Leach Leads Dukes to First Home Victory

Greg Patton beamed in front of the TV cameras. So what if it was only local cable? Rick Leach was hemmed in by autograph-seeking children. So what if it was just the ball boys and girls?

For the first time this season, the Newport Beach Dukes left the John Wayne Tennis Club pleased with their tennis. There was no sense breaking the mood.

The Dukes needed a little more than 2 1/2 hours to rout the New Jersey Stars, 28-13, in front of about 1,000 spectators. The victory broke the Dukes’ two-match losing streak and was the team’s first home victory in four appearances.

The Dukes improved to 3-5; New Jersey is 3-7.

This also was the first chance for Leach, a U.S. Davis Cup doubles standout, to play more than one set for the Dukes. Since joining the Dukes last week, he had only been allowed to play men’s doubles, in accordance with TeamTennis’ ringer rules.

Thursday, Leach overpowered New Jersey’s Larry Stefanki, 6-0, then teamed with Tim Pawsat to win the men’s doubles, 6-1, over Stefanki and Leif Shiras.

“It reminds me of Robert Redford in ‘The Natural,’ ” Patton said. “He (Leach) picked this team up. I can’t tell you how much fun I had tonight. Whenever I’ve seen Ricky play, I’ve always been coaching against him.”

Leach played at USC, winning the 1986 NCAA doubles title with Pawsat. Patton’s day job is coaching UC Irvine’s men’s team.

“I’m confident we can win the rest of our matches,” Patton said. “We’ve got our biggest match of the year coming up. This place is going to be rocking and rolling.”

The Dukes play host to the L.A. Strings, featuring Jimmy Connors, at 7 p.m. Saturday in what figures to be the biggest draw of the season. And a Connors-Leach matchup looms as the highlight of the evening.

Before Thursday, the last time Leach had played singles was in a U.S. Davis Cup victory over Mexico in Newport, R.I., in June. And then he played only after the United States had clinched the victory.

In other sets: Elise Burgin and Amy Frazier defeated Ann Grossman and Rennae Stubbs, 6-2, in women’s doubles; Frazier defeated Grossman, 6-4, in women’s singles, and Stefanki and Stubbs defeated Burgin and Pawsat, 6-4, in mixed doubles.