2019 Champions
4.5 Champion - Danny Schneller



Danny jumped into Gladiator Tennis in our Fall Season this year and compiled a 4-1 record. That was good enough preparation for a strong playoff run.  In the playoffs, he rolled through without dropping a set, although he did have a couple close calls.  #2 seed Travis Blair pushed him to a 2nd set tiebreak in the quarterfinals, and #1 seed Armin Muhamedagic also him pushed to a 2nd set tiebreak in the finals.  Danny is the new king of the hill, the player to beat for 2020!

Danny's Story:  I am a St. Louis native. I played juniors and high school tennis in the area before moving to Tennessee for school. I moved back in June of 2019 and got back in to tennis almost immediately. Gladiator was an excellent reintroduction to competitive tennis! 


4.0 Champion - Tracy Carlson



Tracy has played in Gladiator Tennis since 2015, the first year of the league in St. Louis, and she previously won the 4.0 playoffs in 2016.  This year she dominated her competition throughout the summer with a 20-1 record, her only loss coming against another longtime gladiator player, Beth Jameson.  In the playoffs, she won without dropping a set.

Tracy's Story:  I started playing tennis HS because the head coach of girl's basketball was also the head coach of tennis. I've always been pretty quick so he thought the sport would translate well for me as an athlete. Although I hated it my freshmen year and wasn't the greatest, I stuck with it because I'm so competitive. I became the most improved player on the team and competed at the state level by my junior year. Tennis became my second love to the sport I'd been playing since 4th grade (basketball).

I joined the Army and unfortunately/fortunately whenever I returned from deployments basketball season had passed and my only college option was tennis. I played for Maryville University in St. Louis as their #1 S/D player by my Graduate year and also became the first athlete to earn the Athletic Director's Award.

I heard about Gladiator tennis from a fellow player that I used to just hit around with from time to time. Gladiator tennis has been awesome for me because of the flexibility of scheduling matches and the competition helps make me a better player. I coach 3 sports and teach at the HS level including boys tennis. My love for tennis has only grown over the years and I am thankful for Gladiator tennis because it has been a big part of that. ...this is definitely the best option for me and the most affordable!


4.0 Champion - Matt Liberson



This was Matt's 2nd year in the league.  He started the Spring Season at 3.5, posting a 6-1 record, and moved up to 4.0. For the Summer and Fall Seasons, Matt continued his winning ways with an 8-4 record.  In the playoffs, Matt turned on the afterburners and won all rounds without dropping a set. His closest match was in the finals against Shawn Young where he prevailed in a 1st set tiebreak and won 7-6,6-1.  4.5 is next for Matt in 2020!

Matt's Story:  I started playing tennis in my third year in high school. Before then I never played and the only person who use to play that was close to me was my dad. Fortunately, (with some help) I was able to quickly pick it up and I was among the top 10 on our high school team. After that I did not play much through college and it quickly got away from me. 

Last year, I realized I wanted to take it more seriously and I even got a few lessons from a coach. She was the one who introduced me to Gladiator Tennis and I have played in every season since. It allows me to meet new people and face new challenges with every match. I plan on continuing my pursuit to improve my tennis skills and become the best player that I can be. And to make new friends along the way. 


3.5 Champion - Lisa LaRose



Lisa has played every year in the league since Gladiator Tennis' 1st year in St. Louis in 2015.  She played at the 3.5 level for every season until breaking out this summer with a 5-1 record, and moved up to 4.0 for the first time in the Fall Season.   Lisa was eligible to move back down to 3.5 for the Playoffs and defeated another longtime gladiator, Laura Rose, in the finals.

Lisa's Story:  I played off and on since high school, but not competitively, until I was in my early 40's. A friend asked me to sub for her in a doubles match. At that point I hadn't picked up a racket in some time, but I got hooked!   Sometime after that, a group of us were all playing out of the old Steel Shop Tennis Club, when one of my friends started recruiting us to play in Gladiator. I signed up and haven't looked back. I've played 12 seasons over the course of the last few years. I did have to sit out one season after breaking my wrist (in a gladiator match :-) ) which resulted in two surgeries.

What I specifically like about Gladiator Tennis is playing and meeting different people than I would normally play in the USTA season.  It's also an opportunity to play singles, and to play outside.  I honestly play for the exercise, and though many don't, I actually like playing in the heat and being outdoors for a match.


3.5 Champion - Aaron Huber



Aaron entered the league this summer, and won all of his matches at the 3.0 level.  In the Fall Season at 3.5, 5 of his 7 matches went to 3 sets, and it appeared that he had arrived at the skill level that he might plateau at for awhile.  But in the playoffs, Aaron found another gear and rolled through the competition without dropping a set.  Aaron will start 2020 at the 4.0 level and see how much more he is capable of.

Aaron's Story:  I originally got into tennis with a couple lessons and playing recreationally with friends in junior high through college years.  I played doubles and singles for the last two years of high school, pick up games in college with my roommate and players/coach on the women's team since a men's team wasn't an option.  In the last couple years, I've gotten back into playing more competitively and on a more routine basis.  I started with the USTA doing some indoor leagues, then gave Gladiator a shot this year with a recommendation from a player that I met through USTA and now play with on a regular basis.

I'm so glad I decided to sign up with Gladiator tennis.  It has provided a great outlet to meet many great tennis players but also fantastic people in general.  I've developed quite a passion for tennis and love the flexibility Gladiator tennis offers throughout the season.  I look forward to playing with Gladiator in the years to come.


3.0 Champion - Julie Moore



Congratulations to Julie, for being champion at 3.0 for the 2nd consecutive year!  

Julie's Story:  My tennis story began when I was 6 years old, taking lessons at the tennis courts in my neighborhood in Eureka, Mo.  I played from that day, all the way up until the end of high school.  In college, my dorm was located directly next to the courts, so I played any time I could find an opponent. After I left college, tennis took a back seat to my career and eventually my growing family. When my 2nd son turned 8 months old, I decided it was time to get back into the game. After finding a great team of women through USTA, I wanted more! A friend led me to Gladiator and I am so grateful for the opportunity that it has given me to play MORE tennis and ultimately make more friends in the tennis community.


3.0 Champion - Vamsi Rayavarapu



The first round of the 2019 playoffs proved to be the biggest test for Vamsi, as he pulled out a closely contested 3 setter against Ben Slen.  Vamsi rolled through the semis and finals to become champion in his first year of the league.

Vamsi's Story:  I started playing tennis for the first time when I moved to the USA back in 2010. I used to play with my friends at our apartment tennis courts almost 4 times a week and my love for tennis slowly grew when I started to hit some forehand shots. Just when I started to improve my game, I stopped playing for almost 5 years when I moved back to India in 2012. But I picked up tennis again on my second trip to the USA in 2017, and now I try to play tennis almost every day in the summer and the fall. I was introduced to gladiator by a friend and I joined the league for the Summer Season of this year. I improved my game and I cannot believe I have won the 3.0 playoffs! Gladiator allows me the flexibility and satisfies my desire to compete with new tennis players. I continue to compete, learn and love this great sport.


2.5 Champion - Lisa Randoll



This was Lisa's first year in Gladiator Tennis.  A highlight of the year was her 2.5 Playoff Final versus Cara Berta.  Lisa won the 1st set 6-3, but fell behind 5-0 in the 2nd set.  That's when she found out how much grit she had, and won the next 7 games to win the 2nd set and the match.  

Lisa's Story:  I got into tennis after watching my husband and his friend play. I concluded that it ‘looked easy’ and ‘anyone could do it’. Well, it turns out that it was the hardest thing I’d ever done, but that it’s the best thing that had ever happened to me. Over the course of the last four years, many great teachers have helped me become the player I am today: Scotty Goodman who taught me my groundstrokes, Dana Best, who helped me develop a down the line shot known by my tennis buddies as the ‘arrow of death’, and my poor husband…who spent the first nine months of my pitiful tennis career chasing balls that I hit over a ten foot fence around the court we played on. I got into Gladiator hoping to improve my mobility. I was born with a condition that inhibits my ability to move and react like most people, and I had hoped that joining Gladiator would help improve my movement for doubles. It did. Another thing that helped aid my success was my appointment as Francis Howell High’s head JV girls tennis coach. Spending hours a day watching others develop their game also helped me improve my own. Between moving in, learning your opponents’ game and exploiting it, and just believing that you can come back – especially when you’re down – made a huge difference for me. Singles is an individual game, but I won because of all the great people I have worked with, learned from, and been proud of. It really does take a village.


2.5 Champion - Ryan Migneron



Ryan cleared the field pretty easily in the 2.5 Playoffs, losing no more than 4 games in any of his matches.  3.0 awaits for him in 2020!

Ryan's Story:  I grew up in St. Louis playing baseball and soccer. I started playing tennis in high school when I was a 5 foot tall freshman who was too small for baseball. I really enjoyed the sport and played all through high school and earned a tennis scholarship to Missouri Baptist University.  After college, I was able to continue enjoying compettive play right away because Gladiator Tennis started in STL in 2015.  I have been playing in the league every year since then.