Tournament Feature
Kaminski and Evans Secure 14s Winter National Titles
by James Hill, 7 January 2025
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Eli Kaminski and London Evans won the USTA 14s Winter National Championships singles gold balls at the University of Texas at San Antonio.
Boys Singles Winner Eli Kaminski
© Contributed Photo
The top-seeded Kaminski (Fairfax Station, Virginia) defeated No. 3 Aayush Vartak (Edison, New Jersey) 6-3, 6-1 in the boys singles final. Evans (Manchester, Missouri), seeded 10th, beat top seed Michelle Lee (Little Ferry, New Jersey) 6-3, 6-2 in the girls final.
Kaminski, who earned his first USTA gold ball, spoke of his strategy and strengths over the demanding event. His only three-setter in the tournament was in the semifinals, when he outlasted No. 15 Tristan Ascenzo (Dallas, Texas) 6-0, 5-7, 6-3.
“Throughout the tournament I was serving very well,” Kaminski said. “I think my backhand was my biggest weapon, I was just taking it one match at a time. There were seven matches throughout the week and it was a long tournament.”
Evans had a pair of three-set battles in the opening rounds, but then found her stride for the rest of the tournament.
“Mostly I had to stay calm and positive,” said Evans, who also picked up her first USTA gold ball. “I hit wide serves and cross-court rolls.”
Lee fared better in doubles, as she and Anna Scott Laney (Mountain Brook, Alabama), the No. 4 seeds, won the title with a 6-3, 6-3 victory over second-seeded Emma Alvarado Reed (McKinney, Texas) and Aria Menon (Cypress, Texas). Lee was complimentary of her first-time partner and their performance together.
“We mixed together very well,” Lee said. “There was a very good chemistry. We picked each other up when we were down and carried each other to the end.”
Alvarado Reed and Menon fought their way to the finals by beating third seeds Sophia and Nicole Khomoutov (Chicago, Illinois) 6-2, 4-6, 6-0 in the semis.
The No. 2 boys team of Rafael Pawar (Essex Falls, New Jersey) and Zesen Wang (State College, Pennsylvania) emerged victorious over the unseeded duo of Kona Parseghian (La Jolla, California) and Mayurchandra Bharath (San Diego, California) after a 4-6, 6-2, 7-5 clash in the finals.
Girls Singles Winner London Evans
© Contributed Photo
The eventual champs beat third seeds Kaminski and Arjun Krishnan (San Jose, California) 7-6 (7-5), 6-2 in the semifinals. Parseghian and Bharath upended top seeds Dylan Meineke (Frisco, Texas) and Takuto Goh (Culver City, California) 7-6 (6), 3-6, 10-8 in the Round of 16.
Third place in boys singles went to No. 10 Zander Abrams (South Almonte, California), a 6-4, 6-4 winner over Ascenzo. No. 3 Adelyn Gross (St. Louis, Missouri) beat Gabrielle Brereton (Westbury, New York) 6-0, 6-1 in the girls third-place matchup.
Third place in boys doubles went to Kaminski and Krishnan, who defeated Joshua LaTour (Minneapolis, Minnesota) and Dylan Warn (Minnetonka, Minnesota) 6-1, 6-1. Fifth-seeded Anabella Ordonez (San Antonio) and Evelyn Mahler (Lookout Mountain, Tennessee) won third place in the girls doubles with a 3-6, 6-1, 6-4 win over the Khomoutovs.
Other Boys Singles Winners
West - Kyler Sigurdsson (Brentwood, California)
North - Michael Li (Wellesley, Massachusetts)
South - Vallab Kumar (Trumbull, Connecticut)
Northeast - Evan Puente (Springfield, Virginia)
Northwest - Joseph Kim (Flowery Branch, Georgia)
Southwest - Krish Ferwani (Orlando, Florida)
Southeast - Jaden Goldman (Paradise Valley, Arizona)
Silver - Dylan Meineke (Frisco, Texas)
Gold - Arjun Krishnan (San Jose, California)
Other Girls Singles Winners
West - Natalia Martinez (Elm Grove, Wisconsin)
North - Reena Alavalapati (Austin, Texas)
South - Olivia Rickard (Haymarket, Virginia)
Northeast - Eugenia Alvarez (San Antonio, Texas)
Northwest - Chloe Egerer (Moorpark, California)
Southwest - Kyndall Noel (Winston-Salem, North Carolina)
Southeast - Reese Ellingson (St. Paul, Minnesota)
Silver - Anna Scott Laney (Mountain Brook, Alabama)
Gold - Madeline Cleary (Moorpark, California)
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About James Hill
James Hill is the Assistant Sports Information Director at Trinity
University in San Antonio and a freelance writer. He has covered all
levels of tennis competition.
