2013-14 USTA Northern Board of Directors Bios
Roshan Rajkumar – President – Roshan Rajkumar of St. Louis Park, Minn., is the new
President of the organization after serving as the 1st Vice President since 2011. He has been a
USTA member since 1985 and a member of the USTA Northern Board of Directors the past six
years, serving as the Chair of the Diversity Council in 2009-10. He played high school tennis at
Edina High School and college tennis at Boston College. He also played collegiate tennis for the
Australian National University while serving as a Rotary Ambassadorial Scholar in Canberra,
Australia from 1995-97. He has been a tennis coach since 1991, and since 2000, has provided
free lessons to youths and adults throughout the Twin Cities. He is an active USTA League
Player and was a member of the 2010 World TeamTennis National Championship team from
Boston Scientific. Outside of tennis, he serves on various local and national bar association
committees, as well as on the Board of Directors for Twin Cities Diversity in Practice. He is
President of the Minnesota Chapter of the Boston College Alumni Association and Choir Manager
for the Basilica of St. Mary’s Cathedral Choir. He is a partner at the law firm of Bowman and
Brooke LLP, where he tries cases for the defense in product liability, mass tort, pharmaceutical,
and commercial litigation matters. He serves on the University of Minnesota Law School Diversity
Committee and is a mentor to students at the University of Minnesota, William Mitchell and St.
Thomas Law Schools. Rajkumar has been selected by Super Lawyers Magazine as a Rising Star
from 2006-12, he graduated from the Hennepin County Bar Association’s Leaders Impacting the
Nonprofit (LINC) program in 2006, and was named an Up and Coming Lawyer by Minnesota
Lawyer in 2005.
Jeff Baill – Section Delegate - Jeff Baill, of Plymouth, Minn., moves from Section President to
Section Delegate. Baill is involved in multiple USTA leagues and is entering his ninth year on the
USTA Northern Board. Jeff also serves on the USTA National Nominating Committee. After many
years of casual tennis, he became seriously involved in the game when his son started playing
USTA junior tennis. He is a managing partner of Yost & Baill, LLP, a Minneapolis law firm with a
national presence. Baill is the founder and past president of an international trade association
related to his field of law, insurance subrogation. He is also the past president of the Minneapolis
Jewish Community Center.
Kathleen Lundberg – 1st Vice President - Kathleen Lundberg is the new 1st Vice President.
Lundberg, of Minneapolis, has been a member of USTA for over 20 years and is in her fourth
term on the USTA Northern Board. She has supported a variety of events such as the Boston
Scientific Pro Women’s Tennis Classic and the Aquatennial Plaza Tennis Classic for a number of
years. She also has been very active in the Corporate Tennis Challenge, WorldTeam Tennis and
has played on USTA summer and winter teams. Kathy also served as a volunteer with Urban
Tennis (now InnerCity Tennis). Now a consultant, Lundberg had been with the Guidant
Corporation and Boston Scientific for over 20 years as the Senior Vice President and Chief
Compliance Officer. Kathy also is in her first year as a member of the USTA National Sports
Science Committee.
Brian Biernat – Vice President - Brian Biernat of Woodbury, Minn., is in his first term as Vice
President after serving as Treasurer the past four years. Brian is also entering his first term on the
USTA National Membership Services Committee. In his sixth year on the Board, he has been
playing tournaments in Minnesota since he was 16 years old. He played at Edina West High
School before moving on to play under Jerry Noyce at the University of Minnesota from 1976-80.
After college, Biernat played a USTA circuit with Greg Wicklund and then traveled over to
Australia to play in the Spalding Sports Tennis Challenge. He then moved to France for 3 years
and played in circuits from Paris to Palermo. In 1984, he moved back home and joined the family
business - Adele’s Frozen Custard. In 1990, Brian started his career in pharmaceutical sales, but
always wanted to keep active in tennis. Brian was the boys 12–18’s endorser along with Jan
Schissel, and has served as a USTA Northern chaperon for national junior tournaments. Brian is
currently the Field Business Manager for GlaxoSmithKline. He has a Master’s Degree in geriatrics
& leadership from the University of Minnesota. Brian has 3 children - Patrick, Eliana and Zachary.
He is happily married to Kelly Anderson Biernat.
Liz Hamburg – Secretary - Liz Hamburg of Rapid City, S.D., is in her first year as the Secretary
of the organization and sixth year as a member of the Board of Directors. She started playing
tennis at age 35 and now plays 4.0 USTA Leagues. She has been a member of the Jr. Tennis
Council and High Performance Committee since 2005 and was a member of the Awards and
Compensation Committees the past two years. She is a tennis committee member at Arrowhead
Country Club in Rapid City, S.D., after serving as an Arrowhead Country Club Board Member and
Tennis Committee Chair and is the President of the Black Hills Tennis Association. She is a
Community Advisory Committee member at General Beadle Elementary School and is a member
of the Rapid City Area Chamber of Commerce Business Connections Committee. She is currently
working as an independent contractor for the Rapid City Area Schools as Executive Director for
Partnership Rapid City. She is married to Randy and has two boys, Joe, and Jack, who plays
tennis at the University of Minnesota.
John Wilcox – Treasurer – John Wilcox of Edina, Minn., is the new Treasurer. Wilcox, who is
entering his third year on the Board, has been an active tournament player and has enjoyed
modest Section and National rankings. He was a member of the Adult Competition Committee
and also worked with USTA National on developing tournament software. Wilcox was also
recently named to the USTA National Learning and Leadership Committee. John has been
involved with mergers and acquisitions for many years working for most of his career with
Honeywell. He served on the St. Paul Chamber Orchestra Board, and is President of Amateur
Chamber Music Players, a non-profit international musical organization. He graduated from the
University of Chicago Law School and has degrees in accounting, math and computer science
from the University of Illinois. He has served as an adjunct faculty member at several universities.
Mehdi Benyebka – Diversity & Inclusion Council Chair – Minneapolis’ Mehdi Benyebka is in
his first official term as Chair of the Diversity & Inclusion Council after assuming the role in 2011.
Benyebka, who has been a volunteer with USTA Northern the past 10 years, started his college
career at USC before transferring to the University of Minnesota. At Minnesota, he was named
All-Big Ten in 1993. He also was a member of the Davis Cup team for his native Algeria and was
the #2-ranked player in Africa as a junior. He is currently a Software Developer and Team Lead
For Data Card Group.
Scott Boyer – Junior Tennis Chair - Scott Boyer of Rochester, Minn., is in his third year on the
USTA Northern Board, and first year as Junior Tennis Chair, after serving a previous term on the
Board from 2000-04. He has been the Racquet Sports Director at the Rochester Athletic Club
since 1998, and has coached for many years on both the high school and college levels. He was
the Director of Player Development for the Section from 1997-98 and was a member of the Junior
Tennis Council from 1998-present. He currently serves on the High Performance Committee and
is on the national Junior Competition and Sportsmanship Committee. From 2002-04, he was a
member of the USTA Professional Player Rules Committee.
Sara Gettman – Membership Committee Chair – Sara Gettman of Rochester, Minn., is in her
first year on the USTA Northern Board of Directors. She has played USTA League Tennis since
2008, with her team advancing to Sectionals three times and Nationals twice. She is in her
second term on the USTA Northern Section Leagues Committee and is a member of the newlyformed SE Minnesota Leagues Committee. Gettman served as a nurse at the Mayo Clinic from
1999-2005 and was President of the Alice Mayo Society in 2011. She has volunteered with a
number of organizations including the Mayo Clinic and serves as an assistant youth soccer
coach. Sara and her husband, Matt, have three daughters who all enjoy 10 and Under Tennis
programs at the Rochester Athletic Club.
Susan Kringlie - Community Development Council Chair - Susan, from Valley City, N.D., is in
her third year serving on the Board. She has been a tennis player since elementary school.
Susan won the North Dakota State Doubles Championship in 1991 and was a founding member
of the Valley City Community Tennis Association in 1993, serving as Treasurer, Vice President
and President, and the North Dakota Tennis Association. She was a member of the Section’s
Community Development Tennis Council from 2005-07 and the CTA/NJTL Committee from 200710, serving as Chair in 2009-10. She also served as a member of the Awards Committee the past
four years. A Medical Technologist for almost 20 years, Susan is currently the Laboratory
Manager and Infection Preventionist at Mercy Hospital. She is married to Erik and has two sons.
Heather Landrus – Officials Council Chair – Heather Landrus of New Brighton, Minn., is in her
first full year as the Officials Council Chair. The New Brighton, Minn., resident is currently the
Section Chair of Officials for USTA Northern and has served as an official the past four years.
Landrus has been the Sales Information Coordinator at Johnson Brothers Liquor Company since
2011 and worked as an Executive Administrative Assistant prior to that. She graduated from
Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University with a degree in Aircraft Engineering Technology and
earned a Master’s degree in Engineering Management from St. Cloud State in 2010. She has
played tennis since she was 7 years old and is currently a USTA League player.
Mike Vidmar - Adult Tennis Council Chair – Mike Vidmar, of St. Paul, Minn., enters his third
year on the Board after serving on a number of different committees throughout the years. He
was the Chair of the Tournament Play Committee (2009-10) and was a member of the Player
Development and Awards Committees. He also is currently on the USTA Northern Nominating
Committee. He has played USTA League Tennis for over 20 years, serving as a captain, and has
been active in adult and junior tournaments. The General Manager of the Reed Sweatt Family
Tennis Center since 1995, he is a USPTA Certified Professional. He has also coached at his
alma mater - Macalester College. He was the 2008 winner of the Jack Dow Adult Development
Award and the 2009 USPTA Industry Excellence Award Winner. He has a Master’s degree in
sports management from the University of Minnesota.
Susan Allen – Board Member – Susan Allen of Shakopee, Minn., is in her first year on the
USTA Northern Board of Directors. She is a life-long tennis player and teaching professional and
is currently the head tennis coach at Shakopee High School where she led the girls program to its
first conference championship in 2011. She is also on the Shakopee Tennis Association Board of
Directors and is a member of the steering committee hoping to bring an indoor facility to
Shakopee. Allen started her college tennis career at Gustavus Adolphus where she played #2
singles for a team that placed fourth at the NCAA Championships in 1989. She then transferred
to St. Cloud State where she became the first player from the school to reach the NCAA
tournament. After graduating, Allen was a teaching pro at Moore Lake Athletic Club for 10 years
and was named the USPTA Rookie of the Year Award. She also opened her own travel agency
called Love To Travel, Inc., organizing tennis vacations around the world. She is married with
three children, two who play USTA tournaments and Jr. Team Tennis. The 14s Intermediate team
she coached advanced to JTT Nationals in 2011.
Matt Boughton – Board Member – Matt Boughton, from Eau Claire, Wis., is currently the head
tennis professional at the Eau Claire YMCA Indoor Tennis Center. He is involved in USTA
tournaments as a player and director, runs Jr. Team Tennis in Eau Claire and is a USTA League
Coordinator and player. He is also the main contact for the Eau Claire YMCA NJTL and CTA
chapters after serving as a consultant for the Chippewa Valley Tennis Association for 4 years. In
2011, Boughton was awarded the USPTA’s Excellence in Industry Award and was named the
Wisconsin Pro of the Year. The Eau Claire YMCA was also named the 2012 USTA Northern
Member Org of the Year and Boughton was the 2012 USTA Northern Jr. Team Tennis Organizer
of the Year.
Dr. Jessie Daw – Board Member – Dr. Jessie Daw, from Aberdeen, S.D., is in her first year as
an at-large member of the Board of Directors. Daw is currently an Associate Professor in the
Health and Physical Education Department at Northern State University after starting the program
and serving as head women’s tennis coach from 2006-11. She has been involved in tennis her
entire life and was one of the top juniors in the Northern Section. She played collegiately at Illinois
from 1983-88 and earned All-Big Ten Second Team honors in 1985. She also served as the
Director of the Illinois wheelchair tennis program from 1986-88. After graduating, Daw then
attended the University of Idaho, where she served as assistant men’s and women’s tennis
coach. After one year as a club pro at the Crosstown Club in the Twin Cities, she was named
head coach at Illinois State and earned Missouri Valley Conference Coach of the Year honors in
1993. She revived tennis in Aberdeen and helped start the Aberdeen Community Tennis
Association. A USTA life member, Daw was the Executive Director of SDAHPERD from 2004-07
and currently is a member of the USTA Northern CTA-NJTL committee.
Brian McCoy – Board Member – Brian McCoy of Shoreview, Minn., is in his first year as a
member of the USTA Northern Board. McCoy has worked in the tennis industry for over 35 years
starting as the Tennis Director at the Arden Hills Club (1979-88) and since at Life Time Fitness –
Fridley. McCoy has worked with the USTA and USTA Northern in a number of capacities
including as a National verifier for the USTA League program, an endorser and rankings advisor,
a High Performance Coach and a Jr. Team Tennis Coach. He was a member of the USTA
Northern Junior Tennis Council and was on the NTRP Ratings Appeals Committee. He recently
completed a 4-year term as the USPTA Northern Division President and has run nine USTA
tournaments each year for the past 30 years, including the Section’s biggest adult tournament –
The Sandy Dyer Open – in which all proceeds benefit the American Cancer Society.
Igor Princ – Board Member – Igor Princ of Eden Prairie, Minn., is in his first year as a member
of the USTA Northern Board. Princ has played USTA League Tennis since 2001 and has served
as a team captain since 2010. Since 2006, he has owned Princ Films, Inc., a Minnesota
corporation engaged in the distribution of films and entertainment content. Prior to that, he
worked at MainStreet Entertainment producing and distributing children and family entertainment.
He was a member of the fundraising committee at the Eden Prairie Center for the Arts (2010-11)
and the Minnesota Film & Television Board (2005-07). He graduated with a bachelor’s and
master’s degree from the University of Sarajevo. He is married and has two sons.
Karen Zellner - Board Member - Karen Zellner, of Chanhassen, Minn., is starting her third term
as a Board Member for USTA Northern and just completed a two-year term on the USTA National
Evaluation Committee. She has been a member of the USTA for 30 years. As a junior she was
ranked #15 in Intermountain and awarded the Phyllis Lockwood Sportsmanship Award from the
Colorado Tennis Association. Today, she is an active league singles player at the 4.0 level and
coaches JV Girls Tennis at Chanhassen High School. As a business professional, Karen has built
a solid reputation as a creative, high-producing marketing executive. She has worked for clients
and companies such as Cummins Power Generation, Pfizer, Cenex and the University of
Minnesota.