Sports

Colette Lewis

Published

4 months ago

July 30, 2025

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Aces

July Aces Find Global Success on All Surfaces

by Colette Lewis, 30 July 2025

Special from Zoo Tennis

From Wimbledon’s grass to the hard courts of North America, milestones for juniors and current and former collegians spanned the Atlantic this month. With additional titles captured on European and South American clay, highlights ran the gamut of surfaces in July. On the green clay of the United States, the USTA National Clay Court champions were crowned, with links to all Tennis Recruiting Network’s coverage found here.

	JJ Tracy and Robert CashOhio State’s spring 2024 NCAA doubles champions won the ATP Challenger 125 on the grass in Newport, Rhode Island, then captured their first ATP Tour title at the 250 in Los Cabos, Mexico. Cash, 24, and Tracy, 23, the top seeds in Newport, defeated unseeded Hans Hach of Mexico and Cristian Rodriguez of Colombia 7-6(3), 6-3 in the final. Unseeded in Los Cabos, Cash and Tracy defeated unseeded Tristan Schoolkate and Blake Bayldon of Australia 7-6(4), 6-4 in the championship match to earn ATP career-high doubles rankings of 59(Tracy) and 62(Cash).

	Lloyd Glasspool and Julian CashThe British pair had already earned grass court titles at the Queens ATP 500 and Eastbourne ATP 250 when they arrived at Wimbledon. Glasspool, the 2015 NCAA doubles champion while at Texas, and Cash, a former ITA doubles No. 1 while at Oklahoma State, kept that winning streak going to claim their first major title. The first all-British pair to win the Wimbledon men’s doubles title since 1936, Glasspool and Cash defeated qualifiers Rinky Hijikata of Australia and David Pel of the Netherlands 6-2, 7-6(3) in the final. Now with a Wimbledon title to go with their five ATP titles in less than a year as partners, Glasspool and Cash are No. 3 and No. 4 respectively in the ATP doubles rankings. (Photo credit: Pete Staples/USTA; Zoo Tennis)

	Liam DraxlWhile the 23-year-old Canadian has made seven ATP Challenger finals already in 2025, it wasn’t until this month that he captured his first title of the year. Fittingly, it came in his home country, where he won his only other Challenger title back in 2023, claiming the title at the Challenger 75 in Winnipeg with a 1-6, 6-3, 6-4 victory over top seed Alexander Blockx of Belgium in the final. Draxl, the ITA Player of the Year as a University of Kentucky sophomore in 2021, made another Challenger final in Canada after winning Winnipeg, losing to August Holmgren, but he is now at a career-high ATP ranking of 113. (Photo credit: Manuela Davies/USTA)

	August HolmgrenUniversity of San Diego’s 2022 NCAA singles finalist was one of the biggest stories of the first week of Wimbledon, saving match points in qualifying, then advancing to the third round with a five-set win over No. 21 seed Tomas Machac before losing to Alex de Minaur. The 27-year-old from Denmark then dove right back into competition on the ATP Challenger Circuit on North American hard courts, claiming the third Challenger title of his career at the Granby Canada 75. Seeded No. 6, Holmgren defeated No. 3 seed Liam Draxl of Canada 6-3, 6-3 in the final, and, with all his success this month, has moved into the ATP Top 150 for the first time.

	Welles NewmanThe 15-year-old from Florida won three titles, 15 straight matches and 30 consecutive sets on the South American clay this month, with those results catapulting her ITF junior ranking into the Top 100 for the first time. As the top seed at the J100 in Brazil, Newman defeated No. 2 seed Victoria Lopez Ocampos of Paraguay 6-0, 6-2, while also taking the doubles title. She then followed with another J100 title in Colombia as the third seed, defeating compatriot Sena Yoon, seeded seventh, 6-4, 6-1 in the final. Newman, seeded No. 2, then claimed both titles at the J200 in Colombia, defeating top seed and doubles partner Nancy Lee 6-2, 6-3 in the final. Newman and Lee, the No. 1 seeds, defeated No. 6 seeds Ciara Harding and Adla Lopez 6-3, 7-5 in the all-USA doubles final in Bogota.

	Julieta ParejaIn her first encounter with grass, the 16-year-old Southern California made all four finals in the two tournaments on the surface this month in suburban London. Seeded No.3, she won the ITF J300 Roehampton singles title, beating unseeded Elizara Yaneva of Bulgaria 1-6, 6-4, 6-3. Pareja, seeded sixth, extended her winning streak to 11 matches the following week at the Wimbledon Junior Championships before falling 6-3, 6-1 in the final to unseeded Mia Pohankova of Slovakia. Pareja and Thea Frodin reached the doubles finals in both tournaments, with the combination of all those results putting Pareja at No. 1 in the ITF junior rankings for the first time. (Photo credit: Paul Ballard)

	Ivan IvanovThe 16-year-old Bulgarian earned just the second boys junior slam singles title for his country this month at Wimbledon, with the No. 6 seed defeating qualifier Ronit Karki of the United States 6-2, 6-3 to join Grigor Dimitrov on that abbreviated list. Ivanov, who did not drop a set in his six victories, winning all four tiebreakers he played, ran his record 24-3 since May, when he won his first ITF men’s World Tennis Tour title at an M15 in Hungary. With his title at Wimbledon, the long-time student at Rafael Nadal Academy moved to the top spot in the ITF junior rankings. (Photo credit: Paul Ballard)

	Mia PohankovaThe 16-year-old from Bratislava made it back-to-back Wimbledon titles for Slovakia, joining last year’s champion Renata Jamrichova on the list of girls champions with a 6-3, 6-1 win over Californian Julieta Pareja. Pohankova, who had beaten Jamrichova to win a ITF women’s World Tennis Tour W75 last October, defeated No. 7 seed and US Open champion Mika Stojsavljevic of Great Britain in the first round, and ITF World No. 1 and 2024 Wimbledon finalist Emerson Jones of Australia in the quarterfinals. An Australian Open semifinalist, Pohankova moved to a career-high of 7 in the ITF junior rankings. (Photo credit: Paul Ballard)

	Vendula Valdmannova and Kristina PenickovaAfter both lost partners to injury before the grass season, American Penickova and Czech Valdmannova arranged to play together in London, reaching the quarterfinals in Roehampton before capturing the Wimbledon girls doubles title the following week at the All England Lawn Tennis Club. No. 3 seeds Penickova, who won the Australian Open doubles title with twin sister Annika in January, and Valdmannova defeated No. 5 seeds Thea Frodin and Julieta Pareja of the United States 6-4, 6-2 in the championship match. The only set Penickova and Valdmannova dropped in their five Wimbledon doubles victories was the first one they played. (Photo credit:

	Alan Wazny and Oskari PaldaniusThe Roland Garros champions managed to top that significant accomplishment in dramatic fashion barely a month later, winning the Wimbledon boys doubles title by saving match points in front of a huge crowd on Court One. Poland’s Wazny and Finland’s Paldanius, the No. 4 seeds, came from 6-4 down in the second set tiebreaker to beat No. 8 seeds Oliver Bonding of Great Britain and Jagger Leach of the United States 5-7, 7-6(6), 10-5, extending their junior slam doubles winning streak to 10 matches and counting. (Photo credit: Paul Ballard)

	Philip HenningThe former University of Georgia All-American, who won seven ITF men’s World Tour Tennis tournaments in 2024, got his first three titles of 2025 this month in his home country of South Africa. The 24-year-old, seeded No. 1 in all three tournaments, started July with his second career M25 title, beating University of Florida standout Adhithya Ganesan, the No. 6 seed, 6-2, 5-7, 6-1 in the final. Henning defeated Filip Peliwo of Poland 4-6, 6-4, 6-2 in the first M15 final, then claimed his ninth ITF WTT M15 title with a 6-3, 6-3 win over qualifier Marc Van Der Merwe of South Africa. Henning is now back near his career-high ATP ranking of 324, reached late last year. (Photo credit: Conor Kvatek/USTA)

	Lucciana PerezThe Texas A&M rising junior won back-to-back W35 singles titles this month on Brazilian clay, while also claiming a doubles title. As the No. 3 seed in Rio Claro, the 20-year-old from Peru defeated No. 2 seed Miriana Tona of Italy 6-1, 6-2 in the final. Also seeded third the following week in Sao Paulo, Perez defeated unseeded Maria Urrutia of Argentina 7-6(7), 6-3 in the final, while winning her fifth career women’s ITF WTT doubles title via a walkover in the final. Perez is now up to a career-high of 365 in the WTA rankings.

	Samir BanerjeeThe Stanford All-American, who is entering his senior year this fall, swept the titles this month at the M25 in Dallas, Texas. Seeded No. 5, the 21-year-old from New Jersey defeated top seed Alex Rybakov 5-7, 6-1, 6-4 for his second ITF men’s WTT singles title and a career-high ATP ranking of 509. Banerjee and partner Bruno Kuzuhara, who were unseeded, defeated the fourth-seeded Japanese team of Leo Vithoontien and Kosuke Ogura 6-4, 6-3 for the doubles title, the first Pro Circuit doubles title for Banerjee and the fourth for Kuzuhara.

	Amelia HonerThe two-time All-American from UC Santa Barbara won her second USTA Pro Circuit W35 title last week in Florence, South Carolina. The 22-year-old wild card from Pennsylvania, who completed her eligibility in May, defeated top seed and former UCLA star Robin Anderson 6-3, 7-6(3) in the final, her third victory over a seed during the week. Honer, who won a W35 in California last fall, will rise to a WTA career-high around 550 when the points are added.

	Dasha VidmanovaAn Ace for the third straight month, Georgia’s 2024 spring doubles and fall singles NCAA champion continued the impressive start to her professional career, claiming her first W100 title in Cary, North Carolina. Unseeded, the 22-year-old from the Czech Republic came from a set down twice en route to the final, where she met Stanford rising freshman Monika Ekstrand, a qualifier. Vidmanova won her third straight USTA Pro Circuit title since graduating in May with a 6-3, 6-1 win over Ekstrand, then went on to reach the final of last week’s W100 in Evansville, Illinois, losing to Caty McNally. She is now at a career-high of 168 in the WTA rankings, after starting the year at 326.

	Tereza ValentovaThe 2024 Roland Garros girls champion made her WTA Top 100 debut this week after winning back-to-back WTA 125s in Italy and Portugal. The 18-year-old from the Czech Republic was unseeded in Italy, beating unseeded compatriot Barbora Palicova 6-2, 4-6, 6-1 in the final after ousting top seed Renata Zarazua of Mexico in the second round. The No. 3 seed in Portugal, Valentova beat Laniana Tararudee of Thailand 6-4, 6-2 in the final, then extended her winning streak to 13 before falling to eventual champion Maria Bouzkova of the Czech Republic in the semifinals of the WTA 250 in Prague last week.

	Hoyoung RohThe 19-year-old from Korea, who redshirted his freshman year at Vanderbilt, won his first ITF men’s World Tennis Tour title this month at the M25 in Louisville, Kentucky, Unseeded, the former ITF junior No. 10 posted his only win over a seed during the week by beating No. 3 Aidan McHugh of Great Britain 6-1, 6-7(5), 6-1 in the quarterfinals. In the championship match, Roh defeated unseeded Nick Kotzen, a rising senior at Columbia, 6-1, 6-4, with the title boosting Roh’s ATP ranking to a career-high of 806.

	Eszter MeriThe rising sophomore at the University of Texas claimed the World University Games singles gold medal last week on the clay courts of Essen, Germany. The 22-year-old from Slovakia, seeded No. 11, defeated No. 2 seed and WTA No. 342 Alvetina Ibragimova of Russia 6-3, 1-6, 7-5 in the final, after beating the No. 6 seed in the third round and the No. 7 seed in the semifinals. Meri is the first player from Slovakia and the first from the University of Texas to win a tennis gold medal at the biennial World University Games. (Photo credit: ITA)

	Jay FriendThe 21-year-old from Japan, a rising senior at the University of Arizona, claimed a total of three gold medals at the World University Games, in mixed doubles, men’s singles and for the Japanese team’s overall performance. Friend partnered with Yatsuki Yoshimoto for the mixed title, beating Auburn’s Angella Okutoyi and Kael Shah of Kenya 6-3, 6-3 in the final between two unseeded teams. Seeded 13th in the singles, Friend dropped only one set in his six victories, and that came in the final, where he defeated former University of South Carolina All-American Toby Samuel of Great Britain 6-1, 4-6, 7-5 for the gold medal.**Unless otherwise noted, photo credit: Zoo Tennis

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More Aces Series Articles

2-Jul-2025

From Clay to Grass, Top Performers Excelled in June

From the red clay to the green lawns, June’s top performances featured former collegians collecting ATP and WTA titles on the grass, with two unseeded juniors hoisting unexpected winner’s trophies at Roland Garros. Current and former collegians also had an impressive month.

4-Jun-2025

NCAA Titles, Inaugural Pro Titles Highlight May Success

With the college season concluding and the clay season in full swing, May produced plenty of highlights, with the NCAA Division I team titles for Georgia and Wake Forest, the first pro titles for a quartet of juniors, and continued success for former collegians at all levels of the sport.

5-May-2025

Former Collegians and Precocious Juniors Among April Aces

Former collegians and precocious juniors found success on both hard and clay courts in the month of April, including 17-year-olds who made ITF women’s World Tennis Tour history.

About Colette Lewis

Colette Lewis
has covered topflight U.S. and international junior
events as a freelance journalist for over a decade.
Her work has appeared in Tennis magazine, the Tennis
Championships magazine and the US Open program. Lewis is active on
Twitter,
and she writes a weekly column right here at TennisRecruiting.net.
She was named
Junior Tennis Champion
for 2016 by Tennis Industry Magazine.

Lewis, based out of Kalamazoo, Michigan, has seen every National
Championship final played since 1977, and her work on the
tournament’s ustaboys.com website
led her to establish
ZooTennis,
where she comments on junior and college tennis daily.

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Bruins Fall to No. 1-Seed Kentucky in NCAA Second Round

Published

7 minutes ago

December 6, 2025

Your Sports Nation

LEXINGTON, Ky. – The UCLA women’s volleyball team suffered a four-set defeat to No. 1-seed Kentucky in the second round of the NCAA Tournament on Friday night inside Historic Memorial Coliseum.

Set scores were 28-30, 16-25, 30-28, 17-25.

In a hotly contested matchup featuring two extended deuce sets, UCLA (19-13) was unable to withstand the offensive firepower of Kentucky (27-2). The Wildcats hit an impressive .400 as a team, powered by standout performances from Brooklyn Deleye (30 kills) and Eva Hudson (27 kills).

In her final appearance in the Blue and Gold, Cheridyn Leverette rose to the occasion with a team-high 22 kills at a .294 clip. She closes her Bruin career ranked 24th on UCLA’s all-time kills list, cementing her legacy as one of the program’s most consistent offensive threats.

Marianna Singletary added 15 kills and two blocks, while Eliana Urzua chipped in 11 kills to give UCLA three attackers in double figures. Setter Kate Duffey orchestrated the offense with 50 assists, her fourth straight match reaching that mark, falling just one dig shy of a double-double.

At libero, Lola Schumacher anchored the defense with 20 digs, her fourth consecutive 20-dig effort.

After the teams battled to 14-14 in the third frame, neither side led by more than two points as the teams traded blows. Singletary hammered a from the middle before Leverette found some seams on the pin, but Kentucky would nudge ahead 23-21, forcing a UCLA timeout. However, the Bruins regrouped and fought off two set points with clutch swings from Leverette and Urzua.

The drama escalated into deuce territory. UCLA earned its first set point at 26-25 after a Singletary kill, only to see Kentucky erase it with a quick side-out. The Bruins pressed again, forcing another set point at 28-27, but the Wildcats answered once more. Finally, Leverette delivered the decisive blow, her 16th kill of the night, slamming down the ball to seal a 30-28 victory.

In the opening set, UCLA jumped out to a 5-1 lead behind Leverette’s serving run, but Kentucky quickly answered with consecutive scoring bursts to seize momentum. The Bruins rallied late, forcing three set points at 23-22, 26-25, and 28-27, but the Wildcats closed on a decisive 3-0 run to take the opener, 30-28. Singletary tallied seven kills in the frame, with Leverette adding six.

UCLA briefly held a 5-4 edge in the second frame, but Kentucky’s 6-1 surge swung control. Leverette reached double-digit kills by the media timeout, yet a seven-point run pushed the Wildcats ahead 21-12 en route to a 25-16 win.

Singletary’s back-to-back aces helped UCLA tie the score at 5-5, but Kentucky’s balanced attack proved too much. The Wildcats pulled away 25-17 to clinch the match and advance to the round of 16.

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Sports

Track and Field Wraps Season Opener

Published

22 minutes ago

December 6, 2025

Your Sports Nation

NORMAN — The Oklahoma men’s and women’s track and field team closed out the OU Winter Field Fest on Friday night at the Mosier Indoor Facility, highlighted by 12 individual event wins.

Floyd Whitaker kicked off the meet with a personal-best jump of 16.40m (53’9.75″) to win the event title and mark No. 6 in the OU history books.

In the men’s weight throw, Brendon See tossed a personal-best 21.05m (69’0.75″), claiming the event title and moving his name up to No. 2 in OU history.

During her debut with the Sooners, Jacelyn Neighbors secured the women’s pole vault title, clearing 19.15m (62’10”).

In her first collegiate track meet, former OU volleyball player Hannah Pfiffner put up a stellar performance, clearing 1.79m (5’6.5″) in the women’s high jump, good for a personal best and tied for No. 7 in OU history.

Kennedy Clarke found success in the women’s weight throw with her mark of 19.15m (62’10”).

Breaking into OU’s top-ten performance list at No. 5, newcomer Kennedy Stringfellow marked 7.77m (25’6″) for the men’s long jump title.

OU’s Tucker Smith claimed the men’s shot put title with his toss of 18.65m (61’2.25″).

Sophomore Samuel Toili finished first in the men’s 60m dash with his personal-best time of 6.81. Newcomer Morgan Little stood out in her first performance for the Sooners, claiming the women’s 60m dash title and staking her name at No. 4 in the OU history books.

In her collegiate debut, freshman Kassidi Watkins claimed the women’s long jump title, marking 6.18m (20’3.5″).

Redshirt-freshman Tyley Dotson nailed a 15.20m (49’10.5″) in the women’s shot put, earning the event title.

Closing out the night, Trey Bartholomew cleared 6.18m (20’3.5″) in men’s high jump, earning himself the event title and moving his name up to No. 3 in the OU record book. Junior Tyson Ritz also etched himself into the history book at No. 9 with his clearance of 2.18m (7’1.75″).

The Sooners collected 26 more personal bests for a total of 34 on the day.

Following the completion of the Sharon Colyear-Danville Season Opener on Dec. 6, Oklahoma returns to action on January 16 at home, hosting the Owen Hewett Invitational.

For more information on Oklahoma Track & Field, follow the Sooners on Twitter and Instagram (@OU_Track) and like Oklahoma Sooners Track & Field and Cross Country on Facebook.

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Sports

Pitt Sweeps UMBC to Advance to 10th Straight NCAA Round of 32 Match

Published

23 minutes ago

December 6, 2025

Your Sports Nation

PITTSBURGH – The Pitt volleyball team (27-4, 18-2 ACC) swept UMBC (13-12, 7-3 Big East) 25-10, 25-17, 25-13 on Friday night at the Petersen Events Center. The Panthers set a program NCAA Tournament record with a .518 hitting percentage, and Olivia Babcock broke the single-season program kills record with her 546th of the year, surpassing Wendy Hatlestad’s mark from 2003. With the sweep, Pitt advanced to its 10th straight NCAA Tournament Round of 32.

Pitt opened the first set by building a 15-8 lead heading into the media timeout. UMBC used both timeouts during the next four-point run, sparked by kills from Abbey Emch, Marina Pezelj and Blaire Bayless. Babcock then delivered a 4-0 service run to secure the 25-10 win.

The second set followed a similar script, as the Panthers once again held a 15-8 advantage at the media timeout. UMBC called a timeout at 18-9 after kills from Bre Kelley and Bayless, but Pitt maintained control and closed out the frame, 25-17, on a Retriever hitting error.

The third set was tied 5-5 before Pitt surged ahead with a 7-2 run behind Brooke Mosher’s efficient, balanced distribution. UMBC called timeout at 17-9 in an effort to slow the momentum, but the Panthers continued to roll, taking the set 25-13 and completing the sweep.

Pitt returns tomorrow to face Michigan (22-10, 11-9 Big Ten) in the NCAA Tournament Round of 32 at 7 p.m. The match will stream on ESPN+.

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Sports

Men’s and Women’s Indoor Track and Field Open Season at GVSU Holiday Open

Published

2 hours ago

December 6, 2025

Your Sports Nation

ALLENDALE, Mich. – The Kalamazoo College men’s and women’s track and field teams opened indoor season Friday at the GVSU Holiday Open. The competition marked the Hornets’ first track and field meet of any kind since 1980 for men’s, 1981 for women’s, and the first indoor competition since 1939 (men only).

Drew Abbott was the first competitor for Kalamazoo, finishing No. 10 overall and as the top Division III runner in the men’s one-mile run open field at 4:26.08.

In the men’s 400-meter dash, Bram Derksen posted a 53.87-second time, and Elliott Anderson ran his 400m in 55.33.

Allison Mayer became the Hornets’ first official women’s indoor track competitor by running a 10:54.84 3000m. Maya Alkema ran the 5000m in 18:37.56.

On the men’s side in the 5000m, Jack Schneider ran at a time of 15:56.47 and John Lonsway finished at 16:49.87.

Kalamazoo men’s and women’s indoor track and field will travel to Trine for the Sean Brady Invitational after the holiday break on Jan. 17, 2026.

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Sports

Nebraska volleyball begins national title chase with win over LIU

Published

2 hours ago

December 6, 2025

Your Sports Nation

Related coverage in the video aboveNebraska volleyball hosted LIU in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.Bergen Reilly to Andi Jackson and Nebraska was up 6-2.Jackson would later bump Nebraska’s lead to 15-9.A kill from Taylor Landfair ended set 1, giving Nebraska the 25-11 set victory.Rebekah Allick on the block, and it’s 3-0 Huskers in set 2.Allick and Jackson were leading the Huskers by the end of set 2. Nebraska defeated LIU 25-15 in the second set.A 4-0 run for the Huskers kicked things off in set 3.Nebraska was dominating LIU in set 3.Allick claimed match point for Nebraska.The Huskers got the 25-17 set win and the sweep over LIU.The Huskers will face Kansas State in the second round of the tournament on Saturday at 7 p.m.Make sure you can always see the latest news, weather, sports and more from KETV NewsWatch 7 on Google search.NAVIGATE: Home | Weather | Local News | National | Sports | Newscasts on demand |

LINCOLN, Neb. —

Related coverage in the video above

Nebraska volleyball hosted LIU in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.