For Adam Borack, a high school senior and Park Slope native, tennis is a family affair. “My brother, Mikolaj, is three and a half years older than me, so when I got to be old enough to start trying sports, my parents signed him up for lessons at the Prospect Park Tennis Center,” Adam recalls. “They didn’t want to pay for a babysitter, I guess, so I was there from the time I was a toddler, always around the sport!”

This early exposure to the sport more than piqued young Adam’s interest in tennis. His present daily schedule underscores his passion for the game. “Most days, I go straight from school to practice, and don’t get home until 9 or 9:30 pm, but I don’t mind.”

Now one of the Brooklyn’s top junior players, Adam is clearly no longer just the little brother on the sidelines. He’s competed in international tournaments as far away as the Cayman Islands. At his most recent tournament, he was narrowly edged out in his opening match. “I’m still haunted by that match, and I honestly think I should have won it,” says Adam. “But outcomes aside, I’m friends with a lot of the other players I meet at these competitions.” 

And while his aspirations within the sport extend far beyond the reach of Brooklyn, and Adam has squared up against some of the top junior players from Brazil and Germany, he’s quick to credit his roots for his successes. “I wouldn’t be at this level without being treated so well at the Prospect Park Tennis Center.”

For Adam, who was introduced to tennis by way of his brother’s involvement, his decision to continue playing at the next level was only natural. This fall, Adam will enroll at Fordham University in the Bronx, where just like his older brother he will compete for the tennis team and study finance. The duo will first team up to defend their title at the Prospect Park Tennis Center Championship in the Men’s Doubles division.

Learn more about the junior development program at the Tennis Center.

Springtime has returned to Brooklyn. And for the borough’s tennis fanatics that can only mean one thing.

The transition from indoor to outdoor play, which began on Sunday, May 1, will be completed by Saturday, May 14. For most Brooklyn-dwelling tennis aficionados, that means a return to the great outdoors when taking to the courts. But for the dedicated staff of the Prospect Park Tennis Center, things aren’t quite so simple.

A lot goes into transitioning the Center from its indoor, bubbled configuration. “The courts need to be prepped,” says Paul Campbell, the Prospect Park Alliance’s Tennis Center Director, understatedly. Removal of the bubbles is only half the battle.

Taking the tennis bubbles down is a task handled by an outside contractor the specializes in this work. “Each bubble is broken down into three sections, which are then rolled up and stored near the police station for safe keeping,” explains Campbell.

All that’s left is to turn on the Musco lighting – the same lighting system that the USTA Billie Jean King Tennis Center uses for the US Open – to illuminate the courts. 

Learn more about and register for great outdoor programming at the Prospect Park Tennis Center!

Across all categories, this year’s tournament held at the Prospect Park Tennis Center was the strongest and most competitive yet. With a total of 208 players in the tournament, the turnout equalled the quality of play. 64 players were entered in the Mens B draw, which is half the size of the world famous U.S. Open’s draw. Also of note, were the several family pairings participating in doubles play, including teams of Boraks, Bradfords, Campbells, Greenes and Weissmans.

View the image gallery of our champions.

In Womens Singles, Julie Lilien, a champion from years past, defeated Lucy Herrera 6-0, 6-2. Julie is fierce competitor and has won the Womens Singles several times, always against great competition from players like Lucy, who teaches at the Tennis Center.

This year’s Mens A Singles final between Tim Crawmer and Eduardo Gil was an amazing match. Tim was a former champion for Navy. On set point, he hit a big serve and came to the net behind it, but Eduardo, who teaches at the Tennis Center, masterfully sliced a crosscourt backhand return to save a match point. The momentum shifted from there, and Eduardo proceeded to turn the match around and win the tournament 3-6,7-5,6-1.

In Mens B Singles, Vlad Safovich defeated Josh Rabinovitz 6-0, 6-4 in the finals. Both Vlad and Josh did well the previous year and were eager to play each other for the title this time around. 

Alison Hernon and Alyson Walder edged out Sarah Gerstenzang and Karen Johnson in an exciting second set  6-2, 7-5 to walk away victorious in Womens Doubles.  

Mens Doubles saw the family team of Adam Borak and Mikolaj Borak defeat Nigel Liverpool and Eduardo Gil 4-6, 6-3, 6-4. Both Mikolaj and his younger brother Adam came up through the Tennis Center junior development program and have developed into high-level tournament players. Nigel and Eduardo are experienced and talented pros that teach at the center.

In the Mixed Doubles, home court pros Nadia Lysak and Nigel Liverpool defeated Avernelle Holder and Zachary Campbell 6-2, 6-1. The mixed double field was by far the strongest we have had to date.  

Regulars to the Prospect Park Tennis Center usually know Chevoun Anthony. They might not know that she moved to Flatlands, Brooklyn from Guyana in 1986. Nine years ago she began working at the Prospect Park Tennis Center, where she greeted guests and booked courts at the front desk. Her warm smile and attention to detail quickly earned her a position assisting with bookkeeping and customer service, and eventually to her current role as Front Desk Supervisor.

Though she lives in Flatlands with her husband and three kids, they still make time to visit Prospect Park for barbequing, ice skating and the occasional walk-a-thon. On Sundays, Chevoun likes to listen to the musicians at Drummers Grove, or picnic near the rustic arbors on the lake. Her family’s biggest champion of Prospect Park is her youngest son, who is an enthusiastic player in the Tennis Center’s Junior Development program.

Chevoun’s favorite part of working at the Tennis Center is the constant guest interactions. “I love meeting new people, seeing familiar faces and watching the kids play tennis,” she said, “I didn’t expect to stay at the Park for nine years, but it is such a great atmosphere with good people. Coming to work is a joy.”      

If you’ve come to the Prospect Park Tennis Center in the last five years then you’ve probably already met Brian Nortey. A Brooklyn native, he has a large extended family from Ghana, West Africa. He grew up in Flatbush, playing basketball at the Parade Ground as a kid. Like many Brooklynites, he has fond memories of Prospect Park.

He began playing tennis in one of the Alliance’s youth clinics where he found his passion for the sport. Brian soon began working part-time at the front desk, scheduling court time and handling guest inquiries. After learning the ropes of the front desk, he wanted to learn how the Tennis Center operated more broadly and began assisting the Junior Development Program. 

“I think my favorite thing about the job is working with the kids,” he said, “It reminds me of when I first started playing. I want to foster that love of the game in them, too.”

In addition to his role as the Assistant Coordinator for the Junior Development Program and Senior Front Desk Staff, he also helps run the Prospect Park Tennis Tournament, monitoring the leader board and working with the players. The annual tournament brings some of the best players in the borough together for several weeks of intense competition. 

When he’s not practicing his swing at the Center, or helping others improve theirs, Brian runs his photography and cinematography business. Over the last three years he’s used his visual talents to cover events and make music videos, among other things. “I love photography,” he said modestly, “but I still have a lot to learn.”

Stop by the Tennis Center in coming week to check out the final days of the tournament and meet Brian. 

Kingsley Selly, a Senior Maintainer with the Prospect Park Tennis Center, moved to New York from Ghana just over ten years ago. He was brought to the United States by his father and has lived on Cortelyou Road in Brooklyn ever since. A regular jogger in Prospect Park, Selly joined the maintenance crew at the Prospect Park Tennis Center six years ago.

He enjoys the friendships he has made with the staff and regular tennis players. “I love the cooperation this job requires,” he said. “Everything goes much better when the maintenance crew and players work together.”

Court maintenance isn’t easy. Selly and his crew work through the night to get the Center ready for action every morning. They apply clay to each court, then pull a large broom over the surface and clear the lines. This surface is watered, dried, leveled and swept again. The entire process takes approximately six hours. The weather plays a major role in determining court treatment. Rain can present huge setbacks for the maintenance team. After each storm, the courts need to be dried and swept.

In addition to his responsibilities as Senior Maintainer, Selly also plays at the Tennis Center. He picked up the game about three years ago. “I figured, I worked here,” he said with a laugh. “I might as well learn how to play.”

Joani Akpan has been a dedicated member of the Prospect Park Tennis Center community for over 15 years and is a strong advocate of youth tennis. She has loved the game since the age of ten.

A native of Seattle, Washington, she moved to New York in 1990 and currently lives in Old Mill Basin in South Brooklyn.  Approximately fifteen years ago she became more involved in the sport and started playing at the Prospect Park Tennis Center. A player and teacher, Joani is the Metro coordinator for Junior Team Tennis, a USTA league for youth ages 8-18. She also is the Director of Youth Tennis Leagues, another youth program that uses drills and match play to introduce strategy and game basics.

“Both of my children are in college now, so it’s great to work with the 300-plus kids in the Junior Team Tennis and Youth Tennis Leagues,” Joani said. 

For Joani, tennis is a family affair. Her husband Obong Akpan has been a longtime player at the Center, and their two children volunteered throughout high school for Special Aces, the Alliance’s skills and confidence-boosting program for developmentally disabled children. Joani enjoys the Center’s Har-Tru courts, as well as the comfortable, convenient and friendly atmosphere. When she’s not on the court, she loves to ride her bike and walk her dog around Prospect Park.

Nina Sporn has played tennis in Prospect Park since she was six years old. Her father, Sam Sporn, is a renowned tennis pro who encouraged her at an early age to get in the game. Her love of tennis has been a lifelong passion that she shares with her family to this day.

Nina enjoys the social atmosphere and diversity of players at the center. She brings her entire family for private lessons and match play, including her daughter, husband, mother and tennis pro father.

In addition to her commitment on the court, Nina and her daughter Molly volunteer with the Alliance’s Special Aces program, an innovative tennis program for children with developmental disabilities. Volunteers work closely with tennis pros and therapists to help participating children enjoy active play. Nina has been with the program since its inception seven years ago. She loves that the program provides structure, exercise and confidence for kids who don’t typically have these outlets in their daily lives.

“Some of the kids have been with us since the very beginning, and the progress I see in the players is very gratifying,” she said.