Copyright © 2015. No duplication is permitted without permission from Bob Larson Tennis.

A team from Columbia, Md., representing the Mid-Atlantic section and a team from North Richland Hills, Texas, representing the Texas section, captured the 2015 Junior Team Tennis 18U Intermediate and Advanced National Championship titles, respectively. The Championships, held at the Cayce Tennis and Fitness Center in Cayce, S.C., October 22-25, brought together the top 32 teams at the 18U Intermediate and Advanced levels from various USTA Sections throughout the country.

The Columbia team, also known as the Heat Strokes, defeated a team from Skillman, N.J. (44-42) in the Intermediate Championship match. On Saturday, they defeated a team from Oklahoma City, Okla., (47-38) in the semifinals.

The team is coached by Jackson Tsai and features Alexandra Ahearn (Phoenix), Alissa Li (Potomac), Brooke Santoriello (Bel Air), Jordan Chrysostom (Bowie), Madeleine Peterson (Sparks), Snigdha Puram (Elkridge), Andrew Tsai (Ellicott City), Sara Ho (Ellicott City), George Mao (Columbia), Mark Mao (Columbia), Matthew Sklar (Columbia) and Megan Keller (Clarksville), Nicholas Zhu (Clarksville) and Prateek Swamykumar (Clarksville).

The North Richland Hills Team, also known as the RTC Rebels, defeated a team from Richmond, Va., (60-18) in the Advanced Championship match. On Saturday, they defeated a team from Sausalito, Calif., (60-27) in the semifinals.

The team is coached by Bobby Reeves and features Chelsea Kung (Fort Worth), Eric Morris (Corinth), Jonathan Sheehy (Arlington), Parker Wynn (North Richland Hills), Reagan Collins (Lubbock) and Riley Reeves (Fort Worth).

Full results are as follows:

Intermediate Results:

18U Intermediate championship match
Mid-Atlantic (Heat Strokes) def. Middle States (Nassau Godz ‘n Goddezzez) 44-42

18U Intermediate 3rd-4th playoff
Missouri Valley (Greens 18A) def. Mid-Atlantic WC (ACAC Kickin’ Aces) 43-37

18U Intermediate 5th-6th playoff
Southwest (Blue Shells)  def. Midwest (G.O.A.T.) 51-49

18U Intermediate 7th-8th playoff
Southern (Smart Aces) def. Caribbean (ECEDAO) 51-31

18U Intermediate 9th-10th playoff
NorCal (Laguna Creek) def. Northern (Closers) 58-43

18U Intermediate 11th-12th playoff
Eastern (Highland Park Hawks) def. Pacific Northwest (ETC Supersonics) 45-42

18U Intermediate 13th-14th playoff
New England WC (Farmington Valley Racquet Club) def. New England (Sippican Tennis Club) 46-39

18U Intermediate 15th-16th playoff
SoCal (Guzman Champs)  def. Texas (Ace-N-Slackers) 60-14

18U Intermediate Sportsmanship Award

Girls: Greta Hartman — New England Wild Card (Farmington Valley Racquet Club)

Boys: Eric Selzer — New England Wild Card (Farmington Valley Racquet Club)

18U Intermediate Best Team Banner Award

Pacific Northwest (ETC Supersonics)

Advanced Results:

18U Advanced championship match
Texas (RTC Rebels) def. Mid-Atlantic (Westwood) 60-18

18U Advanced 3rd-4th playoff
NorCal (Burgos Tennis) def. Southern (TNNS) 49-42

18U Advanced 5th-6th playoff
Midwest (Slicers) def. Middle States (Scott Sterling) 44-41

18U Advanced 7th-8th playoff
Eastern (Island Grinders) def. New England (802 Tennis Academy) 59-17

18U Advanced 9th-10th playoff
Northern (Southsiders) def. Midwest WC (RCC 2) 51-33

18U Advanced 11th-12th playoff
Caribbean (Guaynabo) def. SoCal (ACES Foundation) 41-35

18U Advanced 13th-14th playoff
Hawaii Pacific (Lightning) def. Middle States WC (Delaware Nightmare 18A) 57-33

18U Advanced 15th-16th playoff
Missouri Valley (KCUT) def. Southwest (Club Rio) 50-32

18U Advanced Sportsmanship Awards

Girls: Jovana Kuljanin – SoCal (ACES Foundation)

Boys: Alejandro Rodriguez-Vidal – Caribbean (Guaynabo)

18U Advanced Best Team Banner Award

Middle States (Delaware Nightmare 18A)

18U Advanced Team Spirit Award

Northern Advanced (Southsiders)

The National Championships serves as the crown jewel of USTA Junior Team Tennis as the nation’s top teams compete for the title. Each year the USTA crowns a national champion in two age divisions (14U and 18U) in both the Intermediate and Advanced play divisions. This year, there are 32 teams from across the United States who have advanced to the National Championships totaling 250 participants.

Established in 1991, USTA Junior Team Tennis provides youth with all of the health and social benefits of tennis in a co-ed, fun and competitive team environment, and allows participants to compete with and against individuals of similar skill and age levels. It promotes social skills and important values by fostering a spirit of cooperation and unity, as well as individual self-growth. USTA Junior Team Tennis is also a fun environment for kids to learn that succeeding is really more about how they play the game—win or lose.

Copyright © 2015. No duplication is permitted without permission from Bob Larson Tennis.