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Baton Rouge, Louisiana Crowned National Champions at USTA League Presented by Chrysler 4.5 Adult National Championships

TUCSON, AZ - OCTOBER 19, 2008 - The men’s team from Baton Rouge, La., representing the USTA Southern, captured the national title at the USTA League presented by Chrysler 4.5 Adult National Championships held at the Randolph Tennis Center in Tucson, Arizona.

The Baton Rouge team defeated a team from Oklahoma City, Mo.., 5-0 in the Championship match. Earlier in the day, the Baton Rouge team defeated a team from Guaynabo, Puerto Rico., 3-2 in the semifinals. They advanced this far by winning their round-robin flight contested Friday and Saturday.

The team is captained by Ryan Dornier and features Ryan Mason, Daniel Lavie, George Newton, Bobby Hawkins, Michael Dessauer, Orlando E.Street II, James Geisler III, Ryan Tusa, John Lopoo, Sumner Bell.

The top four teams in order of finish are: Southern (Baton Rouge, La.), Missouri Valley (Oklahoma City, Okla.), Mid-Atlantic (Lynchburg, Va.), and Caribbean (Guaynabo, P.R.)

This year’s USTA League presented by Chrysler 4.5 Adult National Championship has drawn the top 34 teams (17 men’s and 17 women’s) from throughout the nation.

The USTA League program celebrated its 25th Anniversary in 2005. Established in 1980, it has grown from 13,000 participants in a few parts of the country in its first year, to over 665,000 players across the nation today, making it the world’s largest recreational tennis league.

USTA League was established to provide adult recreational tennis players throughout the country with the opportunity to compete against players of similar ability levels. Players participate on teams in a league format, which is administered by the USTA through its 17 Sections. The league groups players by using six National Tennis Rating Program (NTRP) levels, ranging from 2.5 (entry) to 5.0 (advanced). USTA League is open to any USTA member 19 years of age or older. It features Adult and Mixed Doubles divisions, as well as a Senior Division (age 50) and a Super Senior Division (age 60).

Chrysler is entering its third year as the presenting sponsor and official vehicle of USTA League. HEAD Penn Racquet Sports is in its 21st year as official ball of USTA League.

For more information about USTA League presented by CHRYSLER program or the USTA as a whole, visit usta.com.

Southern - Champs (Baton Rouge/New Orleans, La.)

Front Row (L-R): Ryan Tusa, Daniel Lavie, Mike Dessauer, Ryan Mason, George Newton, Captain Ryan Dornier, Sumner Bell, Bobby Hawkins, Orlando E. Street II, John Lopoo, Jim Geisler III

Photo credit - usta

Posted on October 20, 2008
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