Top-seeded Christina Lyutova (above), the 13-year-old tennis wonder from Redmond, Wash., played another impressive match as she eliminated 17th-seeded Ava Rodriguez of Gainesville, Ga., 6-3, 6-3 to advance to the Girls’ 16s singles quarterfinals of the USTA Billie Jean King Girls’ 16s and 18s National Championships.
Playing on Court No. 10 at Barnes Tennis Center, Lyutova played her best tennis at the right time in the opening set. At 4-3, she broke Rodriguez at love and then at 5-4, held serve at love to clinch the first set.
In the second set, the top seed trailed Rodriguez 3-1, but the talented teenager cut down on her unforced errors and regained her winning form as she won five straight games to win the set and close out the match in one-hour and 41 minutes.
“It feels amazing. It was a great fight. We played once on clay courts. It was very difficult. I was ready mentally for a fight today,” Lyutova said following her straight-set victory. “Every match has been different this week, so I’m just preparing for the next one and taking it point by point. I just need to fight and stay mentally tough. That’s what I do best.”
Lyutova, who won the USTA Girls’ 16s National Clay Court Singles Championship last month in Huntsville, Ala., will face 33rd-seeded Thara Gowda of Rochester Hills, Mich., in the Girls’ 16s quarterfinals on Thursday at 11:30 a.m.
In the Girls’ 18 division, the top seeds advanced to the Round of 16 with straight-set victories. Clervie Ngounoue, the No. 1 seed from Washington, breezed past unseeded Grace Hakopian of Sedona, Ariz., 6-1, 6-1, while second-seeded Reese Brantmeier of Whitewater, Wis., overcame hometown favorite, 33rd seed Alyssa Ahn of San Diego, 7-6 (5), 6-0.
On Thursday, Brantmeier will take on 17th-seeded Kayla Chung of Philadelphia at 10 a.m. and Ngounoue will meet 33rd-seeded Elizabeth Ionescu of York, Pa., at 1 p.m.
To view current tournament draws for each division, click here. For links to Live Streaming and Live Scoring, click here.
The starting times for each day will be Thursday, Aug. 10 through Sunday, Aug. 13 – 9 a.m.
Admission is free each day of the tournament and there is no charge for parking at Barnes Tennis Center. To view the official tournament website, go to http://www.ustagirlsnationals.com.