Alyssa Ahn of Carmel Valley. Photo credit: @JFredSidhuTennis via Facebook
One San Diegan remains in contention in Sunday’s finals of the United States Tennis Association Billie Jean King Girls’ 16s and 18s National Championships.
The girls’ 16s singles final, to be played at 11 a.m., features Alyssa Ahn, of Carmel Valley, playing unseeded Christasha McNeil of Lindenhurst, N.Y.
Ahn, 15, seeded ninth, trains full-time at Barnes Tennis Center near Ocean Beach, the site of the championships.
In Friday’s semifinals, Ahn defeated fellow San Diegan Claire Zhang, 4-6, 6-4, 6-4. McNeil outlasted ninth-seeded Tianmei Wang of San Marino, Calif., 7-6 (5), 4-6, 7-6 (9).
In the 18s championship, set for 3 p.m., fourth-seed Eleana Yu of Mason, Ohio will meet 17th seed Valerie Glozman of Bellevue, Wash.
In Saturday’s opening semifinal match, Glozman, 15, overcame a slow start and came back from 0-4 in the first set to stun San Diego’s Katherine Hui 6-4, 6-1 in 85 minutes.
Glozman dropped serve twice early in the first set, but mounted a spirited comeback, winning six games in a row to capture the first set.
The eighth-seeded Hui and Glozman exchanged service breaks to open the second set, but Glozman ultimately dominated the set, winning the final five games to close out the match.
“I had to make a few balls in play, stay in the point a little more and not rush myself too much. I had to wait for the right opportunity to attack,” Glozman said after her semifinal victory.
In the second 18s singles semifinal, Yu eased past 17th seed Ariana Pursoo of Westbury, N.Y., 6-0, 6-2.
Yu, 17, dominated the opening set as she dropped only two points on her serve in addition to scoring three service breaks against Pursoo.
In the second set, Yu established a 2-0 lead, but Pursoo won the next two games to even the score. Yu regained the momentum, though, capturing the last four games to finish the match.
“I feel pretty good about my game at this point. I felt confident coming into the tournament. I didn’t have a certain result in mind, but I’m glad to be in the finals,” Yu said.
CBS Sports Network will broadcast the Girls’ 18s Singles Championships.
Wild cards to the 2022 US Open’s main draw, qualifying and junior main draws, will be awarded based on finish at the tournament, including for the top three in the 18s field.
Admission is free and there is no charge for parking at the Barnes center.