Latak Shocks Top Seed Antonius to Reach Kalamazoo 16s Semifinals; Ahn Beats No. 1 Seed Urhobo in San Diego 18s Quarterfinals; Finals Set in Boys and Girls 12s and 14s, Girls 16s; US Teams Advance to ITF WJT FInals; Shelton Claims First Masters 1000 Title
©Colette Lewis 2025--
Marcel Latak didn't take his father's advice coming into his first match in Kalamazoo Sunday, but six days later he pulled off the biggest upset of the 2025 USTA Boys 16s and 18s National Championships, defeating top seed Michael Antonius 3-6, 7-5, 6-2.
"Before this tournament even started my dad was telling me that the first round was going to be the toughest," said the 16-year-old from Chicago, who as the No. 5 seed, needed a break in the final game to beat Akshay Mirmira 3-6, 6-3, 6-4 in the second round. "He was telling me to focus and be prepared. But I didn't really take that too seriously, which is such a mistake. Obviously when someone plays a higher seed, they're going to come out fighting, and that was exactly what happened. He played a really good match, and as the tournament went on, it's gone easier in a way, because basically I already lost in the first round. So half the pressure went away."
Latak was an even more precarious position today again Antonius, trailing 6-3, 4-1, with Antonius serving. But he hung tough and Antonius, who had lost only three games in his three matches (with a walkover mixed in) began to show signs of fatigue in the 88 degree temperatures.
"The first two sets took so long and the heat, I definitely know the heat was a big factor," said the 2025 Easter Bowl 16s champion. "Today was the hottest day, definitely, oh my goodness."
Antonius served for the match at 5-4, but whether the problem was nerves or heat or illness or Latak's rock solid down-the-line backhand, the 15-year-old from Buffalo was broken at love for 5-all. Latak held and Antonius double faulted twice trying to force a tiebreaker, going down 0-40. Latak didn't convert his first set point, but when Antonius's forehand went wide on the second, he had earned his opportunity for an impressive comeback.
The 10-minute break didn't halt Latak's momentum, and a break at 2-3 was sufficient, as Antonius couldn't find any lift from his legs on his serve and was broken in his next service game to give Latak the upset victory.
Latak carved out some time for a training block on hard courts ahead of Kalamazoo and is pleased with how he is feeling physically despite playing a singles and doubles match nearly every day.
"I definitely feel like I've done a good job physically training myself before this tournament," Latak said. "I knew that if I was going to play well, come out here and fight, I would have to be prepared physically. I also think it's kind of a mental thing for me, as well. Telling myself not to let up, not to let it go, and that helped a lot today."
Latak's opponent in Saturday's semifinal is No. 10 seed Jerrid Gaines Jr. who overpowered No. 3 seed Roshan Santhosh 6-3, 6-3.
"It went really well, went as planned, I'm really happy," said the 16-year-old from Florida. "I had a great warmup, had a great plan for the match and I just stuck to it. Yeah, I made some errors, but I made more shots than I missed. A three and three victory is a solid win; it's an unbelievable feeling."
After saving match points in a nearly four-hour fourth round match with No. 30 seed Rowan Qalbani, Gaines is now prepared for just about anything.
"I wasn't feeling my best that day, but I made some adjustments," said Gaines, whose serve plus-one game is impressive when those shots are clicking. "Stick to the plan and not be afraid. Just go out and show the people how I can play. I'm really happy I'm starting to do that the last couple of days."
Latak is prepared for his first meeting with Gaines.
"For me, it's going to be similar to today, from the first point, I've just got to fight and compete," Latak said. "I know he hits big and he's going to have his unreal ups, but everyone has their ups and downs. I've just got to fight through those and stay in the match."
While top seed Antonius has exited, No. 2 seed Andrew Johnson continued his run of routine victories, beating No. 7 seed Safir Azam 6-3, 6-1. Johnson didn't begin confidently, losing his serve in the second game after breaking in the first, but after winning a four-deuce game to hold for 2-2, he was off and running, making the adjustments required to counteract the pace Azam was generating at the outset.
"I don't know what happened there, still getting my focus, maybe" said the Southern Californian, who turns 16 later this month, of his slow start. "I started getting used to his pace and adjusting, mixing up my shots, experimenting, because it's the beginning of the match."
Johnson was broken to start the second set, but six games later, Johnson was through, having thoroughly bewildered Azam with his unexpected shot selection.
When Azam took a medical timeout early in the second set, Johnson moved his changeover chair to a shadier spot behind the baseline.
"It was so hot," Johnson said. "I'm not used to this weather, I'm from Cali."
Johnson said he will stick to his routines in preparation for Saturday's semifinal, but he was clear that they are routines, not superstitions.
"A quesadilla for breakfast, a Tropical Smoothie, it's been working for me and I'm not changing anything up if it's working," Johnson said. "But I'm not superstitious. If someone grips my racquet terribly, I'm whatever, I don't care. Just play with it, it's a racquet."
Johnson will face No. 4 seed Vihaan Reddy, who beat No. 16 seed Colin McPeek 6-2, 6-2.
Reddy was up 4-0 and cruising today, but McPeek raised his level to keep Reddy from running away with the match.
"I had a really good start, and then he started serving a bit better, getting into his service games," said the 15-year-old from California, who now trains at the National Campus in Lake Nona. "I went down 0-2 in the second and I definitely could have been 3-0 or 4-1 because he had game points in both service games."
Reddy has been working on his all-court game, although he has always been enamored of his drop shot.
"I worked a lot last year with coach Jon(USTA National Coach Glover) on my slices and volleys, so that has been a big improvement," Reddy said. "Earlier I was more of a counterpuncher. Coming in, I've been trying to add to my game, but the droppers have always been one of my best shots. I've been trying to dial it down, so this match I only hit two or three."
Although they might have been scarce, the drop shots were effective, and his ability to move in also put pressure on McPeek's one-handed backhand passing shots.
Reddy is, like the other four 16s semifinalists, angling for the US Open Juniors main draw wild card that goes to the champion.
"That was definitely a big reason for playing 16s," said Reddy, who is 158 in the ITF junior rankings. "I thought about playing 18s, but it would have been really tough, and I probably wouldn't have gotten as many quality matches in the 18s."
Of the three quarterfinalists still in singles and in the doubles semifinals, Johnson was the only one to advance to the doubles final Saturday.
No. 2 seeds Johnson and Mason Vaughan came back to defeat unseeded Gaines and Sebastian Bielen 5-7, 6-3, 6-4. They will play No. 7 seeds Lucas Smith and Shaan Majeed, who beat No. 15 seeds Latak and Reddy 6-3, 6-4.
A US Open wild card in men's doubles will be decided between the top two seeds Saturday in the 18s division. No. 1 seeds Cooper Woestendick and Max Exsted, the 2024 Australian Open boys doubles champions, defeated No. 8 seeds Justin Lin and Bryan Assi 6-3, 6-2, while 2025 Roland Garros boys doubles finalists Benjamin Willwerth and Noah Johnston beat unseeded Noble Renfrow and Theo Hegarty 6-1, 6-2.
The 16s semifinals are scheduled for 9:30 a.m., followed by the 18s semifinal between Darwin Blanch and Jack Kennedy at 11 a.m. and the second 18s semifinal between Keaton Hance and Jack Satterfield at 11:30 a.m.
The 16s doubles final is scheduled for 1:30 p.m., followed by the 18s doubles final.
Links to live streaming and live scoring can be found at ustaboys.com.
Akasha Urhobo, the top seed in the G18s, lost to San Diego's local star Alyssa Ahn, the No. 7 seed. From Fred Sidhu, the tournament's press aide:
In the Match of the Day, Ahn ousted top-seeded Akasha Urhobo of Fort Lauderdale, Fla., 4-6, 6-4, 6-3 in three-hours and nine-minutes under bright, sunny skies on Stadium Court.
After dropping the first set, Ahn regrouped and took an early 4-1 lead in the second set. Urhobo came back to win three of the next four games to get back on serve. As the top-seed served at 4-5 to stay in the set, Ahn capitalized on two double faults and broke serve to win the set.
Urhobo broke serve and then held for a 2-0 lead to open the third set, but Ahn raised the level of her game and won five straight games to take a 5-2 lead. In the eighth game, Urhobo fought off three match points, and eventually held serve, winning a 14-point game. At 5-3, Ahn served out the match to secure her spot in the 18s semifinals.
“It feels great after getting through a match like that. That one was really rewarding. I had to battle back from a set down and I had to bring out my best tennis, especially against such a great player like Akasha. It means a lot to get the win and get my place in the semifinals,” Ahn said after her three-set victory.
“I felt I brought out some pretty good tennis in the second and third. I knew I had to in order to compete with Akasha,” Ahn added. “I just found my rhythm and I figured out what I needed to do. I had confidence coming into this match. I believed I could do it.”
For more on the final, see this article from the ATP.
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