PO‘IPU — Herb Noe knew the fight for the Mens A title would go to the wire Sunday at the Po‘ipu Kai Tennis Courts.
He was watching Chaz Okamoto, a 2011 graduate of Kapa‘a High School and an individualist and team player for the University of Hawai‘i tennis team, paired with Dylan Wehrly and battling in the semifinals.
“We played them on the opening and it went three sets and a tie breaker,” Noe said. “If they win and we meet in the finals, it’s going to go down to the wire.”
The Okamoto-Wehrly pair lived up to that prediction, going three sets before edging past the team of Herb Noe and Darron White for the title of the Mens A division at the Kaua‘i Charity Tennis played under brisk unpredictable winds to benefit the Kaua‘i United Way.
Okamoto-Wehrly finished with a 6-2, 4-6, 6-3 win over Herb Noe and White, almost a repeat of their opening match when Okamoto-Wehrly prevailed, 6-4, 3-6, 1-0 (11-9).
Charlie “da Champ” Ortiz teamed with Calvin “da Legend” Lalin to get past Scott Nakamatsu, a member of the Waimea High School tennis coaching staff, and Terrence Hirabara to nail the Mens B division, 6-4, 6-3.
Grant Bowen teamed with Brad Cheatum to bring the finals of the Mens C division to another three-setter, eventually besting the team of Ron Olen and Jim Sullivan, 7-6, 5-7, 1-0(12-10).
In the Women’s B division, the team of Michelle Fitzgerald and Veronica Wilkie bested the Amy-Judy team, 6-3, 6-2 to claim the title while the duo of Susan Ham-Young and Kim Werner were 6-1, 6-2 winners over the duo of Sonya and Miriam in the consolation bracket to earn runner up spots.
Andrea Weston-Webb paired with Pegi Cheatum to lay claim to the Women’s C division with a 6-2, 6-1 win over Joanne Burkhardt and Ruby Pap.
Krystyna Noe, the coordinator for the charity doubles tennis, said the next match will be the Plantation Days Doubles scheduled for July 21 and 22 at the Po‘ipu Kai Tennis Courts.
Visit www.kctennis2009.webs.com for more information.
• Dennis Fujimoto, photographer and staff writer, can be reached at 245-3681 (ext. 253) or dfujimoto@ thegardenisland.com.
