For many of the participants, this fun event is their first time for entry-level tennis competition and a great way for them to test their tennis skills against their peers as well as meet new friends. The fall event, held at the tennis courts of Council Rock North High School in Newtown, drew over 75 competitors, who, along with their ability and energy, brought plenty of support from family and friends.

Match play was divided into three age/skill divisions: Little Aces, Juniors, and Teens/Adult. The athletes in all divisions were divided into regional teams with the teams comprised primarily of athletes who practiced at BCTA locations in those regions. Teams selected their own names in the youth divisions, and all teams played multiple rounds, competing with various teammates against various opponents.

In all age divisions, every individual point accumulated toward the respective team’s total score. A bonus round involving a group tennis game gave each team a chance to jump ahead and added plenty of motivation and enthusiasm to the competition. 

The athletes in all divisions were divided into regional teams with the teams comprised primarily of athletes who practiced at BCTA locations in those regions.  Teams selected their own names in the youth divisions, and all teams played multiple rounds, competing with various teammates against various opponents.

LITTLE ACES DIVISION

CENTRAL TEAM BLACK BATS (GOLD MEDAL)

Beckett Schmidt

Constantin Bakun

Edward Bruk

Eli Escoto

Madison Washburn

Oliver Pacelli

SOUTHERN/NORTHERN RED CHERRIES (SILVER MEDAL)              

Yasmin Alhassani

Hailey Lane

Monroe Kaer

Ruby Hughes

Siddhant Ananthuni

Wyatt Ciesiels

The Little Aces division competed on 36-foot courts with red balls and produced some great rallies among the players. The Black Bats held the lead after the completion of the round robin doubles play but the Red Cherries won the 30 point Tennis Sandwich Team Relay bonus round with a photo finish but still fell short of snatching the gold medal with the Black Bats taking Gold 262, and the Red Cherries, Silver with 255 points.                

JUNIORS DIVISION

CENRAL BUCKS KING KONGS (GOLD MEDAL)

Asher Schmidt

Brad Schmidt

Coralie  Manning

Eric Escoto

Ethan Escoto

Ethan Miller

Joseph Manning

Logan Sunderland

Lucas Sunderland

Maura Mullin

Michael DiSandro

Olivia Waters Ali

Sabrina Talke

Saharsh Boddu

Shane Riso

Shreyas Boddu

Sunny Pacelli

SOUTHERN/NORTHERN BUCKS RED APPLES (SILVER MEDAL)

Brett Pierce

Brian Mikolajczyk

Caliya Scritchfield

Chip Caro

Harbin Palmer

Jason McFadden

Lucas Wambold

Maggie Lin

Massimo Bonachea

Mia Wright

Nancy Lin

Nico Robinson

Parker Alves

Thomas Cronin

Trevor Malizia

Violet Friemann

William Goldman 

The Juniors played on 78-foot courts with green balls, and the King Kongs held the lead going into the 30-point bonus round of Team Singles, but the Red Apples stubbornly held on to win the bonus round. Even so, the team fell slightly short of grabbing the Gold as the King Kongs prevailed with a 377–372 victory.  

TEENS/ADULTS DIVISION

SOUTHERN BUCKS RED TEAM (GOLD METAL)

Adam Alaoui

Bianca   Baylosis

Daria Zhukova

Jailan Elsarha

Keira Calista

Lleyton Jones

Madeleine Andrusiewicz

Nunzio  DeMarchis

Princi Shah

Ron Assulin

Ryan Baylosis

Shiv Patel

Sophie  Murray

Vincent Malizia

NORTHERN BUCKS BLACK TEAM (SILVER MEDAL)

Aayush Patel

Anastasia Korshun

Brady Shanahan

Brielle Krotzer

Christine Downey

Colin Krotzer

Grace Byrne

Ethan Flannery

Kevin Rockel

Laurence Kelley

Liam OKeefe

Lilly Downey

Lochlin  Schmidt

Natalia  Lindner

Midway through the Teens/Adults division, which competed on 78-foot courts with yellow balls, the Southern Bucks Black team led, 37–24. While the Northern Bucks Red Team rallied in later rounds, the Southern team stepped up to the challenge and confirmed its victory by narrowly winning the Team Singles bonus round to hold onto a 329–278 Gold-Medal victory.

“The energy level and enthusiasm was high all day,” said BCTA program director Laura Canfield. “And all were great sports!” The participants were thrilled with their medals and sportsmanship awards provided by USTA Middle States, and most important, enjoyed friendly competition and meeting fellow tennis players.

Many thanks to the BCTA Coaches throughout the county—especially Craig Batten, Tim Donney, Jim Dalo, and Brianna Wilkenson as well as USTA Middle States Service Rep Hannah Masenheimer, who assisted with the Fall Team Challenge, and all the volunteers, particularly the volunteer parents who helped with scoring the matches who deserve a big thanks.