Makarome, Riffice Earn Places on USTA 14-and-under European Travel Team; Liu Wins 12s Nike International Masters Title over Desiatnikov

Sam Riffice and Noah Makarome have earned two of the four places on the USTA 14-and-under team that will travel to Europe next month with wins today at the National Training Center in Boca Raton.


Makarome defeated Gianni Ross 2-6, 6-2, 6-0 and Riffice beat Patrick Kypson 6-1, 6-2 in today's final matches.

The other four boys competing in the two round robin groups were

 Alex del Corral, Vasil Kirkov, Roscoe Bellamy and Sangeet Sridhar.

Two more players will be selected for the team in the next week or so.

The Nike Junior Tour International Masters was completed on Tuesday in Port St. Lucie, with 2011 Junior Orange Bowl champion Claire Liu capturing the Girls 12s title. Liu, the No. 6 seed, beat No. 4 seed Abigail Desiatnikov, also of the United States 6-1, 6-0.  Liu will be playing the 14s at the upcoming Junior Orange Bowl.

Due to light rain, both 14s finals and the girls 12s final were moved to clay courts, with the boys 12s always scheduled to be played on clay.

This article on the tournament website explains the various stages of the finals when they were moved onto clay courts.

In the boys 12s final, Rudolf Molleker of Germany avenged his semifinal loss in the Eddie Herr to Alen Avidzba of Russia by a score of 6-4, 6-0. Avidzba was the No. 1 seed, with Molleker seeded No. 3.

Unseeded Katerina Jokic of Serbia, who won the Eddie Herr 12s in 2010, took the girls 14s final, beating No. 6 seed Julia Payola of Spain 6-2, 6-4. Payola, who did not play the Eddie Herr, beat No. 1 seed and Eddie Herr 14s champion Fanni Stollar of Hungary in the quarterfinals. Eddie Herr finalist Sofia Kenin of the US lost to Jokic in the third round.

The boys 14s title went to unseeded Mate Valkusz of Hungary, who beat No. 2 seed Jay Clarke of Great Britain 3-6, 6-3, 6-4 in the final.

For links to the complete draws, see the home page of the tournament website.