Wrap-up: Griffith Clay Court Gold AMT Tournament, May 15-18

Tennis enthusiasts in Griffith were treated to the very best in tennis for the NSW Clay Court Championships which ran May 15-18. The number one seeds for both Male and Female Singles Events came through taking away the prize money, Australian ranking points and personal achievement for their hard work off the court.

Top seeded in the Womens, Abbie Myers (Syd), showed why she was ranked at number 19 before a knee injury temporarily took her out of the game. Abbie looked as though she was in cruise control on the court, strong in all aspects of the game. It has been a very tough road back, but she is well on track to regain the form she had prior to her injury. A Griffith youngster Annaliese Quarisa had the wonderful opportunity partnering Abbie in the Open ladies doubles, being very competitive but going down 7/5 to the eventual finalists.

 

Mens top seed Brandon Vescio (Albury), is the ultimate perfectionist working hard on his game on the practice court. He brought a new serving style, and should be happy with his first serve weapon which helped him through a nail biter against Nathan Doney in a game which could have gone either way.

 

Hope Curtis-McDonald/ Megan Polkinghorne d Annaliese Quarisa/ Alison Triggs in 18/U Doubles final. Tavis Bergamin gave a stellar performance in a first round loss to his more match hardened opponent. Binit Shrestha has taken his game to another level with good results. Annaliese Quarisa was runner up in 18 girl’s consolation singles final.

 

The newly resurfaced grass courts came alive over the weekend, with Adrian Piccoli and Club President, Steve Bourke, officially unveiling the updated surface on the Sunday.

A big thank you to the Griffith tennis community for contributing time and effort to help make a superb weekend of tennis possible. To the parents who contributed cakes and slices, the visitors always comment that Griffith Tennis Club is a place they continue to enjoy visiting.

Special thanks goes to Sheline Malhknecht for running an incredibly successful raffle, and who tirelessly pursued anybody on two legs to sell tickets to. Jess Bergamin made the tennis centre buzz with great food, organisation and bubbly personality. Kay Catanzariti for donation of time, expertise and food. Donna and Mark Dossetor, contributing your valuable expertise and time as court supervisors. Mark Oates as a fill in stringer with short notice. Jason Clifford for managing the 5 sheets of 11/U boys and girls. Not easy. A big thank you also to Ron Whittaker for assembling the new Hot Shot nets and big court nets at the 11 th hour. No nets, no play. Also for the general help around the courts and the cooking of the barbecue.

The big “fella” Jack Clifford is currently in hospital. He was definitely missed around the courts. Get well soon Jack. Looking forward to the MIA Open.

Thank You

Cheryl

On behalf of the Griffith Tennis Club committee, we’d also like to thank Cheryl for taking on and running a very successful Tournament 🙂

For more photos, check out the gallery here, or the slideshow here


Results

1. AMT MSing – AMT Mens Singles
1 Brandon VESCIO [1]
2 Nathan DONEY [2]
3 / 4 Alex FURNISS [13]
3 / 4 Tyrone SMART [5]
2. AMT WSing – AMT Womens Singles
1 Abbie MYERS [1]
2 Alana BOURGEOIS [4]
3 / 4 Michaela HAET [3]
3 / 4 Rebecca STEWART [2]
3. AMT MDbls – AMT Mens Doubles
1 Alex FURNISS [4]
Aaron MCRAE
2 Nathan DONEY [1]
Tyrone SMART
3 / 4 Blake DENISON
Joel HERBERT
3 / 4 Blazo DJUROVIC [2]
Dimitri VIDIN
4. AMT WDbls – AMT Womens Doubles
1 Jessica BRZOZOWSKA
Hene DEMIRI
2 Dael MCKENNA
Madaline NEDANOVSKI
3 / 4 Chorlida KANG
Sarina KANG
3 / 4 Alana BOURGEOIS [3]
Alexandra TAYLOR
5. U18 BSing – 18 & U Boys Singles
1 Oliver RYAN [2]
2 James CURTIS-MCDONALD [1]
3 Matt STEWART
4 Ayrton SANTOS
6. U18 GSing – 18 & U Girls Singles Main Draw
1 Alana BOURGEOIS [1]
2 Hope CURTIS-MCDONALD [2]
3 Sarina KANG [3]
4 Hene DEMIRI [4]
7. U18 BDbls – 18 & U Boys Doubles Main Draw
1 James ENGLISH
Matt STEWART
2 Alexander BOURGEOIS
Ayrton SANTOS
3 / 4 James CURTIS-MCDONALD [1]
Julian PANAGOPOULOS
3 / 4 Blazo DJUROVIC [2]
Paul HOWE
8. U18 GDbls – 18 & U Girls Doubles Main Draw
1 Hope CURTIS-MCDONALD [1]
Megan POLKINGHORNE
2 Annaliese QUARISA [2]
Alison TRIGGS