Duke's Xu and TCU's Pascual Head List of Seeds for NCAA Singles Championships; Budasek Sweeps J100 Titles in Mexico for Second Straight Week; Kim Claims First WT Junior Title at J100 in Boca Raton

The seeds are out for next week's NCAA Division I Singles and Doubles Championships in Athens Georgia, with ITA All-American Champion Roger Pascual of TCU the men's top seed and All-American finalist Mimi Xu of Duke the women's top seed. 

Although the World Tennis Number is the starting point for seeding, other metrics can be used, as they are for the team event, with strength of schedule, head-to-head results and record against common opponents among the considerations. Although Ohio State's Luciana Perry defeated Xu in the final of the All-American Championships, that wasn't enough to move her ahead of Xu.

The complete list of participants, including alternates, is available here for the men, and here for the women. As I mentioned last night, I will have a preview of the tournaments for the Tennis Recruiting Network this Friday. Draws will be published Sunday evening.

WOMEN:

Singles:
1. Mimi Xu, Duke
2. Amelie Van Impe, SMU
3. Lexington Reed, Texas A&M
4. Luciana Perry, Ohio State
5. Nao Nishino, Ohio State
6. Rose Marie Nijkamp, Texas
7. Kaitlyn Carnicella, South Carolina
8. Emma Dong, Georgia

9-16, alphabetical:

Irina Balus, Duke

Sophia Cisse-Ignatiev, Ohio State

Arina Malygina, Oklahoma State

Alexis Nguyen, North Carolina

Salakthip Ounmang, Oklahoma

Bella Payne, Georgia

Katie Rolls, Virginia

Lavinia Tanasie, NC State

Doubles:

1. Teah Chavez and Sophia Cisse-Ignatiev, Ohio State

2. Rose Maris Nijkamp and Carmen Herea, Texas

3. Lexington Reed and Kristina Paskauskas, Texas A&M

4. Patricija Paukstyte and Bella Payne, Georgia

5-8, alphabetical by school

Sara Svetac and Lily Taylor, Arizona State

Emma Dong and Ranah Stoiber, Georgia

Luciana Perry and Flora Johnson, Georgia

Salakthip Ounmuang and Zoie Epps, Oklahoma

MEN:

1. Roger Pascual, TCU

2. Keegan Rice, Virginia

3. Luca Preda, Virginia

4. Theo Papamalamis, Texas A&M

5. Aidan Kim, Ohio State

6. Dominick Mosejczuk, Wake Forest

7. Nikita Filin, Ohio State

8. Tomasz Berkieta, Texas

9-16, alphabetical

Luciano Ambrogi, Oklahoma

Nicolas Arsenault, Kentucky

Rodrigo Fernandes, Cornell

Toby Kodat, NC State

Bruno Kuzuhara, Clemson

Johan Rodriguez, Oklahoma

Andres Santamarta, Virginia

Ilia Snitari, Texas A&M

Doubles:

1. Nikita Filin and Brandon Carpico, Ohio State

2. Aidan Kim and Bryce Nakashima, Ohio State

3. Albert Pedrico and Cooper Woestendick, TCU

4. Noa Vukadin and Viktor Markov, Clemson

5-8, alphabetical by school

Chris Xu and Niels Ratiu, North Carolina

Mortiz Kudernatsch and Pietro Pampanin, Ole Miss

Lasse Poertner and Aleksa Pisaric, Pepperdine

Paul Barbier Gazeu and Charlie Robertson, South Carolina

Last week produced two American singles champions at J100 events, with Sophia Budacsek earning a second straight sweep in Guadalajara and Atticus Kim winning his first World Tennis junior title in Boca Raton.

Budacsek, seeded No. 4, defeated No. 2 seed Eve Thibault of Canada 6-3, 3-6, 6-3 in the final to claim her tenth straight singles victory. The 17-year-old from Illinois, has now reached a final, a semifinal and won two titles in her four J100 tournaments since the beginning of October, with her WT junior ranking now up to 179.

She has also won all four doubles titles at those four J100s, and now has six doubles title this year. Last week she partnered with Ana Avramovic, with the top seeds defeating No. 2 seeds Grace Dollar and Mexico's Romina Dominguez Garcia 6-2, 6-3 in the final.

Sebastian Godoy and South Africa's Jayden Summers won the boys doubles title, with the top seeds defeating No. 7 seeds Macksimus Malhotra and Italy's Niccolo Magagnin 6-3, 7-6(4) in the final. Malhotra also reached the singles final, losing to No. 3 seed Felipe Mamede of Brazil 7-6(4), 6-3.

In Boca Raton, another 17-year-old from Illinois prevailed in the boys singles, with the unseeded Kim beating No. 16 seed Indra Vergne 4-6, 6-1, 6-2 in the final. Kim, who has played only a handful of WT junior events in the past year, has more than halved his ranking with the title, which is up to 550.

Qualifier Amy Gray of Australia won the girls singles title, beating unseeded 14-year-old Evija Thoresen 7-6(3), 6-1 in the final. 

Unseeded Lyla Middleton and Emily Morgan won the girls doubles title, beating Capri Butera and Gabrielle Villegas, also unseeded, 6-3, 6-2 in the all-USA final. 

In another all-unseeded, all-USA doubles final, Gurbaaz Narang and Aryan Ponugoti defeated Alexander Lerman and Peter Nistad 7-5, 4-6, 10-2.

This week's WT junior tournament in the United States is another J100 on clay, in Coral Gables Florida. Mason Vaughan and Aarini Bhattacharya are the top seeds.

At the J30 in Jamaica, two 16-year-olds won their first titles on the WT junior circuit. Karan Shanker claimed his when Cavan Donnelly retired trailing 6-0, 1-0, and wild card Jaiya Siffrard, the top seed, defeated No. 2 seed Daniela Rangel Ramos of Mexico 6-4, 6-2 for her first title.

Rangel and American partner Emelie Valdes won the girls doubles, with the top seeds defeating Siffrard and Raquel Delarosa, the No. 2 seeds, 4-6, 6-2, 10-8 in the final.

Donnelly and Krish Advani won the boys doubles titles beating Isaac Llovera De Lasse of Mexico and Stanley Salmon of Great Britain 6-4, 6-2 in the final.

At the J30 in Barbados, Enya Neagu and China's Jiarui Li, the top seeds, won the girls doubles title, defeating Rylee Cherry and the Cayman Islands' Ava Pierre 7-5, 6-7(5), 10-7 in the final. 

NCAA D-I Singles and Doubles Fields Set; Flagler's Malis, Nova Southeastern's Hranacova Win D-II Titles; Americans Kozlov and Lahey Claim USTA Pro Circuit Titles; Rapolu Goes Back-to-Back; Liu Captures WTA 250; Czechia, France Earn JBJK, JD Cup Titles

The fields are set for the NCAA Division I Singles and Doubles Championships, which begin a week from Tuesday at the University of Georgia.  The two final tournaments providing qualifying opportunities, the Conference Masters and the Sectionals, concluded today with the final 28 singles and 14 doubles draws now filled. Below are the Sectional quarterfinal results, with all the players who earned their chance to compete in Athens in bold. I will be providing a preview of the Division I individual championships Friday at the Tennis Recruiting Network. The full list of all participants in Athens can be found at collegetennisranks.com

Sectional Results:

MEN:

Central Host: Baylor
Quarterfinals

Albert Pedrico[1], TCU d. Zachary Viiala, Illinois 6-1, 6-4
Hank Trondson, Oklahoma State d.. Devin Badenhorst[3], Baylor 7-5, 6-4
Cooper Woestendick[4], TCU d. Alex Okonkowo, Ohio State 6-3, 6-3
Oliver Ojakaar[2], Texas d. Tito Chavez, Oklahoma 7-6(4), 6-1

Quarterfinal consolation qualifiers:
Devin Badenhorst, Baylor
Alex Okonkwo, Ohio State

Doubles qualifiers:
Alejandro Melero and Tito Chavez, Oklahoma
Matt Forbes and Alex Okonkwo[2], Ohio State
Nicholas Heng and Fredrik Solheim, Michigan

East Host: Virginia

Quarterfinals

Yannick Alexandrescou[5], Duke d. Toby Kodat[1], NC State 6-3, 6-2 

Sean Daryabeigi, South Carolina d. Justin Chung, Penn 7-5, 6-3

Paul Barbier Gazeu[6], South Carolina d. Aryan Shah[4], Wake Forest 6-4, 3-6, 6-3

Jangjun Kim[2], Virginia d. Adam Bain, Penn 7-5, 6-1

Quarterfinal consolation qualifiers:

Toby Kodat[1], NC State

Aryan Shah[4], Wake Forest

Doubles qualifiers:

Luca Preda and Stiles Brockett, Virginia 

Chris Xu and Niels Ratiu[2], North Carolina

Paul Barbier Gazeu and Charlie Robertson[1], South Carolina

South Host: Florida State

Quarterfinals

Noah Johnston[5], Georgia d. Marko Milosavljevic, Jacksonville State 6-4, 6-2

Andrew Delgado, Georgia d. Tyler Bowers, Auburn 7-6(5), 6-4

Eli Stephenson[3], Kentucky Vlado Jankanj, Mississippi 6-4, 6-0 

Patrik Munkhammar, Auburn d. Azariah Rusher, Florida State 6-4, 1-6, 6-1

Quarterfinal consolation qualifiers:

Marko Milosavljevic, Jacksonville State

Vlado Jankaj[8], Mississippi

Doubles qualifiers:

Braeden Gelletich and Sam Landau[4], Indiana

Aleksander Blus and Theo Hegarty, Alabama

Tyler Bowers and Freddy Blaydes, Auburn

West Host: Arizona State

Quarterfinals

Rudy Quan[1], UCLA d. Marko Maksimovic, UNLV 6-3, 6-4

Nathan Trouve[7], USC d. Vincent Marysko[3], San Diego 6-3, 7-5

Ofek Shimanov[4], Arizona State d. Matthias Uwe Kask, Arizona 7-5, 6-2

Adrien Berrut[8], San Diego d. Sasha Rozin[2], Arizona 6-2, 6-4

Quarterfinal consolation qualifiers:

Marko Maksimovic, UNLV

Sasha Rozin[2], Arizona

Doubles qualifiers:

Nathan Trouve and Max Exsted[1], USC

Adrien Berrut and Manvydas Balciunas, San Diego

Rudy Quan and Emon van Loben Sels[4], UCLA

WOMEN:

Central Host: TCU

Zoie Epps[5], Oklahoma d. Lexington Reed[1], Texas A&M 6-3, 6-4

Jennifer Jackson, Texas Tech v Alyssa Novoa[5], Tulsa

Salkathip Ounmang, Oklahoma d. Veronika Kliuch, Oklahoma State 6-3, 6-1

Chloe Noel, Oklahoma d. Sydney Jara, Texas A&M 6-1, 6-3

Quarterfinal consolation qualifiers:

Lexington Reed[1], Texas A&M

Sydney Jara, Texas A&M

Doubles qualifiers:

Teah Chavez and Sophia Cisse-Ignatiev[4], Ohio State

Anna Bennett and Audrey Spencer[4], Ohio State

Lexington Reed and Kristina Paskauskas[1], Texaws A&M

East Host: Penn

Quarterfinals

Eugenia Zozaya Menendez, Virginia d. Oliwia Orlinska[5], Maryland 6-3, 6-2

Shannon Lam, Virginia d. Esha Velaga, Penn 6-1, 2-6, 6-1

Thea Rabman[5], North Carolina d. Maddy Zampardo, North Carolina 7-5, 6-4

Kaitlyn Carnicella[2], South Carolina d. Victoria Osuigwe, NC State 6-4, 6-4

Quarterfinal consolation qualifiers:

Esha Velaga, Penn

Maddy Zampardo, North Carolina

Doubles qualifiers:

Aranai Martinez and Daniella O'Neill, Liberty

Tatum Evans and Alanis Hamilton[1], North Carolina

Orly Oglilvy and Leena Friedman, Yale

South Host: Tennessee

Quarterfinals

Seri Nayuki, Georgia Tech d. Malwina Rowinska, Florida Atlantic 7-5, 1-6, 6-2

Ranah Stoiber[5], Georgia  d. Hiilani Williams, Indiana 6-1, 6-2 

Andrea Nova, Mississippi d. Reese Frank, Purdue 6-4, 3-6, 6-3

Patricija Paukstyte[2], Georgia d. Mary Boyce Deatherage, Florida State 6-4, 6-3

Quarterfinal consolation qualifiers:

Mary Boyce Deatherage, Florida State

Hiilani Williams, Indiana

Doubles qualifiers:

Mia Yamakita and Erin Pearce[4], Vanderbilt

Summer Chandler and Whitley Pate, Tulane

Patricija Paukstyte and Bella Payne[1], Georgia

West Host: USC

Quarterfinals:

Kate Fakih[1], UCLA d. Emily Deming, Georgia 6-4, 6-4

Daniela Borruel, USC d. Ziva Falkner, Pepperdine 6-0, 6-2

Alexia Jacobs, Washington d. Laura Cilekova, Cal 6-0, 7-5

Vilma Krebs Hyllested, San Diego[5] d. Isabella Wong, UC-Santa Barbara 6-2, 6-2

Quarterfinal consolation qualifiers:

Ziva Falkner, Pepperdine

Laura Cilekova, Cal

Doubles qualifiers: 

Imogen Haddad and Lily Fairclough, USC

Sara Svetac and Lily Taylor, Arizona State

Anna-Marie Weissheim and Alexia Jacobs[4], Washington

CONFERENCE MASTERS:

MEN:

Quarterfinals:

Oscar Martinez[5], East Tennessee State d. Alberto Altur, North Alabama 6-1, 6-3

Lorenzo Balducci[5], Purdue d. Niksa Arsic[3], Texas Tech 6-4, 4-6, 6-4

Aleksa Pisaric[5], Pepperdine d. Bryan Hernandez Cortes[4], Mississippi State 6-4, 3-6, 7-6(4)

Luca Pow[2], Wake Forest d. Rethin Pranav Senthil Kumar[5], Cornell 6-3, 7-6(5)

Doubles qualifiers:

Lasse Poertner and Aleksa Pisaric[1], Pepperdine

Luca Pow and Carnelius Shalmi[2], Wake Forest

WOMEN:

Quarterfinals

Anastasiia Grechkina[5], Pepperdine d. Linae Bajraliu[1], Georgia 6-2, 7-6(4)

Terezia Mlkva, Utah State d. Sofia Fernandez Figueras, Florida International 6-3, 6-4

Kyoka Kubo[4], Kansas d. Nikol Mircheva, UNLV 6-3, 6-2

Alexis Nguyen[2], North Carolina d. Reese Miller, Michigan 6-0, 6-2

Doubles qualifiers:

Lillie Murphy and Elle Warren[1], Furman

Kyoka Kubo and Polina Koneva[5], Kansas

The first NCAA Division II singles and doubles champions were crowned today in Tuscaloosa Alabama. 

Top seed Simon Malis of Flagler defeated No. 7 seed Enrico Rosellini of Embry Riddle to claim the men's title, and No. 3 seed Kristyna Hranacova of Nova Southeastern defeated No. 6 seed Yona Bancarel of UT-Tyler 4-6, 6-4, 6-4 to earn the women's title.

Hranacova swept the titles, taking the doubles championship with Katja Markus. The top seeds defeated No. 5 seeds Natasha Sengphrachanh and Mischa Briggs of Grand Valley State 4-6, 6-2, 6-0.  

No. 3 seeds Joshua Hinton and Charles Lefort of Mississippi College won the men's doubles title, beating No. 4 seeds Matias Iturbe and Kuzma Gomziakov of West Alabama 6-3, 7-6(3)

Stefan Kozlov won the ATP Challenger 75 in Charlottesville today, defeating qualifier Aidan Mayo 7-5, 2-6, 7-6(3) in a three-hour final. Kozlov is up to 205 in the ATP rankings with the title.

Former Pepperdine All-American Ashley Lahey was the other American champion on the USTA Pro Circuit this week, with the No. 3 seed defeating unseeded Aya El Aouni(UCF, LSU), 6-2, 4-6, 6-3 at the W15 in Hilton Head South Carolina.

Two University of Oklahoma student-athletes won titles on the USTA Pro Circuit, with senior Dragos Cazacu of Romania claiming his first men's World Tennis Tour singles title at the M15 in Hilton Head and and sophomore Evialina Laskevich of Belarus capturing the title, her third this year, at the W35 in Orlando.

The third-seeded Cazacu beat qualifier William Mirarchi(Georgia Southern) of Italy 6-0, 6-2; the unseeded Laskevich defeated unseeded 16-year-old Janae Preston 6-2, 3-6, 6-3.

At the M25 in Harlingen Texas, Texas A&M junior Bor Artnak won his first singles title above the M15 level this evening, ending the run of qualifier Connor Van Schalkwyk of Namibia, a senior at Baylor. Artnak, the No. 6 seed, defeated Van Schalkwyk 6-1, 4-6, 6-3 in a final delayed midway through by rain.

Former Texas All-American Malaika Rapolu won her second W50 in Mexico in as many weeks today in Huamantla, with the 23-year-old Texan, seeded No. 3, defeating unseeded Diletta Cherubini of Italy 6-2, 6-3 in the final. Rapolu is now up to a career-high 245 in the WTA rankings.

Claire Liu won her first WTA title at the 250 in Hong Kong today, with the unseeded 26-year-old Southern Californian beating No. 2 seed Alexandra Eala of the Philippines 6-3, 6-0 in the final. Liu finish atop the race for the USTA's Australian Open wild card, but she won't need it, as she has now moved all the way up to 69 in the WTA rankings and will get in on her own.

Both finals of the Junior Davis Cup and Junior Billie Jean King Cup were decided by the doubles match, with one much more dramatic than the other.

The top-seeded Czech girls defeated No. 4 seed Japan 6-1, 4-6, 11-9, with the 2026 Roland Garros and Wimbledon girls doubles champions Katerina Zajickova and Jana Kovackova coming from 8-6 down in the match tiebreaker to beat Sakino Miyazawa and Ran Wakana. 

Zajickova had beaten Yui Komada 6-2, 6-4 at No. 2 singles, but Miyazawa, who turned 15 just last month, took out WT junior No. 3 Kovackova 6-3, 6-1 to force a the deciding doubles. Kovackova certainly redeemed herself in the final six points of the match, with a return winner, a poach volley putaway and a lob winner among her contributions. Czechia last claimed the Junior Billie Jean King Cup title in 2021, when the USA did not play due to the pandemic, with 2015 their last title prior to that.

The boys final, which wasn't completed before darkness descended on Egypt Sunday evening, saw No. 8 France beat No. 7 Czechia 2-1 in a seven-hour battle. Benoit Geldof put France up 1-0 with a 6-7(5), 6-1, 6-4 win over Tommy Luxa at No. 2 singles, but Czechia's Matyas Marsik defeated Pablo Pradat 2-6, 7-6(3), 7-5 to force the doubles match. That fell short of the drama in the singles, with Geldof and Pradat beating Luxa and Marsik 6-3, 6-2 to win France's first Junior Davis Cup since 2005. 

The United States teams finished fifth and ninth, with the girls beating Romania 2-1, despite having to forfeit the No. 2 singles match for the second straight day. Jordyn Hazelitt won No. 1 singles and she and Welles Newman took the doubles. The only loss of the week for the girls was to Japan 2-1 in the quarterfinals.

The US boys, whose only loss was to champion France, a member of their group, defeated Hungary 3-0 with wins by Izyan Ahmad at No. 2 singles, Teodor Davidov at No. 1 singles and Davidov and Gadin Arun in doubles. 

Preston Reaches Orlando W35 Final, Penickovas Win Third W35 Doubles Title; Gaines and Colombo Claim First Pro Circuit Title at Hilton Head M15; Kozlov v Mayo in Charlottesville Challenger Final; ITA Division II Singles and Doubles Finals Set

Since reaching the final of August's USTA National 18s Championships in San Diego, 16-year-old Janae Preston has gone 10-2 on the USTA Pro Circuit, reaching the final of the W50 in Berkeley, and now the final of this week's W35 in Orlando. 

Today she defeated wild card Ashton Bowers, a junior at Auburn, 6-1, 6-4 and will face Oklahoma sophomore Evialina Laskevich of Belarus in the final. Laskevich beat No. 3 seed Whitney Osuigwe 6-2, 6-4 in the semfinals.

US Open girls doubles champions Annika and Kristina Penickova won the Orlando doubles title, their third this year at the W35 level and the fifth pro doubles title they've won as a pair. The No. 2 seeds defeated top seeds Julia Adams(Furman, Virginia) and Romania's Briana Szabo 6-4, 6-1 in the final.

Junior players were not able to advance to the finals at the W15 and M15 in Hilton Head, but did pick up a second USTA Pro Circuit doubles title today.

Emery Combs' eight match winning streak was snapped by Aya El Aouni(UCF, LSU) of Morocco, who advanced to the women's singles final with a 6-3, 6-3 victory. El Aouni will face former Pepperdine All-American Ashley Lahey, the No. 3 seed, who defeated No. 8 seed Jantje Tilbuerger(UCF) 7-6(1), 6-1.

Top seeds Ava Catanzarite(UCLA, Oklahoma) and Kate Sharabura(Georgia Tech) won the doubles title, beating El Aouni and Yael Saffar 1-6, 6-4, 11-9 in today's final.

Eighteen-year-old wild card Gavin Goode lost to qualifier William Mirarchi(Georgia Southern) of Italy 7-6(5), 5-7, 6-2 in a three-hour 41-minute semifinal today. Mirarchi will play No. 3 seed Dragos Cazacu(Tennessee, Oklahoma) of Romania, who beat qualifier Max Sheldon(Michigan State) 7-5, 7-6(3).

Seventeen-year-olds Kayden Colombo and Jerrid Gaines Jr won their first professional titles today, taking the doubles championship. They defeated Cazacu and Oklahoma teammate Johan Rodriguez of Colombia 7-6(5), 6-1 in the final between two unseeded teams.

At the M25 in Harlingen Texas, two current collegians will meet for the singles title. No. 6 seed Bor Artnak of Slovenia, a junior at Texas A&M, will face qualifier Connor Van Schalkwyk of Namibia, a senior at Baylor. Artnak defeated No. 7 seed Kaylan Bigun 6-4, 6-2 and Van Schalkwyck picked up his sixth win of the week, beating Keaton Hance 6-4, 6-4.

In the all-Baylor doubles final, recent graduates Alex Chirita of Romania and Zsombor Velcz of Hungary beat current teammates Van Schalkwyk and Erik Schiessl of Germany 2-6, 6-4, 10-5.

Qualifier Aidan Mayo and unseeded Stefan Kozlov will meet in Sunday's final at the ATP Challenger 75 in Charlottesville Virginia. Kozlov defeated No. 5 seed Clement Chidekh(Washington) of France 6-2, 1-6, 6-4 and Mayo advanced to the final with a 6-1, 3-1, ret. win over Andy Andrade(Florida) of Ecuador.

No. 4 seeds Jarno Jans of the Netherlands and Joran Vliegen(East Carolina) won their second straight Challenger title, with the Sioux Falls champions defeating Daniel Milavsky(Harvard) and Braden Shick(NC State) 6-4, 6-4 in today's final.

The inaugural Division II National individual championships conclude Sunday in Tuscaloosa Alabamas with the singles and doubles finals.  

Today's singles results and the doubles matchups:

Division II singles semifinals:

Men:

Simon Malis[1], Flagler d. Bruno Sanchez, Midwestern State 6-3, 7-5

Enrico Rosellini[7], Embry Riddle d. Harry Pugh[2], Lander 3-6, 7-6(5), 6-2

Doubles final: Matias Iturbe and Kuzma Gomziakov[4], West Alabama v Joshua Hinton and Charles Lefort[3], Mississippi College

Women:

Yona Bancarel[6], UT-Tyler d. Luca Bohlen[7], Nova Southeastern 6-4, 6-4

Kristyna Hranacova, Nova Southeastern d.  Daniela Fernandez Junquera, Embry Riddle 5-7, 6-2, 6-3

Doubles final: Kristyna Hranacova and Katja Markus[1], North Southeastern v Natasha Sengphrachanh and Mischa Briggs[5], Grand Valley State

Live scoring is available here.

In Junior Davis Cup and Junior Billie Jean King Cup competition today in Egypt, the US teams both won their placement matches, with the US girls defeating Australia 2-1 and the US boys beating Morocco 3-0. The US girls will play Romania, whom they beat 2-1 in group play, for fifth place Sunday; the US boys will face Hungary for ninth place. Like the US boys, Hungary finished in a three-way tie for two spots in group play so did not advance to the quarterifnals.

Both Czech teams will play for titles tomorrow. The boys, seeded No. 7, will play No. 8 seed France; the top-seeded girls will face No. 4 seed Japan.

The livestream page, which also includes replays, can be found here. Live scoring is here.

US Girls Fall in Junior Billie Jean King Cup Quarterfinals; Hance, Preston, Combs and Goode Reach USTA Pro Circuit Semifinals; Quarterfinals Set at D-I Sectionals, Conference Masters

After four consecutive years as champions at the Junior Billie Jean King Cup, the US girls will not earn a fifth, with the No. 2 seeds losing to No. 4 seed Japan 2-1 today in the quarterfinals. 

Hannah Ayrault gave the Americans a 1-0 lead with a 6-2, 6-2 win over Yui Komada at No. 2 singles, but Japan tied it up at No. 1 singles, with Sakino Miyazawa beating Jordyn Hazelitt 6-0, 7-5. The semifinal berth came down to the doubles, which  Miyazawa and Ran Wakana won 6-2, 6-4 over Hazelitt and Welles Newman.

This is the first time since 2007 that the US girls failed to advance to the semifinals (there were several years during that time where the USTA did not send teams). 

The US boys, who were two-time defending champions but did not make it out of the group stage, won their placement match today against Canada 3-0. They will play Morocco in the 9-12 placement group Saturday; the US girls will play Australia in the 5-8 placement group tomorrow.

The Junior BJK Cup semifinals are No. 1 Czechia vs No. 7 Great Britain and No. 4 Japan vs No. 3 Ukraine. 

The Junior Davis Cup finals feature No. 8 France vs No. 4 Japan and No. 7 Czechia vs No. 3 Brazil.

The livestream page, which also includes replays, can be found here. Live scoring is here.

Keaton Hance, who was on the Junior Davis Cup champions team in 2024, has reached the semifinals of the M25 in Harlingen Texas, his first semifinal at that level. The 18-year-old, who reached the Australian Open boys final in January and the semifinals of last month's World Tennis Junior Finals, defeated No. 4 seed Aidan McHugh of Great Britain 6-2, 7-5 today. He will face qualifier Connor Van Schalkwyk of Namibia, a senior at Baylor, Saturday, Van Schalkwyk defeated Samir Banerjee(Stanford) 6-3, 6-4.  In the top half, it will be No. 6 seed Bor Artnak of Slovenia, a junior at Texas A&M, and No. 7 seed Kaylan Bigun(UCLA), the 2024 Roland Garros boys champion. Artnak defeated Hunter Heck(Illinois) 6-2, 7-5 and Bigun beat wild card Bryce Nakashima(Ohio State), 6-3, 7-5.

At the W35 in Orlando, Janae Preston defeated wild card Luciana Perry, a senior at Ohio State, 7-5, 6-3 to reach the semifinals. She will play the winner of tonight's match between No. 4 seed Vivian Wolff(Georgia, UCLA) and wild card Ashton Bowers, a junior at Auburn. In the bottom half semifinal, No. 3 seed Whitney Osuigwe will play Oklahoma sophomore Evialina Laskevich of Belarus.

Emery Combs extended her winning streak to eight matches at the W15 in Hilton Head, with the 15-year-old from South Carolina saving a match point in her 4-6, 7-6(7), 6-0 win over top seed Kalista Liu(Maryland) of Hong Kong. Combs, who won her first pro titles in sweeping the singles and doubles at the W15 in Sumter, will face unseeded Aya El Aouni(UCF, LSU) of Morocco in the semfinals Saturday. El Aouni beat 18-year-old Juiliana Singeorzan 6-1, 6-0 in the quarterfinals.

Fifteen-year-old Lani Chang lost to No. 3 seed Ashley Lahey(Pepperdine) 6-3, 7-6(3) and 16-year-old Scarlett Fagan lost to No. 8 seed Jantje Tilbuerger(UCF) of Germany 7-5, 6-1.

Eighteen-year-old wild card Gavin Goode beat top seed Ryan Colby(USC, Georgia) 7-5, 6-2 today to advance to the semifinals of the M15 in Hilton Head. Goode will face qualifier William Mirarchi of Italy, while qualifier Max Shelton(Michigan State), will play No. 3 seed Dragos Cazacu(Tennessee, Oklahoma) of Romania in Saturday's semifinals.  Seventeen-year-olds Kayden Colombo and Jerrid Gaines Jr have reached the doubles final, where they will play Leonardo Vega and Brazil's Joaquim Almeida(Liberty).

At the ATP Challenger 75 in Charlottesville, just one seed remains, former University of Washington All-American Clement Chidekh of France. The No. 5 seed, who has been posting excellent results all fall, defeated top seed Marcos Giron(UCLA) 6-4, 6-1 to reach the semifinals. He'll face unseeded Stefan Kozlov, who beat Braden Shick(NC State) by the same score.

Qualifier Aidan Mayo beat Max Rehberg of Germany 7-6(5), 6-3 and will play Andy Andrade(Florida) of Ecuador in the semifinals. Andrade won his third three set match today, beating Maks Kasnikowski of Poland 3-6, 6-4, 6-4.

The quarterfinals at the ITA Division I Sectionals and Conference Masters are Saturday, with the winner of each of those matches guaranteed a spot in the NCAA singles draw in Athens Georgia.

Sectional Quarterfinals

MEN:

Central Host: Baylor

Albert Pedrico[1], TCU v Zachary Viiala, Illinois

Devin Badenhorst[3], Baylor v Hank Trondson, Oklahoma State

Alex Okonkowo, Ohio State v Cooper Woestendick[4], TCU

Tito Chavez, Oklahoma v Oliver Ojakaar[2], Texas

East Host: Virginia

Toby Kodat[1], NC State v Yannick Alexandrescou[5], Duke

Justin Chung, Penn v Sean Daryabeigi, South Carolina

Paul Barbier Gazeu[6], South Carolina v Aryan Shah[4], Wake Forest

Adam Bain, Penn v Jangjun Kim[2], Virginia

South Host: Florida State

Marko Milosavljevic, Jacksonville State v Noah Johnston[5], Georgia

Tyler Bowers, Auburn v Andrew Delgado, Georgia

Vlado Jankanj, Mississippi v Eli Stephenson[3], Kentucky

Patrik Munkhammar, Auburn v Azariah Rusher, Florida State

West Host: Arizona State

Rudy Quan[1], UCLA v Marko Maksimovic, UNLV

Vincent Marysko[3], San Diego v. Nathan Trouve[7], USC

Matthias Uwe Kask, Arizona v Ofek Shimanov[4], Arizona State

Adrien Berrut[8], San Diego v Sasha Rozin[2], Arizona

WOMEN:

Central Host: TCU

Lexington Reed[1], Texas A&M v Zoie Epps[5], Oklahoma

Jennifer Jackson, Texas Tech v Alyssa Novoa[5], Tulsa

Salkathip Ounmang, Oklahoma v Veronika Kliuch, Oklahoma State

Chloe Noel, Oklahoma v Sydney Jara, Texas A&M

East Host: Penn

Eugenia Zozaya Menendez, Virginia v Oliwia Orlinska[5], Maryland

Shannon Lam, Virginia v Esha Velaga, Penn

Thea Rabman[5], North Carolina v Maddy Zampardo, North Carolina

Victoria Osuigwe, NC State v Kaitlyn Carnicella, South Carolina

South Host: Tennessee

Seri Nayuki, Georgia Tech v Malwina Rowinska, Florida Atlantic

Hiilani Williams, Indiana v Ranah Stoiber[5], Georgia 

Reese Frank, Purdue v Andrea Nova, Mississippi

Mary Boyce Deatherage, Florida State v Patricija Paukstyte[2], Georgia

West Host: USC

Kate Fakih[1], UCLA v Emily Deming, Georgia

Ziva Falkner, Pepperdine v Daniela Borruel, USC

Alexia Jacobs, Washington v Laura Cilekova, Cal

Vilma Krebs Hyllested, San Diego v Isabella Wong, UC-Santa Barbara

Conference Masters

MEN:

Quarterfinals:

Alberto Altur, North Alabama v Oscar Martinez[5], East Tennessee State

Niksa Arsic[3], Texas Tech v Lorenzo Balducci[5], Purdue

Alkesa Pisaric[5], Pepperdine v Bryan Hernandez Cortes[4], Mississippi State

Rethin Pranav Senthil Kumar[5], Cornell v Luca Pow[2], Wake Forest

WOMEN:

Quarterfinals:

Linae Bajraliu[1], Georgia v Anastasiia Grechkina[5], Pepperdine

Sofia Fernandez Figueras, Florida International v Terezia Mikva, Utah State

Nikol Mircheva, UNLV v Kyoka Kubo[4], Kansas

Reese Miller, Michigan v Alexis Nguyen[2], North Carolina

Ohio State's Perry Defeats Top Seed Stephens at Orlando W35; Hance Tops Lee at Harlingen M25; Four Teenagers Reach Quarterfinals at Hilton Head W15; Goode Advances at Hilton Head M15; Rapolu Feature

ITA All-American champion Luciana Perry of Ohio State is warming up for the NCAAs in Athens Georgia in two weeks by competing at the W35 in Orlando Florida as a wild card. After a come-from-behind win over Ema Burgic(Baylor) in Wednesday's first round, the 22-year-old senior claimed the best win of her career today, beating top seed and 2017 US Open champion Sloane Stephens 6-4, 5-7, 6-3. Stephens is currently 113 in the WTA rankings, Perry is outside the Top 1000.

Perry, who has only played a dozen USTA Pro Circuit tournaments, focusing instead on college events, will face unseeded 16-year-old Janae Preston, who beat Florida sophomore Brooke Black of Great Britain, a qualifier, 6-0, 6-3.

An American is guaranteed to reach the final in the top half, with the second quarterfinal featuring Vivian Wolff(Georgia, UCLA) and wild card Ashton Bowers, a junior at Auburn. No. 3 seed Whitney Osuigwe is the fifth American in the quarterfinals; she will face Auburn freshman Yara Bartashevich of France Friday.

Keaton Hance won the battle of American teens in the second round of the Harlingen Texas M25. The 2026 Australian Open boys finalist defeated the 2026 Wimbledon boys champion 5-7, 7-6(4), 6-1 in their first meeting in junior or pro circuit competition. Hance will face No. 4 seed Aidan McHugh of Great Britain in the quarterfinals Friday, with McHugh saving three match points in his 3-6, 7-6(5), 6-3 win over Noah Zamora(UC-Irvine) today.

Other Americans in the quarterfinals are Hunter Heck(Illinois), wild card Bryce Nakashima(Ohio State) and No. 7 seed Kaylan Bigun(UCLA), who play each other, and Samir Banerjee (Stanford).

As was the case last week, four of the eight quarterfinalists at a W15 in South Carolina are American teenagers, with three of them making the Hilton Head quarterfinals after advancing to the quarterfinals in Sumter.

Sumter champion Emery Combs, 15, extended her winning streak in her home state to seven with a 6-4, 6-4 victory over 17-year-old Yael Saffar and will play top seed Kalista Liu(Maryland) of Hong Kong next.

Fifteen-year-old Lani Chang, a Sumter semifinalist, defeated Dia Evtimova of Bulgaria 6-4, 6-2 and will play No. 3 seed Ashley Lahey(Pepperdine) Friday.

Sixteen-year-old Scarlett Fagan, a quarterfinalist in Sumter, beat 15-year-old qualifier Abigail Haile 6-4, 6-0 and will play No. 8 seed Jantje Tilbuerger(UCF) of Germany.

The fourth American teenager in the quarterfinals is Juliana Singeorzan, who lost in the first round (to Liu) in Sumter. Singeorzan defeated No. 4 seed Anita Sahdiieva(Baylor, LSU) of Ukraine 6-4, 7-6(3) to reach her first women's World Tennis quarterfinal. She will play Aya El Aouni(UCF, LSU) of Morocco next.

At the M15 in Hilton Head, wild card Gavin Goode is through to his third USTA Pro Circuit quarterfinal. The 18-year-old from Raleigh NC defeated No. 5 seed Johan Rodriguez(Oklahoma) of Colombia 6-1, 4-6, 6-3 to set up a meeting with top seed Ryan Colby(USC, Georgia). They played in the qualifying of the M25 in Winston-Salem back in January, with Colby winning 4-6, 6-4, 10-3.

Qualifier Anuj Watane(North Carolina) will face No. 3 seed Dragos Cazacu(Tennessee, Oklahoma) of Romania, with the fourth and fifth Americans remaining, No. 6 seed Felix Corwin(Minnesota) and qualifier Max Sheldon(Michigan State) playing each other.

The ATP Challenger 75 in Charlottesville Virginia has four Americans advancing to Friday's quarterfinals: top seed Marcos Giron(UCLA), Stefan Kozlov and Braden Shick(NC State), who play each other, and qualifier Aidan Mayo.

Sixteen-year-old Michael Antonius came close to making it five Americans, but he was unable to convert three break points at 4-4 and 5-5 in the third set, with Maks Kasnikowski of Poland getting the only break of the final set to record a 6-2, 1-6, 7-5 victory.

I wrote last Sunday about the W50 title in Mexico for Malaika Rapolu, the former University of Texas All-American, but for an in-depth look about the 23-year-old Texan's introduction to tennis, her college career and her recent rise to the WTA Top 300, see this feature from World Tennis magazine.

US Girls Win Group, Advance to Junior BJK Cup Quarterfinals, US Boys Fall Short vs France; Seeds and Draws for Thursday's Start of ITA Conference Masters, Sectionals; Hance And Lee Meet at M25 in Harlingen; No. 2 Seeds Ousted in Orlando, Hilton Head

The group stage of the 2026 Junior Davis Cup and Junior Billie Jean King Cup competition concluded today in Cairo Egypt, with eight 16-and-under teams in each event advancing to Friday's tquarterfinals.

The second-seeded girls team from the United States, aiming for their fifth straight title, defeated Romania 2-1 to finish at the top of their group, and will play No. 4 seed Japan, who lost to No. 7 seed Great Britain in their match today. Australia, who lost today to finish second in their group, is the only unseeded team in the quarterfinals.

USA[2] d. Romania[6] 2-1

Sara Sitar d. Hannah Ayrault 3-6, 7-5, 6-4

Jordyn Hazelitt d. Maria Pop 6-2, ret.

Hazelitt and Welles Newman d. Sitar and Veronica Cervack 6-0, 6-2

Friday's Junior BJK Cup quarterfinals:

Czechia[1] v Romania[6]

Spain[5] v Great Britain[7]

Ukraine[3] v Australia

USA[2] v Japan[4]

The US boys, also seeded second, finished lost to France 3-0 today and finished in a three-way tie with France and India at 2-1. France finished first and India second to move through to quarterfinals; I believe if they had won the doubles match against France, they would have qualified, but it was not to be. The US boys had won the last two Junior Davis Cup titles, but the best they can finish this year is ninth.

With Australia losing today to finish third in their group, the top two are the seeds who do not reach the quarterfinals. Hungary also finished tied with Brazil and Spain at 2-1 in their group, but did not advance based on one less set won than Spain during group play. Japan and Egypt are the only two teams who went undefeated in group play.

France[8] d. USA[2] 3-0

Benoit Geldof d. Izyan Ahmad 7-5, 3-6, 6-2

Pablo Pradat d. Teodor Davidov 7-5, 6-0

Geldof and Pradat d. Ahmad and Davidov 4-6, 7-5, 10-6

Friday's Junior Davis Cup quarterfinals

Egypt[6] v Czechia[7]

Brazil[3] v India

Japan[4] v Spain[5]

Serbia v France[8]

The livestream page, which also includes replays, can be found here. Live scoring is here.

The final Division I tournaments serving as qualifying opportunities for the NCAA individual championships later this month in Athens Georgia begin tomorrow. There are four ITA Sectional tournaments for both men and women, which will produce 24 NCAA singles qualifiers and 12 doubles qualifiers, and the ITA Conference Masters, which will produce four singles qualifiers and two doubles qualifiers. For a list of players who have already qualified, see collegetennisranks.com.

The seeds for the Sectionals are below, with links to the draws in the headings. The semifinalists, as well as the winners of two playoff matches between those losing in the quarterfinals, qualify for the NCAAs. Note that seeding is being done by World Tennis Number, not ITA ranking.

Men's Sectional Seeds

Central Host: Baylor

1. Albert Pedrico, TCU

2. Oliver Ojakaar, Texas

3. Devin Badenhorst, Baylor

4. Cooper Woestendick, TCU

5. Erik Schiessel, Baylor (withdrew)

6. Jakub Vrba, Arkansas

7. Matt Forbes, Ohio State

8. Asahi Harazaki, Oklahoma

East Host: Virginia

1. Toby Kodat, NC State

2. Jangjun Kim, Virginia

3. Noa Vukadin, Clemson

4. Aryan Shah, Wake Forest

5. Yannik Alexandrescou, Duke

6. Paul Barbier Gazeu, South Carolina

7. Ian Mayew, North Carolina

8. none

South Host: Florida State

1. Sam Landau, Indiana

2. Raphael Vaksmann, Mississippi State

3. Eli Stephenson, Kentucky

4. Henry Jefferson, Florida

5. Noah Johnston, Georgia

6. Alaa Trifi, Florida

7. Hugo Coquelin, Vanderbilt

8. Vlado Jankanj, Ole Miss

West Host: Arizona State

1. Rudy Quan, UCLA

2. Sasha Rozin, Arizona

3. Vincent Marysko, San Diego

4. Ofek Shimanov, Arizona State

5. Glib Sekachov, Arizona

6. Manvydas Balciunas, San Diego

7. Nathan Trouve, USC

8. Adrien Berrut, San Diego

Women's Sectional Seeds

Central Host: TCU

1. Lexington Reed, Texas A&M

2. Melisa Ercan, Tulsa (withdrew)

3. Carmen Herea, Texas

4. Kristina Paskauskas, Texas A&M

5. Zoie Epps, Oklahoma

5. Alyssa Novoa, Tulsa

5. Raquel Caballero Chica, TCU

5. Valerie Shue, Texas Tech

East Host: Penn

1. Nina Vargova, Duke

2. Kaitlyn Carnicella, South Carolina

3. Anna Bergqvist Larsson, South Carolina

4. Eleana Yu, Duke

5. Oliwia Orlinska, Maryland

5. Tatum Evans, North Carolina

5. Thea Rabman, North Carolina

5. Claire An, Duke

South Host: Tennessee

1. Deniz Dilek, Georgia

2. Patricija Paukstyte, Georgia

3. Francesca Mattioli, Tennessee

4. Marta Makarova, UCF

5. Tegan Bush, LSU

5. Ranah Stoiber, Georgia

5. Nadia Lagaev, Georgia

5. Gianna Oboniye, Mississippi State

West Host: USC

1. Kate Fakih, UCLA

2. Sara Svetac, Arizona State

3. Imogen Haddad, USC

4. Hannah Read, San Diego

5. Tianmei Wang, Stanford

5. Mao Mushika, Cal

5. Ciara Moore, Arizona

5. Vilma Krebs Hyllested, San Diego

The Conference Masters for both men and women is being held in Rome Georgia this year, where the four semifinalists will qualify. There have been several changes in the field since the first release last week.

Conference Masters Seeds:

Women

1. Linea Bajraliu, Georgia

2. Alexis Nguyen, North Carolina

3. Xin Tong Wang, Wichita State

4. Kyoka Kubo, Kansas

5. Anastasiia Grechkina, Pepperdine

5. Lillie Murphy, Furman

5. Ulyana Romanova, Old Dominion

5. Uma Bakaityte, Rice

Men

1. Amirkhamza Nasridinov, Texas A&M

2. Luca Pow, Wake Forest

3. Niksa Arsic, Texas Tech

4. Bryan Hernandez Cortes, Mississippi State

5. Oscar Martinez, East Tennessee State

5. Lorenzo Balducci, Purdue

5. Aleksa Pisaric, Pepperdine

5. Rethin Pranav Senthil Kumar, Cornell

At the M25 in Harlingen Texas today, 16-year-old Jordan Lee returned to competition for the first time since winning the World Tennis Junior Finals in China. The Kalamazoo 18s finalist defeated No. 5 seed and spring 2024 NCAA singles champion Filip Planinsek(Alabama) of Slovenia 6-3, 6-3 for his first win at the M25 level. Lee will play 18-year-old Keaton Hance, a semifinalist at the WT Junior Finals, who defeated Ilia Snitari(UNLV, Texas A&M) of Moldova 6-4, 6-3. Due to their age difference and Lee's prolonged absences from competition due to injuries, Hance and Lee, who train together often at the USTA National Campus, will be meeting for the first time. They have won a pro doubles title together, at the M15 in Orlando this spring.

At the W35 in Orlando, Duke sophomore Aspen Schuman, a qualifier, defeated No. 2 seed and WTA No. 225 Kajsa Rinaldo Persson of Sweden 6-3, 6-2 in first round action, and will play Oklahoma sophomore Evialina Laskevich of Belarus Thursday. Laskevich defeated Florida freshman Capucine Jauffret 4-6, 6-1, 6-0.  Janae Preston reached the second round with a 7-5, 2-6, 6-2 win over Auburn freshman Isabella Kruger of South Africa.

At the W15 in Hilton Head South Carolina, 15-year-old qualifier Abigail Haile defeated No. 2 seed Mika Muchnik(South Carolina) of Israel 6-3, 6-4 to reach the second round. Southern Californian Haile, who won first round matches at two events during this summer's  SoCal Pro Series, will now break into the WTA rankings with this her third pro tournament in which she has collected a point. 

Haile will play 16-year-old wild card Scarlett Fagan, who defeated Petja Drame(FIU, Houston) of Slovenia 4-6, 6-2, 6-3. 

Other juniors advancing in Hilton Head: Sumter champion Emery Combs, Maggie Sohns, Lani Chang and Juliana Singeorzan.