Prestonwood Ladies Finish 3rd in US Tennis Championships
Team Members: L-> R Tricia Bradley, Maria Burrus, Barbara Taylor, Rhonda Ransdell, Jan Smith, Captain Karen Coe, Scharme Prevost, Suzanne Trexler, Gretchen Cooling, Paula Gahagan, Kait Paden. Not Pictured: Jami Thompson & Colleen Ueland. Provided by Prestonwood.
Cary, NC- For the first time in it’s 25 year history, Prestonwood Country Club sent a Ladies 40 & Over team to the United States Tennis Association and they proudly brought home a third place title.
US Tennis Championships
The team, captained by Karen Coe and comprised of 14 members, represented the Southern Section at the United States Tennis Association (USTA) National Championships in Indian Wells, California and competed on October 11.
“Karen’s team, who were playing together for the first time due to recent USTA age division changes, proved to be a formidable opponent,” said Tennis Manager Julie Corcoran. “Overcoming the recent breast cancer diagnosis of teammate Colleen Ueland served as additional motivation to compete for the national title. Their success cannot be credited to any one teammate; their accomplishments were the ultimate display of teamwork.”
The season began in Feb. of 2013. When the team won the Local League Championships this qualified them for the State Tournament in Winston Salem in June. They won that and moved on to the Southern Championships in Mobile Alabama in August. At the Southern Championships, nine states were represented. They beat Louisiana in the finals and were named Southern Champs.
For the 2013 season, there were 74 other leagues teams who represented Prestonwood – although only 7 at the 3.5 level for all age levels during the Spring season. The 3.5 designation represents their NTRP (skill/talent) level. The highest level offered in the USTA is a 5.5.
Record Setting Team
Coe’s team were the first North Carolina team in USTA league history to represent the Southern Section of the 3.5 Ladies 40 & Over category in the Semifinals. Representing the Southern division, Coe’s team successfully defeated flight opponents InterMountain (Southern Nevada; 3-2), Southwest (Greater El Paso; 5-0) and Middle States (New Jersey; 3-2) divisions, to advance to the Semifinals. After losing to the Pacific NW section (Northern Oregon; 3-2), Coe’s team earned third place honors by defeating Missouri Valley (Tulsa, OK; 4-1) sectional winners in a consolation match.
