The most prestigious of all 3.0 events, the Akron Open, took place with so many entries that some had to be turned away! The 16 lucky competitors all vied for a plaque, a shiny trophy they couldn't take home, and the ultimate prize - 3.0 glory! In the end, 3.0 newbie Todd defeated 3.0 second year player Nathan in a crazy tight match, giving everyone at the pristine Towpath Tennis Courts exactly what they wanted - tennis!
Read on to get all the nitty gritty info on the 2022 rendition of the Akron Open!
Round of 16 Results and Highlights
Todd Lenet d. Stephen Karagiozis- 6-0
Jeff Gardner d. Kyle Schneider- 6-3
Eric Bissell d. Alexander Smith- 6-1
Nicholas Fasola d. Matthew Johnston- 6-3
Adam Remy d. Mark Miller- 6-3
Nathan Chavez d. Kane Feltner- 6-0
Benjamin Young d. Shengyong Wang- 6-3
Kyle Smith d. Ismailov Sobirjon- 7-5
The opening round was a mixed bag of 3.0 tennis, complete with a few bagels and even some bread sticks! SO MANY CARBS! Match highlights included Todd, Jeff, Eric, Adam, Nathan, and Kyle all enjoying the first ever 3.0 tournament victories of their soon-to-be illustrious 3.0 careers while the two marquee matches of the round of 16 saw tournament favorites Nicholas take on Matthew and Benjamin take on Shengyong. In the latter match, newbie Shenyong, who has been tearing up league play, attempted to use his engineering skills to his advantage, putting the tournament tested Benjamin on the defensive by using as many of the 78' angles as he possibly could. Benjamin, though, the 2021 Akron Open Vice-Champion, knew the courts of Towpath better than any other entry, and was able to blunt Shenyong's attempts with his experience, power, and questions about engineering, thus putting Shenyong on the defensive! The former match pitted the 2021 Wooster Aspen Champion, Nicholas, versus the 2022 Akron Open Doubles Champion, Matthew, who was also last week's 2022 MIO Consolation Champion! WHOA! Two heavy hitters went at it, with Nicholas' powerful forehands versus Matthew's adept net play! In the end, Nicholas' singles prowess won the day, though Matthew earned valuable singles experience that will no doubt help him over the coming tournaments!
Championship Quarterfinals Results and Highlights
Todd Lenet d. Jeff Gardner- 6-1
Nicholas Fasola d. Eric Bissell- 6-1
Nathan Chavez d. Adam Remy- 6-4
Benjamin Young d. Kyle Smith- 6-2
The championship side's elite eight looked to punch their tickets to the 3.0 semi's, and Todd, Nicholas, and Benjamin got off to fast starts versus game opponents that helped give them all 2-0 marks on the day. Nathan, a league-tested tournament newbie, took on home-town Adam, in what turned out to be the match of the quarters! Adam, with the Towpath crowd behind him (the kid at the front desk), took the early advantage, but Nathon, from the rough and tumble outdoor courts of Bay Village, was able to counter with his strong topspin forehands, keeping his opponent pinned deep until a vital break earned him not only the win, but a first ever trip to a tournament semifinal!
Consolation Quarterfinals Results and Highlights
Kyle Schneider d. Stephen Karagiozis- 6-4
Matthew Johnson d. Alexander Smith- 6-0
Kane Feltner d. Mark Miller- 6-3
Shengyong Wang d. Sobirjon Ismailov- 6-1
In the consolation bracket, revenge was the order of the day, as Kyle avenged his MIO loss the previous week to Stephen with a close-fought victory! Matthew, too, enjoyed another win in the consolation bracket, looking to repeat his MIO Consolation Championship!
Championship Semifinals Results and Highlights
Todd Lenet d. Nicholas Fasola- 6-2
Nathan Chavez d. Benjamin Young- 6-0
The semi's saw two tournament tested 3.0 veterans in Nicholas and Benjamin take on two 3.0 tournament rookies in Todd and Nathan, with the D.F.O. pundits expecting the veterans to meet up in the finals for a chance at 3.0 glory! And once again the pundits were 100% wrong! Indeed, Todd and Nathan, two 3.0 league stalwarts, came out en fuego for their third matches of the day, losing but two games between them in two of the biggest upsets of the tournament! Nicholas and Benjamin, perhaps looking forward to playing one another in the finals would in fact play one another ... but this time for 3rd place glory!
Consolation Semifinals Results and Highlights
Matthew Johnston d. Kyle Schneider- 6-1
Shengyong Wang d. Kane Feltner- 6-0
Unlike the championship bracket, the consolation version of the event had but one veteran, Matthew, who used his veteran skills to enter his second straight consolation bracket finals in but one week!
Consolation Consolation Semifinals Results and Highlights
Eric Bissell d. Jeff Gardner- 6-1
Adam Remy d. Kyle Smith- 6-2
With all entries 1-1 on the day, all four players had show they had what it took to win on the pristine Towpath courts! Eric, the tennis coach, earned his second pedantic victory of the day while Adam gave the hometown fans something to cheer for with his second hometown victory on the day!
Consolation Consolation Consolation Semifinals Results and Highlights
Stephen Karagiozis d. Alexander Smith- 6-1
Sobirjon Ismailov d. Mark Miller- 6-2
In the consolation consolation semis Stephen and Sobirjon enjoyed their first victories of the day!
Championship Finals Results and Highlights
Todd Lenet d. Nathan Chavez- 7-5
In the final, it was two tournament rookies who would face off for not just tournament glory, but historic 3.0 Akron Open glory as well! Todd, from Westlake, and Nathan, from Bay, showed the assembled crowd exactly what a neighborly rivalry looked like as these two west-siders went back-and-forth in their first ever finals appearances! If both were nervous or tired, they didn't show it, for the match was a tense affair with neither player giving any ground on the 78' concrete jungle! In the end, though, it was Paramount Westlake's Todd, perhaps having the advantage as he plays inside whereas Nathan plays outside, who was able to pull away in tennis overtime, taking the match, and his first ever title, with an impressive 7-5 victory!
3rd-4th Playoff Results and Highlights
Nicholas Fasola d. Benjamin Young- 6-4
For the umpteenth time over the last two seasons, these two titans of the tennis courts faced off, and despite a valiant effort from one of the greatest NCRC players of all-time, it was Mayfield's Nicholas who walked off the court with the win!
Consolation Finals Results and Highlights
Shenyong Wang d. Matthew Johnston- 6-3
Shenyong's impressive league season was parlayed into an impressive tournament run as he was able to put an end to Matthew's fantastic effort to become a back-to-back Consolation Title holder in back-to-back tournaments!
7-8th Playoff Results and Highlights
Eric Bissell d. Adam Remy- 6-3
Mayfield enjoyed another win as Eric, captain of his Mayfield team, was able to earn the victory versus hometown Adam!
9-10th Playoff Results and Highlights
Jeff Gardner d. Kyle Smith- 7-6(6)
11-12th Playoff Results and Highlights
Sobirjon Ismailov d. Stephen Karagiozis- 7-6(5)
13-14th Playoff Results and Highlights
Kyle Schneider d. Kane Feltner- 6-4
15-16th Playoff Results and Highlights
Mark Miller d. Alexander Smith- WO[pc]
And with that, the 2022 Akron Open Singles Championship was complete! Congratulations to all the participants on yet another historic 3.0 event ... and good luck at the Akron Open Doubles Championships later this month!
Overall Records
Todd - 4-0
Nathan - 3-1
Nicholas - 3-1
Shenyong - 3-1
Eric - 2-2
Jeff - 2-2
Adam - 2-2
Benjamin - 2-2
Matthew - 2-2
Kyle Schneider - 2-2
Sobirjon - 2-2
Stephen - 1-3
Mark - 1-3
Kyle Smith - 1-3
Kane - 1-3
Alexander - 0-4
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