5 Florida Jr. Winners at 2017 USTA National Clay Court Championships

Axel Nefve

Five Florida juniors won USTA Gold Balls in singles and doubles, and three players were Silver Ball runners-up during the USTA National Clay Court Championships, held across the U.S. in boys’ and girls’ 18-12 divisions on July 16-23, 2017.

Florida players swept the singles and doubles at the USTA Boys’ 18s National Clay Court Championships in Delray Beach, Fla., where No. 17 seed Axel Nefve (Boca Raton, Fla.) defeated Ryan Goetz (Greenlawn, N.Y.) 6-2, 6-4 in the singles final, and No. 5 seeds Christian Alshon (Boca Raton, Fla.) and Tyler Zink (Bradenton, Fla.) won the doubles, in the final defeating No. 12 seeds Patrick Maloney (Oyster Bay, N.Y.) and Harris Walker (South Salem, N.Y.) 6-3, 6-2.

Naples’ unseeded Juncheng Shang was the other Florida singles winner, upsetting No. 4 seed Aidan Kim (Milford, Mich) 6-3, 7-5 in the final of the USTA Boys’ 12s National Clay Court Championships, held at the USTA National Campus in Orlando, Fla.

Lakewood Ranch’s Ava Krug was also a Gold Ball winner, teaming with Tsehay Driscoll (La Canada Flintridge, Calif.) to win the doubles at the USTA Girls’ 12s National Clay Court Championships in Boca Raton, Fla. In the final they defeated the Florida pairing of Natalie Block (Plantation) and Lara Smejkal (Boca Raton) 4-6, 6-4, 6-0.

Sarasota’s Jonah Braswell claimed a Silver Ball in singles at the USTA Boys’ 14s National Clay Court Championships in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., where as the No. 15 seed he finished runner-up to No. 11 Saud Alhogbani (Alexandria, Va.) 6-1, 6-1.

Boca Raton’s just-turned-17-year-old old Nefve (coached by Jack Sharpe and Robbye Poole) as the boys’ 18s winner receives a wild card entry into the 2017 US Open Junior Championships, and a wild card into a future USTA Pro Circuit event. Nefve six years old lived in Paris, within walking distance of Roland Garros, and was born in France before emigrating to the U.S. — first Chicago, then Boca Raton. He is a member of the USTA National Junior Team and last year won the 16s at the USTA International Spring Championships in California.

“It means a lot to me, it’s my first one,” Nefve told local CBS12 on winning the USTA Gold Ball. “It showed me how tough I can really be. It shows how match ready I am.”

Finals results:
 
USTA Boys’ 18s National Clay Court Championships
Delray Beach, Fla., July 16-23, 2017
Singles: (17) Axel Nefve (Boca Raton, Fla.) d. Ryan Goetz (Greenlawn, N.Y.), 6-2, 6-4
Doubles: (5) Christian Alshon (Boca Raton, Fla.) / Tyler Zink (Bradenton, Fla.) d. (12) Patrick Maloney (Oyster Bay, N.Y.) / Harris Walker (South Salem, N.Y.), 6-3, 6-2
 
USTA Girls’ 18s National Clay Court Championships
Memphis, Tenn., July 16-23, 2017
Singles: (13) Katie Volynets (Walnut Creek, Calif.) d. (2) Abigail Forbes (Raleigh, N.C.), 6-2, 6-2
Doubles: (17) Forbes / Alyvia Jones (Gonzales, La.) d. (6) Sophie Graver (Allenwood, N.J.) / Marlee Zein (Sugar Land, Texas), 6-4, 6-3
 
USTA Boys’ 16s National Clay Court Championships
Delray Beach, Fla., July 16-23, 2017
Singles: (14) Garrett Johns (Atlanta) d. (8) Jacob Bullard (Calabasas, Calif.), 6-2, 6-2
Doubles: (6) Robert Cash (New Albany, Ohio) / Ryder Jackson (Nicasio, Calif.) d. (2) Jeffrey Fradkin (New York) / Phillip Jordan (Spartanburg, S.C.), 6-2, 6-4
 
USTA Girls’ 16s National Clay Court Championships
Virginia Beach, Va., July 16-23, 2017
Singles: (1) Fiona Crawley (San Antonio) d. (2) Ruth Marsh (Atlanta), 6-4, 3-6, 6-2                
Doubles: (15) Sophia Sassoli (Gladwyne, Pa.) / Rhea Shrivastava (Skillman, N.J.) d. (9) Zoey Weil (Columbus, Ohio) / Brigitte Wu (Jersey City, N.J.), 2-6, 6-1, 6-3
 
USTA Boys’ 14s National Clay Court Championships
Fort Lauderdale, Fla., July 16-23, 2017
Singles: (11) Saud Alhogbani (Alexandria, Va.) d. (15) Jonah Braswell (Sarasota, Fla.) 6-1, 6-1
Doubles: (27) Alhogbani / Nishesh Basavareddy (Carmel, Ind.) d. (5) Grant Durham (Hilton Head Island, S.C.) / Isaac Smith (Clearfield, Utah), 6-7(3), 6-0, 6-3
 
USTA Girls’ 14s National Clay Court Championships
Plantation, Fla., July 16-23, 2017
Singles: (26) Elise Wagle (Niskayuna, N.Y.) d. (5) Valencia Xu (Livingston, N.J.), 4-6, 6-4, 6-0
Doubles: (9) Robin Montgomery (Washington, D.C.) / Katrina Scott (Woodland Hills, Calif.) d. (7) Mia Kintiroglou (Livingston, N.J.) / Tara Malik (Secaucus, N.J.), 6-3, 3-6, 6-1
 
USTA Boys’ 12s National Clay Court Championships
Orlando, Fla., July 16-22, 2017
Singles: Juncheng Shang (Naples, Fla.) d. (4) Aidan Kim (Milford, Mich), 6-3, 7-5
Doubles: (1) Lucas Brown (Plano, Texas) / Cooper Williams (New York) d. (12) Andrew Delgado (High Point, N.C.) / James Rico (Cary, N.C.), 6-3, 6-0
 
USTA Girls’ 12s National Clay Court Championships
Boca Raton, Fla., July 16-23, 2017
Singles: (3) Tsehay Driscoll (La Canada Flintridge, Calif.) d. Clervie Ngounoue (Washington, D.C.), 7-6(4), 6-2
Doubles: (4) Driscoll / Ava Krug (Lakewood Ranch, Fla.) d. Natalie Block (Plantation, Fla.) / Lara Smejkal (Boca Raton, Fla.), 4-6, 6-4, 6-0
 
For more info visit www.usta.com/news.