2020 APTA Women's National Recap

March 10, 2020
Darien, CT

2020 Women's National Championship Final Results (pdf)

The largest women’s field for the an APTA Women’s Nationals attracted the best women platform tennis players in the country to Fairfield County, CT and Westchester County in NY. Because of the large number of local pros competing for the prize the number of spectators continued to grow all weekend.

Round of 16/Quarterfinals

The Round of 16 held 15 of the top seeds along with unseeded Roxy Enica and Ania Kazakevich having a good run. Jessica Guyaux and Myrthe Molenveld (8) held off the talented unseeded team in a tight match, 7-5, 6-4 to move on. The top seeds prevailed going into the quarterfinals, and most teams were well rested after four matches on Friday, but Saturday morning’s gusty wind may have turned the draw a little topsy turvy. The best two quarters matches were Martina Ondrejkova and Ana Zubori (2) versus Host pro Macie Elliott and Marcela Rodezno (6), who had to figure out a new game plan in the second set to snag victory at 6-7, 6-4, 6-1 and Heather Prop and Wendy Shpiz (7) who fended off a second set takeover from Kerri Delmonico and Lauren Gebbia (4) at 6-2, 7-6. Cynthia Dardis and Amy Shay (3) held strong against Guyaux/Molenveld, 6-4, 6-1, and Annica Cooper and Flor Hansich (1) had a bagel and then a tight set against a team that never says die, Alison Morgan and Charlotte Sikora, 6-0, 7-5.

Semifinals/Finals

Sun, sun, and more sun—the fans loved it and needed it as the wind never died down but it definitely affected one side of the court. The crowd of 1,000 cheered loudly for Elliott/Rodezno but as expected Dardis/Shay did not go down easily, even with the large number of Country Club of Darien members rooting for their team. Cooper/Hanisch took care of their semi against Prop/Shpiz, a team from the Midwest who certainly must have been happy with their Nationals run, at 6-2, 6-3. The women had almost a 24-hour break, waiting for their final on Sunday afternoon. This gave the crowd time to make M&M signs for Elliott/Rodezno and to choose the best seats in the 1,500-person capacity stands. The first set was a shooting match, with only one break the difference, going to Elliott/Rodezno, Cooper/Hanisch switched it up a bit, swinging the momentum, winning that set 6-2. In what may have been tactical genius in the third, Elliott/Rodezno seemed to focus on Hanisch. When Cooper did get a ball, she was a swift and deadly striker. Even though Hanisch’s lobs were perfect, Elliott/Rodezno were both steady and explosive. They won the third set at 6-2 and their first National Championship. The crowd erupted.

The APTA would like to thank the 2020 Nationals Tournament Committee, the sponsors, all 200+ volunteers, the players, the fans, the staff at CCD, and the host clubs around the area for creating a special atmosphere for our special sport.

Women's National Champions, Macie Elliott and Marcela Rodezno