Tommy Croker and Casey MacMaster Mighty at Mid-Atlantic Viking PCQ

December 16, 2019
Chevy Chase, MD

By Nate Engler

The 2019 edition of the Mid-Atlantic Championships saw a little bit of everything weather-wise. The day started out with a light drizzle, just enough to make traditional paddle go out the window. By the time the round of 16 went on, the heavens opened up and the downpour began. Just to make things more interesting, the quarterfinal round saw the rain stop and the sun came out, and not to be outdone, the semis saw swirling wind along with dropping temperatures.

The top four seeds all made it through to the semifinals. Four-time defending champions Scott Freund and Alex Hume had the toughest route through to the finals. In the quarters, after losing the first set, they came back to win the second, only to then go down 5-2 and two match points in the third set against the team of Dale Cathell and Ben Garner. But like in baseball, you have to get that last out to win, and Freund/Hume fought their way back to win the third set 7-5.

The semis weren't any easier for them facing a tough team in Guga Goncalves and Andy Orban. Freund/Hume won the first set, only to lose the second. They then righted the ship and came through in the third set, 6-4.

On the other side, the new team of Tommy Croker and Casey MacMaster eased their way into the finals without dropping set. This proved to be the difference in the finals. After some amazing shot-making in the first set, Croker/MacMaster took it 6-4. Using that momentum, they continued their dominance in winning the second set 6-2. Congratulations to the new champions!

A big thank you to all of the participants, the staff at Congressional for the amazing food, Joe Mesmer (Director of Tennis at Columbia Country Club) for handling the back draw matches, and Chevy Chase Club for hosting back draw matches. We hope to see everyone back here next year.

The APTA would like to thank Nate Engler (Tournament Director) for once again running a fantastic tournament.

RESULTS
Main Draw: Tommy Croker/Casey MacMaster def. Scott Freund/Alex Hume, 6-4, 6-2
Quarterfinal Reprieve: Tomas Christian/Juan Carlos Cotto def. Will Beck/Chris Chiu, 6-3, 7-5
Reprieve: Damon Gooch/Nobu Tanaka def. Nolan Bacchieri/Darren Schwandt, 4-6, 6-2, 6-4
Consolation: Teddy Easter/Justin Poletti def. Jeremy Loomis/Dusty Nelson, 4-6, 6-4, 6-3
Consolation Reprieve: Pat Coan/Pablo Gottret def. Tristan Caudron/Thomas Manning, 6-1, 6-4

L to R - Finalists, Casey MacMaster, Tommy Croker, Alex Hume, Scott Freund

Other Tournament Photos