Top Seed Australia Falls in Group Play on Day Two of Junior Davis Cup; US Girls Set for Junior BJK Cup Quarterfinals; Dietrich's Run Ends at Charlottesville Challenger; More Rain on USTA Pro Circuit; Brantmeier Leads USTA's AO Wild Card Race

The quarterfinal teams are set for the Junior Billie Jean King Cup competition this week in Egypt, even with a day remaining in group play, as all four groups have two teams 2-0 and two teams 0-2. The undefeated teams play each other, with only first place at stake, as the matches between the winless teams can produce only 1-2 or 0-3 records.

There is one unseeded team who will make the quarterfinals, with Australia taking out Taiwan today, with No. 8 seed Colombia eliminated after today's loss to top seed Czechia.

The second-seeded US girls defeated Canada 3-0 and will face No. 6 seed Romania for first place in the group Wednesday.

Junior Billie Jean King Cup Round 2

Group Play

USA[2] d. Canada 3-0
Hannah Ayrault d. Elisabeth Djabourian 6-3, 6-0
Jordyn Hazelitt d. Isabelle Yan 4-6, 6-2, 6-4

Ayrault and Welles Newman d. Djabourian and Shen 5-7, 6-0 10-6

While the girls matches Wednesday will just decide placement in the group, the Junior Davis Cup matches tomorrow will have much more intrigue. Two of the quarterfinalists are decided, with No. 4 seed Japan and No. 7 seed Czechia going 2-0 and playing to decide first and second in that group. No. 2 seed USA, No. 6 seed Egypt and unseeded Hungary are all 2-0 and will clinch a quarterfinal spot if they win, but if they lose, there could be a three-way tie, with other 2-1 teams in their group, meaning percentage of sets/games would decide who moves on. 

No. 8 seed France lost today to India, so they have to win their match with the United States to have any chance to advance. Top seed Australia was shut out by unseeded Serbia today, so they have to win their match with No. 6 seed Egypt to have a chance, and No. 3 Brazil has to beat Hungary to remain in the running.

After a tough battle with unseeded India Monday, the US boys didn't drop a set today against Kazakhstan.

Junior Davis Cup Round 2

Group Play

USA[2] d. Kazakhstan 3-0

Izyan Ahmad d. Ansar Niyetkaliyev 6-3, 6-1

Teodor Davidov d. Akhmadi Makhanov 6-2, 6-1

Ahmad and Davidov d. Niyetkaliyev and Rodion Traigel 7-6(5), 6-3

Live scoring is available here; live streaming is here.

University of Virginia senior Dylan Dietrich saw his ten-match Challenger winning streak come to an end today on his home courts in Charlottesville. After winning the Columbus and Sioux Falls Challengers in succession, he lost to top seed Marcos Giron(UCLA) 6-4, 6-2. Giron, who has lost six consecutive first round main draw matches on the ATP tour dating back to July and is danger of falling out of the Top 100, took a wild card into the Charlottesville Challenger to shore up his ranking before the Australian Open main draw cutoff.

Sixteen-year-old wild card Michael Antonius, who is the first player born in 2010 to win a main draw match at a Challenge, will not play his second round match until Thursday.

Last week's Las Vegas M25 champion Andres Santamarta of Spain, a Virginia sophomore who received a wild card into the Charlottesville Challenger, also lost today, with No. 5 seed Clement Chidekh(Washington) of France defeating the 19-year-old former WT junior No. 1 6-1, 6-2. Chidekh will face future Cavalier Jack Kennedy in the second round Wednesday.

No. 2 seed Michael Zheng(Columbia) lost to qualifier James Trotter(Ohio State) of Japan in the first round tonight 6-3, 6-4. Zheng had not played since falling in the first round of the ATP Shanghai Masters 1000 early last month.

Rain has made a mess of the qualifying at the W35 in Orlando and the W15 in Hilton Head, with both rounds played today.

Duke sophomore Aspen Schuman has advanced to the main draw there; seven Americans are through to the main draw in Hilton Head: Sara Shumate(Oklahoma), Sophie Williams(Florida, James Madison), Ireland O'Brien, Abigail Haile, Ciara Harding, Ameliia Elizarova and Olive Maunupau, who was the beneficiary of two walkovers.

The top seed in Orlando is Sloane Stephens, who took a wild card into the tournament. Other wild cards went to current collegians Mia Slama(NC State), Ashton Bowers(Auburn) and Luciana Perry(Ohio State). Twins Annika Penickova and Kristina Penickova, who train at the USTA National Campus, are the No. 6 and No. 7 seeds. Janae Preston and Florida freshman Capucine Jauffret are also in the draw via their WTA rankings.

In Hilton Head, Kalista Liu(Maryland) of Hong Kong is the top seed with University of South Carolina sophomore Mika Buchnik of Israel the No. 2 seed. 

Wild cards were awarded to Allison Wang, Olivia De Los Reyes, Isha Manchala and Scarlett Fagan. Lani Chang, who made the semifinals at last week's W15 in Sumter South Carolina, is again the recipient of a WT junior reserved entry.

Yael Saffar, Emery Combs, Carlota Moreno[7], Maggie Sohns, Juliana Singeorzan, and Jensen Diianni are among the American teenagers in the main draw.

At the M25 in Harlingen Texas, Texas A&M freshman James Quattro is the only American to reach the main draw via qualifying. He will play Texas freshman Tomasz Berkieta of Poland in the first round Wednesday. 

The top seed, Raphael Perot(Texas A&M) of France, is already out after first round action today, with former Illinois standout Hunter Heck defeating him 6-3, 0-6, 6-4. No. 3 seed Quinn Vandecasteele(Oregon) lost to Ohio State senior Bryce Nakashima, a wild card, 6-3, 6-7(6), 6-4.

The other wild cards went to Ritesh Patil(Texas A&M), Prathinav Chunduru(UC San Diego) and Rishvanth Krishnan.

Jordan Lee and Keaton Hance both got into the main draw on their own ATP rankings. Lee will face No. 5 seed and 2024 spring NCAA singles champion Filip Planinsek(Alabama) of Slovenia, the No. 5 seed; Hance will face Ilia Snitari(UNLV, Texas A&M) of Moldova. 

At the M15 in Hilton Head, wild card Ryan Cozad earned his first ATP point, defeating No. 8 seed Duje Markovina of Australia 6-1, 7-6(2).

In addition to Cozad, wild cards were given to Jerrid Gaines Jr., Dylan Jaen(Boise State, Dayton) and Gavin Goode. Jack Secord and Vihaan Reddy received the junior reserved spots. 

Secord will play top seed Ryan Colby(USC, Georgia); Reddy lost to Noah Cherubino(Clemson) of Spain 6-3, 1-6, 6-2. 

Five Americans reached the main draw via a long day of qualifying matches: Kayden Colombo, Anuj Watane(North Carolina), Henry Lieberman(Charlotte, UNC), Matthew Segura and Max Sheldon(Michigan State).

The USTA released its weekly update on its Australian Open wild card race, with 2025 NCAA singles champion Reese Brantmeier(UNC) now in the lead. Sloane Stephens, now in second place, cannot catch her even with a title this week in Orlando. But Brantmeier, who is taking the week off after three straights weeks of going deep in events in Canada, still has to wait to see if anyone catches her, with Mary Stoiana and Claire Liu playing the WTA 250 in Hong Kong and Robin Montgomery competing at the WTA 250 in India during this final week of the wild card race.

After two weeks, Jenson Brooksby and Martin Damm are tied for the lead for the men's wild card, with three more weeks to go.

2027 Australian Open Wild Card Challenge Standings Update

 

Orlando, Fla., November 3, 2026 – Reigning NCAA singles champion Reese Brantmeierand men’s co-leaders Jenson Brooksby and Martin Damm sit atop the Australian Open Wild Card Challenge after week 4 of 5 for the women and week 2 of 5 for the men.

 

Brantmeier has taken the lead as the women’s challenge heads into its final week. She secured titles in Canada in consecutive weeks, following her W75 Saguenay victory by winning the W75 Toronto this past weekend. The biggest mover of the week was Caroline Dolehide, who won the USTA Pro Circuit W100 New Braunfels in Texas over the weekend. Dolehide and Claire Liu lead five longer-shot contenders who can still pass Brantmeier to clinch the women’s wild card in its final week.

 

Brooksby and Damm share the top spot in the men’s challenge after week two of its five-week window, with Damm pulling level after reaching the final of the ATP Challenger 100 in Brest, France, over the weekend.

The top of the women’s standings after Week 4 of 5:

 

Women's Standings

(Player's current ranking in parentheses)

 

                                                               1. ​Reese Brantmeier (182) -- 170
                                                               2. Sloane Stephens (113) -- 127
                                                               3. Julieta Pareja (202) -- 104
                                                               4. Caroline Dolehide (172) -- 101
                                                               5. Claire Liu (102) -- 87

 

The top of the men’s standings after Week 2 of 5: 

 

Men's Standings

(Player's current ranking in parentheses)

 

                                                               T1. Jenson Brooksby (94) -- 82
                                                               T1. Martin Damm (102) -- 82
                                                               3. Darwin Blanch (139) -- 58 
                                                               4. Aidan Mayo (285) -- 37
                                                               5. J. J. Wolf (204) -- 20

                                                      

 

The USTA and Tennis Australia have a reciprocal agreement in which main draw singles wild cards for the 2027 Australian Open and US Open will be exchanged.

 

The women's wild card will be awarded to the American with the most ranking points earned at a maximum of three tournaments during a five-week window, beginning with events starting the week of October 5. The women's Challenge window runs through the week of November 2. All indoor and outdoor hard-court and carpet events at the W35 level and above, including WTA Tour events, will be included in the Challenge.

 

The men's wild card will be awarded to the American with the most ranking points earned from a maximum of four events during a five-week window that begins the week of October 19 and runs through the week of November 16. All indoor and outdoor hard-court and carpet events at the M25 level and above, including ATP Tour and Challenger events, will be included in the Challenge.

 

Ranking points earned in the main draw and qualifying will be counted toward each player's Challenge point total. Should the player with the highest number of Challenge points earn direct entry into the Australian Open, the wild card will go to the next eligible American in the Challenge points standings. In the event of a tie for the men or the women, the player with the best singles ranking on the Monday immediately following the conclusion of the Challenge will earn the wild card. Americans who otherwise earn direct entry into the Australian Open are not eligible.

 

US Teams Open Junior Davis and BJK Cup Defenses with Wins; Santamarta Claims First Pro Title at Las Vegas M25; Kennedy and Antonius Advance at Charlottesville Challenger; Budacsek Sweeps J100 in Mexico; Dupere and Chernakov Earn J60 Titles in Florida

The first day of group play at the World Tennis Junior Davis Cup and Junior Billie Jean King Cup 16-and-under international team competition in Egypt didn't feature any major surprises, and both teams from the United States, who are defending champions, posted victories.

The second-seeded US girls defeated Slovakia 3-0 and the second-seeded US boys got past India 2-1.

The individual results from today for the US teams:

JDC: USA[2] d. India 2-1
Izyan Ahmad d. Hruthik Katakam 6-2, 6-3
Teodor Davidov d. Tavish Pahwa 6-7(2), 7-6(7), 6-3
Katakam and Ribhav Saroha d. Ahmad and Gadin Arun 4-6, 6-3, 10-5

JBJKC: USA[2] d. Slovakia 3-0

Hannah Ayrault d. Riana Rusnakckova 6-2, 7-5

Jordyn Hazelitt d. Viktoria Novakova 6-3, 6-2

Jordyn Hazelitt and Welles Newman d. Lilien Kubalova and Rusnackova 6-2, 6-4

Only two seeded teams lost their first matches in group play today: No. 5 Spain lost to Hungary 2-1 in Junior Davis Cup and No. 8 Colombia lost to Australia 2-1 in Junior Billie Jean King Cup.

In day two of group play, the US boys will face Kazakhstan and the US girls will play Canada.

Live scoring is available here; live streaming is here.

The singles final at the M25 in Las Vegas, delayed several times yesterday, did finish Sunday night, with University of Virginia sophomore and former WT junior No. 1 Andres Santamarta defeating JC Roddick(UCF, Texas A&M) 3-6, 6-2, 6-1 in the final for his first men's WTT singles title. The unseeded 19-year-old from Spain is now back in Charlottesville to compete at the Challenger 75 there this week, where, as a wild card, he'll play No. 5 seed Clement Chidekh(Washington) of France in the main draw.

Kalamazoo 18s champion Jack Kennedy played his first round match today in Charlottesville, beating ATP No. 277 Hynek Barton of Czechia 7-5, 1-6, 6-3. Kennedy, who received entry via the WT junior Accelerator program, will play the winner of the Chidekh-Santamarta match in the second round.

Sixteen-year-old wild card Michael Antonius won his first main draw match at the Challenger level, beating ATP No. 311 Abdullah Shelbayh(Florida) of Georgia 6-4, 4-6, 6-4. Antonius will play the winner of the match between No. 8 seed Liam Draxl(Kentucky) of Canada and Maks Kasnikowski of Poland in the second round.

Qualifying concluded today in Charlottesville with Americans Andrew Fenty(Michigan), Andres Martin(Georgia Tech), Daniel Milavsky(Harvard) and Aidan Mayo advancing to the main draw.

There were five singles titles for Americans on the World Tennis Junior Circuit, with 17-year-old Sophia Budacsek earning the biggest singles title of her career at the J100 in Queretaro Mexico last week. Seeded No. 1, the South Carolina recruit beat doubles partner Ceressa Jackson of Australian 6-2, 1-6, 6-1 in the final for her third WT Junior Circuit singles title. 

Budacsek and Jackson had already claimed the doubles title, with the top seeds defeating No. 2 seeds Sandra Talamo of Venezuela and Montserrat Temprana Falco of Mexico 6-2, 7-5. That was Budacsek's 11th WT Junior Circuit doubles title, and she has won three J100 doubles titles in Mexico in the past month.

At the J60 in Orlando, 15-year-old Michael Chervenkov won his second title and 13-year-old Lucy Dupere won her first title at a tournament featuring the round robin/knockout round format. 2026 Easter Bowl 14s champion Chervenkov, who won a J30 in Chicago in May, defeated Indra Vergne 6-1, 6-2 in the boys final. 

Dupere, the 2026 USTA 14s Clay Courts champion, defeated Daniela Davletshina of Russia 6-3, 4-6, 6-3 in the girls final. Davletshina also fell in the doubles final, with unseeded Aishi Bisht of India and Christina Li beating Davletshina and Grace Hong 6-3, 4-6, 11-9.

David Bender and Kensho Ford won the boys doubles title, beating Maddox Bose and Maksim Nekrasov 6-3, 6-4 in the final. 

This week's World Tennis Junior tournament in the United States is a J100 in Boca Raton Florida, with Skander Nsairi of Tunisia the top seed in the boys draw and Alexandra Korneeva of Armenia the No. 1 seed in the girls draw.

At the J60 in El Salvador, Myna Medicetty swept the titles, winning her first singles and second doubles title on the WT Junior Circuit. The 16-year-old Californian beat No. 3 seed Brielle Amey of Canada 2-6, 6-1, 6-1 in the singles final, after taking the doubles title with Amey. The No. 3 seeds beat top seeds Sarah Goodwin and Costa Rica's Valentina Obregon Mirambell 6-4, 6-2 in the final. 

Yet another sweep was accomplished at the J30 in the Dominican Republic, where 16-year-old Evan Puente won back-to-back titles in both singles and doubles. Puente, unseeded, beat No. 4 seed Elio Mella Cabrera of the Dominican Republic 6-0, 6-4 in the singles final for his tenth straight win, after winning his eighth straight doubles match to claim the doubles title. The unseeded Puente and Payton Yea defeated Angelo Hernandez of the Dominican Republic and Roger Rodrigo Vallejo 6-3, 6-7(2), 10-8 in the final. 

Piper Yea and Czechia's Denisa Dudlova won the girls doubles title, beating the Canadian team of Vida Gonzalez Campbell and Elle Tucci 6-3, 4-6, 16-14 in the final. 

In Malaysia 17-year-old Mikaeel Ali Baig, who represents Pakistan on the World Tennis junior circuit, but lives in the US and competes in USTA events, won a J100, his first title above the J60 level. The fifth seed defeated No. 2 seed Sota Kagawa of Japan 6-0, 6-1 in the final.

Junior Davis Cup and Junior Billie Jean King Cup Begin Monday; USTA Pro Circuit Titles for Dietrich, Dolehide, Combs, Shcherbinina and Maxted; Brantmeier Goes Back-to-Back at W75s in Canada; Rapolu Wins W50 in Mexico

The international Junior Davis Cup and Junior Billie Jean King Cup competitions for 16-and-under players begin tomorrow in Egypt, with both the teams from the United States seeded second.

The US girls won the title last year and will be going for their fifth straight title, but they are seeded behind Czechia, which features WT junior No. 3 Jana Kovackova and No. 20 Katerina Zajickova and are two-time junior slam doubles champions. The United States team consists of No. 12 Jordyn Hazelitt, No. 31 Welles Newman and No. 64 Hannah Ayrault. New USTA National Coach Dave Secker is the captain. The only time the US girls have not won the title since 2017 was in 2021, when the USTA declined to send teams to the competition due to the pandemic. Czechia won the title in their absence.

The US boys have won two titles in succession, but 16-year-olds Jordan Lee and Michael Antonius, who were on last year's championship team and are eligible to compete again this year, have opted out. The US team consists of No. 81 Teodor Davidov, No. 135 Izyan Ahmad and No. 250 Gadin Arun, who replaced previously announced team member Tomas Laukys. Sylvain Guichard, returns as captain after guiding the team to the title last year.

The top seed in the boys draws is Australia, who has WT junior No. 75 Taiki Takizawa, No. 133 Ethan Domingo and No. 214 Har Abir Sekhon.

The US girls play Slovakia and the boys play India in group play Monday, with each of the four groups below sending two teams to the quarterfinals.

Junior Billie Jean King Cup

Group 1
Czechia[1]
Colombia[8]
Australia
Taiwan

Group 2

Japan[4]

Great Britain[7]

Brazil

Egypt

Group 3

Ukraine[3]

Spain[5]

Korea

Tunisia

Group 4

USA[2]

Romania[6]

Canada 

Slovakia

Junior Davis Cup

Group 1

Australia[1]

Egypt[6]

Serbia

Canada

Group 2

Brazil[3]

Spain[5]

Hungary

Morocco

Group 3

Japan[4]

Czechia[7]

Italy

Venezuela

Group 4

USA[2]

France[8]

Kazakhstan

India

The full list of Junior Davis Cup players is here; the full list of Junior Billie Jean King Cup players is here. The World Tennis preview is here. Live streaming is available here.

Dylan Dietrich faced his toughest contest in his 10-match ATP Challenger winning streak this month in today's final of the Sioux Falls 100-level tournament. The University of Virginia senior lost his first set in that streak to No. 5 seed Liam Draxl(Kentucky) of Canada, but was able to rebound for a 1-6, 6-3, 6-4 victory.

"I think at the beginning I was a little bit hesitant because I was not focusing on my side enough," the 22-year-old from Switzerland told press aide Greg Sharko, after admitting that he had expected Draxl to show more signs of fatigue from his two three-setters in the quarterfinals and semifinals. "Then I corrected that in the second set, told myself I'm just going to try every single point, being maybe a little bit more offensive, a little bit more aggressive, try to come in a little bit more, and that worked out great."

Dietrich, who will play top seed Marcos Giron(UCLA) in next week's ATP Challenger 75 at his home courts in Charlottesville, is now into the Top 200 of the ATP rankings with this title, after starting the summer at 998.

In the doubles final Saturday, No. 4 seeds Jarno Jans of the Netherlands and Joran Vliegen(East Carolina) of Belgium defeated No. 2 seeds Miguel Reyes-Varela(Texas) and Reese Stalder(TCU) 6-4, 7-6(7).

Caroline Dolehide defeated 17-year-old Julieta Pareja 6-4, 6-3 in the battle of unseeded Americans in the final of the W100 in New Braunfels Texas today. The 28-year-old from Illinois, who has a WTA career-high ranking of 32, will move back into the WTA Top 200 with the title, while Pareja's ranking will rise to a career high of 202.

Emery Combs won her first Pro Circuit singles title a day after claiming her first Pro Circuit doubles title yesterday at the W15 in Sumter South Carolina. The 15-year-old from Conway South Carolina captured a second winner's trophy when qualifier Malwina Rowinska(Florida, FAU) of Poland retired after losing the first set 6-4. I believe Combs now joins Ekaterina Dotsenko of Russia as the only girls born in 2011 with a World Tennis women's singles title.

At the W35 in Norman Oklahoma, No. 5 seed Alina Shcherbinina(Baylor, Oklahoma) of Russia defeated No. 2 seed Dana Guzman(Oklahoma) of Peru 7-5, 6-4 to win her fourth, and biggest title, all of them coming in 2026. She should move into the WTA Top 500 when the points are added a week from Monday.

No. 4 seed Lui Maxted of Great Britain, the fall 2024 NCAA doubles champion while a senior at TCU, won the M25 in Norman, coming back to beat No. 5 seed Tyler Zink(Georgia, Oklahoma State) 6-7(1), 7-5, 6-3 in three hours and nine minutes. It's the third M25 singles title for the 22-year-old, who has claimed six M25 doubles titles.

2025 NCAA singles champion Reese Brantmeier added a second straight W75 title today, with the No. 7 seed beating No. 3 seed Katherine Sebov of Canada 6-3, 6-1 in the Toronto final. The recent North Carolina graduate will now move into the WTA Top 200 for the first time and with the 170 points she's earned in the past three weeks in Canada, she is in the driver's seat for the USTA's Australian Open reciprocal wild card, with one week remaining in the women's race.

A fourth American woman won a title this week in North America, with 23-year-old Malaika Rapolu capturing the W50 in Morelia Mexico. The former University of Texas standout, seeded No. 4, defeated No. 2 seed Anastasia Tikhonova of Russia 6-4, 6-0 in the final, recording her fifth consecutive straight-sets victory. Now at a career-high 255 in the live rankings, Rapolu is making a push for a place in qualifying at the 2027 Australian Open.

Fiona Crawley(North Carolina) lost in the final of the W75 in Glasgow Scotland, with the fifth seed falling to No. 7 seed Suzan Lamens of the Netherlands 6-4, 6-3.

The M25 in Las Vegas has been disrupted by rain for three days now, and the final between Andres Santamarta(Virginia) of Spain and JC Roddick(UCF, Texas A&M) is in another delay after three games were played.

The doubles final was played last night, with No. 3 seeds Jack Anthrop(Ohio State) and Noah Zamora(UC-Irvine) defeating top seeds Oliver Okonkwo of Great Britain and Jack Vance 7-6(8), 4-6, 10-8.

Dietrich Reaches Sioux Falls Challenger Final; Brantmeier Aims for Second Straight W75 Title Sunday; Pareja Advances to First W100 Final; Combs Goes for Sweep at W15 Sumter SC

Dylan Dietrich is waltzing through the draw this week at the ATP Challenger 100 in Sioux Falls South Dakota, earning his ninth straight victory this month with his 6-4, 6-2 win over Aidan Mayo. The University of Virginia senior, who won his first Challenger title earlier this month in Columbus, has not dropped a set since retiring down 5-1 in the third set to Nishesh Basavareddy in the semifinals of the San Diego Challenger in September.  He will face No. 5 seed Liam Draxl(Kentucky) of Canada, who saved two match points at 6-4 in the second set tiebreaker en route to the final, ending the run of qualifier Sebastian Dominko(Notre Dame) 6-7(7), 7-6(6), 6-4.

Dietrich, who is up to 222 in the ATP live rankings, and will break into the Top 200 if he wins Sunday, told Cracked Racquets' Alex Gruskin after his quarterfinal win Friday that short of winning the Australian Open men's singles title in Melbourne in January, he will be returning to Charlottesville to defend the Cavaliers NCAA team title.

"There's just no world now (that I don't come back)," said the 22-year-old from Switzerland, who clinched that title for Virginia in May. "Many people now, especially back home, are telling me 'why wouldn't you go pro, why wouldn't you use this momentum?' But if you think about it, from where I started at UVA, how much I've improved, how much I've matured, I should be looking at it almost the other way. I've improved so much, let's squeeze everything possible out this last year, out of the coaches, out of Igdar, our fitness coach, out of Rosalind, our athletic trainer, because they certainly helped me come here and play in the semis of this 100 Challenger. So I'm looking at it that way, that I'm trying to make the best out of this last year, learn as much as possible and have a good time with the guys as well. It is truly a special time."

Another top college player who would agree with that assessment is Reese Brantmeier, who played all four years at the University of North Carolina, winning the 2023 NCAA team title and the 2025 NCAA singles title. The 22-year-old from Wisconsin is now 29-10 since her graduation in May, and on Sunday she will play for her second consecutive W75 title in Canada. 

After winning in Saguenay last week unseeded, Brantmeier is the No. 7 seed this week in Toronto, and today she avenged her last loss, in the semifinals of W50 in Quebec two weeks ago, to No. 2 seed Kajsa Rinaldo Persson of Sweden with a 6-4, 7-5 victory.

Brantmeier is now in the WTA Top 200 after today's win, and she can go a long way toward securing the USTA's Australian Open wild card, with just one more week remaining, if she takes the title tomorrow. Brantmeier will face No. 3 seed Katherine Sebov of Canada, who advanced when Ayana Akli(Maryland, South Carolina) retired trailing 7-5, 3-2. 

Seventeen-year-old Julieta Pareja, who had already reached two W100 semifinals this month, added a third today at the W100 in New Braunfels Texas by avenging one of those semifinal losses. Due to rain yesterday, the unseeded Pareja and No. 4 seed Sloane Stephens played their quarterfinal today, with Pareja winning 6-3, 6-4. She had lost to Stephens in a third set tiebreaker two weeks ago at the W100 in Edmond Oklahoma. Pareja then played No. 6 seed Akasha Urhobo, who had beaten top seed Renata Zarazua of Mexico 7-6(3), 6-4 in the quarterfinals, and Pareja won that semifinal 6-4, 6-1 to reach her first W100 final. 

Pareja will face an unseeded opponent in the final in Caroline Dolehide, who took out No. 2 seed Kristina Liutova 7-5, 6-2 in the semifinals. Pareja and Dolehide met in the quarterfinals of the W100 in Templeton early this month, with Pareja earning a 4-6, 7-5, 6-4 victory.

Top seeds Savannah Broadus(Pepperdine) and Allura Zamarripa(Texas) won the doubles title, beating No. 3 seeds Kylie Collins(Texas, LSU, Oklahoma State) and Kristina Penickova 7-6(5), 6-0 in the final. It's their second W100 title this month, and both Broadus(129) and Zamarripa(86) will move to career-highs in the WTA doubles rankings.

Fifteen-year-old Emery Combs advanced to her second W15 final today with a 6-4, 7-5 win over No. 5 seed Anita Sahdiieva(Baylor, LSU) in Sumter South Carolina.  Combs, who lost in her first W15 final in Orlando in April, will face qualifier Malwina Rowinska(Florida, FAU) of Poland Sunday. Rowinska, 21, prevented an all-US, all-15-year-old final with her 4-6, 6-2, 6-2 win today over Lani Chang.

Combs will be going for a sweep of the titles after she and longtime partner Olivia De Los Reyes earned their first pro doubles title after winning seven WT junior titles together in the past two years. They defeated Arkansas teammates Celine Simunyu of Ireland and Daria Koreshkova of Russia 7-6(3), 3-6, 11-9 in the final. 

At the M25 tournament in Norman Oklahoma, which moved both the quarterfinals and today's semifinals indoors, No. 4 seed Lui Maxted(TCU) will take on No. 5 seed Tyler Zink(Georgia, Oklahoma State) for the title. 

Maxted, a 22-year-old from Great Britain, defeated top seed and compatriot Alastair Gray(TCU) 6-4, 6-1; Zink, a 25-year-old from Florida, beat spring 2024 NCAA singles champion Filip Planinsek(Alabama) of Slovenia 6-3, 6-4.

Spencer Papa, the former Oklahoma Sooner and 2017 NCAA doubles champion, has returned to tennis at age 31 after a six-year absence, and he has earned his first pro title in his sixth tournament back. He and partner Asahi Harazaki of Japan, a senior at Oklahoma, received a walkover from the second-seeded British team of Giles Hussey(Georgia State, Tennessee) and Aidan McHugh.

At the W35 in Norman, No. 5 seed Alina Shcherbinina(Baylor, Oklahoma) of Russia and No. 2 seed Dana Guzman(Oklahoma) of Peru will play for the title, after Shcherbinina defeated qualifier Salakthip Ounmuang(Oklahoma) of Thailand 6-2, 7-5 and Guzman beat Ashley Lahey(Pepperdine) 6-4, 7-6(4).

Sooner teammates Evialina Laskevich of Belarus and Edda Mamedova of Russia won the doubles title, beating Lahey and Alexandra Vagramov(UCLA) of Canada 4-6, 6-4, 10-8 in today's final.

At the M25 in Las Vegas, rain pushed the semifinals back to this evening, but the final is set, with unseeded Virginia sophomore Andres Santamarta of Spain facing unseeded JC Roddick(UCF, Texas A&M) Sunday. Santamarta defeated No. 6 seed Jack Anthrop(Ohio State) 3-6, 7-6(4), 6-3 and Roddick defeated qualifier Nikita Filin(Ohio State) 6-2, 6-4. 

October Aces; Dietrich and Brantmeier Roll On; Combs and Chang Advance to Semifinals at Sumter SC W15; Norman OK Pro Circuit Tournaments Move Indoors; Qualifier Filin Reaches Semis at Las Vegas M25

My monthly Tennis Recruiting Network Aces column for October is a bit early, but as has been the case for many months now, I've had to leave out more former and current collegians and juniors than I include. Half of the 18 players featured won more than one title this month, and both WT Junior Finals champion Xinran Sun and Columbus Challenger champion Dylan Dietrich are still alive in their current tournaments. Sun defeated Claire Liu 7-5, 7-6(2) to advance to the semifinals of the WTA 250 in Guangzhou China; Dietrich is through to the semifinals of the ATP Challenger 100 in Sioux Falls South Dakota and Brantmeier has reached the semifinals at the W75 in Toronto.

Dietrich defeated JJ Wolf(Ohio State) for the second time in his now eight-match winning streak, with his 6-2, 7-5 victory in today's quarterfinals similar to his 7-6(6), 6-3 win over Wolf in the first round of the Columbus Challenger.  Now up to 239 in the ATP live rankings, Dietrich will face unseeded Aidan Mayo, who beat Mees Rottgering(Wake Forest) of the Netherlands 6-3, 6-4.

Qualifier Sebastian Dominko, a recent Notre Dame graduate, is through to the semifinals in just his second ATP Challenger main draw. The 23-year-old from Slovenia defeated Max Rehberg of Germany 7-6(4), 6-4 and will face the winner of tonight's match between No. 4 seed Liam Draxl of Canada and No. 3 seed Darwin Blanch.

Brantmeier will have an opportunity to avenge her last loss, two weeks ago in the semifinals of the W50 in Quebec, to Kajsa Rinaldo Persson of Sweden.  The seventh-seeded 2025 NCAA singles champion as a senior at North Carolina, Brantmeier defeated No. 4 seed Valentina Ryser of Switzerland 6-7(5), 6-3, 6-2 to extend her winning streak to eight matches. The second-seeded Rinaldo Persson, who beat Brantmeier 7-5, 7-6(4) in Quebec, defeated Lea Ma(Georgia) 6-4, 6-0.

Unseeded Ayana Akli(Maryland, South Carolina) defeated qualifier Carson Tanguilig 6-3, 6-4 to reach the semifinals, where she will play No. 3 seed Katherine Sebov of Canada. Sebov defeated unseeded Madison Sieg(USC) 3-6, 6-1, 6-4.

Fifteen-year-olds Emery Combs and Lani Chang have advanced to the semifinals of the W15 in Sumter South Carolina with routine victories in today's quarterfinals. Combs, who lives in South Carolina, defeated qualifier Alice Soulie(Ole Miss) of France 6-3, 6-1 to reach her second W15 semifinal. She will face No. 5 seed Anita Sahdiieva(Baylor, LSU) of Ukraine, who beat lucky loser Yael Saffar 6-3, 6-3.

Chang also will be playing in her second W15 semifinal after defeating qualifier Amelie Smejkalova(Clemson, NC State) 6-1, 6-1. Chang's opponent in the semifinals will be another qualifier, Malwina Rowinska(Florida, FAU) of Poland, who defeated wild card Scarlett Fagan 6-4, 6-2.

Combs and partner Olivia De Los Reyes have advanced to the doubles final after beating Saffar and Abigail Haile 6-4, 6-1 in the semifinals today. Combs and De Los Reyes have won seven WT junior circuit doubles titles together, including the J300 in Spring Texas earlier this month, but this is their first women's WTT final. They will play the unseeded pair of Daria Koreshkova of Russia and Celine Simunyu of Ireland, who are teammates at Arkansas, in the final.

Rain has been a problem all day at the W100 in New Braunfels Texas, with one second round match not yet complete. Top seed Renata Zarazua of Mexico and Xinyu Gao of China were at 5-5 in the first set last night when their second round match was postponed. The other three quarterfinals have been postponed until Saturday morning; they may still be trying to finish that second round singles match and two of the doubles quarterfinals tonight.

Looking at the forecast for Friday and Saturday, the organizers of the M25 and W35 in Norman Oklahoma announced last night that they would be moving indoors, and all matches today were played inside. 

Two Oklahoma teammates and frequent doubles partners Salakthrip Ounmuang of Thailand and Gloriana Nahum of Benin, both qualifiers, played in today's quarterfinals, with Ounmuang taking a 6-1, 6-1 decision. She will play No. 5 seed Alina Shcherbinina(Baylor, Oklahoma) in the semifinals. Ashley Lahey(Pepperdine) is into the semifinals after a 5-7, 6-3, 6-1 win over Florida recruit Rebecca Munk Mortensen of Denmark; she will play No. 2 seed Dana Guzman(Oklahoma) of Peru, who beat Bella Payne(Georgia) 6-4, 6-2.

None of the men's players at Oklahoma have advanced to the semifinals, which will feature two former TCU stars from Great Britain: top seed Alastair Gray and No. 4 seed Lui Maxted. Gray defeated qualifier Luca Pow(Wake Forest) 7-6(4), 6-2 to advance, while Maxted got a walkover from Bruno Kuzuhara(Clemson). 

2024 spring NCAA champion Filip Planinsek(Alabama) of Slovenia defeated Bor Artnak(Arizona State, Texas A&M) 6-3, 6-4 to advance to a semifinal meeting with No. 5 seed Tyler Zink(Georgia, Oklahoma State). Zink beat the last Sooner in the draw, wild card Johan Rodriguez of Colombia, 6-4, 6-2.

Nikita Filin, the Ohio State junior, has advanced to his second M25 semifinal, with his first, this August in East Lansing, also as a qualifier. Today at the M25 in Las Vegas, Filin defeated former teammate William Jansen(UNC, Ohio State, Georgia) of Great Britain 7-5, 6-4 to set up a semifinal contest against unseeded JC Roddick(UCF, Texas A&M). Roddick beat qualifier Preston Stearns, a senior at Ohio State, 2-6, 7-5, 7-6(4) in a three-hour plus quarterfinal match. Recent Ohio State graduate Jack Anthrop, the No. 6 seed, beat Ohio State senior Aidan Kim, the No. 3 seed, 6-3, 2-6, 6-3 to reach his third semifinal in as many weeks. He will face Virginia sophomore Andres Santamarta of Spain, who defeated wild card Tanishk Konduri 6-7(4), 6-4, 6-0.

Dietrich Earns First ATP Top 100 Win to Advance to Sioux Falls Challenger Quarterfinals; Liutova, Pareja and Ma Move On at W100; Four Juniors Reach W15 Sumter Quarterfinals; Tanguilig Beats Top Seed at W75 in Toronto; Buckeyes Plentiful at Las Vegas M25

University of Virginia senior Dylan Dietrich achieved another milestone this month, with the ITA preseason No. 1 earning his first ATP Top 100 win last night at the ATP Challenger 100 in Sioux Falls South Dakota.

The 22-year-old from Switzerland, who was the 2026 NCAA Team Championships Most Outstanding Player, defeated top seed Jenson Brooksby 6-3, 6-3 in the second round to reach his fifth consecutive quarterfinal at the Challenger level. Dietrich won his first Challenger title this month at the 75 in Columbus, so he will take a seven-match winning streak into Friday's quarterfinal match against JJ Wolf(Ohio State). Dietrich's winning streak began with a  first round 7-6(6), 6-3 win over Wolf in Columbus.

Alex Gruskin of Cracked Racquets is onsite in Sioux Falls this week and is conducting post-match interviews with every winner, and from his conversation with Dietrich, the likelihood that Dietrich doesn't return to Virginia for his final semester is remote. Similar to Michael Zheng last year, most observers discount the importance of a college degree, but when a player is just a semester away, those five months that make up a final semester are not really that significant in the larger scheme of things.

Dietrich admitted to Gruskin that he had tapped into his highest level against Brooksby, who had won the Fort Worth Challenger 75 last week.

"Tonight was really special," Dietrich said. "I feel like at one point I just reached flow state. I felt like I couldn't miss anymore and I went for crazy shots and it just kept on going in, so I kept trying it and trying it....obviously, I played incredible, that obviously helped for the win tonight."

Dietrich told Gruskin that it was only last fall that he really decided that pro tennis was a career he wanted to pursue.

"A few weeks before the Charlottesville Challenger, I had a great talk with coach (Andres Pedroso)," Dietrich said. "Up until then I was always sure I wanted to do something else after college. Not because I don't love the sport of tennis, but just because I've been playing it for so long and it was time to do something else. But last fall I was telling the coaches, I'm all in, I really want to go for it. It's a sport where the margins are so small if you're not really fully committed, you're not going to have a chance. It doesn't matter how talented you are...you really need to be fully committed to it and I am at the moment."

The full interview is available at the Cracked Interviews podcast.

There are no seeds left in the top half, with the Netherlands' Mees Rottgering, a sophomore at Wake Forest, facing unseeded Aidan Mayo in the other quarterfinal.

In the bottom half, recent Notre Dame graduate and qualifier Sebastian Dominiko of Slovenia eliminated No. 2 seed Valentin Royer of France 7-5, 7-5 and will play unseeded Max Rehberg of Germany in the quarterfinals. No. 5 seed Liam Draxl(Kentucky) will play the winner of tonight's match between Mitchell Krueger and No. 3 seed Darwin Blanch.

At the W100 in New Braunfels Texas, 16-year-old Kristinia Liutova, 17-year-old Julieta Pareja and wild card Connie Ma(Stanford) have reached the quarterfinals, along with Akasha Urhobo[6], Sloane Stephens[[4] and Caroline Dolehide.

Liutova, the No. 2 seed, defeated 35-year-old Arantxa Rus of the Netherlands 6-2, 7-6(4) and will play Ma in the quarterfinals. Ma, who returned to competition this fall after graduating from Stanford in 2025, beat Kylie Collins(Texas, LSU, Oklahoma State) 6-2, 6-2. Pareja defeated No. 7 seed Barbora Palicova of Czechia 6-4, 6-4 and will play Stephens in a rematch of their semifinal at the W100 in Edmond two weeks ago, which Stephens won 2-6, 6-1, 7-6(5).  Urhobo defeated qualifier Allura Zamarripa 6-2, 6-1 and will face the winner of tonight's match between top seed Renata Zarazua of Mexico and Xinyu Gao of China.

At the W75 in Toronto qualifier Carson Tanguilig(North Carolina) defeated top seed Kayla Cross(LSU) of Canada 6-1, 4-6, 7-6(4) to advance to a quarterfinal meeting with Ayana Akli(Maryland, South Carolina). Akli defated No. 8 seed Hiromi Abe of Japan 6-3, 4-6, 6-2.  No. 7 seed Reese Brantmeier(North Carolina) extended her winning streak with a 6-3, 6-0 win over qualifier Clervie Ngounoue; Lea Ma(Georgia) and Madison Sieg(USC) are also through to the quarterfinals. 

Georgia freshman Bella Payne has advanced to the quarterfinals of the W35 in Norman Oklahoma after beating qualifier Lily Taylor(Arizona State) 6-7(1), 6-4, 6-2. Payne will play No. 2 seed Dana Guzman(Oklahoma) of Peru next. 

Four of the quarterfinalists at the W15 in Sumter South Carolina are American juniors, and those four could all advance to the semifinals.

Fifteen-year-old Emery Combs is through to her second W15 quarterfinal, beating 18-year-old Adla Lopez 6-0, 2-6, 6-3. Seventeen-year-old lucky loser Yael Saffar has reached her first Pro Circuit quarterfinal, beating qualifier Mia Robinson(Mississippi State) 6-4, 7-5. Sixteen-year-old wild card Scarlett Fagan beat No. 8 seed Karla Bartel(Alabama) of Germany 6-2, 6-1 to reach her first Pro Circuit quarterfinal, and 15-year-old Lani Chang, a junior reserved entry, defeated qualifier Celia Anson Sanchez(Clemson) 2-6, 6-3, 6-2 to reach her second W15 quarterfinal.

Combs, Fagan and Chang all play qualifiers in the quarterfinals; Saffar faces the only seed remaining, No. 5 Anita Sahdiieva(Baylor, LSU) of Ukraine, who beat Carlota Moreno 7-6(4), 7-6(7) in the second round today.

At the M25 in Las Vegas, 17-year-old wild card Tanishk Konduri defeated Felix Corwin(Minnesoty) 4-6, 6-2, 7-5 and will play Virginia sophomore Andres Santamarta of Spain in the quarterfinals. Santamarta defeated qualifier Noah Johnston(Georgia) 6-3, 6-3. No. 3 seed Aidan Kim beat Virginia freshman Luca Preda of Romania, a qualifier, 6-1, 6-1 and will face his teammate at Ohio State the past two years, Jack Anthrop[4] in the quarterfinals. Two other Buckeyes have reached the quarterfinals, with qualifiers Preston Stearns and Nikita Filin also winning today. Filin will play former teammate Will Jansen(North Carolina, Ohio State, Georga) of Great Britain in the quarterfinals, after Jansen beat No. 5 seed Andy Johnson 6-2, 6-2. Stearns will face JC Roddick(UCF, Texas A&M) who beat Enzo Kohlmann de Freitas(LSU) of Brazil 6-7(6), 6-1, 6-1. Kim and Anthrop are the only seeds still in contention.