2016 Orange County Breakers season

On December 14, 2015, Austin Aces owner Lorne Abony announced that the team had been unable to find a suitable permanent venue and would move back to Orange County, California for the 2016 season and be renamed the Orange County Breakers. The Aces officially reported their average home attendance in 2014, as 2,155. However, general manager Allen Hardison said that the real figure may have been closer to 1,300. In 2015, the average attendance was approximately 950, even though the first 1,000 fans at the gates for the Western Conference Championship Match who had an online code were admitted for free. Hardison was complimentary of the staffs at both Cedar Park Center and Gregory Gymnasium, and he also noted that the fans who supported the Aces were "some of the best in the league." Hardison said that in order for a WTT franchise to survive, it has to have a venue that meets established criteria for location, venue type and availability, and that ideally offers an outdoor setting. Although the team's new home court was not immediately announced, officials with a desirable venue in Orange County had reportedly reached out to the Aces to lure them back.[1]

On January 27, 2016, the Breakers announced that they would play their 2016 home matches at Breakers Stadium at the Newport Beach Tennis Club. "We are thrilled that the Breakers have found an outdoor venue to call home at the Newport Beach Tennis Club. The Breakers have a long history in this city, and Breakers Stadium at Newport Beach Tennis Club will offer tennis fans the perfect setting to watch world-class tennis," said Hardison. "Bringing the Breakers and Mylan World TeamTennis to the Newport Beach Tennis Club is something that we have been looking into the past few years. Breakers matches will bring Newport Beach and Orange County residents access to some of the best tennis players on the tours. Our club is excited to be a part of that and play a role in bringing the Breakers and professional tennis back to Newport Beach," said Newport Beach Tennis Club owner Steve Joyce."[2]

On February 17, 2016, WTT announced that the Breakers had traded former world number 1 male player Andy Roddick to the expansion New York Empire for undisclosed consideration.[3]

At the WTT Draft on March 25, 2016, the Breakers traded their first-round selection in the marquee player portion of the draft to the Washington Kastles for undisclosed consideration. The Kastles used this pick to select Bob and Mike Bryan as a doubles team. The Breakers passed on making a selection in the second round of the marquee player portion of the draft. In the first two rounds of the roster player portion of the draft, the Breakers protected Nicole Gibbs and 2015 WTT Female Rookie of the Year Alla Kudryavtseva. In the third round, the Breakers selected Scott Lipsky, who played for the now-defunct Boston Lobsters in 2015, and left Jarmere Jenkins unprotected. In the fourth round, the Breakers selected Dennis Novikov and left 2015 WTT Male Most Valuable Player Teymuraz Gabashvili unprotected. The Breakers passed on selecting a roster-exempt player in the fifth round of the roster portion of the draft.[4]

On April 29, 2016, the Breakers announced that they had re-signed Steve Johnson, a resident of nearby Redondo Beach, California, as a wildcard player. Johnson earned the WTT Male Rookie of the Year award playing for the Breakers in 2013.[5][6]

The Breakers' return to Southern California opened with a four-game series against the San Diego Aviators. When the Breakers last called Orange County their home in 2013, the Aviators were known as the New York Sportimes. While the teams did not have any history as geographic rivals, the franchises did meet in the 2005 WTT Finals with the Sportimes earning the title with a 21–18 victory over the Newport Beach Breakers. The two franchises also boasted the best regular-season records in WTT over the past two seasons with the Aviators achieving the feat in 2014, and the Breakers, playing as the Austin Aces doing so in 2015.

The Aviators hosted the opening match on July 31, 2016. Dennis Novikov got the Breakers started by holding all four of his service games and converting one of three break-point opportunities against James Blake for a 5–3 set win in men's singles. Nicole Gibbs gave the Breakers a 10–5 lead, when she won the second set of women's singles. However, the Aviators regrouped and won the next two sets of men's and women's doubles to tie the match at 15 all. The teams exchanged breaks in the final set of mixed doubles, before Darija Jurak and Raven Klaasen won the set tiebreaker, 5–2, over Alla Kudryavtseva and Scott Lipsky to give the Aviators a 20–19 victory.[7]

The following evening, the Breakers hosted the Aviators in their first home match in Orange County since 2013. Kudryavtseva and Lipsky immediately avenged their loss in the previous night's final set by taking the opening set of mixed doubles from Jurak and Klaasen, 5–2. Gibbs followed by winning the women's singles set in a tiebreaker to give the Breakers a 10–6 lead. The Aviators won the next two sets of men's and women's doubles to close the gap to 17–16. After the players exchanged breaks, Steve Johnson secured a 22–20 victory for the Breakers by winning a tiebreaker in men's singles over Ryan Harrison.[8]

The teams returned to San Diego for the third match of their series on August 2, 2016. The Aviators won the first three sets to build a 15–5 lead. Gibbs and Kudryavtseva cut the lead to 18–10 with a 5–3 set win in women's doubles. Kudryavtseva then teamed with Lipsky to win a fifth-set tiebreaker in mixed doubles. However, the Aviators broke Kudryavtseva's serve in the first game of extended play to secure a 23–15 victory.[9]

The following evening in Orange County, Lipsky and Novikov won all four of the 3-all points played, successfully defended all five break points they faced and converted their only break-point chance against Klaasen and Harrison to take the opening set of men's doubles, 5–2. The Aviators won the next three sets, two of them in tiebreakers, to take a 17–16 lead to the final set. Gibbs and Kudryavtseva came up with an early break and then held serve the rest of the way to take the women's doubles set, 5–2, and give the Breakers a 21–19 win. The four matches in four nights ended in a split and had quickly developed the feel of a rivalry. "It definitely starts to get a little personal," said Gibbs. "Things got a little feisty tonight, so it was a good night to bring the cameras. We were getting in each other's faces, and there were some big 'Come ons'. Definitely some emotional moments."[10]

Following their season-opening series with the Aviators, the Breakers had a day off to prepare for the second match of their five-match homestand against the five-time defending WTT champion Washington Kastles. The Kastles who visited Orange County on August 5, 2016, were a very different team from the one that won five WTT titles from 2011 through 2015, and started the 2016 season 4–0. They had suffered injuries to both Mardy Fish and Sam Querrey and lost Leander Paes, Martina Hingis and Anastasia Rodionova to Olympic duty. Hours before the match, the Kastles announced they had signed Bjorn Fratangelo and Ken Skupski as substitute players. The newly signed pair, both making their WTT debuts, opened the match by losing the men's doubles set to Scott Lipsky and Dennis Novikov, 5–2. Nicole Gibbs topped Madison Brengle in women's singles, 5–2, to give the Breakers a 10–4 lead. Novikov took the men's singles set from Fratangelo, 5–2, to increase the lead to 15–6 at halftime. Alla Kudryavtseva and Lipsky didn't face a break point while converting both of their own opportunities for a dominant 5–1 set win in mixed doubles in which they won 22 of the 32 points played. Gibbs and Kudryavtseva closed out the sweep of all five sets by taking women's doubles and giving the Breakers a 25–10 victory in the worst loss in the Kastles' franchise history.[11]

The following evening, the Breakers hosted the expansion New York Empire and recognized the team's past. In a ceremony at halftime, former coach Trevor Kronemann became the first Breaker to be honored with a retired jersey. Kronemann coached the Breakers for seven seasons from 2007 through 2013. "You think all the humbling is over, and then something like this happens," said Kronemann. "It's a great honor. It's something that you don't think that you're going to accomplish. You never play the game for those reasons, but it really makes you reflect on what you've done, where you've been, the relationships, and it's a huge honor. Obviously, we've had some great players play here, and to be the first one is very humbling." The ceremony took place with the Breakers enjoying a 15–6 halftime lead for the second consecutive evening, having won the first three sets. Lipsky, Novikov, Gibbs and Kudryavtseva each won two events in a 25–8 rout of the Empire during which the teams only spent one hour and 15 minutes on the court.[12]

The Breakers entered their August 7 home match with the Philadelphia Freedoms in a three-way tie for first place with the Freedoms and the Aviators at 4–2. After the Freedoms won the opening set of men's doubles in a tiebreaker, Gibbs and Novikov won the women's and men's singles to give the Breakers a 14–10 halftime lead. The Freedoms edged closer by winning another tiebreaker in mixed doubles. But Gibbs and Kudryavtseva closed out the match in women's doubles by converting their only break-point opportunity while not facing one on their own serve to give the Breakers a 23–17 victory.[13]

The Breakers' homestand concluded with the first match of a home-and-home series against the Springfield Lasers on August 9, 2016. The Breakers won four of the five sets on their way to a 24–17 victory. Lipsky, Gibbs and Kudryavtseva each won two set as the Breakers completed their home schedule with a perfect 6–0 record. Gibbs earned a standing ovation from the home crowd, including owner Lorne Abony, when she hit several defensive shots in a long women's singles rally against Pauline Parmentier before finally winning the point on an overhead shot.[14]

Despite losing three of the five sets the following evening in Springfield, the Breakers continued their winning streak led by the solid play of Gibbs who teamed with Kudryavtseva for a 5–1 set win in women's doubles and then won the women's singles, 5–3. After Novikov dropped a tiebreaker in the final set of men's doubles, he won the first game of extended play to secure a 22–19 victory over the Lasers.[15]

On August 11, 2016, the Breakers visited the Empire at Forest Hills Stadium. After Kudryavtseva and Lipsky took the opening set of mixed doubles, the Empire won the women's doubles and men's singles set to take a 13–9 lead. Gibbs turned things around for the Breakers as she held in all three of her service games and broke the Empire twice for a 5–0 set win in women's singles that gave the Breakers a 14–13 lead. Lipsky and Novikov won a tiebreaker to take the fifth set of men's doubles and secure a 19–17 win. With their seventh straight victory, the Breakers clinched a berth in the WTT Finals for the second straight season, having lost the 2015 final playing as the Austin Aces.[16]

The clinching win over the Empire put the Breakers alone atop the WTT standings with 8 wins and 2 losses, one match ahead of the San Diego Aviators, with each team having two matches to play. However, the Breakers lost their final two regular-season matches to the Philadelphia Freedoms and the Washington Kastles to fall to 8–4. The Aviators split their final two matches to also finish 8–4. With the teams having split their four matches during the regular season, the tie for first place was broken by games won in head-to-head matches, which favored the Aviators, 82–77. Finishing first meant the Aviators would be treated as the home team in the WTT Finals and have the right to choose the order of play.

Nicole Gibbs was named 2016 WTT Female Most Valuable Player.[17] Gibbs was tied for first in the league with teammate Alla Kudryavtseva in winning percentage in women's doubles and was also second in women's singles.[18]

The Breakers met their new rivals, the San Diego Aviators, in the WTT Finals on August 26, 2016. The Aviators won the first four sets, all by 5–2 scores to take a 20–8 lead to the final set. Dennis Novikov won a tiebreaker against 2016 WTT Male Most Valuable Player Ryan Harrison in the final set of men's singles to send the match to extended play with the Aviators leading 24–13. Novikov held serve in the opening game of extended play but was unable to break Harrison's serve in the second game, giving the Aviators a 25–14 victory. It was the second straight year the Breakers' season ended with a loss in the WTT Finals.[19]

Legend
Breakers Win	Breakers Loss
Home team in CAPS

Legend
Breakers Win	Breakers Loss
Home team in CAPS

• Rick Leach – Head Coach
• Nicole Gibbs
• Steve Johnson
• Alla Kudryavtseva
• Scott Lipsky
• Dennis Novikov

• Lorne Abony – Owner
• Allen Hardison – General Manager