The 2006 4-Wall Maryland State Doubles, held on November 11th at the Severna Park R&FC included 46 entries divided into 4 divisions. Several drop-downs were also available, so every team played at least two full matches.
This year, the premier final was in the 60+ as Bill Bohr and Mike Raszkiewicz traveled in from Pennsylvania to take the title with a close victory over the standout Rockville team of King Stablein and Roy Weinstock. After two close first games, the tie-breaker was back-and-forth and points were hard to come by. With the score knotted at 9, Raszkiewicz came up with two
clutch shots in the form of an ace serve and a kill to seal the victory.
The combined 40/50 division included the most heroic performance of the day. Chuck Holmes, playing with Dan Ho, came up limp in the very first game of the tournament. Taking position in the front court, Holmes exhibited great shots while Ho raced around retrieving everything that came through. They survived two close games against the younger team of Landy
and Reed, then surprised the top seeded team in the division by beating Bardwell and Hinkelman in a tie-breaker to make it to the finals. On the other side of the draw, the second seeded team of Alexander and Dyke had problems of their own in the form of Compton and Humphries. After falling in the first game, Dyke/Alexander steadied the ship with a decisive second game win. But the team of Humphries/Compton was not to be denied. The unpredictable spin and kills shots of the left-handed Humphries along with the retrieving and steadiness of Compton proved the difference as Dyke/Alexander fell 11-4 in the tie-breaker. After putting so much heart into the previous two matches, Holmes/Ho seemed to run short on magic in the final as Humphries/Compton seemed to control of the match. Congratulations to Bob Humphies and Rick Compton on their 21-14; 21-12 victory in the 40/50 division!
The Open division always features fiery competition and dramatic points. This year the absence of three-peat defending champion Roger Berry was felt when he was called away to Michigan. While the points were fierce and there was plenty of action, the matches failed to live up to the drama of previous years as every game throughout the draw was won decisively.
Zimet/Frank won one of the semi-finals over Lee Anderson and Jay Miller by using the classic ‘freeze a player out’ strategy. Meanwhile, Biggers and Foley had trouble coming up with answers to the remarkable shot-making of Shane and Rick Anderson. In the final, the Andersons seemed to struggle to sustain their intensity, resulting in an atypical number of errors. Zimet/Frank prevailed 21-8; 21-8. The ‘Most Improved’ award goes to Lee Anderson, whose low spinning serves, powerful kills, and dramatic retrieving have vaulted him into the highest tier of respected Maryland players.
The B division featured old friends and a new team. Bo Sites and Robert Woodward, teamed up the Friday before the match, and came out ready to play and cruised into the final. Peart and Cohen, the top seeded team, were able to handle Healy and Killian in two games. In the final, Sites and Woodward held it close in the first game before succumbing 21-19. This seemed to spur on Cohen/Peart, who won the second game and the B title.
Winners of the drop-down divisions included Foley/Biggers in the A division, and Landy/Reed in the 40/50.
The beautiful glass trophies, tagless t-shirt giveaways, and delicious BBQ catered lunch from Red, Hot and Blue for this year’s tournament were all created and ordered by Danielle Zimet. Once again Charlie Parsons created something spectacular in his role as creativity director. Players marveled at a 6” high magnetic draw display on a reflective blue background, as well as a projected match schedule. Sharon Parsons was on hand to assist Danielle in running the tournament desk along side Dan Zimet and Alan Frank.