2008 USTA NATIONAL JUNIOR TENNIS CHAMPIONSHIPS-Girls' 18s-8/8/08

2008 USTA NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS-GIRLS 18s
Berkeley Tennis Club and the Claremont Resort & Spa
Berkeley, California - August 2-10, 2008

Friday, August 8, 2008-Day Seven

It was a chilly, August day (no, that's not a typo) as everyone huddled in their coats and blankets to watch the best in girls tennis. And they were not disappointed.

It was quarterfinal day with five of the top seeds remaining. The matches were presented two at a time so it was fairly easy to follow all the action. All four girls in the first quarterfinals had grown up playing in the East. Fourth-seeded Irina Falconi had been training down in Florida the past few years so she hadn't had much experience against the two years younger Christina McHale. And Gail Brodsky has been spending her winters at the Weil Academy in California, rather than playing Sectionals in the New Jersey area where Kristie lives. But the four were ready to bring the best of that area out Friday.

Top-seeded Gail Brodsky and 12th seed Kristie Ahn had a fairly normal first set. It was tight and the points were good as Gail took it 6-3. The tone change rapidly, though, as Gail questioned line calls and lost her composure (more than I've ever seen her do). She would get totally shut out of the second set and have difficulty getting into the third when yet another call was questioned. Finally, she lived up to her seeding and took the remaining games for a 6-2 finish.

Irina Falconi and Christina McHale proved their seeding as the No. 4 former edged No. 5. There were crowd-pleasing points and long games, but Irina managed to pull out the important points at it was the difference in her 6-3,6-4 win.

The last two quarters, though not played next to each other, seemed to follow in almost exact score -- they evened finished within a minute of each other. Coco Vanderweghe (3) vs. Mallory Cecil (8) and Julia Boserup (13) vs. Asia Muhammed (2) were both expected to be close and they were. My eyes wondered back and forth between the two and though Coco's 7-5,6-4 win over Mallory was hard fought, I found the other match to be more exciting. Julia has been near-perfect in the days since I've been here and Asia is always a fun athlete to watch. The spectators filled the benches and chairs to see a first set tiebreaker end at 8/6, followed by a second set that was only separated by a break.

Afternoon doubles progressed with a nice crowd watching the contests. In the end, just like in the singles, four out of the top five seeds remain with only No. 4 Irina Falconi & Allie Will falling to No. 5 Mallory Burdette & Sloane Stephens.

Ken Thomas of Radio Tennis will be broadcasting live from the Girls' 18s Nationals on Saturday and Sunday. Be sure to tune in and follow the excitement live.

Until tomorrow,
Marcia Frost