Several area tennis figures win USTA S.C. honors

USTA South Carolina announced the recipients of its annual awards on Monday, with several Beaufort County standouts among the winners.

Tennis coaches, players and volunteers from all over the state will be honored for their tennis achievements later this year by USTA South Carolina.

“Each of these award recipients had exceptional and exemplary achievements in tennis,”, executive director of USTA South Carolina Graham Cox said in a press release. “We're pleased to recognize them for how they've honored the game through their commitment to excellence in their endeavors.”

Bluffton’s Norm Chryst, 67, was honored as the Adult Male Player of the Year after advancing to the USTA national championships for his age group. Now retired, Chryst also won the Southeastern Indoor Championships in January.

Hilton Head’s Jade Lewis was named the Junior Girl Player of the year. Lewis, the top-ranked singles player age 18-and-under won the Chick-fil-A Palmetto Championships and is an outstanding doubles player alongside sister Carolina.

Hilton Head’s Sean Sculley was named the Most Improved Junior Boy after rising to the No. 2 position in South Carolina for his age division. Sculley moved to South Carolina a year ago and began rising up the rankings shortly afterward.

Finally, Larry and Sandra Scheper of Beaufort were recognized as the USTA S.C. Tennis Family of the Year for their work running the Larry Scheper Tennis Academy and public courts in Beaufort. Larry Scheper, the Beaufort Academy tennis coach, also offers free lessons, and Sandra plays league tennis.

All award winners will be recognized at a Dec. 6 lunch on Isle of Palms.

This story was originally published October 6, 2014 at 6:38 PM with the headline "Several area tennis figures win USTA S.C. honors."