Fourth Annual Easter Pickleball Classic Hits SPORTIME Kings Park
Over the holiday break, Long Island Tennis Magazine hosted its second pickleball tournament of its 2025 Event Series. Players from all over the Island converged at SPORTIME Kings Park to participate in the Easter Pickleball Classic presented by Orlin & Cohen Orthopedic Group.
Teams competed against one another in round-robin play across four different divisions with the results of those matches determining who advanced to the knockout rounds.
In the Men’s Doubles 3.5 – 4.0 division, James Kavanaugh & Dan Stolzenburg used their experience playing together in the past to reign supreme. The pairing defeated Tony Romano & Alberto Carrero 11-5 to win the Gold Medal.
“We play a lot together so we have good chemistry,” said Kavanaugh. “As we went through the matches we were able to see what our opponents didn’t do well, and then tried to capitalize on that.”
Stolzenburg was complimentary about the event overall:
“It was a really fun event on court, and the pizza, drinks and people combined to make it a festive atmosphere off the court as well.”
Lori McBride & Joenna Greenberg employed a simple yet effective strategy to help them win the Gold Medal in the Women’s Doubles 3.5 – 4.0 division.
“The strategy was to make less mistakes than the other team, and trust your partner,” Greenberg said.
That indeed worked as the duo won 11-3 over Rose Gardner & Kathie Glynn to win the title.
“Just hanging out with our friends and having fun,” McBride said about how enjoyable the night was. “And winning, obviously.”
In the Men’s Doubles 4.0 – 4.5 division, Miguel Cobbs & Luis Ludena defeated Andrew Lacorte & Carlos Quinonez 13-11 in a thrilling final to clinch the Gold Medal.
“That final was tough,” said Ludena. “It was a tight match with a lot of long points.”
Cobbs added:
“That last match was a battle. It feels good, we really didn’t want to lose today. I really like the players and the vibe at the Long Island Tennis Magazine pickleball tournaments. It’s an awesome time.”
Emilie Katz & Kelly Cobbs paired up for the first time in a tournament setting, and were able to rapidly find their footing together. The duo defeated Samantha Cuomo & Jackie Kramer 11-3 in the championship match to win the Gold Medal in the Women’s Doubles 4.0 – 4.5 division.
“It was a lot of fun. It was our first time playing together and I thought we had some great matches,” Katz said.
“I’m glad Emilie asked me to play; we had a lot of fun playing together,” said Cobbs. “The main thing was we wanted to communicate well, and I thought we did a better job of that as the night went on. This tournament was great, it moved along nicely and you are able to get a lot of matches in.”
The next pickleball tournament in our Event Series is the June Pickleball Challenge presented by Orlin & Cohen Orthopedic Group which is set for Saturday, June 14 at SPORTIME Hempstead Lake. To register or to find more information, visit LITennisMag.com/Events/JunePickleball.
“I would like to thank our title sponsor Orlin & Cohen Orthopedic Group for their amazing support in helping us put on a professionally-run and successful event. We made sure all participants played a lot, that the tournament ran on time and that we had food, drinks, etc. available to players during the tournament,” said Tournament Director David Sickmen. “I also want to thank SPORTIME Kings Park for hosting, and my co-tournament director Michelle Stoerback for all of her hard work in tournament coordination. We’re excited to continue our partnership with Orlin & Cohen Orthopedic Group, and grow our presence in the pickleball community.”
CLICK HERE TO SEE MORE PHOTOS FROM THE 4TH ANNUAL EASTER PICKLEBALL CLASSIC
2025 Easter Pickleball Classic Full Results:
Men’s Doubles 3.5 – 4.0
Gold: James Kavanaugh & Dan Stolzenburg
Silver: Tony Romano & Alberto Carrero
Bronze: Peter Lampione & Joe Paek
Men’s Doubles 4.0 – 4.5
Gold: Miguel Cobbs & Luis Ludena
Silver: Andrew Lacorte & Carlos Quinonez
Bronze: Thomas Walter & Brandon Weinstein
Women’s Doubles 3.5 – 4.0
Gold: Lori McBride & Joenna Greenberg
Silver: Rose Gardner & Kathie Glynn
Bronze: Shelly Eckstein & Sandra Alestra
Women’s Doubles 4.0 – 4.5
Gold: Emilie Katz & Kelly Cobbs
Silver: Samantha Cuomo & Jackie Kramer
Bronze: Diann Starcke & Renee Lemmerman
