improve.  He is a great coach when we play together, making suggestions and helping me figure out how to exploit our opponents weaknesses and combat their strengths.  We have traveled together to many section and national tournaments. I have been asked if we plan our vacations around tennis tournaments and the answer is yes!

USTA: What were your final results during the section championships?

R. Albrecht: Peter's team came in 4th in their pool with an 0-3 record, only winning 4 courts. They were disappointed and had hoped to do better. 

My team finished second in our pool with a 2-1 record, winning 9 courts. We then advanced to the quarterfinals and won that match 4-1. Sunday morning, we played in the semi-finals and lost 2-1. They do not play for third and fourth place at section championships, but in our mind we finished third. I have a feeling that the other semifinalist team feels the same way, and that they finished third. 

Our team has been together for three years and this was our first trip to the 40 & Over section championships. One of our younger players stated that as a team we seemed to be older than a lot of the other 40 & Over teams. So just out of curiosity, I added up the ages of the 11 of us who were at the tournament. Would you believe that our average age was 61?! I guess we were probably one of the "older" teams at the tournament.

Everyone on my team played at least one match and everyone had at least one win!  Of course, our goal was to win the tournament, but I was proud of the team and very pleased with the way everyone on the team played and supported each other!!!  We hope to be back for the 40 & Over 3.0 section championships next year. Tennis friends are the best!

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