Sampra VS. Querry in The Pit!
Sampras To Play Match in Pit
By Toby Smith
Journal Staff Writer
Pete Sampras, considered by some tennis experts to be the
greatest player ever, is coming to the Pit.
Sampras, a seven-time Wimbledon winner and holder of a record 14
Grand Slam tournament singles titles, will play a two-out-of-three-set
exhibition Friday night, Sept. 12.
His opponent will be rising American star Sam Querrey, ranked No.
42 in the world and winner of his first ATP event, the Tennis Channel
Open in Las Vegas, Nev., in March. Querrey has been named to the U.S.
Olympic team.
Sampras will also conduct a clinic earlier that day and be
available for a meet-and-greet with the public.
For Sampras to be here is incredible, said Tim Cass, former UNM
men's coach and now senior associate AD for the school. He's
definitely one of the all-time greats.
That weekend in Albuquerque will be a busy one athletically. On
Saturday, Sept. 13, the UNM football team hosts the University of
Arizona. Also on that day the Coleman Vision Tennis Championships, a
USTA Pro Circuit event, kicks off at Tanoan Country Club. The
Coleman Vision runs through Sept. 21.
We're calling it '10 Great Days of Tennis in Albuquerque,'? said
Sue Jollensten, who is in her first year as director of the
Coleman Vision tournament.
Coincidentally, the promoter who brought the Coleman Vision to
Albuquerque 11 years ago, when it then was a USTA Challenger event
held at Highpoint Sports & Wellness, is also responsible for bringing
Sampras to Albuquerque.
Tim Stallard, who runs Prolink-Sports-Entertainment-Media, out of
Austin, Texas, started working on an Albuquerque event early in January.
A lot of markets in the country are really undeserved by
tennis, said Stallard. There's a strong and supportive tennis
community in Albuquerque, but there are few chances there to see top
players.
The Pit hasn't had a tennis exhibition since the mid-1980s when
Martina Navratilova played an exhibition with Chris Evert.
This event celebrates tennis in the community, said Stallard.
It creates more awareness for tennis.
Stallard, who does tennis exhibition around the country involving
Sampras, Navratilova, Andy Roddick, the Bryan brothers and Justin
Gimelstob, said he contacted Cass six months ago. The two have known
each other for more than a decade, going back to Cass' tenure as the
men's tennis coach at Texas A&M.
Originally, Stallard considered bringing Sampras to Albuquerque
to play Novak Djokovic. But that fell through when Djokovic won the
Australian Open. Then Stallard looked at a foursome, Navratilova-Anna
Kournikova and Querrey-Mardy Fish.
Finally, Sampras and Querrey worked out.
Retired from competitive tennis, Sampras, 36, lives in Los
Angeles with his wife and two small children. Sampras agreed to come
to Albuquerque for a fee that is very manageable, according to
Stallard.
The 6-foot-6 Querrey is 20. Like Sampras, Querrey lives in Los
Angeles and relies heavily on a big serve. In one recent tournament
Querry banged an astonishing 10 aces in a row.
The New Mexico Sports Authority is helping to promote and
advertise the event locally.
One-hundred percent of the proceeds of the exhibition will
benefit the UNM Children's Hospital. In addition, ticket presales will
help raise money for the Coleman Vision tournament and for the Loren
Dils Fund, which has been set up to combat amyotrophic lateral
sclerosis, often referred to as Lou Gehrig's Disease. Dils is the UNM
men's assistant tennis coach.
Pete Sampras vs. Sam Querrey
University Arena
Sept. 12, 7 p.m.
Ticket prices range from $28.50 to $88.50
Ticket presales begin at 7 a.m. July 6 and end at midnight July
13. During this one week presale, you must visit www.unmtickets.com
and enter the code of the organization you wish to contribute to
through the presale. The code for Loren Dils is unmtennis. The code
for Coleman Vision is cvtennis.
By Toby Smith
Journal Staff Writer
Pete Sampras, considered by some tennis experts to be the
greatest player ever, is coming to the Pit.
Sampras, a seven-time Wimbledon winner and holder of a record 14
Grand Slam tournament singles titles, will play a two-out-of-three-set
exhibition Friday night, Sept. 12.
His opponent will be rising American star Sam Querrey, ranked No.
42 in the world and winner of his first ATP event, the Tennis Channel
Open in Las Vegas, Nev., in March. Querrey has been named to the U.S.
Olympic team.
Sampras will also conduct a clinic earlier that day and be
available for a meet-and-greet with the public.
For Sampras to be here is incredible, said Tim Cass, former UNM
men's coach and now senior associate AD for the school. He's
definitely one of the all-time greats.
That weekend in Albuquerque will be a busy one athletically. On
Saturday, Sept. 13, the UNM football team hosts the University of
Arizona. Also on that day the Coleman Vision Tennis Championships, a
USTA Pro Circuit event, kicks off at Tanoan Country Club. The
Coleman Vision runs through Sept. 21.
We're calling it '10 Great Days of Tennis in Albuquerque,'? said
Sue Jollensten, who is in her first year as director of the
Coleman Vision tournament.
Coincidentally, the promoter who brought the Coleman Vision to
Albuquerque 11 years ago, when it then was a USTA Challenger event
held at Highpoint Sports & Wellness, is also responsible for bringing
Sampras to Albuquerque.
Tim Stallard, who runs Prolink-Sports-Entertainment-Media, out of
Austin, Texas, started working on an Albuquerque event early in January.
A lot of markets in the country are really undeserved by
tennis, said Stallard. There's a strong and supportive tennis
community in Albuquerque, but there are few chances there to see top
players.
The Pit hasn't had a tennis exhibition since the mid-1980s when
Martina Navratilova played an exhibition with Chris Evert.
This event celebrates tennis in the community, said Stallard.
It creates more awareness for tennis.
Stallard, who does tennis exhibition around the country involving
Sampras, Navratilova, Andy Roddick, the Bryan brothers and Justin
Gimelstob, said he contacted Cass six months ago. The two have known
each other for more than a decade, going back to Cass' tenure as the
men's tennis coach at Texas A&M.
Originally, Stallard considered bringing Sampras to Albuquerque
to play Novak Djokovic. But that fell through when Djokovic won the
Australian Open. Then Stallard looked at a foursome, Navratilova-Anna
Kournikova and Querrey-Mardy Fish.
Finally, Sampras and Querrey worked out.
Retired from competitive tennis, Sampras, 36, lives in Los
Angeles with his wife and two small children. Sampras agreed to come
to Albuquerque for a fee that is very manageable, according to
Stallard.
The 6-foot-6 Querrey is 20. Like Sampras, Querrey lives in Los
Angeles and relies heavily on a big serve. In one recent tournament
Querry banged an astonishing 10 aces in a row.
The New Mexico Sports Authority is helping to promote and
advertise the event locally.
One-hundred percent of the proceeds of the exhibition will
benefit the UNM Children's Hospital. In addition, ticket presales will
help raise money for the Coleman Vision tournament and for the Loren
Dils Fund, which has been set up to combat amyotrophic lateral
sclerosis, often referred to as Lou Gehrig's Disease. Dils is the UNM
men's assistant tennis coach.
Pete Sampras vs. Sam Querrey
University Arena
Sept. 12, 7 p.m.
Ticket prices range from $28.50 to $88.50
Ticket presales begin at 7 a.m. July 6 and end at midnight July
13. During this one week presale, you must visit www.unmtickets.com
and enter the code of the organization you wish to contribute to
through the presale. The code for Loren Dils is unmtennis. The code
for Coleman Vision is cvtennis.
© 2025 Created by Mark / The Mayor.
Powered by
