Krug, Edwards Win Gold Balls at USTA National Doubles Chps. Tennis

Ava Krug hoists partner Liv Hovde

Ava Krug of Lakewood Ranch and Nokomis’ Sophia Edwards took home coveted USTA Gold Balls, and eight other Florida players finished 2nd-4th at the USTA National Doubles Championships, a Level 1 USTA tournament held Aug. 24-26, 2017 at the USTA National Campus in Orlando.

The 5th annual event is the only national junior competition devoted solely to doubles. The Level 1 tournament awards USTA Gold, Silver and Bronze balls for 1st-3rd finishes.

“We are excited to about the move of the tournament to the USTA National Campus in Orlando, the Home of American Tennis, where all matches are played at one site on Har-Tru green clay courts,” said Tournament Director Andrea Norman.

Krug partnered with Texas’ Liv Hovde as the No. 5 seeds to win the Girls’ 14s title, in the final defeating the all-Florida unseeded team of Bradenton’s Anna Babayan and Ari Siegel 4-6, 6-2, 6-4. It was the second big doubles title in two months for Krug, who also won the USTA Girls’ 12 National Clay Court Championships with California partner Tsehay Driscoll.

The all-Florida team of Alexis Blokhina (Ft. Lauderdale) and Juliette Finch (Delray Beach) finished fourth after losing the Girls’ 14s 3rd/4th place playoff match.

Edwards, a high school sophomore, is a five-time Florida state doubles winner at the USTA Florida “Bobby Curtis” State Doubles Championship. In the Girls’ 16s final she and Amanda Chan of California as the No. 5 seeds upset No. 2 seeds Carmen Corley (Albuquerque, N.M) and Chidimma Okpara (Vienna, Vir.) 6-3, 6-4.

Other Florida Top 4 finishers were the all-Florida team of Russell Berdusco (Bradenton) and David Lins (Boca Raton) finishing fourth in the Boys’ 16s after losing the 3rd/4th place playoff, and the all-Florida unseeded team of Johan Braswell (Sarasota) and Bruno Kuzuhara (Coconut Creek) earning a Silver Ball after falling to No. 2 seeds Alex Finkelstein (Raynham, Mass.) and Nathan Mao (Topsham, Maine) in the Boys’ 14s final.

Braswell-Kuzuhara were also named winners of the Sportsmanship Award for the Boys’ 14s division.

For more info and complete results go to http://tennislink.usta.com/tournaments/TournamentHome/Tournament.aspx?T=185512#&&s=0.