When you look at Catherine Newman's list of tournament wins, it doesn't look like a lot -- until you see how few national events she has played. The 16 year old, who tied for first place in the Girls' 16s last year and leads the group this year, managed to place in nearly every National event she entered.
In a world where it isn't uncommon for a player to rarely see their own home, especially in the summer, Catherine Newman always considers Greensboro, North Carolina her base. She plays just major tournaments sprinkled throughout the year (when was the last time you heard the number one player in the country has never been to the Easter Bowl?) and takes each one by storm. This is definitely Catherine Newman's breakout into junior tennis.
Last year was when it really started. In addition to wins at smaller tournaments, Catherine took third place at the Super National Hardcourts and made the doubles semis and singles quarterfinals at the Super National Winter Championships. This year Catherine won the USTA Interscholastics and was a National Open finalist in singles and winner in doubles (with Jamie Hampton). She then went to the USTA National Claycourts to take the singles trophy and the doubles third place (with Amanda McDowell). After some time at the Intersectionals for a few more match wins and then a break at home, she headed to California and won the USTA Girls 16 National Hardcourts.
I met with Catherine at the Hardcourts just before she won the singles title. Even though at that point she had only lost a few games in all her rounds combined, she was definitely not overconfident.
by Marcia Frost
