The top junior tennis players from across the United States and Puerto Rico are set to compete in the USTA Girls’ 16s & 18s National Championships scheduled for Aug. 1-9, 2015 at the Barnes Tennis Center, 4490 W. Point Loma Blvd, San Diego, CA, 92107.
The Girls’ 18s division is highlighted by the entry of Tornado Alicia Black of Boca Raton, Fla., and Michaela Gordon of Saratoga, Calif. Both players reached the quarterfinals of the Wimbledon Girls’ Singles competition last week at the All England Lawn Tennis & Croquet Club in London.
Black, who reached the Girls’ 18s finals last year, is ranked No. 411 in the Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) singles rankings, while Gordon is No. 655 in the WTA rankings and No. 22 in the International Tennis Federation (ITF) junior rankings.
Other competitors to watch in the Girls’ 18s field include:
Kylie McKenzie, Anthem, Ariz. Kayla Day, Santa Barbara, Calif.
(2014 Girls’ 16 Champion) (2014 Girls’ 16 Finalist)
Usue Arconada, Rio Piedras, P.R. Sofia Kenin, Pembroke Pines, Fla.
Francesca Dilorenzo, New Albany, Ohio Raveena Kingsley, Fulton, Md.
Caroline Dolehide, Hinsdale, Ill. Claire Liu, Thousand Oaks, Calif.
Alexa Graham, Garden City, N.Y. Ingrid Neel, Bradenton, Fla.
“It’s been fun following recent champions CiCi Bellis (2014 Girls’18s champion) and Sachia Vickery (2013 Girls’ 18s champion), who are now ranked in the Top 200 in the world,” said Co-Tournament Director Lisbeth Blum. “It will be exciting during this year’s tournament to watch some of these stars of the future who will go on to play collegiate tennis or compete professionally.”
The tournament will also feature a strong group of local players, who include: (Girls’ 18s) – Jessica Failla, Ramona, Calif., (Girls’ 16s) – Julia Deming, Fallbrook, Calif., Paulina Ferrari, San Diego, Julia Haynes, San Diego, Cali Jankowski, Carlsbad, Calif., Nicole Mossmer, La Jolla, Calif., Britt Pursell, Oceanside, Calif., and Hannah Zhao, San Diego.
Nearly 400 girls aged 16 and 18 and under will compete for the title of National Champion, as well as a Wild Card entry into the singles main draw of the US Open Women’s Championships (for the 18s Champion) and a Wild Card into the US Open Junior Championships (for the 16s Champion). The 18s Doubles Champions will also receive a Wild Card into the US Open Women’s Doubles main draw.
The Girls’ 16s event will begin on Saturday, Aug. 1 and conclude with the singles and doubles finals on Saturday, Aug. 8. The Girls’ 18s tournament will get underway on Sunday, Aug. 2 and conclude with the 18s singles championship on Sunday, Aug. 9. Both divisions will feature 192-player singles draws and doubles draws with 96 teams.
Starting times for each day of the tournament will be as follows:
8:30 a.m. – Saturday, Aug. 1 through Thursday, Aug. 6
9 a.m. – Friday, Aug. 7 and Saturday, Aug. 8
9:30 a.m. – Sunday, Aug. 9
(All times are PDT)
The Opening Ceremony for the USTA National Girls’ 16s & 18s National Championships is scheduled for 5 p.m. on Saturday, Aug. 1 at the Barnes Tennis Center. The guest speaker will be Katrina Adams, Chairman of the Board, CEO and President of the USTA.
Early-round matches will also be played at secondary sites at San Diego State University’s Aztec Tennis Center, 5375 Remington Rd., San Diego, CA, 92115, from Saturday, Aug. 1 through Tuesday, Aug. 4 and University of San Diego’s Skip and Cindy Hogan Tennis Center, 5998 Alcala Park, San Diego, CA 92110, from Sunday, Aug. 2 through Wednesday, Aug. 5.
Admission and on-site parking at the Barnes Tennis Center is free each day of the tournament. For fans watching matches at SDSU and USD, admission is free, but there is a nominal charge for on-campus parking. University parking regulations will be strictly enforced.
The complete list of competitors for each division can be viewed at http://tennislink.usta.com/Tournaments/TournamentHome/Tournament.aspx?T=154061. A list of seeded players and full draws will be available on the website in late July.
The USTA Girls’ 16s & 18s National Championships will hold a special reunion of former tournament champions and past participants. Guests will attend the Opening Ceremony and take part in various social functions scheduled during the first weekend of the tournament.
Those expected to attend include Ann Grossman Wunderlick, Anna Maria Fernandez, Barbara Jordan, Cammy MacGregor, Carrie Cunningham Lubitz, Debbie Graham Shaffer, Debbie Spence Nasim, Elly Hakami, Katrina Adams, Laxmi Poruri-Madan, Lea Antonopolis Inoue, Leigh Anne Eldredge Baxter, Marianne Werdel, Melissa Gurney, Shawn Foltz Emmons, Stephanie London Krogiuss, Stephanie Rehe and Susie Mascarin Keane
About USTA Girls’ 16s – 18s Nationals: The USTA Girls’ 16 & 18s National Championships are the premiere hard court tennis tournaments for amateur and professional American girls aged 18 and 16 and under in the United States. In 2010, both age groups began playing their events concurrently at San Diego’s Barnes Tennis Center. Tournament participants, who represent nearly every state in the United States, have been endorsed by their respective USTA Section or have received USTA special exemptions based on their results in qualifying tournaments, junior rankings, or results on the WTA Tour or International Tennis Federation Junior Circuit. Past tournament champions include Chris Evert, Tracy Austin, Andrea Jaeger, Zina Garrison, Mary Jo Fernandez, Jennifer Capriati and Lindsay Davenport.
About George E. Barnes Family Junior Tennis Center: The Center is owned and operated by Youth Tennis San Diego. It was built in 1995 and completed in 1997. The $4.5 million junior tennis facility was made possible with generous public and private donations and is named after the lead donor family - the “George E. Barnes Family Junior Tennis Center.” The Center, which is dedicated to the youth of San Diego, offers children 18 and under court priority over adults with advanced reservations.
About Youth Tennis San Diego: Youth Tennis San Diego is a non-profit 501 (c)(3) organization that has been in existence since 1952. The YTSD Mission is: “To promote the educational, physical, and social development of all youth through organized tennis and educational activities.” Their community programs encourage youth participation, personal integrity, leadership, and competitive spirit in a friendly environment that builds responsible citizens. YTSD provides thousands of youngsters each year the opportunity to play tennis after school at their neighborhood school. The After School Tennis program provides a safe haven for hundreds of youngsters who are not supervised after school. Through tennis, the children learn the success skills which will give them the confidence and self-esteem needed to confront the negative influences so often found on the streets where they live.
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