Damon Lopez-O'Dwyer is the Head Pro and Director of Tennis at Triangle Tennis Club. He has been with Hamptons Tennis Company for over 20 years and has vast experience teaching players of all ages and abilities. Damon played college tennis for Hamilton College, a member of the NESCAC conference, where he was captain of the team. Damon has worked at top tennis clubs all over New York and in the UK at the Cambridge Lawn Tennis Club in England.
Since 2005 Damon has been the Head Coach of the boys Varsity Tennis team at the Trinity School in New York––a team that has won four consecutive Ivy League titles and in 2016 won the Mayor’s Cup as the top team in the city. Damon has worked with Division I and top Division III recruits, sending players in recent years to play for college programs at Dartmouth College, Johns Hopkins University and Williams College. Damon spends his offseason as a freelance writer and has published articles in Inside Tennis Magazine.
Szabin Pusztay was born in Budapest, Hungary where he started playing tennis at the age of 4. He began his competitive career at the age of 9 and was ranked in the top 5 nationally in Hungary in the U12s, U14s, U16s and U18s.
Szabin was recruited to play college tennis in the United States, first for Alabama State University where he was named to the SWAC All-Tournament Team in each of his two years with the program. At Alabama State he was both a conference champion and conference runner-up. Szabin then went on to play for Newman University where he was a two-time conference finalist and named to the Heartland All-Tournament Team. In addition to his collegiate tennis accomplishments, Szabin distinguished himself as a student-athlete by making Dean’s List in all four years of his education.
As a coach, Szabin has worked with players of all ages and abilities both in Hungary and in the United States. Recently he spent a season at Future Stars in Purchase, NY where he worked with both recreational level juniors and tournament players. He has also been an assistant director of the junior development program at Brookhaven Country Club! Szabin is returning for his fourth season at Triangle Tennis Club.
Grégoire Balenci is from Paris, France where he started playing tennis at age 8. He quickly became a top 10 ranked junior in France in the under 14s and was coached for three years by Gregory Carraz, a former ATP #54 world ranked player.
As a NCAA Division I college tennis player for Grand Canyon University in Phoenix, Grégoire has won WAC conference awards in both singles and doubles (2016-2017-2018).
As a teaching pro, Grégoire has experience working with players of all ages both in France and in the United States. He is a member of Paris’ most prestigious tennis club, Lagardère Paris Racing near Roland Garros, where he has spent several seasons teaching adults and juniors both in groups and private lessons.
Grégoire has also worked for three years at the French Open on the interview desk as a member of the tournament’s media team. Greg, is excited to be returning to Triangle Tennis Club this summer!
Riccardo is from Bari, Italy. Over the past decade, he has competed in ETA and ITF tournaments worldwide, achieving a ranking as high as 390 in the world. Throughout his tennis journey, Riccardo received coaching and training from Raffaele Gorgoglione and Valentin Florez (500 ATP) at Tennis Club Bari, Italy.
He currently represents Belmont University in Nashville, Tennessee as a tennis player. Riccardo initially played for the University of Arkansas, Fayetteville for two years before making the transfer to Belmont.
Riccardo is known for his outgoing nature as both a coach and player, he takes pleasure in hitting with individuals of all ages, ranging from juniors to adults. In his leisure time, he finds great enjoyment in playing Padel, golf and soccer.
Heden Ly was born in Paris, France, and began playing tennis at the age of 7. She quickly rose through the ranks, achieving a top 10 national ranking and competing in the 15/16-year-old Roland Garros tournament. To further her skills, Heden moved to Spain for two years to train at the BTT academy.
In 2020, Heden committed to the University of West Alabama, where she played at the No. 2 and 3 positions in singles, finishing with an impressive 16-3 record. She also played No. 1 and 2 doubles.
Her outstanding performance earned Heden the South Regional ITA Rookie of the Year award in 2021. Heden helped her team secure four conference championships and achieve a 3rd place finish at the Nationals Indoors.
Heden recently graduated with a degree in Finance, and plans to pursue a master's in Finance.
Heden has teaching experience at Lagardère Racing Club Paris in France. She is returning for her second season at Triangle and is excited to be part of the Triangle Team!