

February 2012
Hi Tennis Fans:
It is me again. It is February and tennis is upon us. Isn’t
it wonderful! It is such a release to be able to get the racquet
out and start swinging again. Always be thankful if you are
physically able to play tennis. It is the greatest game on earth.
It gets in your blood – it gives you pride – it teaches you skills
you never knew you had – and it disciplines you. Tennis also
humbles you. You are going to run into someone better than you.
That is when you not only have to use skill, but you have to use
your mind and use strategy. It is not always the most skilled that
wins. Sometimes it is the one that has more endurance, or that is
in better physical shape, or the one that has a better mental game.
The main thing is to keep it fun.
To me, competition is fun. It might not be to some
people, but that is why we play matches and tournaments. That is
why we have the USTA, the MTC, the KHTC (Kenny Huffman Tennis
Classic), and college tennis. This year we are hoping to add the
Paul Butcher Memorial Tennis Tournament (PBMTT) to the schedule in
Pikeville. This will be our first collegiate tennis tournament in
many, many years in the Pikeville area. This will take place Sept.
22-33.
The PBMTT will have four to six colleges and universities
participating. At this point in time, we have commitments from the
University of the Cumberlands, Campbellsville, Morehead State
University, and, of course, UPIKE. It should be fantastic. It is
named after my father, the greatest man I have ever known. He was a
coach and Athletic Director at Pikeville College for 34 years. He
also fought for women’s tennis. When I was a freshman Pikeville
College only had a men’s team. My father, Paul Butcher, went to
the KIAC and gave a speech which requested that I be able to play on
the men’s team. They voted, and I was allowed to play. My dream to
play college tennis my freshman and sophomore years came true. Even
though he coached boys most of his life, he was always for girls in
sports. He ended his coaching career coaching the girls softball
team. We are honored to name this collegiate tennis tournament
after my father, Paul Butcher.
The KHTC is holding our second meeting this year on March 10
at the YMCA at 10 AM. I hope all our committee members will be able
to attend. Our tournament grows bigger and better every year, so we
always need everyone’s participation. If you would like to be a
volunteer for the tournament, please e-mail me (Sue Huffman Stanley)
at
suzyqtennisfan@gmail.com, or Jim Vanover at
jvanover@vhblaw.com, or
call Ron Compton at 606-432-1811. We are adding a Fast Serve
Competition to our tournament this year. This should be exciting.
Anyone can enter. Make sure you keep your calendar open for August
3-5 to attend the Kenny Huffman Tournament.
We have some big UPIKE news. Rick Bentley, the Director of
Sports Information, wrote and published an article called ‘Men’s
Tennis Gets Votes in National Ratings’. The following is a summary
of the article: “It is difficult to understand what it means when a
team is ranked in a preseason poll, when it hasn’t played a contest
yet. It’s even more interesting when you are the University of
Pikeville, and you get votes in men’s tennis, which you haven’t
played in four years. But that is the case for Coach Tim Alderman’s
Bears, who got 4 votes in the preseason poll and was one of only
three Mid-South Conference teams mentioned in the preseason top 25.
“The fact that a newly-restarted team speaks volumes about the
recruiting class Alderman has landed. ‘We’ve worked very hard since
getting hired, and we’re pleased the raters have noticed what we are
doing. It gives us a great launching point,’ he said. ‘But we still
have a lot of work to do. We have to go out and earn it now.’
Lindsey Wilson is the first MSC team at No. 13, Campbellsville
following at No. 23. UPIKE is one of four teams to get four votes
in the pole, tying them for 33rd.”
I'm attaching a picture of the UPIKE men’s team after playing
this past weekend at University of Charleston Invitational Tennis
Tournament. The UPIKE men’s team won 6 of 9 championships – winning
the tournament. GO UPIKE!!!

4 people like this
Tim
Alderman
Connor Smith winner of #3 doubles, runner-up #3 singles,
Marcos
Sernandez Fondelius winner of #2 doubles, Dmitry
Dimitry Babenkov winner of #1 doubles,
Sven
Rodenbusch winner of #5 singles, winner of #2 doubles,
Lucas
Cardoso winner of #6 singles, winner of #3 doubles,
Sergei
Sergio Krasilnikov winner of #2 singles, winner of
#1 doubles. UPIKE Men Tennis winner of 6 of 9 championships at
University of Charleston Invitational Tennis Tournament 2012.
Just a reminder – if you have any tennis news, send it to me at
suyqtennisfan@gmail.com
and I will post it in my newsletter. As I leave you for the month –
meditate on this quote: “What you are as a person is far more
important than what you are as a tennis player.”
Happy Tennis Playing
Sue Huffman Stanley
Founder of Kenny Huffman Tennis Classic
Author of ‘A Tennis Love Story’