This week Replays goes back 30 years, recalling several local highlights of the city and state tennis tournaments from the summer of 1978.

The annual city tennis tourney took place at Barney Park, with Kermit Eck and Karen Eggan entering the action as the top seeds in their respective divisions.

"Eck, the 1976 City champion, was the runner-up last year to Mike Hallowell, who now resides in Billings," the Independent Record reported prior to the event.

Eck and Mike Miller were the defending men's doubles champs, and they were seeded first again in 1978. The duo were a teacher-student combination, with Eck serving as Montana State's tennis coach and Miller being a member of the Bobcats tennis team.

Eggan was also an MSU netter, as well as the defending state open women's champion. She made a clean sweep of the city tournament the year before, winning the singles, doubles and mixed doubles crowns.

Eggan nn a former state high school titlist while at Helena High nn was playing in the '78 city event with new doubles partners.

According to the IR, Eck and Eggan lived up to their top billing, as both claimed the singles and doubles championships. Eck garnered the hat trick by partnering for the mixed doubles crown.

The champs both played five matches during the final day of the three-day tourney, with Eck having to stage two come-from-behind victories. He won the singles title from Miller, 3-6, 6-3, 6-3, "using well-placed shots to his advantage in the last two sets."

In the doubles finals against Bill Hanson and young Mike Anderson, he and Miller survived a double match point, then rallied back to win 6-1, 4-6, 7-6. It was Miller's fifth consecutive men's doubles crown.

The doubles semi-final featured the champions defeating the team of Barry Lannan and Brian Lannan, with Hanson and Anderson getting the best of Clark Cosart and Brian Posewitz on the other side of the bracket.

In claiming his second city singles title, Eck had to overcome a 3-1 deficit in the final set versus his MSU charge. He advanced to the finals by beating Bill Hanson 6-1, 6-4, while Miller got there with a 7-6, 6-3 victory over Posewitz.

Others winning matches in the earlier rounds included Bill Olson, J.J. Kirkman, Bill Scribner, Robert Wood, Rick Parish, Mike Keiley, Rock McDonald, Dave Fenner, Pat Keiley, Harold Hanson, Jim Hagen, John "The Greek" Perros and Burt Allen.

Two tennis veterans were upset in the process nn Jack Hallowell by Perros, and Helena Tennis Club president Jack Reddy by Harold Hanson.

On the women's side, Eggan defeated LaVonne Davis 6-0, 6-0 for her trophy. Davis was a surprise semi-final winner over No. 2-seeded Jill O'Hara; while Eggan bested Kathy Murphy to reach the title match. Those women earning wins in previous rounds were Kim Turkeweicz, Mary Kay Bennett, Nancy Eustance and Patty Mulvaney.

In doubles, Eggan and partner Ree Forbes vanquished O'Hara and Murphy, 6-0, 3-6, 6-0 in the championship match. Early round winners were the pairs of Elaine Olson/Nancy Eustance, Judy Pinter/Joan Bishop, Paula Harvey/Karen Caufield, Mary Kay Bennett/Becky Manley and Alice Harvey/Nancy Hotchkiss.

The women's 35 singles division was won by Lila Bock, 6-3, 6-0 over Ruth Lewis. Bock pulled an upset 5-7, 6-1, 6-0 victory over former champion Alice Harvey in the semis. Lewis reached the championship by besting Forbes, 6-2, 7-5.

Kermit completed his sweep when he teamed with Jill O'Hara to cop the mixed doubles crown, 7-6, 7-6 over Karen Eggan and Jack Hallowell. A few of the mixed couples winners earlier on included Mike Miller/Kristie Hietala, Mike Harvey/Alice Harvey, Rock McDonald/Nancy Mulvaney and Lila Bock/Leon Clark.

Sadly, Bill Scribner and his son, Jim, were killed in a plane crash about a week after the city tournaments three decades ago. Bill had been instrumental in reviving the game of tennis in Helena in the late 1950s, while Jim was the men's 21 state singles champion in 1976. Scribner Courts next to the Civic Center are named in their honor.

At the 1978 state tennis tournament later that summer in the Capital City, Eggan lost in her bid to defend her open title, but she did manage to garner the state women's doubles championship. She and partner Jeanne Rogers of Bozeman downed Missoula's Tana Sparks and Linda Madsen in the finals, 6-4, 4-6, 7-6.

Mary Kay Bennett and Judy Pinter added another crown for Helena, defeating Jane Winegardner and Mary Ellen Madden of Billings, 6-4, 7-6 in the women's 35 finals.

Defending champions Alice Harvey and Nancy Hodgkiss tied for third. Pinter also placed runner-up in the singles competition.

Reporter Curt Synness: 449-2150 or curt52s@bresnan.net