A.V. TENNIS DUO RACKS UP TOURNAMENT TITLES.Byline: Rob Rundquist Special to the Daily News Debbie Freeny hasn't lost a singles tennis match in the 1990s. Donald Roper looms as the next great player. These two Antelope Valley This article is about the Los Angeles County region. For the census-designated place in Wyoming, see Antelope Valley-Crestview, Wyoming. The Antelope Valley Special Olympians have dominated at the Advanced Level this past season, combining for 14 of 21 first-place titles in the five-tournament season. Freeny, 40, has been undefeated in women's singles since 1989. She was state champion in '89, '91, and '96 (missing the other tournaments due to illness). Along with a gold medal gold medal traditional first prize. [Western Cult: Misc.] See : Prize in women's singles from the state championship at UCLA UCLA University of California at Los Angeles UCLA University Center for Learning Assistance (Illinois State University) UCLA University of Carrollton, TX and Lower Addison, TX this past season, Freeny has first-place titles in Ventura, San Bernardino San Bernardino, city, United States San Bernardino (săn bûr'nədē`nō), city (1990 pop. 164,164), seat of San Bernardino co., S Calif., at the foot of the San Bernardino Mts.; inc. 1854. and Kern counties, and Antelope Valley. ``She doesn't like to lose,'' her coach Jerry Vick said. ``(She) takes it like a challenge to keep winning.'' Roper is 36, but a newcomer to the scene this year. At 6-foot-5, he already has cast a large shadow with two singles titles, a second-place and two third-place finishes. Vick, who has been involved in competitive tennis for 50 years, credits Roper's success to a ``booming serve and strong forehand forehand the head, neck, shoulders, withers and forelimbs of the horse. .'' The pair not only excel in match play but demonstrate the command of their game in the Special Skills Contest as well. This event challenges the player on such key elements as the serve, forehand, backhand and volley. Out of the three Skills Contests this season, Freeny finished first in all three (6-0 during her career), with Roper adding three second-place titles. When the two team up for mixed doubles mixed doubles pl.n. (used with a sing. verb) A game of doubles, as in tennis, that is played with each team composed of one man and one woman. they are equally effective. Freeny and Roper, who are mentally disabled mentally disabled See Cognitively impaired. , won all four tournaments during the regular season, coming up short only at the State Championship where they finished with the bronze. Vick attributes that defeat to being ``a little nervous.'' In fact, the area of poise and concentration is probably their only weak spot. Roper says his ``mind wanders once in a while and that is what I really need to work on.'' Freeny, much more seasoned than Roper, seems to have overcome this problem. ``You just got to concentrate, focus on the ball, and hit it,'' she said. Despite their disabilities, Vick talks with admiration of their skills, saying that ``with some extra repetition they know exactly what to do.'' Dennis Wick, area director of Special Olympics Special Olympics International sports program for people with intellectual disability. It provides year-round training and athletic competition in a variety of Olympic-type summer and winter sports for participants. in Antelope Valley, also is impressed by the talented Freeny and Roper, describing the pair as ``highly functioning athletes.'' This praise is merited by their success in other sports. Freeny is an accomplished softball softball, variant of baseball played with a larger ball on a smaller field. Invented (1888) in Chicago as an indoor game, it was at various times called indoor baseball, mush ball, playground ball, kitten ball, and, because it was also played by women, ladies' player, Roper recently won a gold medal in volleyball and broke 200 in league bowling. CAPTION(S): Photo Photo: Special Olympians Debbie Freeny and Donald Roper, wh o have dominated tennis tournaments this year, flank their coach, Jerry Vick. Tom Mendoza/Daily News |
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