The 2014 San Diego Aviators season was the 20th

season A season is a division of the year based on changes in weather, ecology, and the number of daylight hours in a given region. On Earth, seasons are the result of the axial parallelism of Earth's tilted orbit around the Sun. In temperate and pol ...

of the franchise in

World TeamTennis World TeamTennis (WTT) is a mixed-gender professional tennis league played with a team format in the United States, which was founded in 1973. The league's season normally takes place in the summer months. Players from the ATP and WTA take a ...

(WTT) and its first playing in

San Diego San Diego ( , ; ) is a city on the Pacific Ocean coast of Southern California located immediately adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a 2020 population of 1,386,932, it is the List of United States cities by population, eigh ...

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

. The Aviators went from having the worst record in WTT in

2013 File:2013 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: Edward Snowden becomes internationally famous for leaking classified NSA wiretapping information; Typhoon Haiyan kills over 6,000 in the Philippines and Southeast Asia; The Dhaka garment fact ...

, (as the New York Sportimes) to the

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's best record in

2014 File:2014 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Stocking up supplies and personal protective equipment (PPE) for the Western African Ebola virus epidemic; Citizens examining the ruins after the Chibok schoolgirls kidnapping; Bundles of wat ...

. The

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made the

playoffs The playoffs, play-offs, postseason or finals of a sports league are a competition played after the regular season by the top competitors to determine the league champion or a similar accolade. Depending on the league, the playoffs may be eithe ...

for the first time in two years and finished first in its conference for the first time in four years. The Aviators were led by Daniela Hantuchová who was named WTT Female Most Valuable Player and Somdev Devvarman who was named WTT Male Rookie of the Year. David Macpherson, coach of the Aviators, was recognized as WTT Coach of the Year. The Aviators hosted the Springfield Lasers in the Western Conference Championship Match in the first postseason home match for the franchise in four years. The Lasers defeated the Aviators, 22–17, to end the season for San Diego.

Season recap

Relocation to San Diego

On January 15, 2014, Claude Okin,

CEO A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a central executive officer (CEO), chief administrator officer (CAO) or just chief executive (CE), is one of a number of corporate executives charged with the management of an organization especially ...

of the New York Sportimes announced that the franchise had been sold to businessman Russell Geyser and his minority partner Jack McGrory, and the team would be relocated to

and renamed the San Diego Aviators. Okin said, "This is a bittersweet event for me personally. I am very glad to have found a motivated and able new owner for the franchise: a person who will be able to re-imagine it in another great tennis town—but I will miss my team." Geyser said that the team's new name was chosen "to be evocative of San Diego’s long storied history of military and commercial aviation." In a filing with the

U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is an independent agency of the United States federal government, created in the aftermath of the Wall Street Crash of 1929. The primary purpose of the SEC is to enforce the law against market ...

, the Aviators disclosed a

private placement Private placement (or non-public offering) is a funding round of securities which are sold not through a public offering, but rather through a private offering, mostly to a small number of chosen investors. Generally, these investors include friend ...

seeking

equity Equity may refer to: Finance, accounting and ownership * Equity (finance), ownership of assets that have liabilities attached to them ** Stock, equity based on original contributions of cash or other value to a business ** Home equity, the dif ...

financing in the amount of

US$ The United States dollar (symbol: $; code: USD; also abbreviated US$ or U.S. Dollar, to distinguish it from other dollar-denominated currencies; referred to as the dollar, U.S. dollar, American dollar, or colloquially buck) is the official ...

900,000. The team was expected to net $860,000 after a

broker A broker is a person or firm who arranges transactions between a buyer and a seller for a commission when the deal is executed. A broker who also acts as a seller or as a buyer becomes a principal party to the deal. Neither role should be confu ...

's commission paid to Sandlapper Securities.

Trade for the Bryan Brothers

The Aviators' first move after relocating to San Diego was to hire David Macpherson as their coach. Macpherson immediately set to work recruiting players to fill the Aviators' roster while he was in

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...

coaching

Bob Bob, BOB, or B.O.B. may refer to: Places *Mount Bob, New York, United States *Bob Island, Palmer Archipelago, Antarctica People, fictional characters, and named animals *Bob (given name), a list of people and fictional characters *Bob (surname) ...

and Mike Bryan at the

2014 Australian Open The 2014 Australian Open was a tennis tournament that took place at Melbourne Park between 13 and 26 January 2014. It was the 102nd edition of the Australian Open, and the first Grand Slam tournament of the year. The tournament consisted of event ...

. Since Macperson was the Bryan Brothers' coach, there was little doubt he was persuading them to play in WTT in San Diego. It didn't take long for Macpherson to convince the Bryans. However, the

Texas Wild The Texas Wild was a World TeamTennis team that played at the Four Seasons Resort and Club Dallas at Las Colinas in Irving, Texas, USA. The team was known as the Kansas City Explorers from 1993 until the 2012 season, before moving to Texas. With ...

had the right to protect and draft them. Within a few days, on January 23, 2014, the Aviators acquired the Bryan Brothers in a trade with the Wild in exchange for undisclosed financial consideration. After the trade, Mike Bryan said, "Growing up in California, we know that San Diego is a great tennis town and we are excited to play in front of the fans, family and friends." Bob Bryan added, "We have always loved playing Mylan World TeamTennis. The competition is very tough and every point is huge. It’s fast-paced and intense, and we love playing with that type of energy. We want to win for our city and our teammates. So we can’t wait for the Aviators' season to start."

Drafts

With the Sportimes finishing with WTT's worst record in

, the Aviators had the top pick in each round of both WTT drafts. With the first overall selection in the marquee player draft, the Aviators chose Bob and Mike Bryan whom they had protected as a doubles team. Thus, the identical

twin Twins are two offspring produced by the same pregnancy.MedicineNet > Definition of TwinLast Editorial Review: 19 June 2000 Twins can be either ''monozygotic'' ('identical'), meaning that they develop from one zygote, which splits and forms two em ...

s simultaneously became the first players who could call themselves San Diego Aviators. With the first pick in the second round of the marquee player draft (ninth overall), the Aviators selected Daniela Hantuchová who committed to playing in WTT full-time for the 2014 season. The Aviators protected

Květa Peschke Květoslava Peschke (née Hrdličková; born 9 July 1975) is a Czech retired professional tennis player who was ranked world No. 1 in doubles. She reached a career-high singles ranking of No. 26 in November 2005, winning one WTA singles title ...

, making her the only holdover player from the 2013 Sportimes on the 2014 Aviators' roster. With the first pick in the first round of the roster player draft, the Aviators selected Somdev Devvarman. They used their second round choice for

Raven Klaasen Raven Klaasen ( ; born 16 October 1982) is a South African professional tennis player who specialises in doubles. He achieved his career-high doubles ranking of world No. 7 in August 2019, and has won 19 doubles titles on the ATP Tour, includi ...

. With Hantuchová committed to playing full-time, the Aviators knew they did not need all four of their picks in the roster draft. They also knew they could wait until the fourth round to take Peschke whom they had protected. So, the Aviators traded their third round pick to the Springfield Lasers in exchange for the Lasers' fourth round pick and cash consideration. The Lasers used the pick they acquired from the Aviators to select Michael Russell. Russell went on to have the highest winning percentage in men's singles in WTT in 2014. He also won the opening set of men's singles in the Western Conference Championship Match against the Aviators and paired with Ross Hutchins to serve out the match against the Bryan Brothers and eliminate the Aviators. The Aviators used their fourth round pick (22nd overall) to draft Peschke and passed on the fourth round pick (27th overall) that they acquired in the trade with the Lasers, since their roster was full.

Debut in San Diego

The Aviators played their home matches during their first season in San Diego at the

Valley View Casino Center Pechanga Arena (historically known as the San Diego Sports Arena) is an indoor arena built in 1966 and located in the Midway area of San Diego, California. The arena seats 12,000 for indoor football, 12,920 for ice hockey, indoor soccer a ...

. The Aviators' inaugural match was a 23–11 home victory over the

Austin Aces The Austin Aces were a World TeamTennis (WTT) team in Austin, Texas, USA. The team was known as the Newport Beach Breakers from 2003 until the 2011 season and as the Orange County Breakers during 2012 and 2013, before moving to Texas for the 2014 ...

on July 7, 2014. Somdev Devvarman opened the match with a 5–2 set win in men's singles over Andy Roddick. Vera Zvonareva beat Daniela Hantuchová, 5–3, in women's singles to cut the Aviators' lead to 8–7. Raven Klaasen and Květa Peschke followed with a 5–2 set win in mixed doubles over Roddick and Zvonareva to extend the Aviators' lead to 13–9. A 5–2 women's doubles set win by Hantuchová and Peschke over Eva Hrdinová and Zvonareva gave the Aviators an 18–11 lead heading to the final set. Devvarman and Klaasen dominated Roddick and

Treat Huey Treat Conrad Huey (; born August 28, 1985) is a Filipino-American tennis player who represents the Philippines in international competitions. He turned professional in 2008 and he started representing the Philippines in the Davis Cup and the ...

, 5–0, in men's doubles to close out the match and give the Aviators a 23–11 victory.

Aviators snap Kastles' winning streak

In their seventh match of the season, the Aviators faced a major test on the road against the three-time defending WTT Champion Washington Kastles who were riding an 18-match regular-season and playoff winning streak. The Aviators proved themselves up to the task by taking four of the five sets and handing the Kastles their first loss of the season, 22–18. The Aviators got set wins from Somdev Devvarman (5–4 in men's singles), Daniela Hantuchová and

(5–3 in women's doubles), Hantuchová (5–2 over Martina Hingis in women's singles) and Devvarman and

(5–4 in men's doubles). The Aviators improved their record to 5 wins and 2 losses with the victory.

Successful road trip

In their 11th match of the season, the Aviators completed a six-match road trip against the

with a victory to give themselves a record of 4 wins and 2 losses on the trip. With just three home matches remaining after this one, this victory was the start of a four-match winning streak with which the Aviators ended the regular season. The Aviators won four of the five sets in this match led by Somdev Devvarman (5–4 over Andy Roddick in men's singles), Devvarman and

(5–4 in men's doubles), Daniela Hantuchová and

(5–2 in women's doubles) and Hantuchová (5–3 in women's singles).

Clinching a postseason home match

On July 20, the Aviators defeated the Springfield Lasers, 21–15, to improve their record to 8 wins and 4 losses. The Aviators got set wins from

and Daniela Hantuchová (5–3 in women's doubles), Mike Bryan and Peschke (5–4 in mixed doubles), Hantuchová (5–3 in women's singles) and

and Mike Bryan (5–0 in men's doubles). Later that evening, the Aviators clinched a playoff berth and

home-court advantage In team sports, the term home advantage – also called home ground, home field, home-field advantage, home court, home-court advantage, defender's advantage or home-ice advantage – describes the benefit that the home team is said to gai ...

for the Western Conference Championship Match when the

defeated the

, 22–16.

Best record in WTT

In their final regular-season match, the Aviators defeated the

, 22–12, at

to give them the best regular-season record in WTT in 2014. The Aviators and Washington Kastles both finished the season with 10 wins and 4 losses, but the Aviators won the only regular-season meeting between the teams, giving them a tiebreaker edge. The Aviators won four of the five sets in the match against the Aces and were led by Somdev Devvarman (5–0 in men's singles),

Bob Bryan Robert Charles Bryan (born April 29, 1978) is an American former doubles world No. 1 tennis player. He has won twenty-three Grand Slam titles: 16 in men's doubles and 7 in mixed doubles. He turned professional in 1998. With his twin ...

and

(5–2 in mixed doubles), Daniela Hantuchová (5–3 in women's singles) and Bob and Mike Bryan (5–2 in men's doubles). The first-place finish gave the Aviators the opportunity to host their first playoff game for the Western Conference championship.

Playoffs

The Aviators met the defending Western Conference Champion Springfield Lasers at

for the Western Conference title on July 24, 2014. Michael Russell got the Lasers started by winning a tiebreaker in the men's singles set against Somdev Devvarman.

and Daniela Hantuchová answered for the Aviators with a tiebreaker win of their own in women's doubles over

Olga Govortsova Olga Alekseyevna Govortsova ( be, Вольга Аляксееўна Гаварцова (Volha Alyakseyeuna Havartsova); ; born 23 August 1988) is a Belarusian professional tennis player. On 23 June 2008, she achieved a career-high singles ranki ...

and Līga Dekmeijere to tie the match, 9–9.

and Peschke gave the Aviators a 14–12 lead in the match with a 5–3 set win over Ross Hutchins and Govortsova in mixed doubles. Govortsova dominated Hantuchová, 5–0, to give the Lasers a 17–14 lead heading to the final set. Russell and Hutchins took the men's doubles from Bob and Mike Bryan, 5–3, to secure a 22–17 victory for the Lasers and the Western Conference Championship.

Event chronology

* January 15, 2014: Claude Okin,

of the New York Sportimes announced that the franchise had been sold to businessman Russell Geyser and his minority partner Jack McGrory, and the team would be relocated to

and renamed the San Diego Aviators. David Macpherson was hired as the team's coach. * January 23, 2014: The Aviators acquired the rights to

and Mike Bryan in a trade with the

in exchange for undisclosed financial consideration. * February 11, 2014: The Aviators selected

and Mike Bryan as a protected doubles team pick in the first round of the WTT Marquee Player Draft and Daniela Hantuchová in the second round. * March 11, 2014: The Aviators traded the first pick of the third round of the WTT Roster Player Draft (number 15 overall) to the Springfield Lasers in exchange for the sixth pick in the fourth round (number 27 overall) and financial consideration. * March 11, 2014: The Aviators drafted Somdev Devvarman,

and

(who was protected) in the WTT Roster Player Draft. * July 7, 2014: The Aviators opened their season against the

at the

in the debut match for both teams after the relocations of their franchises. The Aviators defeated the Aces, 23–11. * July 14, 2014: After opening the season with six consecutive victories, the Washington Kastles suffered their first defeat, losing at home to the Aviators, 22–18. Including the 2013 regular season and playoffs, the Kastles had won 18 in a row. * July 20, 2014: The Aviators defeated the Springfield Lasers, 21–15, to improve their record to 8 wins and 4 losses. Later that evening, the Aviators clinched a playoff berth and

for the Western Conference Championship Match when the

defeated the

, 22–16. * July 23, 2014: The Aviators defeated the

, 22–12, at

to give them the best regular-season record in WTT in 2014. * July 24, 2014: In the first-ever playoff match for the Aviators since the franchise relocated from New York, the team hosted the defending Western Conference Champion Springfield Lasers. The Lasers got set wins from Michael Russell (5–4 in men's singles),

(5–0 in women's singles) and Russell and Ross Hutchins (5–3 in men's doubles) on their way to a 22–17 victory and their second consecutive Western Conference Championship. * July 26, 2014: WTT announced that Daniela Hantuchová had been named Female Most Valuable Player, Somdev Devvarman had been named Male Rookie of the Year and David Macpherson had been named Coach of the Year.

Draft picks

Since the Sportimes had the worst record in WTT in 2013, the Aviators had the first selection in each round of both WTT drafts.

Marquee player draft

The Aviators acquired the rights to

and Mike Bryan in a trade with the

in exchange for undisclosed financial consideration on January 23, 2014. This allowed the Aviators to protect and select the Bryan Brothers in the marquee player draft. The selections made by the Aviators are shown in the table below. Daniela Hantuchová committed to playing full-time for the Aviators for the 2014 season.

Roster player draft

With Hantuchová committed to playing full-time, the Aviators knew they would not need all four of their draft choices. After making their first two selections, the third player they intended to pick was a protected player (

) which they could choose in the fourth round. This gave the Aviators a valuable third round draft pick which they could trade. The Springfield Lasers had their eyes on an unprotected player and were willing to deal for the Aviators' pick. The Aviators traded the first selection in the third round (15th overall) to the Lasers in exchange for the sixth selection in the fourth round (27th overall) and financial consideration. With the pick they acquired from the Aviators, the Lasers selected Michael Russell. The selections made by the Aviators are shown in the table below.

Match log

Regular season

Playoffs

: ;Western Conference Championship Match

Team personnel

''Reference:''

Players and coaches

* David Macpherson, Coach *

Ashley Fisher Ashley Fisher (born 25 September 1975) is a professional tennis player who comes from New South Wales in Australia. Fisher turned professional in 1998. Fisher has never played a major singles match on the ATP Tour, but has won four notable do ...

, Assistant Coach *

* Mike Bryan * Somdev Devvarman * Daniela Hantuchová *

Front office

* Russell Geyser, Principal Owner * Jack McGrory, Minority Owner *

Fred Luddy Fred Luddy (born ) is an American billionaire businessman, and the founder of ServiceNow, a cloud computing company. Early life Luddy grew up in New Castle, Indiana, the son of an accountant father and a Catholic-school teacher mother. Luddy wen ...

, Minority Owner * Billy Berger, CEO * Shelly Hall, General Manager

Statistics

Players are listed in order of their game-winning percentage provided they played in at least 40% of the Aviators' games in that event, which is the WTT minimum for qualification for league leaders in individual statistical categories. ;Men's singles – regular season ;Women's singles – regular season ;Men's doubles – regular season ;Women's doubles – regular season ;Mixed doubles – regular season ;Team totals – regular season ;Men's singles – playoffs ;Women's singles – playoffs ;Men's doubles – playoffs ;Women's doubles – playoffs ;Mixed doubles – playoffs ;Team totals – playoffs ;Men's singles – all matches ;Women's singles – all matches ;Men's doubles – all matches ;Women's doubles – all matches ;Mixed doubles – all matches ;Team totals – all matches

Transactions

* January 23, 2014: The Aviators acquired the rights to

and Mike Bryan from the

in exchange for undisclosed financial consideration. * February 11, 2014: The Aviators selected

and Mike Bryan (who were protected) along with Daniela Hantuchová in the WTT Marquee Player Draft. * March 11, 2014: The Aviators traded the first pick of the third round of the WTT roster draft (number 15 overall) to the Springfield Lasers in exchange for the sixth pick in the fourth round (number 27 overall) and financial consideration. The Lasers used the selection they acquired in the trade to draft Michael Russell. The Aviators passed on using the selection they acquired in the trade. * March 11, 2014: The Aviators selected

(who was protected) along with Somdev Devvarman and

in the WTT Roster Player Draft. * March 11, 2014: The Aviators left

Anna-Lena Grönefeld Anna-Lena Grönefeld (also spelled Groenefeld; born 4 June 1985) is a German former professional tennis player. Competing as a professional from 2003 until 2019, she won one singles title on the WTA Tour, at the 2006 Mexican Open, and reached t ...

, Robert Kendrick and

Jesse Witten Jesse Witten (born October 15, 1982 in Naples, Florida) is an American professional list of male tennis players, tennis player. He is a graduate of Lely High School and the University of Kentucky, where he majored in kinesiology. College career ...

unprotected in the roster player draft. Grönefeld was drafted in the first round by the Springfield Lasers who traded up to select her. The remaining unprotected players effectively became free agents. * March 26, 2014: The Aviators left

John McEnroe John Patrick McEnroe Jr. (born February 16, 1959) is an American former professional tennis player. He was known for his shot-making and volleying skills, his rivalries with Björn Borg and Jimmy Connors, and his confrontational on-court beha ...

unprotected at the expiration of the wildcard player protection window effectively making him a free agent.

Individual honors and achievements

The following table shows individual honors bestowed upon players and coaches of the San Diego Aviators in 2014. Somdev Devvarman and

finished tied for the best regular-season winning percentage in men's doubles in WTT. Daniela Hantuchová was second in regular-season winning percentage in women's singles. Hantuchová and

were tied for the third best winning percentage in women's doubles.

Charitable support

During each night of the 2014 season, the WTT team with the most aces received

1,000 toward a local charity of the team's choice as part of a program called Mylan Aces. In the case of a tie, the award was split accordingly. The Aviators earned $500 for the Greater San Diego and Desert Area Chapter of the

Crohn's & Colitis Foundation of America The Crohn's & Colitis Foundation (CCF) is a volunteer-driven non-profit organization dedicated to finding cures for Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis and improving the quality of life of children and adults affected by these digestive disea ...

through the program.

References

External links

San Diego Aviators official websiteWorld TeamTennis official website
{{2014 in tennis San Diego Aviators season San Diego Aviators 2014 San Diego Aviators 2014 San Diego Aviators

Season recap

Relocation to San Diego

Trade for the Bryan Brothers

Drafts

Debut in San Diego

Aviators snap Kastles' winning streak

Successful road trip

Clinching a postseason home match

Best record in WTT

Playoffs

Event chronology

Draft picks

Marquee player draft

Roster player draft

Match log

Regular season

Playoffs

Team personnel

Players and coaches

Front office

Statistics

Transactions

Individual honors and achievements

Charitable support

See also

References

External links