Lower Great Southern Tennis Association clean sweep D’Arcy Cup and Women in Tennis Foundation Cup tournaments

A dominant Lower Great Southern Tennis Association dominated their country counterparts at Tennis WA’s biggest regional junior tournament with both their division one teams netting titles. LGSTA’s talented side won the D’Arcy Slater Cup and the Women in Tennis Foundation Cup with spectacular division one triumphs at the annual tournament which was held at Bunbury Tennis Club last week. The boys edged out archrivals South West to clinch the D’Arcy Slater Cup while the the girls took out the Women in Tennis Foundation Cup after prevailing over neighbours Great Southern. LGSTA’s girls division one team, featuring Tea Zizek, Adalyn Sharpe, Caris Stone and Olivia Riggall, finished undefeated and did not drop a set in a blistering cup-winning tilt. The quartet collectively won all 60 of their sets winning 85.3 per cent of their games to finish top of the division with 10 points, two ahead of Great Southern while Zizek was also crowned singles champion. Denby Sharpe led the boys’ side, boasting Dylan Stone, James Grundy and Fernando Gatti, to D’Arcy Cup glory, winning all 20 of his sets to also claim the singles title for a third straight year. The four together won 87.5 per cent of their sets and won 27 of their 30 matches to successfully avenge last year’s runner-up heartache. Gatti was also named the consolation prize winner for the division one under-14 singles competition. Other major winners included Indi Pieper who won the under-14 division four singles title and Maggie O’Meehan who was runner-up in under-14 division two. Austin Slade won the boys under-14 division three singles title and Lewis Ridge was named consolation winner. The LGSTA also claimed division two titles, pipping Great Southern in both conferences while the boys won bronze in division three. Pieper, Annaliese Slade and Ella North did not drop a set to help set up the division two girls title, while O’Meehan played a crucial role winning seven of her nine matches. Ridge finished undefeated without dropping a set to spearhead the boys division two pennant, while Austin Slade, George Riggall and Asher Craig also competed strongly. LGSTA junior coordinator Alex Riggall said the victory was a testament to the players’ work ethic and the strength of tennis in the region. “I was really proud of how they all competed throughout the whole few days and I think it was really nice to see all their hard work come together and good results for the most of them,” she said. “I’ve noticed a huge improvement in all the kids who have played last year and see the kids who debuted and competed really well. “I think we’ve had excellent coaching and development sessions for the last six to seven years and we’ve always had a strong zone for tennis. “It’s great to be back where we belong and it’s been a lot of hard work.” Most of those LGSTA players will hit the court for the opening event of the region’s junior season which starts Sunday, November 24 with the Kendenup junior tournament.