In Crowd rally to claim honours
NBS senior interclub tennis hosts nine different grades across the summer season and it’s the relatively new social ladies double grades that has proven to be one of the most popular, with a mix of participation and a twist of competitiveness.
The final two weeks of play are bringing the best out in all of the teams, and this week saw the top two Stoke teams, In Crowd and Cougars, playing a tightly contested match that took the team to near dark and a super tiebreak before a winner was decided.
After an exciting battle for the lead, the game climaxed in a 10-9 tiebreak with Julie Walker (Stoke Cougars) smoking an overhead smash just out of the court to give the In Crowd, captained by Sue Hill, the win, 11-9, in the tiebreak.
The final score in the tie, 6-0 to the In Crowd, did not reflect the true battle on court as the ladies all played with gusto and enthusiasm, superb cross-court rallies, intermingled with volleys, lobs and smashes would have made Stoke coach Lynnie Nevin proud.
Nelson Lawns also hosted their two ladies teams in a final match that could have gone either way with Debbie Van Rooyen and Sally Shaw of The Slice Girls starting with a strong game, they could do no wrong.
At 3-0 up in their first game they felt confident until Diana Parr and Janice Bolter, Nelson Aces, turned the tables, fighting back to win six games in a row and take the match 6-3. Sue Badawi and Kathryn Stahl also took the Aces to a strong win against Jane Mitchell and Stephanie Trevena 6-3.
The Slice Girls fought back bravely in their fourth match, producing lengthy rallies and accurate baseline play to take Bolter and Stahl to a tiebreak winning 7-1.
The final score was 4-2 to the Nelson Aces, with a social mingle the perfect way to end the evening.