SD Tennis Hall of Fame induction is July 16

Becky Blue of Brandon and Pat Moran of Sioux Falls will be inducted into the SD Tennis Hall of Fame Sunday, July 16 as the Class of 2023. The 11 a.m. induction ceremony will once again be at the McKennan Park picnic shelter, near the tennis courts, in Sioux Falls. The one-hour program occurs during the SD Adult Open tennis tournament July 14-16. McKennan Park has been the induction site since 1991, the initial year of the SD Tennis Hall of Fame. A marker recognizing all inductees is featured near the courts.

The ceremony will be video recorded and can be viewed at sdtennishall.com. All tennis enthusiasts are invited to attend.

The SD Open will be played at the new GreatLife Care Foundation Tennis Complex at Tomar Park and also the tennis courts at McKennan Park.

Blue received the call to the Hall just seven years after being honored with the SD Tennis Achievement Award. She was a founding member of the Brandon Tennis Association in 2006 and still is a key cog to the BTA’s engine serving the community. She was honored in 2010 with the Northern Section Wolfenson-Ratner Community Service Award.  

Moran joins a solid group of O’Gorman Knights in the Hall of Fame, mainly one of his tennis idols, Jim Sorrell (Class of 2017). Moving to Sioux Falls at the age of nine and falling in love with the game shortly thereafter, Moran joined Gregg Talcott’s tennis program as a seventh grader. Moran quickly rose to No. 1 singles, where he played in some legendary matches and won individual state championships and was part of O’Gorman’s championship run in the late ‘80s.

Dr. Michael Briggs of Yankton will be receiving the SD Tennis Achievement Award for 2023.  Briggs has been a leader in the Yankton tennis community since he moved to the city in 2000. He currently runs the Yankton Tennis Association and also serves as a volunteer coach for the Yankton Bucks and Gazelles tennis teams. He has done this since 2014.