Division 4 Summer 2000

August 17
The Way a Championship Should be Won:
Last Match, Game Five, Down to the Wire
by John Caughey and Matt Gelfand, team captains

At Bethesda Thursday night, the home team and Univ. of Maryland went the distance in the C League finals before UMD finally pulled it out with a two-point winning margin in the final game. Jockeying for the prize actually started well before the match itself. After their semi-final victories set up the showdown between UMD and Bethesda, captains John Caughey and Matt Gelfand sent a flurry of e-mails to league coordinator Kemp Prugh in attempts to clarify home court advantage. The teams had finished the regular season with identical 13-5 records, but UMD's 3-0 sweep of Arlington in the semis, when compared to Bethesda's 2-1 win over Potomac, raised questions about the meaning of Prugh's pre-season announcement that home court in the finals would go to the team "with the best record at that point." Ultimately, the debate turned out to be moot when previously scheduled maintenance put Maryland's courts out of commission for the night of August 17th.

With the procedural question settled, the two teams met Thursday, and Maryland's Vikram Manikonda launched his team's eventual victory by taking the #3 match from Dick Besha, 3-0. Bethesda's Matt Gelfand answered with a 3-0 win over John Caughey at #1. With the teams tied at 1-1, this left the decision up to Bethesda's Hironori Konno and Maryland's Lemeke Mere, playing at #2. Even before the Gelfand-Caughey match ended, Konno and Mere gave early indications of how their match would shape up when they inched their way through the first game to a 10-9 tiebreaker in favor of Konno. Mere bounced back to pick up the second and third games, and Kono won the fourth, to tie the match at 2-2. Then, with the game, match, and league championship on the line, the players traded points in game five. They were tied at 5-5 before Mere added two points for a 7-5 lead. Konno tied it up again at 7-7, but Mere took the final two points to close it out.

Note: League coordinator Kemp Prugh indicated he would clarify the playoff procedures before next winter's season. Stay tuned to this website for the Winter 2000/2001 season announcement.

Univ. of Maryland 2, Bethesda 1 (at Bethesda)
- #1, Matt Gelfand (BET) def. John Caughey (UMD), 3-0 (10-8, 9-3, 9-4)
- #2, Lemeke Mere (UMD) def. Hironori Konno (BET), 3-2 (9-10, 9-7, 9-2, 3-9, 9-7)
- #3, Vikram Manikonda (UMD) def. Dick Bashea (BET), 3-0 (9-1, 9-5, 9-1)

Bethesda secured a spot in the C League finals by edging Potomac, 2-1, Thursday. Potomac's Barry Naft picked up a 3-1 win in the #1 slot, keeping Bethesda captain Matt Gelfand off balance with his unorthodox style and uncanny court coverage. The #3 battle between Bethesda's Jared Bowling and Bob Stillman of Potomac went back and forth through five games. Stillman appeared to have taken control when he blitzed Bowling, 9-0, in game four and took a 4-0 lead in game five, but Bowling came back to tie the score at fours and finally pull the match out with a 10-9 win in the 5th. That left the stage set for a showdown between the #2 players, Hironori Konno of Bethesda and Charlie Gunn of Potomac - a mat ch where Konno had all the answers. His coverage of the deep corners and his ability to volley Gunn's cross-court drives with tight rails were particularly devastating, ensuring a 3-0 win.

In the other semi-final, Univ. of Maryland had three tough matches against visiting Arlington, but Maryland won them all, and will meet Bethesda next week, at a site to be determined.

Bethesda 2, Potomac 1 (at Bethesda)
- #1, Barry Naft (POT) def. Matt Gelfand (BET), 3-1 (9-5, 9-3, 7-9, 9-4)
- #2, Hironori Konno (BET) def. Charlie Gunn (POT), 3-0 (9-7, 9-5, 9-0)
- #3, Jared Bowling (BET) def. Bob Stillman (POT), 3-2 (6-9, 9-7, 9-3, 0-9, 10-9)

Univ. of Maryland 3, Arlington 0 (at Univ. of Maryland)
- #1, Lemeke Mere (UMD) def. Ann Monahan (ARL), 3-2
- #2, Soumya Chattopadhyay (UMD) def. Gary Pergl (ARL), 3-2
- #3, John Caughey (UMD) def. John Zinner (ARL), 3-1

Unofficial Head-to-Head Records
(read across for wins; read down for losses)

	Matches	Matches	Winning	Matches	Games
	Won	Lost	%	Reported	Reported

Bethesda	13	5	72%	6	18
University of Maryland	13	5	72%	6	18
Arlington	10	8	56%	6	18
Potomac	9	9	50%	6	18
Tenley	9	9	50%	6	18
Worldgate	8	10	44%	6	18
The Fitness Company	1	17	6%	6	18

August 3
Worldgate's Graff Draws Line on Bethesda's Playoff Card
by Matt Gelfand, Bethesda Captain

Worldgate's Jean-Phili Graff defeated Hiro Konno of Bethesda, 3-0, last night, to prevent a shutout and keep Bethesda from clinching 1st place for the playoffs. The win, on Bethesda's courts, marked Graff as one of the most improved players in the league. In a similar match last winter, he lost to Konno in three straight games. The win by Graff also meant that Bethesda's playoff position remained in the hands of Potomac, which visited 2nd place Univ. of Maryland last night. Bethesda did get wins in the other two matches, taking an overall 2-1 victory and knocking Worldgate out of the playoffs. The 4th and final playoff slot went to Potomac when they took the #1 match over Maryland, John Wilton defeating Vikram Manikonda, 3-0. Maryland won the other two matches against Potomac, giving them a 13-5 season record and a tie with Bethesda, but Bethesda finishes 1st by virtue of a head-to-head win against Maryland. Arlington, which had a bye last night, finishes 3rd.

Bethesda 2, Worldgate 1 (at Bethesda)
- #1, Matt Gelfand (BET) def. William Ho (WG), 3-1
- #2, Jean-Phili Graff (WG) def. Hironori Konno (BET), 3-0
- #3, Jared Bowling (BET) def. Leslie Galloway (WG), 3-0

Univ. of Maryland 2, Potomac 1 (at Univ. of Maryland)
- #1, John Wilton (POT) def. Vikram Manikonda (UMD), 3-1
- #2, Soumya Chattopadhyay (UMD) def. Norman Ireland (POT), 3-1
- #3, Chuck Schwartz (UMD) won by default

The C League is turning into a real horse race as the teams near the finish line. Bethesda and University of Maryland (UMD), with identical 11-4 records, will finish in the top two slots, but which one gets first and which is second is still very much up in the air. They are both playing at home against teams that are in the hunt for the 4th and final playoff slot. (More on that below.) If they are still tied after Thursday's matches, Bethesda will finish first because they beat UMD, 2-1, in a home match on July 13th.

Arlington looks to be pretty solid in third place, with a 10-8 record. With their regular-season schedule over, they obviously cannot catch either Bethesda or UMD, but they are also not likely to be caught by anyone behind them. Potomac and Worldgate have slim chances of doing it, but either one of them would have to get a 3-0 sweep on the road against one of the two teams that are battling for first place.

Potomac is at UMD and they would actually have to pass Arlington to finish third, because they lost their head-to-head match in June. They would need to win 3-0 Thursday to pass Arlington. Worldgate is at Bethesda, and they just need to catch Arlington to finish third, because they have the tie-breaker advantage, but again, they would need a 3-0 win Thursday to catch Arlington.

The real issue for Potomac and Worldgate is fourth place – the final playoff slot. Potomac has a slight advantage, with one more win than Worldgate (an 8-7 record, compared to 7-8), but they could both be passed by Tenley, which is sitting at 6-9 and plays last-place Fitness Company on Thursday. Naturally, the Fitness Company squad, which has had a frustrating season, would love to get some measure of satisfaction by knocking Tenley out of the playoffs. How do the tie-breakers look for the three contenders:

If Potomac and Worldgate tie, Potomac finishes 4th
If Potomac and Tenley tie, Potomac finishes 4th
If Worldgate and Tenley tie, Tenley finishes 4th
If all three tie, Potomac finishes 4th

Worldgate 2, Arlington 1 (at Worldgate)
- #1, William Ho (WG) def. Gary Pergl (ARL), 3-2 (7-9, 7-9, 9-1, 9-6, 9-7)
- #2, Jean-Phili Graff (WG) def. Bob Bennett (ARL), 3-0 (9-7, 9-5, 9-0)
- #3, Tim Williams (ARL) def. Herb Hopkins (WG), 3-0 (9-0, 9-2, 9-6)

Univ. of Maryland 3, Fitness Company 0 (at Univ. of Maryland)
- #1, Vikram Manikonda (UMD) def. John Eisaman (TFC), 3-0
- #2, Soumya Chattopadhyay (UMD) def. Chris Banks (TFC), 3-1
- #3, John Caughey (UMD) won by default

Potomac 3, Tenley 0 (at Potomac)
- #1, John Wilton (POT) def. Tom King (TEN), 3-0
- #2, Charlie Gunn (POT) def. Sam Harrington (TEN), 3-0
- #3, Barry Naft (POT) def. Marcus DeFlorimonte (TEN), 3-0

Bethesda 2, Tenley 1 (at Tenley)
Report from the visiting team captain: In a possible playoff preview, Bethesda nipped Tenley, 2-1, last night. The match was very close, with total games at an even 6-6, and very well could have gone the other way. Matt Gelfand came from deep in the whole in game 3, and only 2 points away from losing a shutout to Tom King, before rallying to take the set late in game 5. Hiro Konno and Will Corbin played some amazingly long rallies and incredible drop shots. The 3-1 final score in Hiro's favor belies what was a very close match in points. Sam Harrington handily defeated league rookie Eric Peterson, coming from behind 7-4 in game 1. Everyone looked rather beat when the match was over! -Matt Gelfand
- #1, Matt Gelfand (BET) def. Tom King (TEN), 3-2
- #2, Hironori Konno (BET) def. Will Corbin (TEN), 3-1
- #3, Sam Harrington (TEN) def. Eric Peterson (BET), 3-0

Univ. of Maryland 2, Arlington 1 (at Arlington)
- #1, Vikram Manikonda (UMD) def. Gary Pergl (ARL), 3-0
- #2, Ann Monahan (ARL) def. Lemeke Mere (UMD), 3-2
- #3, John Caughey (UMD) def. Tim Williams (ARL), 3-2

Potomac 2, Worldgate 1 (at Potomac)
- #1, William Ho (WG) def. Eric Fig (POT), 3-1
- #2, Norman Ireland (POT) def. Russ Corser (WG), 3-0
- #3, Barry Naft (POT) def. Aaron Wargo (WG), 3-0

Bethesda 2, Univ. of Maryland 1 (at Bethesda)
- #1, John Caughey (UMD) def. Matt Gelfand (BET), 3-1
- #2, Hironori Konno (BET) def. Soumya Chattopadhyay (UMD), 3-1
- #3, Jared Bowling (BET) def. Andrew Berkley (UMD), 3-2

Tenley 2, Arlington 1 (at Tenley)
- #1, Gary Pergl (ARL) def. Will Corbin (TEN), 3-1
- #2, Stuart Davis (TEN) def. John Zinner (ARL), 3-0
- #3, Sam Harrington (TEN) def. Bob Bennett (ARL), 3-2

Univ. of Maryland 2, Worldgate 1
- #1, Jean-Phili Graff (WG) def. Charles Schwartz (UMD), 3-2
- #2, Vikram Manikonda (UMD) def. William Ho (WG), 3-0
- #3, Lemeke Mere (UMD) def. Aaron Wargo (WG), 3-0

Bethesda 2, Potomac 1 (at Bethesda)
- #1, Adel (POT) def. Matt Gelfand (BET), 3-0
- #2, Hironori Konno (BET) def. Bob Stillman (POT), 3-1
- #3, Dick Besha (BET) def. Frank Broner (POT), 3-1

Arlington 3, Fitness Company 0 (at Fitness Company)
- #1, Ann Monahan (ARL) def. John Eisaman (TFC), 3-0
- #2, Gary Pergl (ARL) def. Chris Banks (TFC), 3-0
- #3, Tim Williams (ARL) def. John Musinsky (TFC), 3-1

Tenley 3, Worldgate 0 (at Tenley)
- #1, Will Corbin (TEN) def. Russ Corser (WG), 3-2
- #2, Stuart Davis (TEN) def. Aaron Wargo (WG), 3-0
- #3, Tom King (TEN) def. Leslie Galloway (WG), 3-0

Bethesda 3, Fitness Company 0 (at Bethesda)
Report from the home team captain: Thanks to the visiting team for a fun and sportsmanlike match. Dick Besha, Hiro Konno and Matt Gelfand took a 3-0 win vs. TFC. Dick and Hiro handily swept their matches, 3-0, while the two southpaws, Matt Gelfand and Stu Fribush, went deep into game 4 (tied at 6-6) before Matt took the match, 3-1. -Matt Gelfand
- #1, Matt Gelfand (BET) def. Stu Fribush (TFC), 3-1
- #2, Hironori Konno (BET) def. Adams Lee (TFC), 3-0
- #3, Dick Besha (BET) def. Jessica Green (TFC), 3-0

Arlington 3, Potomac 0 (at Arlington)
- #1, John Zinner (ARL) def. Eric Rind (POT), 3-1
- #2, Gary Pergl (ARL) def. Stan Gronthos (POT), 3-0
- #3, Bob Bennett (ARL) won by default