Sock and Redlicki Earn National Titles in Kalamazoo Sunday

©Colette Lewis 2010--
Kalamazoo MI--

Jack Sock lost in the championship match of the 16s division last year in Kalamazoo, but that defeat has now been replaced by a much better memory after the 17-year-old from Nebraska won the 18s title with a 6-2, 7-5, 6-4 victory over No. 9 seed Bob van Overbeek.

A surprise rain shower around 11 a.m. set the match back approximately ninety minutes, but the 3 p.m. start didn't appear to bother Sock. He ran out to a 4-0 lead in the first, a start he had hoped for, but not anticipated.

"My game plan was to come out with a lot of positive energy, a lot of bouncing around, a lot of c'mons," said the third seed. "He's obviously been serving really well this tournament, and has a really good serve, so to get up two breaks that early, I can't say I was expecting that."

Van Overbeek got one of the breaks back to make it 4-2, but Sock got his third break of the first set on a backhand return winner and served out the set. With the match best-of-five in order to prepare the winner for the U.S. Open men's main draw, losing the first set doesn't necessarily spell doom, and van Overbeek looked to be on his way to leveling the contest when he took a 5-2 lead in the second. But Sock had watched van Overbeek's semifinal win over Denis Kudla on Saturday, and he guessed that he might have a chance to keep the University of Florida sophomore from serving it out.

"Watching him against Kudla yesterday, he got broken 5-3 serving," Sock said. "He played a loose game there and I hit some good returns and tried to put the pressure on at 5-3."

Sock's forehand, his primary weapon, produced winner after winner during that stretch, which saw him win four straight games. He broke van Overbeek at love to take a 6-5 lead, but fell behind 30-40 when serving for the set. Sock avoided a tiebreak though, hitting an ace to save the break point, and secured the second set when van Overbeek netted a forehand.

"I closed my eyes and hit a serve," Sock said of that crucial ace. "I didn't know what I was doing, I just hit it. It was a close serve, I don't even know if it landed in. It probably caught the line, which was very fortunate."

After a 10-minute break due to the heat, which really wasn't nearly as oppressive as it had been earlier in the week, the players returned to the court. Van Overbeek, who wasn't hitting as cleanly as he had earlier in the week, was again broken at love, this time in the third game. Sock stayed ahead as both players held serve throughout the remaining games, with van Overbeek unable to get a look at a break point.

Serving for the match at 5-4, Sock earned a 40-15 lead with two forehand winners and a forced error. On his first match point, Sock missed his first serve and the second was 12 feet long, but he said nerves weren't the reason for the double fault. On his second match point, Sock admitted he got a "little tight" on his forehand and it found the net. Having saved two match points, van Overbeek was still one short of the number he saved in his match against Kudla in the semifinals.

"I knew I had a little further way to go this time," said van Overbeek. "But it definitely crossed my mind. I was hoping to get back into it, make it more interesting, but today wasn't my day."

Sock won the next two points on van Overbeek errors and the title was his.

Van Overbeek is planning on accepting his wild card into men's qualifying, while Sock is hoping to draw a marquee player for night contest on Arthur Ashe with his main draw wild card.

"Federer, Nadal or Murray," Sock said, when asked who he would prefer to draw. "That would obviously be an unbelievable experience. If I have my one chance right now, I would want to be on Arthur Ashe on a Monday night, that would be ideal. It would be very fun; I'd probably be very nervous. Hopefully I'll have more chances in the future, but this one would be fun to play someone big to see where I am."

Sock is also planning to play the U.S. Open junior championships too.



In the boys 16s final, Michael Redlicki made it back-to-back National Championships, as the Clay Court winner defeated top seed Shane Vinsant 7-5, 6-4.

Both players started nervously, with double faults and framed shots prevailing in the opening games. Vinsant got the first break, but Redlicki got it right back and two holds made it 4-3. With Redlicki serving down 3-4, Vinsant had three break points, but he couldn't convert, and it was due more to Vinsant's errors than Redlicki's clutch play. In the middle of that lengthy game, Vinsant could be heard saying "I'm playing awful," and once Redlicki held for 4-4, he gave a big fist pump and a loud c'mon.

The momentum carried over in the next game, as Redlicki broke at love, hitting a nifty backhand pass to take a 5-4 lead, but again, the erratic play returned and he was unable to serve out the set. Vinsant was broken again, on a double fault at 15-40, and on his second opportunity, Redlicki got the job done.

"I was extremely nervous," said the 6-foot-7 left-hander from Illinois. "This crowd, the really nice flowers, the big bowls, at the beginning I had to get used to it."

Vinsant tried to change the pace a bit at times, but his drop shot attempts either didn't make it over the net, or a deceptively quick Redlicki got to them and took control of the point. Redlicki was not as sharp as he had been against No. 2 seed Mitchell Krueger in the semifinals, but he had no trouble staying in points from the baseline with Vinsant.

Redlicki broke Vinsant to take a 5-2 lead in the second set, but again couldn't finish it out on his serve. The sun was causing him to make adjustments in his service toss and there were times when his usually big serve dropped in the box at 60 mph, according to the radar gun on court 1. Redlicki had the luxury of a second break however, and again he took his second chance, punctuating his win with an ace at 40-15.

"Maybe I served better yesterday," Redlicki said, reflecting on his ten aces, compared to five in Sunday's final. "But today I served well enough to get the job done."

When asked about the upcoming trip to New York to play in the U.S. Open junior championships, Redlicki was still trying to come to terms with the thought of playing in the Big Apple.

"New York City, that's going to be insane," he said. "I went there in 2003 to watch Nadal as a 16-year-old [Nadal was actually 17]. I remember that was the greatest experience of my life, just being a spectator. Now being a player, it's going to be eight times better."

For Vinsant, who has been accepted into qualifying for the U.S. Open junior championships, it was another disappointing last day in Kalamazoo. A runner-up in 16s doubles last year and this year, Vinsant has four more opportunities to get a gold ball in the 18s.

"It's the third final I've lost here, so hopefully I'll get one someday," the Texan told the crowd after the match. "It's a really fun tournament."

In the boys 18s third place match, top seed Jordan Cox defeated No. 2 seed Denis Kudla 6-4, 6-1. No. 5 seed Sekou Bangoura finished fifth, winning the consolation draw with a 6-2, 7-5 victory over No. 11 seed Dennis Novikov.

No. 2 seed Mitchell Krueger defeated No. 3 seed Nolan Paige 4-6, 6-1, 6-4 in the 16s third place match, The fifth seed finished fifth in the 16s division as well, with Gordon Watson downing No. 6 seed Anthony Delcore 5-7, 6-2, 10-1.

The sportsmanship winners were named over the weekend. Robert Stineman of Illinois received the Wes Richards award for Feed-In. Daniel Kosakowski was named the winner of the Allen B. Stowe award for Boys 18s. Gordon Watson received the Bobby Kaplan sportsmanship award for 16s.

For complete results, see ustaboys.com.

Tags: junior tennis, Jack Sock, Bob van Overbeek, Michael Redlicki, Shane Vinsant, USTA Boys 18 and 16 National Championships, Kalamazoo, Colette Lewis

Bangoura and Pasha Snare US Open Doubles Wild Card; Korinek and Trinh Surprise Winners of 16s Doubles Title

©Colette Lewis 2010--
Kalamazoo, MI--

It isn't often that a Georgia Bulldog and a Florida Gator can coexist, let alone thrive together, but Nathan Pasha and Sekou Bangoura are the exceptions. After reaching the 18s doubles final last year in Kalamazoo, Pasha, who recently gave a verbal commitment to Georgia, and Bangoura, who played the dual season this year for Florida, emerged with the gold balls and the coveted wild card into the main draw of the U.S. Open men's doubles, taking a 7-5, 6-3 victory from Matthew Kandath and Jack Sock.

"I actually took the time to write on their (Facebook) walls this morning to ask them to please let us win," joked Pasha. "Please let us win, and I'll be your friend forever."

Bangoura thought it might actually have been their play on the court that decided the match however.

"I don't think that was it," said Bangoura, who teamed with Pasha in 2008 to finish third in Kalamazoo. "I think the difference in the match was our serves and returns. This is only our second time playing together this year, but we click well together."

There were only two breaks of serve in the match, with Kandath being broked serving at 5-6 in the first set and the first time he served in the second set. Pasha was a bundle of positive energy throughout, and he and Bangoura never trailed.

As for New York, Pasha and Bangoura are not sure what draw would be best.

"Anybody who we can get our first win from," said Bangoura. "We want to stay there as long as possible."

"At the same time, I want to be on center court, get rocked in front of everybody," said Pasha, contemplating a match against the Bryan brothers, who won the 18s doubles title in Kalamazoo in 1995 and 1996. "It would be cool to play them, I just don't want to get booed. Oh, I don't care if I get booed. Let's play the Bryan brothers on center court."

As veterans of the U.S. Open junior tournament, Bangoura and Pasha know that they've ascended to a different level with the wild card. No more shuttle buses or junior locker rooms. It's courtesy cars and the same locker room as Federer and Nadal.

"I'm requesting a late match so we can stay as long as possible," Pasha said.



In the battle of Texas in the 16s doubles final, it was the underdogs who came out on top. Andrew Korinek and Tam Trinh became the first unseeded team to win the 16s doubles title since 1985, upsetting top seeds Mitchell Krueger and Shane Vinsant 6-3, 7-5 Saturday afternoon.

Korinek was originally planning to play with Alexios Halebian, but when Halebian received a wild card into the 18s instead, Korinek teamed up with Trihn, who was making his first visit to Kalamazoo.

Having never played together before, it was perhaps not surprising that they struggled in their opening match.

"We were playing on court 1 and up 4-0, and I think maybe he(Trinh) got a little nervous, and he actually started cramping" said Korinek, who, like the other three finalists, is from suburban Dallas. "We lost that set and we were down 5-3, 40-0, down three match points, and somehow we got through that one. We had a really close one in the quarterfinals, won 13-11 in the third set tiebreaker and also saved another match point in that one. It's really exciting when you can squeak through."

After a convincing win in the first set against Krueger and Vinsant, who have years of experience playing high level doubles both nationally and internationally, Korinek and Trinh hit a rough patch. Leading 3-1, they lost four straight games, and Krueger had an opportunity to serve for the set. He couldn't finish however, and Korinek and Trinh took the final four games and the gold balls that go to the champions, although the match ended on a strange note.

With Trinh serving at 6-5, 40-15, he missed his first serve, and on his second serve, Krueger and Vinsant heard an "out" call from a line umpire. They stopped playing, but the call had come from the other court, where Kudla and van Overbeek were playing, and a serve at the same time on that court was called a fault. There were several minutes of discussion before the chair umpire called it game set and match, and it was several more minutes before Krueger and Vinsant could believe that the match was over.

Trinh, playing only his third National Level 1 championship, put the win "right at the top" of his tennis accomplishments.

"I was looking forward to coming here," he said. "And it turned out pretty well."

Tags: junior tennis, Nathan Pasha, Sekou Bangoura, Andrew Korinek, Tam Trinh, USTA National 18 and 16 Championships, Colette Lewis

Van Overbeek Saves Three Match Points to Reach 18s Final; Will Play Sock For US Open Wild Card

©Colette Lewis 2010--
Kalamazoo MI--

It's been years since Jack Sock and Bob van Overbeek have played, but when they take the court for the USTA National Boys 18 title on Sunday, they'll have a similar experience to draw on. After Sock saved two match points in his quarterfinal win over Dan Kosakowski on Thursday, van Overbeek topped that, saving three match points in his 5-7, 7-6(5), 7-6(5) victory over No. 2 seed Denis Kudla Saturday afternoon.

Van Overbeek was searching for words after his draining win over Kudla.

"I don't know what to say right now," said van Overbeek, the No. 9 seed. "I'm glad to be in the finals, but that was definitely one of the toughest matches I've played in a long time."

With van Overbeek leading 4-3 in the first set, a rain shower stopped play for nearly two hours. When the players returned to the court, van Overbeek broke Kudla and served for the set. But Kudla broke back, and went on to win the next four games to secure the set.

In the second set, van Overbeek again served for the set, also at 5-3, and again he was unable to close it out. The 18-year-old from Boca Raton, Fla. did recover in time to reach a tiebreaker and he had three set points at 6-3. Kudla saved two on his serve, but van Overbeek's reliable second serve came through for him and when Kudla's backhand found the net, the match was even.

"In the third he served big," a disappointed Kudla said. "I had opportunities at 5-4 and 6-5 and in the tiebreak, even though I was down. I feel I had plenty of opportunities, I just didn't capitalize on them."

There were no breaks in the third set, but van Overbeek was in the precarious position of serving from behind. At 4-5, 30-30, Kudla hit an overhead winner to earn his first match point. On the next point, he got the short ball that he wanted, but his forehand approach shot was feet, not inches, long. Van Overbeek got out of the game, but was quickly back on the hot seat. Kudla held at love, and three errors by van Overbeek in the next game made it 15-40. Van Overbeek saved the first with a service winner, but Kudla had another chance to end the match with a forehand. This one was just long, but it was out, and van Overbeek then began a stretch of hot serving that saw him put six consecutive first serves in play, from the end of that game through the beginning of the tiebreaker.

Kudla led 4-2 in the tiebreaker, but three straight errors gave van Overbeek the advantage. Kudla missed another forehand to give van Overbeek his first match point, and he converted when Kudla's backhand found the net.

"I served well when I got down in my service games," said van Overbeek. "And on one of the match points, he missed a forehand short, which I thought the match was over. I was getting ready to pack it up, but fortunately it went long. Just a couple shots here or there...obviously three match points down, it could have gone either way."

Van Overbeek appeared very calm throughout the match and although there were errors, none seemed to be the result of nerves.

"Since my second round match when I went three sets, and I was definitely not behaving well, and it was a really close match. Then I played on the center court against (Emmett) Egger and I was very calm in that match. Each match is just one I feel like I'm lucky to be playing. So I'm playing like there's nothing to lose and whatever happens, happens."

In the other 18s semifinal, Jack Sock waited nearly two hours to play the two points that would earn him his second consecutive appearance in a Kalamazoo final. Serving for the match against top seed Jordan Cox, Sock, the third seed, was down 15-40. The 17-year-old from Lincoln, Neb. saved the first break point with a forehand winner; Cox made a return error on the second and at deuce, play was suspended. When they came back to court 3, nearly two hours later, Sock used his kick serve to win the two points he needed.

"I knew I wanted to go out there and put in two heavy kick serves to his backhand and try to get a forehand off the next ball," said Sock. "The first point, that was exactly what happened. I actually thought I missed the forehand into the net, but it barely went over. Then on match point, I hit another good kick serve out wide, and he hit a slice about six inches long, but they didn't call anything. I just hit the ball back when they didn't call it, and then he did the same thing--it hit in the same exact spot--and they called it out the second time."

Sock had lost to Cox 6-3, 6-3 in the first round of the Godfrey Futures last month, but he considers that loss to have been a positive, not a negative.

"I think it was an advantage for my coach(Mike Wolf) to watch him and see how he plays, cause I hadn't played him since I was 12," Sock said. "I had a strict game plan that he set for me, and so I think it was an advantage to have played him just a couple of weeks ago."

Sunday's final, which is scheduled for 1:30 p.m., will be the best of five sets, to prepare the winner for what he'll face in the first round of the U.S. Open later this month.

"I think it actually might be an advantage for me now," said Sock, who had some physical problems with dehydration earlier in the tournament. "Because I know what I'm doing now with the hydrating, the fluids and stuff. All I've been doing since I got back from Godfrey is conditioning and conditioning, getting in a lot better shape. So hopefully that will pay off."

"I've played in practice a lot of three-out-of-five set matches for this specific reason," van Overbeek said. "Not ever in a tournament though, obviously. It's going to be a long day, so I've got to be prepared to play as long as they let us."

For complete results, see ustaboys.com.

Tags: junior tennis, USTA National Boys 18 Championship, Jack Sock, Bob van Overbeek, Colette Lewis

Top Seed Vinsant Meets Clay Court Champion Redlicki for 16s Title

©Colette Lewis 2010--
Kalamazoo MI--

Just three weeks ago, Michael Redlicki was collecting his first gold ball at the 16s Clay Courts. On Sunday he's taking aim on a second, and the coveted U.S. Open junior wild card that goes with it.

"Ever since last year, my first year in Kalamazoo, when I figured out that the winner gets a wild card, my whole year has been revolving around that," said the 16-year-old from Hawthorn Woods, Ill., who beat No. 2 seed Mitchell Krueger 7-6(6), 6-4 in Saturday's semifinal. "I'm trying to get better, more fit and mentally prepared for big stages like this. Hopefully, tomorrow I can accomplish that goal."

Redlicki, a 6-foot-7 left-hander, served ten aces in the match and many more service winners, most of them coming when he was down.

"Especially when I was down in my service games, I started to see a pattern, and I started hitting a lot of service winners," Redlicki said. "I don't know, it just seems that under pressure, I was serving better, which isn't typical."

Redlicki also didn't make many unforced errors, although Krueger had his opportunity to take the lead with a set point at 6-5 in the tiebreaker, after Redlicki had lost both his serves. Krueger, who had played so well up until the semifinals, seemed tentative in the opening set and early in the tiebreaker. The 16-year-old from suburban Dallas seemed determined to play more aggressively, and he hit out on that set point, but his forehand volley went just long. After Krueger lost the next point on a forehand wide, Redlicki had his first set point, and converted it quickly, with an ace.

Krueger fell behind 2-0 in the second set, but he got back in the match, only to be broken again in the eighth game. Redlicki couldn't serve it out at 5-3, but he stayed close in the next game, and on his third match point he forced a defensive lob from Krueger that went wide.

Redlicki's rival for the U.S. Open junior wild card is top seed Shane Vinsant, who cruised past No. 3 seed Nolan Paige 6-0, 6-4.

Paige had difficulty finding the court in the opening set, and Vinsant, who has yet to lose a set in the tournament, was sharp and relaxed.

"I didn't miss much but I also played aggressive, and that's a good combo right there," said Vinsant, who is also from suburban Dallas. "That's the least nervous I've been. I had really good talks before with my coaches, and I was feeling really good in warmups, so it carried over to the match."

Paige made some adjustments in the second set, and actually led 2-0 before Vinsant regained control of the match.

"He didn't do anything special, but he changed his game a little bit, and it took me a little bit to adjust to it," Vinsant said. "He started pressuring me more, not hitting big shots, but taking time away, coming to the net, and I didn't pass him until later, after I was down 2-0."

Vinsant and Redlicki played this April in at the Carson ITF Grade 1, with Vinsant winning 6-4, 6-2.

"I think he's improved and feeling pretty confident since he just won Clays," said Vinsant.

Redlicki agreed.

"I'm very prepared for tomorrow," Redlicki said. "And I'm very impressed with how I'm playing."

Tags: junior tennis, USTA Boys 16s National Championships, Kalamazoo, Shane Vinsant, Michael Redlicki, Colette Lewis

Semifinals Set at Boys 18 and 16 Nationals

©Colette Lewis 2010--
Kalamazoo, MI--

The second day of quarterfinal matches at Kalamazoo was similar in weather to the first, with high temperatures and humidity leading to an implementation of the heat rule for the 18s. There was no need to use it however, as No. 2 seed Denis Kudla and No. 9 seed Bob van Overbeek both finished their matches in straight sets.

Kudla beat No. 8 seed Raymond Sarmiento 6-2, 6-1, and he was as surprised as anyone with the brevity of the match. He and Sarmiento had been practicing together the past two weeks and Kudla admitted that he was getting beaten regularly by the future USC Trojan.

"The way he's been playing and the way I've been playing, I thought he could upset me," said Kudla, who turned pro early last year. "I went into the match thinking he would play really well, so I think mentally I was really prepared. Unfortunately he got sick or got hurt. I don't know what was going on with him."

Down 4-1 in the second set, Sarmiento called for the trainer, complaining of dizziness. He received treatment for two or three minutes and then returned to the court, but he was not able to challenge Kudla in the final two games.

On court 3, van Overbeek had had a similarly easy first set against No. 31 seed Clay Thompson, but Thompson was able to make a battle of it in the second set, holding a set point in the second set tiebreaker before falling 6-2, 7-6(6).

"In the first set I think he was a little nervous," said van Overbeek, who has already played one dual season for the Florida Gators. "He was going for too much on some shots, maybe pressing because there were a lot of people in the crowd. Second set he started to calm down a little bit, make some more first serves. I got a little nervous. It was more a mental fight than a tennis match in that second set."

In the tiebreaker, Thompson was down 4-5, but held both of his serves to earn a set point. He got a look at a second serve, but it was a good one from van Overbeek, and Thompson's return was long. At 6-6, van Overbeek missed another first serve, but his second serve was again deep and effective, and Thompson missed the return.

"Sometimes in these tournaments you have a second serve and you get really nervous, but I wasn't really feeling the nerves," van Overbeek said. "He had been taking my weaker second serves and hitting it close to the baseline and I didn't want to give him a chance to get ahead in the point. So I wanted to hit a lot of topspin on it and get it into his body and see what happens from there."

At 7-6, van Overbeek had the luxury of swinging freely, and when Thompson missed a forehand, he had his meeting with longtime junior rival Kudla.

"We haven't played since 2006," said van Overbeek, who recounted in detail those matches four or five years ago. "He beat me in the finals of the (Junior) Orange Bowl backdraw and we haven't played since. So for now I have the edge head-to-head, but he did take me the last time we played."

In the other 18s semifinal on Saturday, it will be top seed Jordan Cox against No. 3 seed Jack Sock.

The 16s quarterfinals matches went as the seeding would predict. No. 4 seed Michael Redlicki repeated his Clay Court final win over No. 5 seed Gordon Watson, taking down the Easter Bowl champion 6-4, 6-3.

The 6-foot-7 left-hander from Illinois went out to a 4-1, two-break lead in the first, but Watson began to work his way back into the match, getting one break back at 4-1 and holding three game points with Redlicki serving at 5-4. But Redlicki played well on those points, often finishing at the net, although he doesn't really feel comfortable there.

"It was not that I was focusing on finishing points at the net, but when the ball's so short you have no option but to go to the net," Redlicki said. "I prefer to play back at the baseline and work my way in, not just blindly going in like a lot of tall guys do."

In the second set, Redlicki was down 2-0, but won 6 of the next 7 games to earn a place in the semifinals against No. 2 seed Mitchell Krueger.


Krueger defeated No. 7 seed Mackenzie McDonald 6-3, 6-3, but he also worked his way out of a tight spot in the second set.

After taking a 2-0 lead, Krueger lost three straight games, and serving at 2-3 went down 15-40 on his serve. He played two big points however, and went on to hold serve, and McDonald's chance to get back in the match was gone.

"It was definitely a relief," Krueger said. "On the second one I hit a volley that could have gone either way. I was really in a tight position. I was glad to get out of that; it was a big two points."

Krueger and Redlicki played last fall in the second round at the ITF Grade 4 in Urbana, Ill., with Krueger winning in a third set tiebreaker.

"It was a good match and I'm expecting another great fight tomorrow," Redlicki said.
"It will be tough," Krueger said. "He's a big server. It depends on how we are on that day."

The other semifinal in 16s to be played on Saturday will feature No. 1 seed Shane Vinsant against No. 3 seed Nolan Paige, meaning all four top seeds will be playing in the semifinals.

A Texas team will win the 16s doubles title Saturday, it's just a question of which one. Top seeds Krueger and Vinsant will face unseeded Andrew Korinek and Tam Trinh for the gold ball. Krueger and Vinsant beat the unseeded team of Alex Gornet and Zack Lewis 6-3, 6-0. Korinek and Trinh defeated the unseeded team of Sam Bloom and Ken Sabacinski 7-6(4), 6-2.

In the boys 18s doubles, the gold ball and a U.S. Open main draw wild card will be on the line when the sixth seeds, Jack Sock and Matthew Kandath, take on No. 2 seeds Sekou Bangoura and Nathan Pasha. Sock and Kandath saved three set points in the second set tiebreaker to defeat No. 4 seeds Evan King and Raymond Sarmiento 6-4, 7-6(6). Bangoura and Pasha, making their second straight appearance in the 18s final, defeated No. 9 seeds Bjorn Fratangelo and Alexios Halebian by the same score as the other semifinal, although Bangoura and Pasha did not need to save any set points in their second set tiebreaker.

For complete results, see ustaboys.com.

Tags: junior tennis, Mitchell Krueger, Michael Redlicki, Denis Kudla, Bob van Overbeek, USTA Boys 18 and 16 National Championships, Kalamazoo, Colette Lewis

Sock Gets by Kosakowski in Three-Set Thriller to Reach 18s Semifinals

©Colette Lewis 2010--
Kalamazoo, MI--

The 2010 USTA Boys 18 and 16 National Championships had been a little short on drama--until today. When No. 3 seed Jack Sock and No. 15 seed Daniel Kosakowski walked onto Stowe Stadium's court 2 for their 18s quarterfinal match on another hot and humid afternoon, few of the spectators could have foreseen the enthralling three-hour rollercoaster ride they would witness. When Sock hit the second of his two forehand winners to earn a 7-6(3), 3-6, 7-6(5) victory, the loud and appreciative applause for both players said it all, and the stadium buzzed for many minutes after the match concluded. The most frequent comment was a simple "wow."

Sock saved two match points serving at 4-5 in the third set, and Kosakowski admitted he'll probably think about the second of those two points for a little while.

On the first match point, Sock hit a good forehand deep into Kosakowski's backhand corner, and Kosakowski's backhand reply didn't clear the net. After Sock hit a forehand into the net on the next point, Kosakowski had his second chance, and this time Sock made a mistake. Sock had a short ball with Kosakowski coming into the net for a drop volley, and instead of a passing shot, Sock went for a topspin lob. It was short, and Kosakowski had many options, but the one he took, a backhand volley, landed several inches wide.

"I wasn't going to move, I was so stunned at how bad I hit that lob," said Sock. "I was just going to stand there and say 'nice shot', I didn't know what to do. He might have been a little anxious to hit it, wanted to hit it quick and get it perfect, but he could have hit it anywhere and been in good shape. I was in disbelief, but that's tennis."



Kosakowski, who is the picture of composure on the court, did show a small sign of frustration after that volley, throwing his sweat-soaked hat to the ground.

"I just wasn't expecting him to give me that shot," said Kosakowski, who did not lose his serve in the match. "The shot that I gave him was pretty easy, and I thought he was just going to rip a winner, but he ends up lobbing me to my backhand."

Despite that miss, Kosakowski didn't let it bother him for long. He did make two unforced errors on the next two points, but he held at love in his next service game, and Sock again had to hold serve to stay in the match. Sock let a 40-15 lead slip away on a Kosakowski return winner and a double fault, but he won the next two points to force the tiebreaker.

Kosakowski took a 3-1 lead, serving an ace to open the tiebreaker and a service winner the next time he served. But at 3-1, a long rally of several dozen shots ended with a risky volley winner from Sock. Kosakowski took a 5-4 lead on his serve when Sock netted a forehand, but it was the last point he would win. After Kosakowski netted a backhand to make it 5-5, Sock missed his first serve, but got the second one in. After a brief exchange, Sock went for a forehand, and it found the sideline, giving him his first match point. Three hours and eight minutes after it began, Sock ended the match with a second clean forehand winner, and the tournament had its signature moment.

"I feel good," said Sock, who had struggled with dehydration earlier in the week. "He's a darn good player...I knew his forehand was good and he can literally hit a winner from anywhere in the court."

Kosakowski, who will be playing for UCLA this fall, obviously didn't get the result he wanted, but even less than a half hour after a crushing loss, he appreciated the level of competition.

"We both played really well," he said. "One point here and there and I could have easily won the match. I've just got to forget about it and keep working hard."

Sock will play top seed Jordan Cox in Saturday's semifinal. Cox had a much shorter day than Sock, posting a 6-1, 6-2 victory over No. 29 seed Nelson Vick. Cox defeated Sock 6-3 6-3 in the first round of a Futures tournament last month in Illinois.

In the 16s, No. 1 seed Shane Vinsant earned a semifinal berth with a 6-4, 6-4 win over No. 6 seed Anthony Delcore. Vinsant had a 5-1 lead in the second set, but Delcore stepped up his game and Vinsant was happy to finish it in two sets.

As in the 18s, the top half of the 16s will feature the No. 1 and No. 3 seeds in the semifinals. Nolan Paige, the No. 3 seed, put an end to the run of Michigan's Tyler Gardiner, the No. 16 seed, taking a 6-3, 7-5 decision.

In the boys 16s doubles quarterfinals, the top seeded team and three unseeded teams won. Mitchell Krueger and Vinsant beat No. 5 seeds Maxx Lipman and Gordon Watson 6-2, 6-3 and will meet unseeded Alex Gornet and Zack Lewis in the semifinals Friday. Fornet and Lewis beat Matthew Alves and Gardiner, the No. 8 seeds 2-6, 7-6(5) 10-5. The seeded teams in the bottom half were both upset. No. 2 seeds TJ Pura and Richard Del Nunzio had misread their match time and reported to their match with Sam Bloom and Ken Sabacinski 14 minutes late, so were facing a 3-0 deficit before a ball was struck. Bloom and Sabacinski won that set 6-3 and the second 6-4. They will play Andrew Korinek and Tam Trinh, who upset No. 4 seeds Mihir Kumar and Michael Redlicki 7-6(3), 3-6, 13-11.

On Friday, the bottom half of the draw will play their quarterfinal matches, and both divisions' doubles semifinals will be played.

For complete draws, see ustaboys.com.

Tags: junior tennis, Jack Sock, Daniel Kosakowski, USTA Boys 18 and 16 National Championships, Kalamazoo, Colette Lewis