LOCAL TENNIS with Donna Schoenmaekers
While the weather was overcast for Tuesday’s women’s grand finals, the tennis was anything but.
Surfcoast were guaranteed a premiership in Section 1 with their Bellbrae and Torquay teams pitted against each other.
Bellbrae headed into the match as favourites having finished minor premiers, including two wins over Torquay during home and away season.
Tegan Marshall and Kristie Walters opened Bellbrae’s campaign in the first set, starting strong with good pace of shot and plenty of deep groundstrokes helping them to a 6-1 win.
Miyo Fallshaw and Jayne Steel on the other court showed some great persistence and patience in their set, eventual winners 6-3 for Bellbrae. The third set produced some great rallies by all four players, but the combination of Marshall with Colleen Battye proved too strong, winning 6-1.
Things were much tighter in the fourth set, with teams trading games to four-all. Walters and Steel broke then held serve to take the set 6-4, and the match four sets to love.
Section 2, while also one-sided on the scoreboard, produced some great tennis. Anna McGennisken and Andrea Spiller started Winchelsea off in fantastic fashion with a 6-0 win in the first set while Sue Sutherland and Lesley Mathison battled in the second set eventually winning 6-4.
Tracey Langley teamed with McGennisken in the third, winning 6-2, while Kellie Winton and Sam Bakker kept Point Lonsdale in contention, winning the fourth set 6-4. Winchelsea sealed the win 5-1, taking the final two sets 6-3, 6-4 with McGennisken winning three sets.
Surfcoast Torquay Yellow played off against Barwon Heads in Section 3. Marie Kullenberg and Anna McHale got Torquay on the board winning 6-1 while teammates Amrita Smitha and Kerryn Viner backed up in the second, 6-4. Shelley Sutton and Sally Ford countered for Barwon Heads winning the third set 6-1, but from there Torquay took control winning the match 5-1, with McHale spearheading the win.
Torquay fared better in Section 4, when they came up against minor premiers Moolap.
Moolap were match favourites, having won both their home and away matches, and looked like things were set to continue that way when Erica Sutherland and Kristy Axelrad took the first set 6-3, while Hazel Ashton and Rita Nelis followed suit in the second, ahead 6-2. From there, however, Torquay dug in with a 6-4 win to Loretta Fisher and Lesley Nock in the third and Joanne Dow and Robyn Baxter taking the fourth 6-2, levelling the sets with Moolap only one game ahead. The final two sets went the way of Torquay giving them an upset 4-2 win.
Section 5 was a battle between Surfcoast Bellbrae and Western Heights Uniting. Wendy Bell and Carmel Addlem opening the match with a 6-2 win for the Heights while Bellbrae’s Linda Cherubin and Grainne O’Gallagher countered winning a tie-break in the second. From there it was all Western Heights, running away with a 5-1 win, and Bell and Addlem winning their three sets.
Barwon Heads posted the closest result of the day in Section 6 with a four-game margin while tied on sets with Moolap. Barwon Heads took the first two sets before Moolap won sets three and four, leaving the Heads one game up with two sets to play. Maura Sweet and Victoria Strachan took the sixth set for the Heads 6-1, while Annette Tebbutt and Paula Messinger battled in a 6-4 loss, but the game difference was enough to crown Barwon Heads premiers.
Wandana Heights kept their unbeaten run intact in Section 7, when they accounted for Point Lonsdale, four sets to two. Wandana started well winning three of the first four sets before Sandra Harman and Lorraine Kupresanin sealed the win taking the fifth set 6-1, naming the team premiers and champions.
