McPhillips Defeats Second Seed Min in Opening Round at ITF Grass Courts

©Colette Lewis 2009--
Philadelphia, PA--

The grass court season in the U.S. is a short one--for juniors it's this week period--and the unfamiliar surface always produces its share of surprises. Although a majority of the seeds did advance to Tuesday's second round, few did so easily, with long matches the norm today at the Philadelphia Cricket Club.

Girls top seed Brooke Bolender managed to get by wild card Blair Seideman 6-1, 5-7, 6-1 in one of those lengthy contests, with No. 6 seed Annie Mulholland and No. 4 seed Rachel Kahan also needing three sets. Mulholland outlasted Nadia Echeverria Alam 2-6, 6-2, 6-2 and Kahan overcame qualifier Tessa Lyons 2-6, 6-4, 6-3. No. 3 Kate Fuller also managed to survive, defeating friend and fellow Atlanta-area resident Caroline Price 7-6(3), 4-6, 7-5. Price, a wild card, served for the match at 5-4 in the third, but Fuller swept the last three games to secure the victory. Tristen Dewar took out No. 7 seed Jessica Wacnik 6-1, 6-4, and 14-year-old Breaunna Addison eliminated No. 5 seed Monica Yajima 6-3, 6-3.

Qualifier Kyle McPhillips got a late break to take the first set from No. 2 seed Grace Min and rolled in the second set for a 6-4, 6-0 victory. McPhillips will now meet fellow 15-year-old Lauren Davis in a battle of Ohio qualifiers. Davis played one of the day's shortest matches, defeating Karen Hernandez of Mexico 6-0, 6-1.

Boys top seed JT Sundling, who said he is committed to playing aggressively all week, served and volleyed his way to a 6-3, 6-2 win over qualifier Yevgeny Pereverzin. Given the erratic bounces on the grass, it always amazes me how few players do that--Lauren Herring also did it often in her win over Ellen Tsay--but serving big can be even more effective. A slice is always a nice tool to have handy too, and No. 4 seed Raymond Sarmiento said that shot and his serve helped him take a 6-2, 6-1 decision from wild card Harry Seaborn.

Andrew Korinek upended No. 3 seed Jose Gerardo Meza Paniagua of Mexico 7-6(4), 6-3; Shaun Bernstein dismissed No. 5 seed Rodney Carey of the Bahamas 7-6(7), 6-4, and Alexander Petrone defeated No. 6 seed Brandon Burke of Jamaica 6-2, 6-4. It looked as if we might lose our second No. 2 seed of the day when Campbell Johnson took the first set from Zachary White of Canada 7-5, but White rebounded to take the next two sets in tiebreakers in a very contentious match played on the court farthest from the clubhouse. Although the skies threatened throughout the afternoon, the only sprinkles felt in the Chestnut Hill area came as that final tiebreaker was underway, around 5:00 p.m.

Monday at the Grass Courts is all singles, but on Tuesday the first round of doubles will follow the singles matches. For complete results, as well as the doubles draws, see the TennisLink site.

Tags: junior tennis, International Grass Courts, Kyle McPhillips, Colette Lewis