USTA Florida 2023 Bobby Curtis Series continued at Lake Cane Tennis Center with the 2023 Bobby Curtis Green Ball Championships. The best juniors in the 10 & Under division were gathered for a weekend of competitive tennis with one boy and one girl being crowned champions.
Athletes used green balls, a decompressed version of the typical yellow one, making it more competitive for the 10-year-olds.
In the Boy’s Draw, top-seeded Miguel Valencia went on an incredible run to reach the finals. Miguel won his first three matches without dropping a single game (4-0, 4-0). This set up a semifinal matchup against Nicholas Rybak, the fifth seed. Nicholas was able to take the first game of the weekend off of Miguel, but ultimately the top seed was able to take the next four to close out the set. In the second set, the two went back and forth, trading games. In the end, Miguel was able to take the final game (4-1, 4-3) to clinch his spot in the finals.
The Boy’s Draw was intense all weekend long with close matches.
On the other side of the bracket, Alexander Nimara was determined to reach the finals. In his first two matches, he won in straight sets, with his third match being a tough challenge. Leonid Ageev put up a tremendous fight, winning the second set and forcing a nerve-wrecking tiebreaker. The two battled, each taking one point at a time, but in the end, Alexander edged out a 10-8 win. He would win his semifinal match convincingly to meet in the finals against Miguel.
The championship match was dominated by Miguel, who didn’t drop a single game en route to his 4-0, 4-0 win.
For the Girl’s Draw, the two top seeds, Ava Coy and Delaney Guider handled business and met up in the championship. For Ava, she was able to make things easy for herself, putting on an impressive show in her first four matches. Ava dropped a total of two games across eight sets, helping her conserve energy for the finals. Delaney had a similar run, where she only dropped four games across eight sets in her first four matches of the tournament. This set up an extraordinary final between the two girls.
The Girls were battling all weekend long.
The championship match started off hot with the first two games being traded by the two. Ava would strike next taking a few games to close out the opening set 4-2. However, Delaney didn’t want that to be the end of her weekend. She fought back in the second set, winning it 4-2, forcing a tiebreaker for the trophy. The girls left everything they had on the court, with each point coming down to the wire. Ultimately, Ava was able to win 8-6, and become the Girl’s Green Ball Champion.
Check out some other top finishers from the Bobby Curtis Green Ball Championships:
Top Boy’s Finishers
Championship: Miguel Valencia (Pinecrest) d. Alexander Nimara (Miami) 4-0, 4-0
Third Place: Rayden Bates (Belle Isle)
Fourth Place: Nicholas Rybak (Palm Coast)
Top Girl’s Finishers
Championship: Ava Coy (Dunedin) d. Delaney Guider (Apollo Beach) 4-2, 2-4, 8-6
Third Place: Kira Suleimanova (Sunny Isles Beach)
Fourth Place: Maya Lundstrom (Palm Beach)
