Okanagan players rank at Vernon tennis tourney
Published 12:30 pm Wednesday, July 1, 2026
Three players from Vernon, and three from Kelowna, wound up in the A finals at the 99th annual Hankey Cup Doubles Tennis Tournament.
The nearly century-old event ran June 27 to 29 at the Kalamalka Country Club on the shores of Kal Lake in Coldstream.
Participants came from Vernon, Salmon Arm, Kelowna, and Penticton to play in this annual tournament which included men’s A and B doubles, women’s A doubles, and mixed A and B doubles events.
Spectators were entertained by many close matches and exciting tennis.
Jeremy Bell of Vernon teamed with West Martin of Salmon Arm to knock off the Vernon duo of Derek Lord and Jerry Reinhardt in the Men’s A Doubles final.
The Women’s A Division title went to Kelowna’s Supha Wall and Olivia Dembroski, with Meryl Ogden of Vernon and Eva Koksalova from Kelowna finishing second.
Taking the Men’s B Doubles title were Mark Corbett and Barry Nelson, narrowly defeating Ralph Stevens and Shane Valouch in an all-Vernon matchup.
In the mixed A doubles, four teams competed for the championship in a round-robin format, which was won by Koksalova and Cal Benazic from Kelowna. Runners up were Ogden (Vernon) and Alan Davis (Salmon Arm).
In the mixed B doubles, eight teams played off. Winners were Caleb Jones and Amanda Newman of Kelowna. Runners-up were Tanya Elliot and Scott Wilson, also from Kelowna.
Tournament directors Gary Davidson and Stevens appreciated the help of tennis committee volunteers Karalee Drdul, Dave Valouch, Laramie Shockey, Carey Stevens and Tuck Warner.
Thanks also to Voet’s Coffee for their continued generosity in donating coffee to the tournament.