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Prager, Brown claim titles Mail Tribune photos / Andrew Mariman Josh Prager returns a shot in his finals match against Jeff Cauffman. Prager won the match 6-1, 7-6 (7-4). Unseeded players each win first Big Al's championship By KEVIN GOFF ASHLAND - Most friends or spectators of Josh Prager wouldn't classify his tennis style as flashy. In fact, Prager doesn't rack up a lot of style points with his game, he simply makes his opponent do most of the work. His final two adversaries at the 26th annual Big Al's Tennis Tournament on Sunday never could crack the 27 year old's even-keel demeanor en route to Prager's men's open singles title at Hunter Park. The former University of Oregon tennis player and current Yuba City, Calif., resident methodically picked apart final's foe Jeff Cauffman, 6-1, 7-6 (7-4) to earn his first Big Al's title. In the women's open singles final, 16-year-old Amy Brown from Redding, Calif., bounced back to record a win after Gail Patton was forced to retire. The scores were 4-6, 6-4, 4-1 (retired). Patton, the coach of the Southern Oregon University women's tennis team, looked sharp in taking the first set but a leg injury hampered her the rest of the way. "I was playing a little tentative at the start and wasn't used to her game," said Brown, who lost in the first round last year. "She uses a lot of slices on her serves and volleys and that was hard to get used to." The men's finale had an anti-climactic feel because Prager, who was unseeded coming into the tournament, despite his reputable past playing experience, took out two seeded players along the way before locking up with the unseeded Cauffman. "It's not so bad for me," said Prager, of his unseeded status. "but if you are the No. 1 seed then you want to stay protected until at least the semifinals. You don't want to face some unknown player that could knock you off early." After dismantling the top-seeded Chad Wilson in Saturday's quarterfinal match, Prager hooked up with No. 4 seed Gerald Breymann of Medford in Sunday's semifinal. The two battled for three sets before Prager finally wore down the 27-year-old Austrian, 5-7, 6-4, 6-3. "He plays a really solid game," said Breymann, who was ranked in Austria before returning to Oregon in 1999. "He doesn't have a flashy game. He just makes you make the plays." After a first-set defeat, Prager stayed focused and waited for Breymann to unravel. "That was the hardest match of the tournament," said Prager of his semifinal contest. "I probably couldn't win that match on most days, but was fortunate this time." Breymann was pleased with his performance after a long layoff from the game. "I'm just getting back into things," said Breymann. "I just started working at it pretty hard two weeks ago and this was my first hardcourt tournament in America. I grew up playing on clay." A victory for Prager in the finals was thought to be a forgone conclusion after his grueling match with Breymann. But Cauffman wouldn't fold so easy. The Calistoga, Calif., resident, who defeated four-time Big Al's champion Andrew Oas, 6-7, 6-1, 6-3 in the other semifinal match, was soundly defeated in the first set but pushed out to a 5-4 lead in the second. Prager rallied to tie and then grabbed a 6-5 lead before Cauffman sent the match to a tiebreaker. But in the end, the cool-headed Prager kept his poise and claimed victory in a fitting manner. An unforced error. Reach reporter Kevin Goff 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.