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| Lauren Embree holds her trophy.© |
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| Lauren Embree (left) defeated Beatrice Capra (right) in the final.© |
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| Evan King© |
Evan King of Chicago and Lauren Embree of Marco Island, Fla., captured the USTA Boys’ and Girls’ 18s National Clay Court Championship singles titles Sunday at the Delray Beach Tennis Center in Delray Beach, Fla., and the Racquet Club of Memphis (Tenn.), respectively.
The nation’s top junior tennis players competed in eight USTA National Championships across the country this week. The winners of the USTA Boys’ and Girls’ 18s events will each be invited back to the sites of their tournaments for pro events next year. King will receive a wild card entry into the main draw of the 2009 Delray Beach International Tennis Championships, and Embree will gain a wild card into the qualifying draw at the 2009 Cellular South Cup.
King, 16, trains full time at the USTA Training Center in Boca Raton, Fla., and entered the tournament as the No. 6 seed. He defeated eighteen-year-old Brennan Boyajian of Ft. Lauderdale, Fla., the No. 3 seed, in the final, 6-4, 6-1. King is currently ranked in the top ten in both the USTA Boys’ 16s and 18s.
Seeded third, Embree, 17, defeated No. 1 seed Beatrice Capra, 16, of Ellicott City, Md., 6-4, 6-2, in the final. She did not lose a set in six matches en route to the title, and never surrendered more than four games in any set. It was Embree’s second career national singles title; she won the USTA Girls’ 16s National Championships in August, 2006.
Highlights from other USTA National Junior Clay Court Championships include:
Unseeded Nathan Pasha of Austell, Ga., who turned 16 during the tournament and like King trains full time at the USTA Training Facility in Boca Raton, won the USTA Boys’ 16s National Clay Court Championship, upsetting No. 3 seed Zachary Leslie of San Diego, in the final, 6-2, 6-2, in Delray Beach, Fla.
Top-seeded Jack Murray, 12, of Birmingham, Mich., swept the singles and doubles titles at the USTA Boys’ 12s National Clay Court Championships, held in Greensboro, N.C. He beat Jacob Dunbar of Medina, Ohio, 6-7(0), 6-1, 6-1 to win the singles title, and then teamed with Jordan Belga of Elk Grove Village, Ill., to win the doubles title.
Brooke Austin, 12, of Indianapolis, swept the singles and doubles titles at the USTA Girls’ 12s National Clay Court Championships held in Boca Raton, Fla. Austin defeated her doubles partner, Taylor Townsend of Stockbridge, Ga., in the final, 6-2, 6-1, to win her first USTA national singles title. Austin also won the 2008 USTA Girls’ 12s Spring National Championship doubles title with Hayley Carter in March.
Full championship results:
USTA Boys’ 18s National Clay Court Championships
Delray Beach Tennis Center, Delray Beach, Fla., July 13-20
Singles: (6) Evan King, Chicago, d. (3) Brennan Boyajian, Ft. Lauderdale, Fla., 6-4, 6-1.
Doubles: (10) Ryan Noble, Fayetteville, N.C., and James (Bo) Seal, Chattanooga, Tenn., d. (1) Walker Kehrer, Pacific Palisades, Calif., and Denis Lin, Thousand Oaks, Calif., 7-6, 6-7, 6-4.
USTA Girls’ 18s National Clay Court Championships
The Racquet Club of Memphis, Memphis, Tenn., July 13-20
Singles: (3) Lauren Embree, Marco Island, Fla., d. (1) Beatrice Capra, Ellicott City, Md., 6-4, 6-2.
Doubles: (2) Jacqueline Cako, Brier Wash., and Courtney Dolehide, Hinsdale, Ill., d. (6) Alexandra Cercone, Seminole, Fla., and Jacqueline Kasler, Gulf Breeze, Fla., 7-6(5), 7-5.
USTA Boys’ 16s National Clay Court Championships
Delray Beach Tennis Center, Delray Beach, Fla., July 13-20
Singles: Nathan Pasha, Austell, Ga., d. (3) Zachary Leslie, San Diego, 6-2, 6-2.
Doubles: (13) Gonzales Austin, Jr., Miami, and Raleigh Smith, Miami, d. Nathan Pasha, Austell, Ga., and Daniel McCall, San Francisco, 7-5, 5-7, 7-5.
USTA Girls’ 16s National Clay Court Championships
Virginia Beach Tennis & Country Club, Virginia Beach, Va., July 13-20
Singles: (9) Belinda Niu, Portland Ore., d. (17) Nicole Melichar, Stuart Fla., 6-2, 6-4.
Doubles: Caroline Price, Duluth Ga., and Catherine White, Columbus, Ga., d. (1) Elizabeth Begley, Houston, and Whitney Kay, Alpharetta, Ga., 7-6(3), 6-3.
USTA Boys’ 14s National Clay Court Championships
Jimmy Evert Tennis Center, Ft. Lauderdale, Fla., July 13-20
Singles: (24) Alexios Halebian, Glendale, Calif., d. (2) Tyler Gardiner, Novi, Mich., 6-3, 6-2.
Doubles: (4) Austin Smith, Cumming, Ga., and Trey Strobel, Bradenton, Fla., d. (7) Alexios Halebian, Glendale, Calif., and Mitchell Krueger, Aledo, Texas, 2-6, 6-3, 6-3.
USTA Girls’ 14s National Clay Court Championships
Frank Veltri Tennis Center, Plantation, Fla., July 13-20
Singles: (1) Kyle McPhillips, Willoughby, Ohio, d. (9) Chanelle Van Nguyen, Miami, 6-3, 2-6, 6-3.
Doubles: (3) Breaunna Addison, Boca Raton, Fla., and Chanelle Van Nguyen, Miami, d. (1) Julia Jones, St. Petersburg, Fla., and Julie Vrabel, Centreville, Va., 6-4, 4-6, 6-0.
USTA Boys’ 12s National Clay Court Championships
Spencer Love Tennis Center, Greensboro, N.C., July 13-20
Singles: (1) Jack Murray, Birmingham, Mich., d. Jacob Dunbar, Medina, Ohio, 6-7(0), 6-1, 6-1.
Doubles: (1) Jordan Belga, Elk Grove Village, Ill., and Jack Murray, Birmingham, Mich., d. Christian Garay, Columbus, Ga., and Simon Jayaram, Atlanta, 6-2, 6-1.
USTA Girls’ 12s National Clay Court Championships
Polo Club of Boca Raton, Boca Raton, Fla., July 13-20
Singles: (1) Brooke Austin, Indianapolis, d. (14) Taylor Townsend, Stockbridge, Ga., 6-2, 6-1.
Doubles: (4) Brooke Austin, Indianapolis, and Taylor Townsend, Stockbridge, Ga., d. (6) Cassie Mercer, Huntington, W. Va., and Sierra Stone, Powell, Ohio, 6-2, 6-4.