Sarah Driscoll and Nancy Walthall Peak at Pioneer Valley B

March 5, 2018
Longmeadow, MA

The ninth annual Pioneer Valley Women’s tournament, hosted at the Field Club of Longmeadow, was a fun-filled day with 20 tenacious teams and 40 lovely ladies. This year, for the first time, the tournament was titled a B tournament as opposed to an Open. In part, this change was made to support the first annual APTA B Nationals on March 14 and 15 in Franklin Lakes, NJ. The temperature was perfect, not too cold and not too warm, some wind but not too much, and mostly cloudy skies with some sun throughout the day. Most importantly, the rain and snow from the nor’easter the day before were well off the Atlantic coast by Saturday. Despite some of our teams losing power and having to plow, every team made it on Saturday and came ready to play.

Nancy Walthall and Sarah Driscoll, the number two seed, won this year’s Pioneer Valley Women’s B tournament by defeating Shana Roberts and Nindy Pike in the finals, 6-2, 7-5. The sister team of Kelly and Erin Canniff defeated the mother-daughter team of Cathy and Lindsey Herchel in a super tie breaker to take the Quarter Reprieve title. The Consolation winners were Kate Morneau and Kate McGetrick, who defeated Katie Martin and Anna Asphar, 6-1, 6-4. The young ones, Morgan Melnikoff and Rebecca Moore, defeated Anne Markes and Mary Hulbert to win the Consolation Reprieve, 6-1, 6-3. Despite a win or a loss, lots of fun was had on the paddle courts in Longmeadow.

Tournament director Kate Morneau could not have done it without the help of so many people. A huge heartfelt thanks to everyone who helped to make the day a great one, from the participants, to the spectators, to the caterer and the volunteers (you know who you are) who helped prep, bake goodies, and clean up before, during, and after the tournament. A shout out to the Longmeadow Country Club for allowing us to use their courts. Finally, a special thanks to a fellow paddle enthusiast, friend, and Field Club member, Tom Kietzman, who volunteered to manage the hut and keep the tournament moving along. Congratulations to all the winners and thanks to all the women who participated!