Black History Month Profile: Robin Anderson

Never in tennis history have there been as many promising, talented African-American tennis players as there are today. In celebration of Black History Month, here is a look at one of those players – following in the tradition of Althea Gibson, Arthur Ashe and the Williams sisters – who is on the cusp of breaking through and leaving her very own imprint on the top ranks of the professional game.

The Robin Anderson File

Age: 22
Resides: Matawan, NJ
Current Rank: 280
Career-High Rank: 277 (Dec. 21, 2015)

Getting to Know Robin Anderson:

• Anderson graduated from UCLA in 2015 and earned All-America honors in both singles and doubles for four straight years as a Bruin, becoming just the seventh player in school history to achieve that feat. She was honored as the Intercollegiate Tennis Association National Collegiate Player of the Year for the 2014-15 season and finished the year ranked No. 1 in the ITA's Division I Women's National Collegiate Singles Rankings.
   
• Anderson helped lead UCLA to the NCAA Final Four every year of her collegiate career and to the title in 2014, when she downed top-ranked Jamie Loeb of North Carolina, 6-2, 6-2, at No. 1 singles in UCLA's 4-3 win over the Tar Heels in the NCAA Final. Anderson was named the Most Outstanding Player of the NCAA Championships. She also reached the NCAA doubles final with teammate Skylar Morton in 2013.
   
• Anderson was the recipient of the Honda Sports Award for two straight years (2014-15). The prestigious award is presented annually by the Collegiate Women Sports Awards to the top women athletes in 12 NCAA-sanctioned sports and signifies "the best of the best in collegiate athletics."
   
• Anderson won the American Collegiate Invitational, a tournament for the top U.S. college players, at the 2015 US Open. As a junior player, she reached the singles quarterfinals at the 2010 US Open Junior Championships.
   
• Anderson has won one USTA Pro Circuit singles title ($10,000 Landisville, Pa., in 2011) and one doubles title ($25,000 Redding, Calif., in 2013) in her career to date.