Universal Tennis Junior Regionals Wrap Up as Players Head Next to Las Vegas

Universal Tennis Junior Regionals Wrap Up as Players Head Next to Las Vegas

2 min read

Sixteen Junior Regional events took place all over the country as part of the inaugural Universal Tennis Junior National Pathway, with the final matches wrapping up on Sunday.

The winners of the 17U and 15U divisions (plus at-large registrants) will next go to Las Vegas for the Junior National Championships and Showcase, taking place at the Darling Tennis Center from Dec. 3-7. The event includes a dual-match team tennis showcase on Dec. 3 and 4, followed by Nationals from Dec. 5-7. Registration closes Nov. 21.

 

 

The Regionals divisions included 13U, 15U, and 17U with a format featuring round-robin play followed by a knock-out playoff, guaranteeing at least three matches for every player. All 15U and 17U matches were live-streamed and recorded.

The goal of the National Pathway is to expose junior players to the benefits of playing college tennis while giving them opportunities to actually compete on college campuses. In Las Vegas, juniors will play in front of college coaches with the ITA Coaches Convention taking place during the same week right down the street.

Recapping All the Action

Lisa Stone, the creator of Parenting Aces, a website for tennis parents by a tennis parent, was on-site for the girls' and boys' SoCal & Arizona Regional at Pomona College in Claremont, Calif. You can read more of her coverage on her website (a free account is required to view the full story).

Stone had a chance to speak with two-time Hall of Famer Rosie Casals, the coach of 15U participant Karine Kulidjian.

"I think that, for sure, this is a good system and it encourages players to play and not be so uptight about a first match," Casals said. "You get the round-robin and I think that's a good way to play as many matches because that's what makes you better: The more you play, the more you have an opportunity to win and obviously you’re rewarded with good points."

Casals won 112 professional doubles titles during her decorated career (56 of them with Billie Jean King) and was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame in 1996 and again in 2021 as a member of the Original 9.

 

 

Stone also caught up with Halle Parker (UTR Rating 5.98), a player in Group B of the 15U division, who echoed Casals' thoughts.

"I think it's really great how it's structured," Parker told Stone. "We get to play multiple players through the round-robin so it's not just first round and you're out. You get more match play experience so I really like that about this event."

To register for Las Vegas and to learn more about the Junior National Pathway, please click here.

2021 REGIONALS WINNERS AND FINALISTS

Florida & Caribbean, Boys (Nov 6-8)

13U: Seiryu Kato def. Jerald Carroll

15U: Oumar Diallo def. Pete Tran

17U: Phillip Dell def. Leonardo Dal Boni

Florida & Caribbean, Girls (Nov 6-8)

13U: Laura Damm def. Se A Cho

15U: Alanis Hamilton def. Melis Wiesinger

17U: Madison Smith def. Valeria Centeno

Mid-Atlantic & NC Region, Boys (Oct 15-17)

13U: Romir Bhalla def. Jack Kirby

15U: Eric Lindemann def. Samir Jones

17U: Charles Wood def. Cody Benton

Mid-Atlantic & NC Region, Girls (Oct 22-24)

13U: Devin Gilroy def. Elizabeth Zhang

15U: Lisa Kranec def. Mia Matriccino

17U: Alexandra Borcich def. Allison Harris

Midwest, Boys (Oct 30-Nov 1)

13U: Abraham Rosett def. Landon Vens

15U: Ethan Portnoy def. Derek Blackwell

17U: Nicholas Meyers def. Anthony Vanoyen (USA)

Midwest, Girls (Nov 5-7)

13U: Kennedy Drenser-Hagmann def. Naomi Barnett

15U: Ashley Matz def. Lena Dogadalski

17U: Autumn Rabjohns def. Julia Ross

North Cal & Pacific NW Region, Boys (Oct 23-25)

13U: Collin De Oliveira def. Oakley Koegler

15U: Nav Dayal def. Ty Parrish

17U: Alex Dinkov def. Siddarth Chava

North Cal & Pacific NW Region, Girls (Oct 30-Nov 1)

13U: Isabela Jube def. Mia Askovich

15U: Bianca Bopa def. Himani Malur

17U: Lauren Joyce def. Martina Mora Antich

Northeast Region, Boys (Oct 22-24)

13U: Chase Gerloff def. Michael Lorenzetti

15U: Mateusz Gradzki def. Brian Yi

17U: Petro Kuzmenok def. James Lorenzetti

Northeast Region, Girls (Oct 16-18)

13U: Fiona Merchant def. Ananya Rao

15U: Ayanna Varma def. Juliette Ceas

17U: Leticia Kitio def. Shu Grosso

SoCal & Arizona, Boys (Oct 22-24)

13U: Hans Sempre def. Edmund Lu

15U: Alex Galstyan def. Sibby Roddi

17U: Zino Mirtorabi def. Lance Urlaub

SoCal & Arizona, Girls (Oct 29-31)

13U: Romi D’amore def. Audyssie James

15U: Nicole Weng def. Samantha Wang

17U: Julianne Nguyen def. Tatum Buffington

South Central Region, Boys (Sept 3-5)

13U: Aaditt Rishi def. Dylan Wilhelm

15U: Valor Dare def. Rowan Matorin

17U: Lathan Skrobarcek def. Finnegan Tankersley

South Central Region, Girls (Sept 18-20)

13U: Madeleine Bridges def. Eloise Nasr

15U: Mya Bowe def. Stella De Vera

17U: Lorena Cedeno def. Jenna Bohnert

Southern Region, Boys (Oct 22-24)

13U: Not played

15U: Nicolas Wild def. Flavius Henderson Li

17U: Michael Thomas def. Lleyton Beasley

Southern Region, Girls (Oct 31-Nov 1)

13U: Jensen Diiani def. Sadira Ouyang

15U: Elena Duva def. Sydney Brantley

17U: Isabella Theodore def. Michelle Jones

 

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