Willwerth and Penickova Reach Australian Open Junior Singles Finals; Exsted Captures Second Straight Boys Doubles Title; Peers Claims Mixed Title

For the first time since 1992, the United States will have both a girl and a boy in the Australian Open junior singles final, after No. 6 seed Kristina Penickova and unseeded Benjamin Willwerth won tough three-set matches in Friday's semifinals.

Up 6-4, 4-1 against Mia Pohankova of Slovakia in the Australian Open Junior Championships semifinals Friday, 15-year-old Kristina Penickova hit a rough patch, losing the next eight games. Fortunately she had had plenty of experience digging herself out of similar situations this week, having lost nine straight games in her second round match with Yuhan Wang of China before winning seven straight herself to force a third set after trailing 7-5, 5-0.

In the third set against the 16-year-old Pohankova, who hits the ball every bit as deep and powerfully as she does, Penickova didn't manage quite that many, but four in a row got her back on serve and her confidence returned. Pohankova held for 4-all, but she was now serving from behind, a position that proved an important advantage for Penickova.

Penickova had taken the grueling 53-minute first set with the seventh and final break of serve in set following her second service hold at 5-4. After losing her first two service games in the third set, Penickova located what had been missing in her serve, holding the final three times without facing a break point. Pohankova went up 30-0 serving at 5-6, and had a game point at 40-30 thanks to an ace at 30-all, but she made an unforced backhand error for deuce. Penickova hit a great return to earn her first match point, but Pohankova saved it with a backhand winner. That shot let her down in the final two points of the match, with unforced errors giving the suddenly steady Penickova the spot in the final, and revenge for her twin sister Annika, who lost to Pohankova in the first round.

The first US girl to reach the Australian Open girls final since Taylor Townsend won the title in 2012, Penickova will face No. 4 seed Wakana Sonobe of Japan in Saturday's final. Sonobe, who reached the US Open final in September, denied Emerson Jones a second straight Australian Open girls final with a 6-3, 6-4 win over the top-seeded Australian.

Willwerth, who won his first junior slam match on Sunday, defeated No. 5 seed Jagger Leach 6-7(4), 6-4, 6-2 in the all-USA boys semifinal.

Willwerth, a 17-year-old from Jupiter Florida, did not have Leach's experience in the junior slams, which may have been part of the reason he struggled to close out sets when serving for them. Serving at 5-3 in the first set, he was unable to get to a set point, and Leach took advantage, winning his next two service games easily and staying ahead throughout the tiebreaker.

Willwerth took a quick 2-0 lead in the second set, gave it back for 2-all with a double fault but broke again, held for a 4-2 lead, then got another break to go up 5-2. Serving for the second set, Willwerth again failed to get to a set point, and when Leach held to force him to serve for it a second time, Willwerth fell behind 0-30. But he recovered to take the next four points and even the match. 

In the third set, Leach started holding serve much more simply, with Willwerth needing to save a break point at at 0-1 and two at 1-2. But he got a break to go up 3-2, with his backhand doing most of the damage, and saved three break points to hold for 4-2. That momentum seemed to carry over, with Leach unable to hold in the next game, with Willwerth making several spectacular passes from unlikely positions. 

Given his struggles closing out the first two sets, there was no reason to think Willwerth would breeze through the final game, but that's exactly what he did, going ace, service winner, forehand winner to give himself three match points. Leach hit a volley winner to save the first, but Willwerth made his fifth first serve of the game and followed it with a forehand winner to slam the door shut.

Willwerth will play No. 8 seed Henry Bernet of Switzerland, who defeated No. 7 seed Oskari Paldanius 7-6(6), 6-2 for his 11th consecutive victory. Bernet, who won the title at Traralgon last week, is the first Swiss boy to reach the Australian Open Junior final.

The boys doubles final, which was played at the same time as the second semifinal, produced a familiar champion, with Maxwell Exsted repeating, with new partner Jan Kumstat of the Czech Republic. Exsted, who won the title last year with Cooper Woestendick, and Kumstat, seeded No. 2, defeated unseeded Ognjen Milic of Serbia and Egor Pleshivtsev of Russia 7-6(6), 6-3. 

In the mixed doubles final, John Peers(Middle Tennessee, Baylor) and Olivia Gadecki defeated JP Smith(Tennessee) and Kimberly Birrel 3-6, 6-4, 10-6 in the battle of the Australian wild cards. It's Olympic gold medalist Peers' second mixed title (2022 US Open) and third slam title overall, after winning the 2017 Australian Open men's title.