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Joelson, Botts earn titles photo by Andrew Mariman Brian Joelson returns a shot in his match against Mark Quinney on Sunday. Joelson won in three sets By GREG STILES The fast serve competition came after the men's open singles final. It really didn't matter, Brian Joelson had already demonstrated the efficacy of his lethal serve. The 39-year-old from Beaverton was master of the hardcourt Sunday afternoon at the Rogue Valley Swim & Tennis Club. Joelson's blistering serve proved untouchable when it counted as he powered his way to victory in the sixth annual $10,000 Airport Chevrolet Open Tennis Championships. Joelson bested doubles partner Mark Quinney of Eugene, 7-6 (7-5), 6-2 for his second singles crown in three years, pocketing the $1750 first-place prize money. In women's play, Ashland's Tami Botts turned back defending champion Stacy McKenna of North Bend, 6-3, 2-6, 6-4. Joelson dealt enough aces to make a card shark's head spin. Quinney could do little more than shake his head and shrug his shoulders. "When he got the momentum and started serving well, he must have been hitting 85 to 90 percent of his first serves," Quinney said. "He hit so many aces, I couldn't get into a rhythm." Quinney got off to a good start, twice breaking Joelson's serve en route to a 4-2 lead in the first set. He had the serve and a 5-4 lead when the pendulum disappeared across the net and never returned. Joelson came back, working the net at times and pushing his foe to a corner before depositing a shot on the opposite side. He took a 30-0 lead before Quinney aced a serve as he battled back to 30-30. But Joelson took the next point then Quinney double-faulted and he was never in command again. "I didn't think the first point over well enough, the second I missed an overhead shot and then I double-faulted," Quinney said. "That's three unforced errors. "That came at the wrong time and gave him the momentum." Joelson, ranked second to Jesse Walter among Pacific Northwest open players, said he just kept swinging away throughout the three-day tournament until good things happened. "I had to play well, or else Mark would just take it to me," Joelson said. "It was lucky I broke back at 5-4. Mark had been serving real well. By holding serve after that, I was able to put pressure on him. In the first set tiebreaker, Quinney had a 5-4 advantage, but Joelson slammed the door, taking the next three points. "He just moves the ball around," Quinney analyzed. "He disguises where it goes and never hits the same place twice. "He's playing better now than he was two years ago." Joelson left no doubt who was in charge when he broke Quinney's serve without surrendering a point. "The start of the second set was very important," Joelson said. "I just swung at a couple of balls and they went in. It's frustrating when you lose a close set and then your serve is broke." In women's play, Botts overcame a third-set lapse to hold off McKenna as she won the tournament for the second time in three years. "There were a couple of points where I thought I had the advantage and she came back," Botts said. "I would think 'Now I have it, now I don't.' " Botts trailed 2-1 in the third set before twice breaking McKenna's serve to take a 4-2 lead. But McKenna, who prevailed the last time the duo battled at the Umpqua Valley Open three years ago, wouldn't fold. She broke Botts' serve to draw even, 4-4, after a protracted rally. "� was expecting her to counter-punch, but she played much more aggressively," Botts said. But Botts started moving the ball around and better and notched a service break of her own to take the next game for a 5-4 advantage and never trailed in the final game. "It's a clean slate when you go into the third set," Botts said. "It's more about who wants to fight it out." CHAMPIONSHIP FINALS MEN'S OPEN SINGLES - Brian Joelson, Beaverton, d. Mark Quinney, Eugene, 7-6 (7-5), 6-2. WOMEN'S OPEN SINGLES - Tami Botts, Ashland, d. Stacy McKenna, North Bend, 6-3, 2-6, 6-4. MEN'S 35 SINGLES - Dan Perone, Medford, d. Steve Bolstad, Portland, 6-2, 7-5. MEN'S 55 SINGLES -George Watts, Bend, d. Gale Holt, Klamath Falls, 6-4, 6-2. MEN'S OPEN DOUBLES - Nick Quatrochi-Dougal Williams, Portland, d. Brian Joelson, Beaverton-Mark Quinney, Eugene, 6-3, 6-7 (7-1), 6-3. MEN'S 35 DOUBLES - Dan Perone-Bob Bryant, Medford, d. Rick Jackson-Don Neuner, Medford, 4-6, 7-6 (7-3), 6-3. WOMEN'S 35 DOUBLES - Vicki Cline, Medford-Cindy Ogden, Grants Pass, d. Donna Yamashita-Karen Klinger, Gresham, 6-2, 6-3. Reach reporter Greg Stiles at 776-4483, or e-mail [email protected] Mail Tribune Home | Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. | Dow Jones & Co., Inc. | Privacy | Contact Us Copyright � 2001 Mail Tribune, Inc.