May Celebration Weekend - Fun Run/5K & Tennis Tournament

Rain did not dampen the spirits of the tennis participants as the Founders’ Fund May Celebration Tennis Tournament was moved indoors to Manker Patten Tennis Center.

Forty-eight enthusiastic tennis players, ranging in age from 10 years old to 65 plus years old, moved indoors so that they could participate in the first ever Founder’s Fund Tennis Tournament. There were 24 morning participants and 24 afternoon participants. This was a doubles only event where players were grouped according to their skill level no matter what their age or gender. Each player played a minimum of four 8 game matches with a different partner each match.

The morning group featured three of Tennessee’s best teenage girls, Tarah Garner, Emily Hangstefer, and Brandy Cordell. Tarah and Emily reside on Signal Mountain. Pitted with and against these three great girls were the likes of John Tucker, Rob Fisher, John Curtis, Ralph Woodard & Bryan Turner, some of Signal Mountain’s very best men, as well as some future stars at Signal Mtn. High School in the likes of Luke Wolfe, Danielle Linhart, Joseph Lewis, & Forest Sharp. These players made up morning Group A.

Morning Group B featured Town Hall Court mainstays, Jim Giles and Judy Wakim, along with Todd Phillips, Christine and Curt Arnold, Joy Tucker, and Red Bank 9^th grader Katelyn Youngblood who will also be attending Signal Mtn. High. The rest of Group B was SMMS tennis team standouts Adam Wolfe, Denver Dressler, Jennifer Arnold, Emily Keane and Jessica Keane.

The morning winners and runner ups were: Men’s Division: John Curtis, winner   Bryan Turner, runner up  Women’s Division: Judy Wakim winner,   Brandy Cordell  runner up Boy’s Division: Adam Wolfe winner,  Joseph Lewis runner up  Girls Division: co-winners  Emily Hangstefer and Katelyn Youngblood.

The afternoon group featured some of the youngest players in Jenna Thorstenson(4^th grader at Nolan) and Aspen Dressler(5^th grader at Thrasher) to go along with a host of 6^th grade SMMS tennis team members in Shelby O’Quinn, Kelyn Woodard, Zach Brown, Joseph Greer, Colleen Conner, and Micajah Tucker. These 8 players battled with and against each other in Group C.

Group D was the largest and most diversified group of the tournament with 16 players. It featured 6^th grade standouts Aris Iannois (Baylor), Stewart Fellers (CCS), and Kylila Tucker (SMMS) to go along with SMMS’s number 1 girl player, Natalie Palmer and SMMS’s number 1 and 2 boy players, Forrest Hooton and Harry Smith respectfully and GPS 7^th grade standout Elle Thorstenson. Most of the buzz of this group surrounded two players, Ed Fisher, for his athleticism and his ability to switch his racket to either hand to hit the ball and Jane Sadrabadi, for her tremendous serve. Rounding out this group were Kavon Sadrabadi, Kimberly and Stokes Smith, Regina Hickl- Szabo, Laura Lea Dressler, Leslie Culp, and Anne Fellers.

The afternoon winners and runner ups were: Men’s Division: Ed Fisher winner, Stokes Smith runner up  Women’s Division: Regina Hickl-Szabo winner  Jane Sadrabadi runner up Boy’s Division: Stewart Fellers winner, Zach Brown runner up  Girl’s Division: Jenna Thorstenson winner, Kelyn Woodard runner up.

Tournament Director, Dr. Keith Dressler, said the tournament was a tremendous success but would not have even happened if it wasn’t for Manker Patten allowing him to utilize their indoor courts. He is very grateful to Ned Caswell, Manker Patten’s tennis pro, for his help in securing the courts. Dr. Dressler is confident that the tournament can be expanded to 96 players next year as he had to turn away 15 players. He would also like to thank the sponsor’s Regions Bank, Royal Office Equipment and Supplies, Southern Campion and Tray, Coca-Cola and Jacob’s Wholesale for their generous support and event Coordinater, Rae Moon, for her help in making a potentially difficult situation very simple to overcome.

The major sponsors of the festivities of the Founders’ Fund May Celebration weekend included; Signal Mountain Community News and the Times Free Press , Pruett's Signal Mountain Market, Alexian Village and Sparta Homes/Dogwood Grove.