SURPRISE, ARIZ.—The last match of the United States Tennis Association’s 65 and Over Tennis Championships was as close as they come. Gilroy’s Ann Bardrick and her doubles teammate Janis Jud, of San Martin, held the fate of their teams’ national title on the tennis racquets—but they didn’t know it at the time.
The duo took their counterparts from Hilton Head, S.C. to the wire and squeaked out a 7-6, 7-6 victory, unknowingly clinching the national title for their team from Rio Del Mar on March 13 in Surprise, Ariz.
“When our opponent hit the ball out, I called ‘out’ and our team just screamed out ‘you did it, you did it!’ It actually gave me chills,” Jud said. “I was totally thrilled and it was just surreal to me.”
Both women agreed that not knowing the position of their team made for a less stressful time on the court. Had they known they were the deciding match for the championship, things might have gone much differently, Jud said. Since this was the inaugural year the tournament’s 65 and older 8.0 team division, the team wanted to be its first champions—and they wanted it bad.
“I was thinking about staying focused and keep going until the end point favors us,” Jud said. “I was focusing on playing my best. It was amazing for us.”
It was the first national title for Jud and the third for Bardrick, who got her start in tennis at age 11 in Essex, England. But don’t be fooled, winning the title was no easy feat.
After sweeping eight regular season matches, the team had to win the sectional tournament held in Napa. Rio del Mar did just that, but then had a long, suspenseful nine months until the national tournament was played.
And things didn’t get easier once the tournament finally arrived. Rio del Mar had three injured players on their roster, leaving them with only six healthy ones for competition. This meant double the work for the women, as they’d have to play two full matches a day.
The 80-plus degree Arizona heat and the extra matches made for an exhausting combination. The first match in the morning was OK, Bardrick said, but by the time they played No. 2, they were barely able to keep themselves awake.
“I was more or less OK for an old girl,” Bardrick said. “That’s a lot, an awful lot—especially at our age.”
Bardrick and Jud finished with six matches under their belts, all of which were closely decided. While it was nerve-wracking, the Gilroy resident said she wouldn’t have had it any other way.
“It was our fortune that we didn’t win it easily because it meant the tennis was good and all the players were involved,” Bardrick said. “We’re competitive, that’s just the way we are. I don’t think you can win something like this unless you’re very, very competitive.”
Once the racquets were put down, however, sportsmanship prevailed. Each team was asked to bring a gift for their opponents and Rio del Mar brought a slice of Gilroy with them: gift boxes of garlic donated by Don Christopher himself.
But the team almost didn’t make it back to the Garlic Capital. Since their match went so long, Bardrick and Jud had to race through the airport to catch their flight back home. Bardrick reached the gate first and made sure the plane didn’t leave without her teammate.
“If you’re a winner, it doesn’t matter,” Bardrick said with a laugh, referring to her sprint across Phoniex’s Sky Harbor Airport to catch the plane.
Since Rio del Mar won the sectional tournament, the team had to split up in order to keep things fair for others. Because of this, Bardrick and Jud joined a Los Gatos team that they hope will deliver them to national tournament again next year.
In the meantime, Bardrick competed in the Senior Desert Cup March 21-22 in Palm Springs.
And if she thought nationals were tough, Bardrick was required to play three sets a day in Palm Springs. But Bardrick said if she was going to go down, she was going down swinging.
“I don’t know how much energy I have left,” Bardrick said with a laugh. “I think they try and kill us old folks off.”
