Middlebury, Vermont
November 19, 2006
Top players appear at MIT tennis tournament
MIDDLEBURY - A high-level tournament drew sixteen of the top male
tennis players in northern Vermont to Middlebury Indoor Tennis this
past weekend.
Several of competitors in the open-draw of the Rolling Thunder Tournament
Series once held world rankings while on the pro tour.
Errol Nattrass, originally of South Africa and now Tennis Director at
the Windridge Tennis Camps in Roxbury, won the singles title in a 6-0,
6-1 final win over Australian Thibaut Huens, now at Green Mountain
College.
On the way to the final, Nattrass had to
overcome a former all-American from Wheaton Collge who now lives
in Middlebury, Kord Schwarz by 6-2, 6-2.
In reaching the semifinal, Schwarz defeated former touring pro
Kelly Kerner, director of Major Gifts at Middlebury College,
7-6 (7-5), 6-2.
Kerner's first tournament play in many years came in the round of 16,
in which he fell behind opponent Ryan Cassidy of Rutland and Green
Mountain College 0-3 in both sets but prevailed 7-5, 6-3.
Jeremy Howard,
a former varsity player at the University of Richmond presently
with Grand Slam Tennis Tours of Stowe, teamed with Nattrass to win the
Doubles title, 6-3, 3-6, 7-5 over Schwarz and Chris Mason,
who is on the tennis team at Middlebury College.
In the semi final, Schwarz-Mason cruised through the
first set, 6-0, against Andrew Chmura, also of Stowe and Grand Slam
Tennis Tours, and his partner Dana Lamb, but
lost the second set 6-7 before prevailing in the tie breaker
10-8.
On November 4-5, the Rolling Thunder Series
began with draws being offered to beginning and intermediate players
only. The Women's Singles title was gained by Nan Carpenter of Middlebury
who defeated Rachel Kerner of Weybridge.
Carpenter and Donna Baldwin of Vergenns took the Women's Doubles
title, defeating Judy Fyles of Orwell and Jill Thomas of Shoreham.
Lowell Nottingham of New Haven won the Men's Singles award from
Charles Peake ofOrwell.
All results are at
MiddleburyTennis.com.