Blanch and Dostanic Reach Sarasota Challenger Semis; All-American Final Four at W35 in Boca Raton; Kennedy vs Alvarez at M15 Boca Raton; Britton and Ceban Claim LTA 18s Titles; Oklahoma Beats No. 2 Texas A&M; USA Trails 2-0 in BJK Cup

Americans have advanced to the semifinals of all four USTA Pro Circuit tournaments this week, with an all-USA final guaranteed in one event and a possibility in the other three.

The sure thing is at the W35 in Boca Raton, where all four semifinalists are Americans. Top seed Kayla Day had to complete her second round match and play her quarterfinal today after rain the previous two days; she defeated unseeded Katarina Jokic(Georgia) of Serbia 7-6(4), 6-2 to advance to a fifth Pro Circuit meeting with No. 3 seed Claire Liu, although it's the first since 2019. Liu had to complete her second round match over 15-year-old qualifier Hannah Ayrault before reaching the semifinals with a 7-5, 6-2 win over unseeded Tatiana Pieri of Italy.

No. 2 seed Mary Stoiana(Texas A&M) had won her second round match yesterday, so her 6-3, 3-6, 6-1 win over Angela Fita Boluda of Spain was her only match of the day. She will face unseeded Maddy Sieg(USC), who beat No. 7 seed Akasha Urhobo 6-4, 6-1 to advance to her second straight W35 semifinal, having reached the semis at the W35 in Argentina last week.

At the ATP Challenger 75 in Sarasota(Bradenton), unseeded Americans Darwin Blanch and Stefan Dostanic(USC, Wake Forest) beat seeds to advance to the semifinals.

Blanch, the 2025 Kalamazoo 18s champion, continued his impressive run on the green clay at the IMG Academy, defeating No. 3 seed Hugo Dellien of Bolivia 6-1, 7-5 in today's quarterfinals. Blanch will face top seed Yibing Wu of China, who beat Daniel Dutra da Silva of Brazil 6-5, 7-6(4) this evening.

Dostanic, the 2025 NCAA Team Tournament's Most Outstanding Player, advanced to the semifinals when No. 8 seed Nishesh Basavareddy(Stanford) retired at 5-7, 6-2.  Dostanic will play unseeded Andy Andrade(Florida) of Ecuador, who beat No. 6 seed Daniil Glinka of Estonia 6-4, 6-2.

A couple of hours down the road in Bonita Springs, two former collegians are through to the W15 semifinals, with unseeded Carson Tanguilig, a recent North Carolina graduate, winning a three-hour battle with No. 8 seed Bella Payne, a Georgia recruit, 6-4, 6-7(5), 7-6(6). She will face unseeded Margaux Maquet of Belgium, who beat wild card Carlota Moreno 6-0, 6-1.

Top seed Gergana Topalova of Bulgaria will face No. 6 seed Ellie Schoppe(Furman, Florida State), who beat No. 3 seed Kyle Collins(Texas, LSU, Oklahoma State) in another three-hour-plus match 6-7(5), 6-2, 7-6(5).

At the M15 in Boca Raton, No. 6 seed Jack Kennedy reached his fifth USTA Pro Circuit semifinal with a 6-2, 1-6, 6-2 win over friend Keaton Hance. Kennedy, a Virginia recruit, will be trying to reach his first Pro Circuit final when he plays Yannik Alvarez of Puerto Rico, who has made the semifinals in his first appearance in a Pro Circuit tournament. Alvarez, a Georgia recruit, advanced when Benjamin Willwerth retired trailing 2-3 in the first set of the quarterfinals.

The top half semifinal will feature No. 8 seed Jacob Brumm and No. 7 seed Andreja Petrovic(North Dakota, Florida State, Duke) of Norway. Petrovic beat top seed Ignacio Monzon of Argentina 6-4, 6-4, while Brumm defeated No. 3 seed Mwendwa Mbithi 7-5, 7-5.

The LTA National Championships concluded today in Great Britain, with Daniela Britton, last week's 16s champion, adding the 18s title and top seed Mark Ceban, the 2024 16s champion, taking the boys title.

Britton, the No. 2 seed, beat No. 5 seed Tegan Bush 6-1, 6-3 in the final, with Bush having taking out top seed Hollie Smart 6-4, 6-1 in the quarterfinals. Ceban defeated No. 4 seed Joshua Craze 6-4, 6-1 to earn a Wimbledon men's qualifying wild card; Britton will receive a women's qualifying wild card for Wimbledon.

The draws can be found here.

The Division I women's NCAA picture continues without a clearcut favorite, but the University of Oklahoma women are certainly making their case, with the No. 7 Sooners beating No. 2 Texas A&M 4-1 last night in Norman for their 12th straight win. Oklahoma took the doubles point and got wins at lines 2, 3 and 5, with A&M's sole point coming from Lucciana Perez at No. 1. Oklahoma faces No. 6 Texas on Saturday again at home, on senior day.

The USA's Billie Jean King Cup team is down 2-0 to host Belgium after Iva Jovic lost to Hanne Vandewinkel 7-6(3), 6-3 and McCartney Kessler(Florida) retired against Elise Mertens at 7-6(3), 2-6, 3-3. For more on the remaining doubles and singles, and Kessler's injury, see this article from the BJK Cup website.

Jovic Kicks Off Billie Jean King Cup Qualifying vs Belgium Friday; Kennedy vs Hance in Boca Raton M15 Quarterfinals, Alvarez Beats No. 2 Seed Grant; Dostanic and Basavareddy Meet in Sarasota Challenger

Iva Jovic will make her Billie Jean King Cup debut tomorrow in the qualifying tie with Belgium, but the 18-year-old from Southern California is a veteran of ITF team competitions, having helped the USA win the Junior Billie Jean King Cup titles in 2022 and 2023.

Alanis Hamilton, Tyra Grant, Iva Jovic, Captain Tom Gutteridge (photo courtesy ITF)

Jovic was on the 2022 team as its youngest player and she didn't see much action, but she played No. 1 on the 2023 team and won every match in straight sets, with Tyra Grant, now representing Italy, and Alanis Hamilton the other team members.

Tomorrow Jovic, up to a WTA career-high of 16, will face Hanne Vandewinkel, currently 94 in the WTA rankings. McCartney Kessler(Florida) will play the second singles match against Elise Mertens, with Caty McNally and Nicole Melichar-Martinez expected to be the doubles team. 

Tennis Channel will provide coverage beginning at 10 a.m. EDT.

For the USTA's release from today, click here.

The Boca Raton M15 and M35 are still trying to get back on schedule due to all the rain this week, but one of the quarterfinals is set in the men's event, with No. 6 seed Jack Kennedy set to face good friend Keaton Hance. Kennedy and Hance, who won the 2024 Junior Davis Cup title and last year's US Open boys doubles championship, have played twice in the past year, with Kennedy winning 6-4, 3-6, 6-1 in the semifinals of the ITF J300 in Indian Wells last March and 6-0, 6-1 in the second round of the M15 in Orlando last November.

Kennedy had the tougher second round match, beating Jerrid Gaines Jr. 6-4, 2-6, 6-4, while Hance beat qualifier Adam Lynch(Barry) 6-2, 6-4. 

Puerto Rico's Yannik Alvarez, playing in his first Pro Circuit tournament, defeated No. 2 seed Will Grant(Florida) 2-6, 7-6(2), 6-0 to reach the quarterfinals. He will play the winner of tonight's second round match between Benjamin Willwerth and No. 5 seed Dragos Cazacu(Tennessee) of Romania. 

At the women's tournament in Boca Raton, No. 2 seed Mary Stoiana, No. 7 seed Akasha Urhobo and Madison Sieg(USC) have advanced to the quarterfinals, with Sieg facing Urhobo Friday.

The other side of the state has seen less impact from rain, with the quarterfinals set at both the W15 in Bonita Springs and ATP Challenger 75 in Sarasota(Bradenton). 

Seventeen-year-old wild card Carlota Moreno is through to the quarterfinals after beating No. 7 seed Ava Markham(Wisconsin) 7-5, 6-4; the Tennessee recruit will play unseeded Margaux Maquet of Belgium, who beat Georgia recruit Ava Rodriguez 6-1, 6-4.  Eighteen-year-old Bella Payne, who has signed with Georgia, defeated Allegra Korpanec Davies of Great Britain, a Florida signee 3-6, 6-3, 6-4 and will face former North Carolina All-American Carson Tanguilig, who beat No. 4 seed Ana Grubor of Canada 6-4, 6-7(3), 6-4.

No. 3 seed Kylie Collins(Texas, LSU, Oklahoma State) and No. 6 seed Ellie Schoppe(Furman, Florida State) are the other two Americans in the quarterfinals and they will play each other on Friday, with the winner facing either top seed Gergana Topalova of Bulgaria or No. 5 seed Daria Egorova.

Three Americans are through to the quarterfinals at the Sarasota Challenger, with 2025 Kalamazoo 18s champion Darwin Blanch earning his spot today with a 6-1, 6-2 win over Duje Ajdukovic of Croatia. He will face No. 3 seed Hugo Dellien of Bolivia Friday.

The bottom quarterfinal will feature two recent former college stars, with No. 8 seed Nishesh Basavareddy(Stanford) taking on unseeded Stefan Dostanic(USC, Wake Forest), in what I believe is their first meeting. Basavareddy beat Hynek Barton of Czechia 6-1, 7-6(6) Wednesday and Dostanic defeated Alex Rybakov(TCU) 6-2, 4-6, 6-4 Wednesday night. 

ITF J300 Tucson Videos; Reddy and Alvarez Earn First ATP Points in M15 Boca Raton, Wild Card Saffar Wins in Pro Circuit Debut at W35 in Boca Raton; Top Seeds Fall at J500 Cairo; SoCal Pro Series Begins Fifth Season Next Month

The videos from last month's finals at the ITF J300 in Tucson are below, with more to come in the next few weeks from the ITF in San Diego and the Easter Bowl. For many more videos from major junior events in the United States going back more than a decade, see the tenniskalamazoo YouTube channel.

 

 

Rain has again been a problem in Boca Raton, with some first round matches postponed until Thursday, but others were completed earlier today, with several juniors getting memorable results.

Sixteen-year-old wild card Vihaan Reddy, who had just one win in the two J300s out west last month, earned his first ATP point today at the M15 in Boca Raton, beating 18-year-old qualifier Adam Farag-Cao of Canada 6-3, 7-5. He will play No. 8 seed Jacob Brumm(Cal, Baylor) in the second round. ITF Junior Reserve entrant Yannik Alvarez of Puerto Rico also claimed his first ATP point, beating 20-year-old qualifier Segundo Goity Zapico of Argentina 6-2, 6-3. He will face No. 2 seed Will Grant(Florida) in the second round. 

Other teenagers advancing are wild cards Nick Stoot and Jerrid Gaines Jr.,  No. 6 seed Jack Kennedy, who plays Gaines next, and two Australian Open boys finalists, Benjamin Willwerth(2025) and Keaton Hance(2026), both of whom received main draw spots via the Junior Reserve program.

At the W35 in Boca Raton, 17-year-old Yael Saffar, who has been playing on the ITF Junior Circuit in Central and South America all year, received a wild card into her first Pro Circuit tournament and today won her debut, beating fellow teenage wild card Natalie Oliver 7-5, 3-6, 6-2.  No. 2 seed Mary Stoiana(Texas A&M) did finish her first round match, beating qualifier Savannah Broadus 6-3, 7-5.

Teens advancing to the second round of the W15 in Bonita Springs are Ava Rodriguez, wild card Carlota Moreno, No. 8 seed Bella Payne, No. 5 seed Daria Egorova, 14-year-old Sofia Bielinska of Ukraine and Allegra Korpanec Davies of Great Britain, the latter two after receiving Junior Reserved entries.

Both No. 1 seeds were beaten in the third round today at the ITF J500 in Cairo Egypt. Unseeded Vincent Reisach of Germany defeated Nikita Belozertsev of Uzbekistan 6-4, 6-4 and No. 16 seed Alena Kharchenko rebounded to beat Sonja Zhenikhova of Germany 0-6, 6-4, 6-2. Carel Ngounoue, who defeated No. 4 seed Savva Rybkin 6-4, 6-3 in the second round, lost to No. 16 seed Jan Sadzik of Poland 6-4, 6-1 today. 

The dates for this year's SoCal Pro Series, the seven-week block of $15,000 tournaments for men and women at various locations in the area, have been announced. Below is the release, which also includes information on the prequalifying events, which begin early next month.

APRIL 8, 2026 – The SoCal Pro Series, USTA Southern California’s swing of International Tennis Federation (ITF) World Tennis Tour events, returns for its fifth consecutive year this summer. The series provides a critical pathway for the region’s best junior and collegiate talent, offering players the opportunity to earn ATP and WTA world ranking points needed to transition onto the professional tour.

 

The SoCal Pro Series features seven straight weeks of men’s and women’s tournaments at premier tennis facilities across Southern California. Each $15,000-purse event is part of the USTA Pro Circuit and ITF World Tennis Tour. The series spans Los Angeles, Orange, and San Diego counties and makes its Inland Empire debut this year in Claremont.

 

The 2026 SoCal Pro Series’ tournament dates and locations are:

• May 25-31 – Lakewood Tennis Center, Lakewood
• June 1-7 – Lakewood Tennis Center, Lakewood
• June 8-14 – Jack Kramer Club, Rolling Hills Estates
• June 15-21 – Racquet Club of Irvine, Irvine
• June 22-28 – Biszantz Family Tennis Center, Claremont
• June 29-July 5 – Barnes Tennis Center, San Diego
• July 6-12 – Rancho Santa Fe Tennis Club, Rancho Santa Fe

 

“The SoCal Pro Series has always been about giving our junior and college players a real opportunity to test themselves,” said Trevor Kronemann, USTA Southern California Executive Director. “What’s been exciting to see is how they’re not just stepping into bigger events, they’re springboarding into them. They’re building belief, earning points, and proving they belong on the ATP and WTA tours. Having seven straight weeks of competition back on our calendar is huge for our section and for the players chasing that next level.”

 

Through the first four years of the SoCal Pro Series, 36 women and 21 men—who are either Southern California residents or played collegiate tennis in Southern California— have earned their first WTA/ATP world ranking point through the circuit, including seven women and five men in 2025.

 

Notable alumni who have used the series to catapult onto the professional tour include:

• Learner Tien (Irvine): Current ATP No. 22; 2026 Australian Open Quarterfinalist.
• Alex Michelsen (Aliso Viejo): Current ATP No. 35.
• Iva Jovic (Torrance): Current WTA No. 16; 2026 Australian Open Quarterfinalist.
• Local Standouts: Zach Svajda (Pacific Beach): Current ATP No. 84; Tristan Boyer (Altadena): Current ATP No. 242; Brandon Holt (Rolling Hills Estates): Current ATP No. 252; Julieta Pareja (Carlsbad): Current WTA No. 368; and Katherine Hui (San Diego): 2023 US Open Girls’ Singles Champion.

 

“The SoCal Pro Series was vital for my transition to the pro tour,” explained Jovic. “It was my first professional event [in 2022] and a great starting point. I really appreciate USTA SoCal’s commitment to giving wildcards and opportunities to local kids. SoCal has a great tennis community, with talented players and coaches, and that level of guidance and professionalism is incredible. Having professional events in our section—and a whole series of them—is something many other sections don’t have. It’s a huge advantage and exposure for SoCal kids.”

 

SoCal Pro Series’ main draw and qualifying wildcards are available to U.S. citizens who are either legal Southern California residents or full-time college students in the region.

 

Southern California players can register to play in pre-qualifying events for a chance to earn their way into the main draw as wild cards. The upcoming pre-qualifying schedule includes: May 9-11, Jack Kramer Club; May 15-19, Lakewood Tennis Center; May 22-24, Rancho Santa Fe Tennis Club; May 29-June 2, Racquet Club of Irvine; June 6-8, Barnes Tennis Center; June 12-14 The Claremont Club. SoCal players can register for pre-qualifying events at: https://ustasocal.com/proseries/#pre-qualifying.

Another Week, Another No. 1 in D-I Men's Tennis; Frodin and Ayrault Qualify for W35, Syed Advances at M15 in Boca Raton; UTR Pro Tennis Tour Update

For the fourth week in succession, a different team has taken over the top spot in the ITA Division I men's rankings, with Texas reaching No. 1 for the first time this season, despite their National Team Indoor title in February. The Longhorns, who have lost seven six matches this year including two in SEC play, have one more conference match left, at home against Florida this Friday. The SEC men's conference tournament begins April 15th in College Station.

There's also a new No. 1 in men's singles, with Virginia's Dylan Dietrich returning to the top spot after Trevor Svajda of SMU suffered his second loss of the season to Viktor Markov of Clemson 2-6, 6-3, 7-6(1). Dietrich beat Svajda in their conference match; Dietrich's sole loss of the dual match season came to Aidan Kim in the semifinals of the Team Indoor Championships.

I'm including the Top 16 this week rather than the Top 10, with the race to host the first two matches of the NCAAs a significant benefit of earning that ranking. The results at the conference tournaments will be included, so we're not close to having the Top 16 determined, (or the Top 8, who are Super Regional hosts if they win their first two match), but it's something to keep an eye on in these final weeks. The link in the heading goes to the full list; to see who is on the cutline for the NCAAs, see Collegetennisranks.com.

Men's ITA Division I Rankings, April 7, 2026

Team

last week's ranking in parentheses

1. Texas (2)

2. Ohio State (1)

3. Virginia (4)

4. TCU (5)

5. LSU (7)

6. Mississippi State (6)

7. Wake Forest (3)

8. Texas A&M (10)

9. Oklahoma (11)

10. Arizona (8)

11. Baylor (9)

12. South Carolina (13)

13. Georgia (12)

14. Illinois (14)

15. UCF (15)

16. San Diego (16)

Top 10 Singles:

1. Dylan Dietrich, Virginia

2. Trevor Svajda, SMU

3. Sebastian Gorzny, Texas

4. Jay Friend, Arizona

5. Benito Sanches Martinez, Mississippi State

6. Duncan Chan, TCU

7. Devin Badenhorst, Baylor

8. Max Dahlin, Michigan

9. Michael Zheng, Columbia

10. Petar Jovanovic, Mississippi State

Top 5 Doubles:

1. Cosme Rolland De Ravel and Duncan Chan, TCU

2. DK Suresh and Andrew Delgado, Wake Forest

3. Brandon Carpico and Nikita Filin, Ohio State

4. Benito Sanchez Martinez and Petar Jovanovic, Mississippi State

5. Theo Papamalamis and Togan Tokac, Texas A&M

The women's Top 10 hardly changed, with Georgia and Texas A&M remaining at No. 1 and No. 2, which was the norm for several years, but was not expected to continue in 2026.

Women's ITA Division I Rankings, April 7, 2026

Team

1. Georgia (1)

2. Texas A&M (2)

3. Ohio State (3)

4. Auburn (4)

5. North Carolina (5)

6. Texas (6)

7. Oklahoma (8)

8. Virginia (9)

9. Pepperdine (7)

10. Southern California (12)

11. Arizona State (14)

12. LSU (13)

13. Vanderbilt (11)

14. NC State (10)

15. Michigan (17)

16. UCLA (18)

Top 10 Singles:

1. Lucciana Perez, Texas A&M

2. Reese Brantmeier, North Carolina

3. Carmen Herea, Texas

4. Teah Chavez, Ohio State

5. Luciana Perry, Ohio State

6. Bridget Stammel, Vanderbilt

7. Piper Charney, Michigan

8. Aysegul Mert, Georgia

9. Savannah Dada-Mascoll, Appalachian State

10. Evialina Laskevich, Oklahoma

Top 5 Doubles:

1. Roisin Gilheany and Gloriana Nahum, Oklahoma

2. Gabriella Broadfoot and Victoria Osuigwe, NC State

3. Ava Esposito and DJ Bennett, Auburn

4. Deniz Dilek and Aysegul Mert, Georgia

5. Reese Brantmeier and Alanis Hamilton, North Carolina

Rain was a problem today in Florida, where all four of this week's USTA Pro Circuit tournaments are being played. The two doubles matches on today's schedule at the ATP Challenger 75 in Sarasota were postponed, but the singles first round continued, with Nishesh Basavareddy(Stanford), Darwin Blanch, Garrett Johns(Duke) and Strong Kirchheimer(Northwestern) earning victories today. Last night, Alex Rybakov(TCU) defeated No. 2 seed Martin Damm 3-6, 7-6(3), 6-3.

Also on the gulf side of the state is a women's W15 in Bonita Springs, with qualifying just finishing up now. Americans advancing to the main draw are Emma Jackson(Duke), Jenna Dean and 18-year-old Oklahoma recruit Sara Shumate, who beat two seeds to reach the main draw.

Wild cards were given to Jaedan Brown(Michigan), Nadia Valdez, Carlota Moreno and Sarah Ye, with Brown playing Valdez and Moreno facing Ye in the first round. 

Maggie Sohns received an ITF junior reserved entry, as did Ukraine's Sofia Bielinska.

Gergana Topalova of Bulgaria is the top seed, with Emily Appleton of Great Britain the No. 2 seed.

Boca Raton has a W35 and an M15 this week, with a rain confining the play today to qualifying.

2025 USTA National 16s champion Hannah Ayrault, who trains in the Boca Raton area, qualified for the W35 there in November of last year and the 15-year-old has done it again, winning two match tiebreakers after dropping the opening set to qualify against Malkia Ngounoue and Italy's Anastasia Bertacchi.

Thea Frodin, 17, didn't drop a set in advancing to the main draw, where she'll play 19-year-old Akasha Urhobo, who received a wild card, but is the No. 7 seed. 

Other Americans advancing to the main draw are Salma Ewing(USC, Texas A&M), Savannah Broadus(Pepperdine) and Jamilah Snells(Louisville).

Wild cards were given to Claire Liu, who is the No. 3 seed, high school senior Natalie Oliver and high school junior Yael Saffar. Oliver and Saffar will play each other in the first round.

Kayla Day and Mary Stoiana(Texas A&M) are the top two seeds.

The Boca Raton M15 features many juniors, with Jack Kennedy the No. 6 seed, and junior reserved spots going to Yannik Alvarez of Puerto Rico, Keaton Hance and Benjamin Willwerth. Wild cards were awarded to American teens Nick Stoot, Vihaan Reddy and Jerrid Gaines Jr, along with Australian Patrick Kotan(North Florida). 

Qualifiers include Jerry Roddick(UCF, Texas A&M), Adam Lynch(Barry), Ilija Palavestra(Ohio State) and 16-year-old qualifying wild card Sulaiman Syed, who is playing in just his second USTA Pro Circuit tournament.

Ignacio Monzon of Argentina is the top seed, with Will Grant(Florida) the No. 2 seed.

It's been two months since my last UTR Pro Tennis Tour results update, which was in early February. Many of the same names reach the finals week after week; some obviously are using the PTT to fund their ITF Pro Circuit travels, others don't play regularly except on the PTT.

MEN:

February 1 Boca Raton FL

Martin Katz d. Alexander Baez 6-0, 6-4

February 9 Houston TX

Tomas Pinho d. Petro Kuzmenok 7-6(1), 6-3

February 9 Newport Beach CA

Maciej Rajski d. Antreas Djakouris 4-6, 7-5, 6-0

February 16 Berkeley CA

Tiago Silva d. Paris Pouatcha 7-5, 6-4

February 23 Las Vegas NV

Mitch Stewart d. Zachary Cohen 6-1, 6-1

March 2 Boca Raton FL

Martin Katz d. Adrien Burdet 7-5, 6-2

March 9 Newport Beach CA

Gianluca Brunkow d. Lucca Liu 7-5, 6-3

March 16 Newport Beach CA

Karl Kazuma Lee d. Andrew Li 6-1, 7-6(4)

March 16 Moraga CA

Joaquin Benoit d. Reece Falck 7-6(3), 7-5

March 23 Boca Raton FL

Aleksa Ciric d. Riccardo Trione 7-5, 6-4

March 29 Newport Beach CA

Tej Bhagra d. Miles Clark 6-4, 4-6, 7-6(1)

March 31 Nashville TN*

Aleksa Ciric d. John Patrick Popowich 6-3, 6-3

*$12.5K prize money

WOMEN:

February 9 Boca Raton FL

Sydney Jara d. Khrystyna Vozniak 6-3, 6-1

February 9 Newport Beach CA

Alina Shcherbinina d. Savannah Broadus 7-6(1), 6-3

February 23 Las Vegas NV

Isabella Krueger d. Iulia Andreea Ionescu 7-5, 6-1

February 23 Boca Raton FL

Victoria Bervid d. Jada Robinson 7-6(3), 3-6, 6-4

March 9 Newport Beach CA

Veronika Miroshnichenko d. Kailey Evans 6-3, 1-6, 6-4

March 16 Boca Raton FL

Emma Jackson d. Katerina Shabashkevich 6-1, 6-2

March 16 Newport Beach CA

Hanna Chang d. Veronika Miroshnichenko 6-3, 6-1

March 29 Newport Beach CA

Alina Shcherbinina d. Veronika Miroshnichenko 6-3, 6-3

March 31 Nashville TN*

Khrystyna Vozniak d. Cristina Elena Tiglea 6-7, 6-4, 6-1

*$12.5 Prize Money

March Aces; Chang Sweeps Titles at ITF J200 in Paraguay; Few Surprises in Sarasota Challenger Qualifying; Urhobo, Dali Blanch Lead After Week One of USTA's Roland Garros Wild Card Race

The March edition of my monthly Tennis Recruiting Network column featuring the top performances of juniors, collegians and former collegians is available today, with 18 players featured. I've had to drastically reduce my coverage of titles at M15s and W15s because of the sheer number of those events won by junior and collegians, but I make exceptions here and there, including in March. 

There was only one singles title for an American on the ITF Junior Circuit last week, with 15-year-old Lani Chang winning the biggest title of her junior career at the J200 in Paraguay.  No. 3 seed Chang, the daughter of Michael Chang and Amber Liu(Stanford), didn't drop a set all week, beating No. 8 seed Scarlett Fagan 6-2, 6-3 in the semifinals and unseeded Maria Eduarda Carbone dos Santos of Brazil 6-1, 6-4 in the final. Carbone dos Santos had defeated No. 7 seed Londyn McCord in the first round and top seed Sofia Meabe of Argentina in the quarterfinals.

Chang and Ana Avramovic, seeded No. 2, claimed the doubles title with a 3-6, 6-4, 10-6 decision over No. 4 seeds Fagan and McCord.

Izyan Ahmad won the boys doubles title with Felipe Mamede of Brazil; the No. 4 seeds defeated top seeds Alvaro Ariel Frutos Alonso of Paraguay and Felipe Vazquez of Uruguay 6-0, 6-3 in the final.

At the J60 in the Dominican Republic, 15-year-old Adriana Khomyakova won the girls doubles title with Valentina Garcia Rojas of Colombia. The top seeds defeated No. 2 seeds Julianny De La Cruz Champagne of the Dominican Republic and Sasha Miroshnichenko 6-3, 7-6(6) in the final. Audrey Dussault reached the singles final, losing to De La Cruz Champagne 4-6, 6-0, 7-6(1). 

The other American title was in boys doubles at the J30 in Gaudeloupe, with 15-year-old Ved Vanga winning his first title on the ITF Junior Circuit.  Vanga and partner Emryk Crete of Canada, the No. 2 seeds, beat top seeds Ilia and Timofey Dobrovolsky of Canada 5-7, 7-6(5), 10-7 in the final.

Qualifying concluded today at the ATP Sarasota Challenger 75, which this year is being held at the IMG Academy in Bradenton.  Five of the top 6 seeds in qualifying advanced to the main draw, including No. 1 Liam Draxl(Kentucky) of Canada, who must have entered late, as he would have been a top 4 seed in the main draw. Unseeded in the main draw, he will play No. 8 seed Nishesh Basavareddy(Stanford) for the second time in two weeks, with Basavareddy beating Draxl, a qualifier, 6-3, 2-6, 6-4 in the first round of the ATP 250 in Houston.

The other qualifiers are Garrett Johns[2](Duke), Killian Feldbausch[3] of Switzerland, Strong Kirchheimer[9](Northwestern), Reda Bennani[5] of Morocco and Bruno Kuzuhara[6].

Yibing Wu of China is the top seed, with Martin Damm the No. 2 seed. Kei Nishikori of Japan received a wild card, as did Cannon Kingsley(Ohio State) and JJ Wolf(Ohio State).

Five first round matches were on today's schedule, with Damm, who trains at IMG, playing the night match against Alex Rybakov(TCU).  Wolf lost to No. 6 seed Daniil Glinka of Estonia 6-3, 7-6(4) today; Tyler Zink(Georgia, Oklahoma State) beat No. 4 seed Colton Smith(Arizona), Stefan Dostanic(USC, Wake Forest) defeated Saba Purtseladze of Georgia 6-2, 6-3 and Hynek Barton of the Czech Republic defeated Mitchell Krueger 6-4, 6-4.

The USTA's Roland Garros Wild Card Challenge began last week, with Dali Blanch and Akasha Urhobo leading the race after the first of five weeks players have to put up their three best results on any clay tournament at the 25-level and above. Urhobo, 19, qualified and won her first WTA main draw match at the Credit One Charleston Open to earn 57 points. Varvara Lepchenko, on the other end of the age spectrum at 39, reached the quarterfinals of the W250 in Colombia to earn 54 points.

Blanch, 23, reached his first ATP Challenger semifinal above the 50 level last week at the 100 in Spain as a qualifier, earning 29 points, putting him four points ahead of Basavareddy and Mackenzie McDonald, who both advanced to the second round of the ATP 250 in Houston. 

Women's Standings
(Player's current ranking in parentheses)

1. Akasha Urhobo (233) -- 57
2. Varvara Lepchenko (148) -- 54
T3. Alycia Parks (93) -- 32
T3. Ashlyn Krueger (108) -- 32

Men's Standings
(Player's current ranking in parentheses)

1. Dali Blanch (349) -- 29
T2. Nishesh Basavareddy (181) -- 25
T2. Mackenzie McDonald (126) -- 25

Belozertsev and Zhenikhova Top Seeds at ITF J500 Cairo; Johnson Claims Title at W35 in Jackson MS; Jodar Captures First ATP Title in Morocco; Paul and Pegula Win on US Clay; LTA National 16s Champion Britton No. 2 Seed in This Week's 18s Tournament

The ITF J500 in Cairo begins Monday, with Nikita Belozertsev of Uzbekistan the top seed in the boys draw and Sonja Zhenikhova of Germany No. 1 in the girls draw. Seeds don't play in the first round, but all four Americans will be in action on the North Africa clay.

Ireland O'Brien faces qualifier Jana Mohamed Elsayed of Egypt, who did not have to win a match to reach the main draw. Only two girls qualifying matches were played, the other four qualifiers received walkovers. Camille Allegre faces Judy Tawila of Egypt, the only Egyptian girl of the 11 in the main draw who received direct entry into the main draw.

Zavier Augustin will face wild card Ahmed Ibrahim of Egypt in the first round, with Carel Ngounoue playing lucky loser Ali Sherif Abdellatif of Egypt.

The USTA Pro Circuit is going to be a whole lot busier next week, with four tournaments, including a Challenger 75 in Sarasota(Bradenton, actually), but only one tournament this week, the women's W35 in Jackson Mississippi.  Former Old Dominion All-American Sofia Johnson of Great Britain, who won her first ITF women's World Tennis Tour title at a W15 in Florida in February, won her second today. Johnson, a qualifier, defeated No. 4 seed Aran Teixido Garcia(Memphis, LSU) 7-5, 6-1 in the fina. The 21-year-old, who is now training at the Junior Tennis Champions Center in College Park, has a template to follow in Old Dominion's Yulia Starodubtseva, who was Johnson's teammate in the 2021-22 season.

Starodubtseva, who lost to top seed and defending champion Jessica Pegula 6-2, 6-2 today in the WTA 500 Credit One Charleston Open, is now up to a career-high 53 in the WTA rankings.

The doubles title in Charleston was won by Caty McNally and Desirae Krawczyk(Arizona State), who beat Anna Bondar of Hungary and Magdalena Frech of Poland 6-3, 6-2 in the final.

Nineteen-year-old Rafael Jodar won his first ATP title today at the 250 in Marrakech Morocco, defeating qualifier Marco Trungelliti of Argentina 6-3, 6-2. The 2025 ITA Rookie of the Year while at the University of Virginia, Jodar is the first teenager to win an ATP title in 2026. The 2024 US Open boys champion is now up to 57 in the ATP rankings.

Former Ohio State Buckeyes Robert Cash and JJ Tracy made it a former-collegian sweep, taking the doubles title in Morocco. The No. 4 seeds defeated unseeded Vasil Kirkov and the Netherlands' Bart Stevens 6-2, 6-3 in the final. It's the second ATP title for the 2024 NCAA doubles champions.

Another former junior slam champion won an ATP title today, with 2015 Roland Garros boys champion Tommy Paul winning his first ATP title on clay at the ATP 250 US Men's Clay Court Championships in Houston. Paul was down 5-3 in the third set and saved three match points before overtaking unseeded Roman Burruchaga of Argentina 6-1, 3-6, 7-5 for his fifth ATP title. 

Former University of Florida teammates Ben Shelton and Andres Andrade won the doubles title today in Houston as wild cards, beating top seeds Orlando Luz and Rafael Matos of Brazil 4-6, 6-3, 10-6. It's the first ATP title for both Shelton and Andrade.

The LTA's National Championships for 16s concluded last week, with the 18s tournament beginning Monday. Top seed Daniella Britton won the girls 16s title with a 6-4, 6-3 win over No. 2 seed Annabel Wong to secure her Wimbledon Junior Championships wild card (she received one last year as well and won a round). Wild card Isaac Sallu won the boys 16s title, beating top seed Eric Lorimer 7-6, 6-4. Links to the 16s draws are here; an article on the 16s finals is here.

ITF No. 54 Hollie Smart, who has competed often here in the United States including last month in the Las Vegas and Tucson ITFs, is the top seed in the 18s. Britton is the No. 2 seed; with these tournaments back-to-back, rather than concurrent, players are allowed to compete in both. ITF No. 30, Mark Ceban, is the top boys seed, with ITF No. 57 Rhys Lawlor the No. 2 seed. 

A Wimbledon qualifying wild card goes to the winner of the 18s championships.

Links to the 18s draws are here; an 18s preview, with a promise of live streaming, is here.