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CINCINNATI – June 3, 2010 – Two former college standouts, a player of remarkable longevity, and a longtime contributor off the court have been tapped as the latest to be enshrined into the Cincinnati Tennis Hall of Fame in August.
Those to be enshrined are Kara Molony-Hussey, Joe Leytze, Bill Pendl and Jim Meakin. All but Meakin were nominated in the “Recent Player Category” (those who played within the past 50 years), while Meakin was nominated in the “Contributor Category.”
“This is our ninth enshrinement class and the depth of tennis talent is just as strong as any of our other classes,” said Jim Farley, Chairman of the Cincinnati Tennis Hall of Fame. “These four represent the college game, the city championship, and even the professional game. They are a real testament to the history, tradition and legacy of the game in our area.”
The four will be inducted on Center Court on Saturday, August 14, during the women’s semifinals and the men’s qualifying of the Western & Southern Financial Group Masters & Women’s Open, the latest name for a Cincinnati tennis tradition that is today the oldest tournament in the nation played in its original city. A reception/luncheon, which is open to the public, will be held at the Lindner Family Tennis Center to honor the four prior to the on-court enshrinement.
Molony-Hussey was a nationally ranked junior player and a four-time regional high school tournament champion (three in singles and one in doubles) at Notre Dame Academy in Northern Kentucky. She played the NCAA Championships while at the University of Cincinnati and is the Bearcat’s all-time winningest female player, and then went on to the women’s pro tour. She won five singles titles at the Thomas E. Price Cincinnati Metropolitan Championships as well as four doubles titles with sister Lyndsey and two mixed doubles titles.
Leytze was a semifinalist in the Ohio High School Championship in 1979 and was the Cincinnati Enquirer’s player of the year that year. He went on to the University of Kentucky where he was ranked as high as No. 22 in the nation and was twice named to the All-SEC team. He played on the pro tour, is a teaching professional, and won two singles titles at the Thomas E. Price Cincinnati Metropolitan Championships.
Pendl won titles at the high school, college and international level. He won an Indiana state high school title in doubles, then went on to DePauw University where he won two conference singles titles and eventually would be enshrined in the school’s Hall of Fame. He won two ITF European Senior Mixed Doubles titles and three doubles titles, and was internationally ranked in seniors singles, doubles and mixed doubles. Locally, he played in more than 35 consecutive Thomas E. Price Cincinnati Metropolitan Championships, winning five doubles titles and reaching the singles final in 1967.
Meakin was a long-time tennis official in Cincinnati and a co-founder of the Greater Cincinnati Tennis Umpires Association. At one time he was the head referee for the W&SFG Masters, and an official at the 1984 Olympics in Los Angeles. He also was the head referee for the USTA National Father & Son Clay Court Championship, and in 1995 the City of Cincinnati renamed the local Metropolitan Father & Son Championship in his honor. He will be enshrined posthumously.
The enshrinement reception/luncheon begins at 10:30 a.m. and is open to the public. It will held during the women’s semifinals and the men’s qualifying of the Western & Southern Financial Group Masters & Women’s Open and will include brief speeches followed by an on-court enshrinement ceremony on Center Court. Individuals wishing to purchase tickets or a table may call Carole Meldon at 513-379-7726. (A ticket to the matches is required for entry to the tournament grounds.)
Once enshrined, individuals will be permanently memorialized at the physical home of the Cincinnati Tennis Hall of Fame, which is at the Carl & Edyth Lindner Family Tennis Pavilion, Lunken Airport Playfield.
Cincinnati is home to world-renowned players, the oldest professional tournament played in its original city, and the first city ever selected by the International Tennis Hall of Fame as its "City of the Year." The Cincinnati Tennis Hall of Fame was established in 2002 to honor the individuals who have helped forge the history, tradition and legacy of Cincinnati tennis.
For a complete list of the Hall of Famers who've been enshrined to date, please click here to download a pdf to your desktop.
Cincinnati Tennis Hall of Fame Enshrinees
2002 Bill Talbert & Tony Trabert
2003 Barry MacKay, Paul Flory, Tom Price, Al Bunis, Ruth Sanders Cordes, Kathy Graeter & Nat Emerson
2004 Bill Lofgren, J. Howard "Bumpy" Frazer, Marty Wolf & Clara Louise Zinke
2005 Andrea Farley, Reuben Holden, Caroline Kuhlman, Jim Brockhoff & Jack Guggenheim
2006 Henry Bunis, Steve Contardi, Winona Closterman & Carol Brestel
2007 Heather Hairston-Propp, Joe O'Brien, Dave Power & Carol Tanner
2008 Charles Thomas, Carl Lindner, Rich Lindner & Jeff Wolf
2009 John Peckskamp, John Cook, Angela Farley Wilson, Lynn Nabors-McNally
The Chairman of the Cincinnati Tennis Hall of Fame is Jim Farley. Selection Committee members are Marguerita Alder, Jim Brockhoff, Kathy Graeter, Bill Lofgren, Brian Nester and Phil Smith. The Program Committee is comprised of Bruce Flory, Dick Friedman, Brian Leshner, Karen Montovan and Phil Smith. The Cincinnati Tennis Hall of Fame is a part of the Greater Cincinnati Tennis Association, a 501(c)3 non-profit organization.
