AFTER RECEIVING FIRST-ROUND BYES, TOP MEN’S SEEDS IN ACTION
ON TUESDAY AT USTA NATIONAL OPEN HARD COURT CHAMPIONSHIPS
Defending Women’s Champion Jessica Failla to Play First Match on Wednesday San Diego, Calif. – (May 29, 2017) – After a full schedule of first-round action on Opening Day of the USTA National Open Hard Court Championships at the Balboa Tennis Club, the men’s seeds, who received first-round byes, will take center stage at the tournament on Tuesday.
Top-seeded Keegan Smith of San Diego (Point Loma) will play his first match at 9 a.m. (PDT) against fellow San Diegan Tristen Shaw. Smith, who will begin his collegiate tennis career later this fall at UCLA, captured the California Interscholastic Federation San Diego Section boys’ singles title in 2015 and 2016.
Stefan Menichella, a singles finalist at last year’s USTA National Open Hard Court Championships, is seeded second. The 22-year-old Menichella just completed his senior year at Pepperdine University, where he played four seasons of collegiate tennis. He will face Jadon Clifton of Gilbert, Ariz., at 2 p.m. (PDT).
Two-time men’s defending singles champion Emanuel Mensah of San Diego (Imperial Beach), is seeded fourth. Mensah, a former Davis Cup player in his native country of Ghana, is scheduled to play Spencer Hing of Phoenix at 9 a.m. (PDT).
The top-seed in the women’s singles division is defending champion Jessica Failla of Ramona, Calif., who just completed her sophomore season at USC. This past season, Failla compiled an overall singles record of 21-7 in helping the Trojans finish 2017 with an overall record of 13-10. After receiving a first-round bye, Failla will play her first match on Wednesday at 11 a.m. (PDT).
The women’s second seed is Monica Robinson of Valley Center, Calif., a former USTA National Open Hard Court singles champion who won the title in 2014. Earlier this month, Robinson finished her senior year at the University of Notre Dame, where she played in the No. 1 position in singles and doubles for the Fighting Irish this past season. On May 15, Robinson was named as the recipient of the prestigious ITA/Arthur Ashe Sportsmanship and Leadership Award for the Midwest Region. She will play her opening match on Tuesday at 10 a.m. (PDT).
Other women’s singles seeds include fourth-seeded Hannah Zhao of San Diego, who won the CIF San Diego Section Girls’ Singles title in 2014 and Jennifer Kerr of Carlsbad, Calif., the CIF San Diego Section Girls’ Singles champion in 2015 and 2016.
Matches will begin at 9 a.m. Tuesday, May 30 through Saturday, June 3. The finals are scheduled to begin at noon on Sunday, June 4. (All times are PDT) Admission for spectators is free and open to the public. On-site parking is free.
The champions in each division will be awarded a USTA gold ball, while the runner-up receive a USTA silver ball. There will also be a 3rd/4th place playoff for the USTA bronze ball. Prize money will be distributed to both finalists as well as third and fourth place finishers in each division.
The USTA National Open Hard Court Championships, which was voted, “2011 Tournament of the Year” by the San Diego District Tennis Association, has had several distinguished participants in past events. U.S. Davis Cup star Jack Sock, who is currently at a career-high No. 14 in the ATP World Tour singles rankings (as of 5/15/17), won the Men’s Singles Championship in 2010. Coco Vandeweghe, a semifinalist at this year’s Australian Open, earned a USTA bronze ball at the 2007 Hard Court Championships. Former WTA touring professionals Gretchen Rush and Ros Nideffer won the Women’s Open Doubles title seven times, while Allison Bradshaw captured the Women’s Open Singles title in 2007.
USTA National Open Hard Court Championships Balboa Tennis Club San Diego Monday’s Results
Men’s Singles First Round
Dustin Goldenberg, Boca Raton, Fla., def. Jared Thompkins, San Diego, 7-6 (1), 6-4
Jesse Ross, Ojai, Calif., def. Arsav Mohanty, Roswell, Ga., 7-5, 6-4
Ferny Avila, San Antonio, def. James Lievers, Escondido, 6-4, 6-3
Danny Ballez, Chula Vista, def. Richard Jackson, Las Vegas, 6-3, 6-4
Raul De La Torre, San Diego, def. Adam Cohen, Scottsdale, Ariz., 6-1, 6-1
Spencer Hing, Phoenix, def. Srikar Kuchibhotla, Lebanon, Ohio, 6-0, 6-1
Kelly Dickson, Temecula, Calif., def. Maxwell Weishan, San Diego, 6-3, 6-2
Andy Chang, Rancho Santa Fe, def. Floyd Penners, Joshua Tree, Calif., 6-4, 6-1
Chris Palacio, El Centro, Calif., def. Keanu Horner, Gilbert, Ariz., 6-0, 6-0
Tristen Shaw, San Diego, def. Rand Hogen, La Jolla, 6-1, 6-0
Ryan Dehmoubed, Cardiff, def. James Miller, Los Angeles, 6-2, 6-0
Pratt Keerasuntonpong, San Diego, def. Jesse Steinberg, Del Mar, 6-0, 6-3
Zac Brodney, Los Angeles, def. Erik Tammaru, San Diego, 6-0, 6-1
Sean Robles, Yorba Linda, Calif., def. Jose Ruvalcaba, San Diego, 6-0, 6-0
Riley Vickers, La Jolla, def. Christopher Daniels, Los Angeles, 6-2, 6-3
Corey Lunsford, Riverside, Calif., def. Thomas Geaney, San Diego, 6-0, 6-0
Arnav Mohanty, Roswell, Ga., def. Rico Gore, Washington D.C., 6-0, 6-0
Jarod Hing, Paradise Valley, Ariz., def. Thiago Barbosa, Glendale, Ariz., 6-4, 6-2
Kevin Karoub, Carlsbad, def. Dimitri Doan, Corona, Calif., 6-1, 6-4
Daniel Lempa, Palm Desert, Calif., def. Todd Marchner, La Jolla, 6-2, 6-0
Yousef Benhamida, San Diego, def. Dion Earl, Mesa, Ariz., 6-0, 6-0
David Sutton, Greensboro, N.C. def. Christian Hausman, Los Angeles, 6-3, 6-2
Xavier Smith, Chula Vista, def. Andrew MacFarlane, San Diego, 6-3, 6-4
Gabriel Evans, San Antonio, def. Teo Ortuno, Spring Valley, 6-1, 6-1
Luis Argote, San Diego, def. Gabriele Boccaccini, La Jolla, 6-0, 6-4
Daniel De La Torre, San Diego, def. Jack Hogan, La Jolla, 6-4, 6-2
Trent Aaron, San Diego, def. Tony Lopez, Kearney, Neb., 6-0, 6-3
Alexander Rushin, Rancho Santa Fe, def. Thomas Tomczak, Glendale, N.Y., default
Ian Ross, Altadena, Calif., def. George Newton, Pass Christian, Miss., default
