Found at: http://www.anguillaguide.com/article/articleprint/4675/-1/140/
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Tennis Players From Anguilla Come Back Home As Champions
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On April 18, a group of delegates representing Anguilla and the Anguilla Tennis Academy left for Nashville, Tennessee, to play in the Music City Tennis Invitational. The tournament was held on April 20-21 at the Vanderbilt University Tennis Complex that consists of six pristine indoor courts and nine top quality outdoor courts. The MCTI is a charity tennis tournament in which all the proceeds went to the Vanderbilt Children’s Hospital. This was the 34th time the tournament has taken place and consequently the second time that delegates from the Anguilla Tennis Academy have gone. This year, ATA Director Jason Allen decided to take the four top junior females in the ATA’s programs. Katie Hawkins, Olivia Geyer, Yasminn Ebner and Teresa Brooks were chosen, and they represented Anguilla well.
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L-R - Olivia Geyer, Yasminn Ebner, Jason Allen, Teresa Brooks, Katie Hawkins “ATA delegates holding the American Eagle banner”
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The tournament comprised two separate divisions called the US Open and the French Open. In each division there were six teams, and each team had ten members. The MCTI is a doubles tournament so therefore each team had five doubles teams. It was a round robin format in which all six teams would play each other once. All five doubles teams would compete against the other team in a match that consisted of 15 games. At the end of the tournament, the team with the most cumulative games would be crowned the championship team. During the tournament, Olivia and Yasminn comprised one doubles team and Katie and Teresa were a doubles team as well. Although all four girls were not on the same team, Olivia and Yasminn were fortunate enough to be on the team that came out as champions in the French Open Division. They were presented with two championship plaques on Sunday afternoon.
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Will Edmonds (L) and Jason Allen (R) holding the championship plaques
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As if it were enough to have two champions from Anguilla, the ATA’s Director Jason Allen also participated in the tournament and won. He teamed up with Will Edmonds in the US Open Division at the top doubles spot. As mentioned before, each team has 5 doubles teams that range in levels from the best on down. The best team plays A, the second best plays B, and so on. Will Edmonds has been to Anguilla as a visiting coach on two separate occasions and he also played number one doubles and singles for Cumberland University. Will’s talent combined with Jason’s experience made them the top A level team in the tournament not losing a single match. They also helped their team come out as the eventual champions of the US Open Division.
This of course was not the first time that a group of players from Anguilla played in the MCTI. In 2005, Keithroy Proctor, Vallan Hodge, Marvin Hazell, Melissa Mussington and Jason Allen were there. Keithroy Proctor has since then received a tennis scholarship to Lambuth University. It was special that the children were able to see Keithroy actually compete in a college match while at the MCTI. In the days leading up to the event, Keithroy played in the conference tournament. The girls and the Director saw him play a doubles match in which he came out on top as the victor, and a singles match which although he lost, represented himself well. Vallan Hodge is now the head tennis professional at Malliouhana Hotel and Spa, Marvin Hazell spent a year as the head pro of the ATA before leaving for college: and Melissa Mussington remains a top player in Anguilla although she has not been playing this past year due to a rigorous academic schedule.
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L-R - Yasminn Ebner, Olivia Geyer, Teresa Brooks, Jason Allen, and Katie Hawkins with the championship plaques
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This trip was made possible through the support of many people. First and foremost, American Eagle graciously assisted in providing reduced airfares for all the participants. American Eagle has been a staunch supporter over the years and without its assistance, the ATA would not be where it is today. Millie Hodge, General Manager of American Eagle said, “American Eagle believes in providing opportunities for children such as this. We are proud to be involved with any organization that is providing positive activities for the youth.” Also, Greg and Sarah Travis of Travis Television hosted the delegates in their home during the entire trip. They also provided meals for the children and took them on many excursions when they were not playing. Bill Riddle and Patsy Bradley, co-chairs of the MCTI, were responsible for hosting and coordinating the incredible event. They invited the ATA group to participate in the tournament free of charge. Bill Riddle has been involved with the ATA since 1999 and has done a great job of promoting and bringing the Academy closer to completion. Without supporters such as Bill, Greg and Sarah Travis, and American Eagle, it would have been impossible for the children to participate.
Greg Travis is producing a video that will illustrate how the children did during the tournament. It will be shown soon in Anguilla. The Anguillian spoke with Jason Allen recently:“I am so very proud of these four young ladies. They played very well and represented themselves, Anguilla and the Anguilla Tennis Academy superbly. It is a plus that Olivia and Yasminn brought home championship plaques, and of course, I felt honoured to be on a championship team as well. The MCTI is a great event and I would like Bill Riddle to come back to Anguilla to help organize a similar fundraising event for the ATA as our facility is nearing completion.”