For the week of July 9 - 15, 2003

Holiday tennis a big hit at Warm Springs

Drew, Turner win singles in Ketchum

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Tennis players appreciate a well-run tournament. That’s what they’ve been getting at Ketchum’s Warm Springs Tennis Club over the past few Fourth of July weekends.

Once again the weather cooperated on Wimbledon weekend and tennis players from several states turned out in increasing numbers for the 17th annual Warm Springs Open tennis tourney July 3-6.

Entries nearly cracked 300 for the four-day tournament sponsored by Sturtevants and Warm Springs Tennis. Of last weekend’s 299 entries covering 21 classes, there were 105 in singles plus 97 doubles teams.

Harvard University senior tennis player George Turner won the Men’s Open singles title in straight sets at Warm Springs Sunday. Express photo by Willy Cook

Some excellent tennis was played for cash and merchandise prizes.

In Men’s Open singles, Harvard University senior tennis player George Turner from Greenwich, Ct. rolled to a 6-2, 6-3 championship match victory over defending champ Morgan Shephard of Boise.

Turner works this summer at Sun Valley Tennis Club.

Shephard, head of Idaho Tennis, kept his Men’s Open doubles title, this year teaming with Pete Peterson of Boise for an easy 6-2, 6-1 win over Turner and Dar Walters of Boise.

2002 Community School grad and four-time Idaho state high school singles queen Lauren Drew of Hailey, now a collegiate player at Scripps College in California, repeated as champion of Women’s 5.0 singles.

A couple of talented high school players from Boise, Ethan Asher and Laura Leoni, prevailed in straight sets for the Mixed 5.0 doubles title.

Next up at Warm Springs Tennis Club, with a similar non-sanctioned format, is the 2003 Labor Day tournament Aug. 29 through Sept. 1. All entries must be received by Wednesday, Aug. 27.

 

Here are top results from last weekend’s holiday tournament:

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Singles

Men’s Open final—George Turner of Harvard 6-2, 6-3 over Morgan Shephard of Boise.

In the semi-finals Turner ousted Pete Peterson of Boise 6-3, 6-3 and Shephard had a much tougher time in his semi, winning 4-6, 7-6 (7-3), 7-5 over Alastair Jenkin (12 players).

 

Men’s 5.0 final: Robert Sterk of Boise 7-5, 6-4 over George Maurtua.

Semis: Sterk volleyed past Mike Machado 6-3, 6-4 and Maurtua beat Tyler Martin 6-1, 6-1 (10 players).

 

Men’s 4.5 final: Brandon Peterson of Salt Lake City was a 7-6 (9-7), 6-3 winner over Dave Taylor.

Peterson had all he could handle in the semi-final, rallying past Kurt Almquist 6-7 (7-4), 6-3, 6-1. Meanwhile, Taylor advanced 6-4, 6-3 over Tyler Martin (14 players).

 

Men’s 4.0 final—Eric MacMillan of Twin Falls dethroned two-time defending champion Robert Perry 6-1, 6-1.

Both finalists made short work of their semi-final opponents—MacMillan ousting Brent Bungard 6-3, 6-1 and Perry getting past Sean Timoney 6-2, 6-4 (18 players).

 

Men’s 3.5 final—John Miller of Ketchum won five matches including his 3-6, 7-5, 6-1 championship match triumph over Chris MacMillan.

In the semi-finals Miller defeated Chris Rogers 6-3, 6-2 and Chris MacMillan downed Ira Shepard 7-5, 3-6, 6-2 (18 players).

 

Women’s 5.0 final—Hailey’s Lauren Drew kept her championship 6-2, 7-6 (7-3) over another sophomore-to-be, Anna Erdheim of New York and Colby College.

Semis: Drew prevailed 6-4, 6-0 over Laura Leoni and Erdheim was a 7-6 (7-1), 4-6, 6-4 winner over Ana Cornea (6 players).

 

Women’s 4.0 final—Jodi Peterson of Boise repeated as the Independence Day queen 6-4, 6-3 over Michelle Sabina (6 players).

 

Women’s 3.5 final—Cassandra Johnson of Boise successfully defended her Warm Springs title 6-2, 6-2 over Susan Marcus (13 players).

 

Women’s 3.0 final—The championship came down to a couple of up-and-coming local high school players. Whitney DeBree won 6-2, 6-2 over Calley Brown (8 players).

 

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Doubles

Men’s Open final: Morgan Shephard and Pete Peterson of Boise breezed 6-2, 6-1 over Dar Walters and George Turner.

In the semis, Shephard and Peterson beat Eric Metzger and Dave Perry 6-3, 6-2, while Walters and Turner advanced 6-1, 6-3 over Mark Scribner and Ryan Drew (5 teams).

 

Men’s 5.0 final: Brian Johnson and Mike Machado of Boise prevailed 6-4, 7-5 over George Maurtua and Leo Miranda.

There were a couple of close semi-finals. Johnson and Machado won in a tiebreaker, 6-2, 3-6, 7-6 over Robert Sterk and Jess Olavarria. Maurtua and Miranda went down to the wire 7-6 (7-4), 3-6, 6-4 over Nick Jordan and Michael Frisbee (6 teams).

 

Men’s 4.5 final: Jess Olavarria of Boise and Kurt Almquist of Ketchum 6-4, 7-6 (7-4) over Mark Pynn and Conrad Casser.

Olavarria and Almquist won their semi-final in comeback fashion 4-6, 6-3, 6-2 over Dave Taylor and Justin Bogdanovitch (8 teams).

 

Men’s 4.0 final: In the biggest of the doubles draws, Phil Ellis of Jerome kept his 4.0 doubles title, this year teaming with Dean Rutherford of Sun Valley for a 6-4, 3-6, 6-4 victory over Jess Olavarria and Ron Blake.

Ellis and Rutherford won two preliminary matches—dispatching Jack Crawford and Kent Laverty 7-6 (7-5), 6-4 and Brent Bungard and Alan Frankel 6-2, 6-4 (15 teams).

 

Men’s 3.5 final: Craig Sabina and Ed Siminich of Hood River won three straight-set matches including their 6-2, 7-6 (7-3) championship match triumph over Steve Hallows and Phil Kennison (11 teams).

 

Women’s 4.5 final: Erin Hart and Sandy Martin cruised 6-3, 6-3 over Britt Palmedo and Suzanne Williams (4 teams).

 

Women’s 4.0 final: Defending champ Kim McAtee this year teamed up with Mary Ann Chubb for a 6-3, 7-6 (7-5) win over Joanne Wetherell and Sibyl Hanson (4 teams).

 

Women’s 3.5 final: Charlotte Alexander and Chelle Gourlay emerged victorious 7-6 (7-2), 7-5 over Helen Weaver and Marilyn Martin. Alexander and Gourlay won three including their 6-2, 5-7, 7-6 (7-2) semi-final over Amanda Howar and Hadley DeBree (14 teams).

 

Women’s 3.0 round robin: First place—Whitney DeBree of Sun Valley and Melissa Haga of Twin Falls. Second place—Kira Gardner and Erin Baumler (3 teams).

 

Mixed 5.0 final: Boise prep stars Ethan Asher and Laura Leoni had enough left in the final match of the tournament to beat Dar Walters and Vicki Nishikawa 6-4, 7-6 (7-2).

In the semi-finals, it was Asher and Leoni 3-6, 7-6, 7-5 over Kurt Almquist and Sandy Martin, while Walters and Nishikawa also had their hands full of rally-cap tiebreakers 4-6, 7-6 (7-4), 7-6 (7-1) over Kim McAtee and Mark Pynn (8 teams).

 

Mixed 4.0 final: Defending champions Jack Alkire and Karen Heerensperger of Seattle kept the 4.0 mixed crown 6-4, 7-6 (7-2) over Eric and Kathy MacMillan.

Semis: Alkire and Heerensperger won 6-2, 6-2 over Dan and Jodi Hurt; and the MacMillans made the final 4-6, 6-3, 6-1 over Brent Bungard and Karen Strahler (6 teams).

 

Mixed 3.5 final: Herb and Amy Alexander won three matches in straight sets including their 6-1, 6-4 championship match success over Lloyd and Nancy Gurney.

In the semi-finals, the Alexanders defeated Ira Shepard and Susan Marcus 6-1, 6-4, and the Gurneys took care of Frank and Anita Meier by scores of 6-1, 6-3 (13 teams).

 

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