Wednesday’s Summary and Results — ITF Seniors World Individual Championships

Written by: Staff on 16th February 2012

Wednesday's Summary and Results -- ITF Seniors World Individual Championships |

CARLSBAD’S JENNIFER DAWSON MOVES INTO QUARTERFINALS AT INTERNATIONAL TENNIS FEDERATION SENIORS WORLD INDIVIDUAL CHAMPIONSHIPS

Eighth-seeded American Routs unseeded Katja Groeniger of Germany in Third Round of Women’s 45s

La Jolla, Calif. – (February 15, 2012) – There are times when you’re on the tennis court and everything feels just right and you can do little wrong.

It was one of those days for eighth-seeded Jennifer Dawson of Carlsbad, Calif. as she easily defeated Germany’s Katja Groeniger, 6-0, 6-1, in the third round to advance to the quarterfinals of Women’s 45 division of the 2012 International Tennis Federation Seniors Individual Championships at the La Jolla Beach & Tennis Club.

On a mostly cloudy and blustery day with temperatures in the mid-50s, Dawson opened the match by holding serve and breaking Groeniger for a 2-0 lead.

Dawson, a former collegiate player at the University of San Diego, simply had too much depth and pace on her groundstrokes as she began to dominate the German and went on to build a 5-0 advantage. In the next game, Dawson easily held serve to close out the set, which took a little over 20 minutes.

Groeniger tried to rally with Dawson from the baseline, but was outmatched and when she tried to come to the net, Dawson responded with well-placed passing shots.

Dawson, who won the United States Tennis Association National 40s Hard Court Championships last December at the LJB&TC, committed very few errors and was solid from the baseline as she broke serve twice in the first three games of the second set and established a 3-0 lead.

Groeniger did manage to acquire a break point against Dawson’s serve in the next game and when Dawson’s shot sailed past the baseline, Groeniger raised her arms over her head to celebrate as she won her first game of the match.

The German served at 1-3 as she attempted to make a comeback, but on break point against her serve, Groeniger hit a drop shot that Dawson tracked down and returned for a winner to secure the game and take a 4-1 lead.

Dawson won the next game when she came in on a short ball on game point and hit a winner off her forehand approach to increase her lead to 5-1. Groeniger served to stay in the match, but as she faced her first match point, she double faulted to end the match in approximately 50 minutes.

After the match, Dawson said she worked on her game plan to adapt to the wind. “I was just trying to work the point and keeping a few more balls in play, especially when it’s windy like this,” she said. “You don’t want to go for too much and just try to find the court.”

Dawson, a tennis teaching professional at the nearby La Jolla Tennis Club, represented the U.S. in Young Cup (Women’s 40s) competition in last week’s ITF Seniors World Team Championships in San Diego. She helped lead her team to the finals, which fell to a strong French squad that featured former Women’s Tennis Association touring professional Sandrine Testud.

When Dawson was asked how she felt about the opportunity to play in such prestigious tennis events like the ITF Senior World Team and Individual Championships, she said, “It’s wonderful. It’s fantastic to be able to play people from all over the world. You play different people and different styles. It’s just a great experience and to have it in your backyard is just great. It’s been a wonderful event and it’s been a lot of fun.”

In other tournament action, fifth-seeded Jeff Greenwald, ninth-seeded Martin Barba and unseeded Douglas Failla of the United States all won their fourth-round matches in straight sets to advance to the singles quarterfinals of the Men’s 45 division at Morgan Run Club & Resort in Rancho Santa Fe.

Tournament admission to watch the matches is free and open to the public. On-site parking is available at the La Jolla Beach & Tennis Club for a nominal fee. There is no charge to park at other tournament venues.

For the most current draws and results for the 2012 ITF Seniors World Individual Championships, go to: www.itftennis.com/seniors

The 32^nd ITF Seniors World Individual Championships (Singles, Doubles and Mixed Doubles) is being played at the following locations:

Men’s 50s, 55s; Women’s 45s and Mixed Doubles 45s – La Jolla Beach & Tennis Club, 2000 Spindrift Drive, La Jolla and La Jolla Tennis Club, 7632 Draper Avenue, La Jolla

Men’s 35s, 40s; Women’s 35s and Mixed Doubles 35s – La Costa Resort and Spa, 2100 Costa Del Mar Road, Carlsbad

Men’s 45s, Women’s 40s and Mixed Doubles 40s – Morgan Run Club & Resort, 5690 Cancha de Golf, Rancho Santa Fe

Women’s 50s, 55s and Mixed Doubles 50s, 55s – San Diego Tennis & Racquet Club, 4848 Tecolote Road, San Diego

Recently designated one of the Top 50 Tennis Resorts in the world by Tennis Resorts Online, the La Jolla Beach & Tennis Club’s reputation as a top tennis destination started in 1942 when it attracted its first major tournament, the Pacific Coast Men’s Doubles Championship. The club will be hosting the 123^rd edition of The Pacific Coast Men’s’ Doubles Championships in March 2012, and the USTA National Hard Court Championships for Women’s 50-90 age groups in May 2012.

Topics: ITF Seniors World Individual Championships