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Rochester Tennis Hall of Fame inducts third class: Meet the new members

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Rochester Tennis Hall of Fame inducts third class: Meet the new members

ROCHESTER — About 250 people laughed, cried and applauded the 12 people inducted into the Rochester Tennis Hall of Fame, which honored its third class Saturday night at Golisano Institute. It was the first class since 2016.

Frederick Kemp “Fritz” Ward, referred to as Rochester’s first great tennis champion who began playing in the 1890s, was among those honored. As were women like Alix Creek Chesno, Liz Derry and Patty Shoolman, and father-son Joe and Scott Thyroff.

Brad Thyroff, host and founder of the hall of the fame, said the night was “extra special” thanks to the attendance of Tom Golisano, founder of Paychex, and his wife, Monica Seles, who was the world’s No. 1 ranked player during her career. In an homage to Rochester tennis’ past, present and future, also in attendance were young stars like Brighton’s Leyla Tozin, and Pittsford Sutherland’s Dylan Bhatia, Charlie Thyroff and Brady Thyroff.

“I wanted to do something to honor the people who helped me. … We had support from important members of the community to create this and do something. It’s just a way for all of us to come together,” Brad Thyroff said.

Rochester Tennis Hall of Fame inductees

Luis Burgos

Burgos played tennis at Franklin in 1976 and 1977. He became Rochester’s commissioner of recreation and youth services in 2010, helping the city to reconstruct courts and invest about $3 million. Burgos still advises Love-15, a program that introduces city children to tennis. He began volunteering there in 1991. Burgos said the children changed his life.

“My older brother, Roberto. … He was my role model. He was my mentor. He taught me how to speak truth to power,” Burgos said.

Alix Creek Chesno

Chesno won her first of three Rochester District singles title at 14 years old in 1987. She was a top ranked junior player who was America’s No. 2 ranked girl 16-and-under. At the University of Arizona in 1993, Chesno won an NCAA doubles championship to qualify for the US Open. As a singles player, Chesno played in the qualifying draw of the US Open in ’93 and ’95, and the ’95 Australian Open.

Liz Derry

Derry was 9 years old when she began playing tennis in 1957 in Wheeling, West Virginia. She moved to Rochester in 1960, won a Rochester District double title two years later, and was a winner or finalist in the tournament over the next 22 years. Derry’s won 20 open doubles titles and four open singles titles in ’64, ’68, ’70 and ’72. She never lost a match as a No. 1 singles and doubles players in four years at Brockport College. Derry coached at Nazareth and was a tennis pro at Monroe Golf Club, was director of tennis at the Tennis Club of Rochester.

Thomas Hartzell Jr.

Hartzell Jr. was captain and MVP of McQuaid’s tennis team in 1978, helping the team go 35-1 in the city catholic league during his career. He was later captain at the University Notre Dame in 1981-82, where he won the Fred J. Hotop Sportsmanship Award. Hartzell Jr. was nationally-ranked in ’81. He won Rochester District singles titles in ’83 and ’84, won the tournament’s doubles championship in ’90 and ’92, and won the Western New York men’s open doubles crown in ’94 in Syracuse.

“The greatest feeling in tennis is perfectly hitting the ball in its sweet spot, with a wood racket,” Hartzell Jr. said.

Paul Lobban

Lobban arrived in Rochester in 1992, winning District singles titles in ’93, ’94, ’96 and ’97, and doubles titles with Scott Thyroff in ’94, ’97 and ’98. He co-owned The Country Place and Tennis Club of Webster from 1997-2002, and worked at several local clubs. Lobban is a South Africa native who became captain at the University of Utah, where he won a Western Athletic Conference singles title. Lobban went pro in 1985 on the ATP Tour and won a round in the Wimbledon qualifying singles draw in ’86 and ’87. Lobban thanked a college teammate for helping his family settle into Rochester in ’92.

“I’m very grateful … for the first impressions on what an incredible tennis community this could be for me, what tennis was in Rochester, and what a great place this was to live,” Lobben said.

Don Long

Long was the world’s top-ranked men’s player in the 75-and-over division in 2021. In the same division, Long was ranked No. 2 in singles in 2018, when he reached the finals of the World Singles Championships in Umag, Croatia. He’s captured two golds, two silvers and a bronze medal while competing for the United States at the World Team Championships seven times. Long began his 38-year coaching career at Wesleyan University in1965, and authored “Weekend Tennis: The Hacker’s Handbook” in 1974, which sold over 40,000 copies.

Annette Shapiro

Shapiro began the men’s tennis program at Monroe Community College and guided the men and women to nationals in 1983-84. Shapiro coached at Nazareth for 20 years, and the college renamed its outdoor courts after her in 2019. She coached a player to the 1993 ITA national tournament, her Nazareth teams won Empire 8 titles in 2001 and 2002, and she coached three state champions. Shapiro was the 1995-96 NYS Coach of the Year, Empire 8 Coach of the Year in 2003, and winner of the 2007 Jean Giambrone Award. Shapiro also coached four years at the ITA and NCAA tournaments with four women’s players, which included her daughter, Corey.

“Work hard, work smart, but always make it fun,” Shapiro said.

Patty Shoolman

Shoolman was an elite junior player who was ranked No. 2 in the country for 14-and-under girls in ’72. She won a Section V Class A boys singles title as a Fairport freshman in 1973, championed the 16-and-under Easter Bowl and was a finalist in the 18-and-under clay court championships in ’73. That same year Shoolman was 15 when she lost to Leslie Hunt in the US Open. Shoolman has played against Billie Jean King numerous of times, once in a doubles match in the ’74 Virginia Slims pro tournament, then won a set against King’s doubles duo in ’77.

King commented on Shoolman in the program’s pamphlet: “Her contribution to our sport, as helping to build women’s professional tennis will always be an important part of our history.”

Bill Nealon, a member of the Rochester Tennis Hall of Fame’s inaugural class in 2014, spoke on behalf of Shoolman, who attended the ceremony. “She didn’t practice until she got it right, she practiced until she didn’t get it wrong,” Nealon said about Shoolman.

Joe Thyroff

Joe Thyroff began playing tennis in his 30s and quickly got his family involved. He’s coached at Pittsford Mendon and Sutherland, recently guiding the Knights to the team state tournament. Joe Thyroff has won 24 Section V titles and over 500 matches as a coach. He left Mendon to coach his grandsons Brady and Charlie at Sutherland. His Sutherland girls team won 144 straight matches over a 10-year span. Joe Thyroff was named All-Greater Rochester Coach of the Year three times, UTR National Coach of the Year in 2020, was director of the NYS boys tournament, and is proud of his Western region (2013) and Eastern region (2015) tennis family of the year honors.

“A big memory of ours is having our family recognized as by the United States Eastern Tennis Association. That is a great honor and a great memory,” Joe Thyroff said.

Scott Thyroff

Scott Thyroff was a Section V singles champion in 1989 — when he was named an athletic/scholastic All-American — and a doubles champion from 1986-88 at Mendon. He then became an NCAA All-American at Bloomsburg University in ’92. Scott has won 11 Rochester District doubles titles in 17 appearances, and won eight singles titles in 14 appearances across 20 years. Scott founded the Brighton Town Rec Tennis program in the early 2000s, and co-owned the Manhattan Square Tennis Club for 15 years. He was placed into the Pittsford Athletic Hall of Fame in 2007.

“We fell in love with the sport and fell in love with the sport and have been playing it ever since, 45 years later,” Scott Thyroff said.

Jeff Wagstaff

Wagstaff is a three-time district doubles champion and a mixed doubles champion with his wife, Grace, who he coached to a No. 3 ranking in the country for her age group in 2006. Wagstaff has coached in Rochester for 36 years at many clubs, including Midtown Athletic Club, Tennis Club of Rochester and Turin Racket Clu. He started the Pittsford Rec tennis program in 1990, and has owned Mendon Racquet Club since 2007.

Frederick Kemp “Fritz” Ward

Perhaps Rochester’s first prominent tennis player, Ward, born in 1877, was 15 when he won the Niagara International Tournament, the Elmira Open Tournament, and the Rochester Open Tournament in 1893. Ward went on to win the Rochester Open in 1894, the Rochester Lawn Tennis Tournament in 1895, and captured the Rochester Open title in 1909. Ward became president of the Rochester Lawn Tennis Club. Popular racket manufacturer Wright & Ditson created the Fritz Ward racket in 1894. Ward died at 32 years old in 1910.

“It was a guy like him who helped plant the seed to grow tennis in our community,” Brad Thyroff said.

What’s next for the Rochester Tennis Hall of Fame?

The first two Rochester Tennis Hall of Fame classes were inducted in 2014 and 2016. Personal reasons and COVID sidelined the ceremony since then. Brad Thyroff felt like he disrespected previous classes by pausing the hall of fame for so long. He hopes to induct smaller classes every other year, and would welcome a return to Golisano Institute, for everything Golisano touches turns to gold.

“Doing it here with the support of Tom Golisano, it meant so much for me that Tom was here tonight with Monica Seles. … The fact that they were here too added such a level of emotion for me,” Brad Thyroff said.

— Marquel Slaughter is a journalist for the Democrat and Chronicle, specializing in high school sports. He has been a reporter for 15 years. Follow him @MarquelSports and X or on Instagram. You can contact him at mslaughter1@gannett.com.

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