It was game, set and match at the final games of the 25th annual King of the Hill Tournament, held last Tuesday evening at the Moorings Yacht & Country Club to benefit the Youth Guidance Mentoring & Activities Program.

The stands were filled with tennis fans eager to cheer on their favorite local tennis professionals, as they competed in the three-division tournament: open, 40 and over, and 50 and over. To accommodate ever increasing crowds, this year the earlier tournaments in the eight-week round-robin professional doubles competition had been played at the Boulevard Tennis Club, followed by matches on courts at the Moorings.

Quail Valley professional Chase Perez-Blanco took home the title of King of the Hill for the second year in a row. He and runner-up Andrew Butz earned a Main Draw Doubles Wild Card into the 2020 Mardy Fish Children’s Foundation Tennis Championships, which will be held April 26 to May 3 at the Boulevard Tennis Club.

The tournament was founded by tennis professional Gigi Casapu in honor of his brother, Jonny Casapu, a world-class tennis player who died 25 years ago in a car accident while in Romania.

“My brother was passionate about tennis and helping children,” said Casapu. “So the Youth Guidance Foundation was a natural choice, especially since I had already worked with them when I was at Timber Ridge so many years ago.”

Proceeds from the tournament, which has raised more than $451,000 since 1996, support the 300 children who annually participate in Youth Guidance programs, including one-to-one and group mentoring, academic support, activities and summer camps, and a nutritious meal each day.

“This is the last day of our tournament,” said Felix Cruz, Youth Guidance executive director. “We are so excited to see you all here, coming out to support us and support the children of Youth Guidance Mentoring Academy. We serve youngsters from low-income families and single-parent homes. Your support and your contributions help us to do that.”

Cruz said it was with a heavy heart that he would be retiring after 35 years of serving children here and in other cities, and he introduced incoming executive director, Philip Barnes.

Holly Forde, Youth Guidance program specialist, presented the 2020 Gigi Casapu Scholarship, a $1,000 award, to Vero Beach High School student Isaiah Davis. Davis said he plans to attend Indian River State College to earn a degree in fire science before pursuing his dream of becoming a firefighter.

“It’s great to see somebody using the scholarship for his future,” Casapu told the crowd, before the balls began to fly during the final tournament play.

Shake out your grass skirts for the 43rd annual Tropical Night Luau on June 20 to benefit Youth Guidance. For more information visit YouthGuidanceProgram.org.