2016 ASICS EASTER BOWL BEGINS TODAY AT INDIAN WELLS TENNIS GARDEN, IT’S FREE ADMISSION ALL WEEK, CHECK OUT THE STARS OF THE FUTURE

Written by: Staff on 2nd April 2016

2016 ASICS EASTER BOWL BEGINS TODAY AT INDIAN WELLS TENNIS GARDEN, IT'S FREE ADMISSION ALL WEEK, CHECK OUT THE STARS OF THE FUTURE |

Taylor Fritz 2015 Easterbowl Champ photo by Kenas

2016 ASICS Easter Bowl Begins Today

At Indian Wells Tennis Garden

49th Annual Junior Tennis Tournament Will Once Again Feature

Nation’s Top Boys and Girls 12s, 14s, 16s and ITF Players

When Taylor Fritz faced off against Frances Tiafoe last month in the first round of the BNP Paribas Open it marked a meeting between the last two ASICS Easter Bowl winners, further proving the annual tournament is the pathway to the pros.

The 2014 ASICS Easter Bowl champion Tiafoe won that match against the current ATP World Tour ranked No. 81 Fritz, last year’s winner in the boys’ ITF event. The 49th Annual ASICS Easter Bowl will begin on Saturday with some of the nation’s top boys’ and girls’ 12s, 14s, 16s, and ITF junior tennis players set to compete at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden and other tennis facilities and country clubs around the Coachella Valley.

The tournament is closed to American only players and is a USTA Level 1 tournament once again being directed by Lornie Kuhle. The event will conclude with the International Tennis Federation boys’ and girls’ division finals on Sunday, April 10.

Celebrating 49 years, the ASICS Easter Bowl has a rich history as a proving ground for aspiring junior tennis players on the pathway to professional tennis and college scholarships.

Top players in the boys’ ITF division include: Ulises Blanch of Florida, currently ranked No. 9 in the ITF world junior rankings; Cincinnati’s J.J. Wolf; Nathan Ponwith of Scottsdale, Ariz.; Sam Riffice of Roseville, Calif.; John McNally of Cincinnati and Liam Caruna of Austin, Texas. Riffice fell in last year’s ITF boys’ final to Taylor Fritz and Ponwith was a semifinalist last year losing to Fritz, and a 2014 finalist.

On the girls’ side, defending champion Claire Liu, 15, of Thousand Oaks, Calif., is back to try and defend her title. Kylie McKenzie (Anthem, Ariz.), Morgan Coppoc (Tulsa, Okla.), Maria Mateas (Braintree, Mass.), Michaela Gordon (Los Altos Hills, Calif.), and Taylor Johnson (Redondo Beach, Calif.) are other top players vying for valuable ITF points.

The USTA 16-and-under event begins Monday and concludes with the finals on Friday.

Top seeded in the boys’ 16s are: Carson Haskins (Ballwin, Mo.), Christian Alshon (Boca Raton, Fla.), Kevin Zhu (Pearland, Texas), Robert Maciag (Sterling, Va.), Trey Hilderbrand (San Antonio).

Top seeded in the girls’ 16s are: Sedona Gallagher (Henderson, Nev.), Amber Kate O’dell (New Milford, N.J.), Kacie Harvey (Braintree, Mass.), Sydney Jones (Carrollton, Texas) and Meg Anne Kowalski, (La Grange, Ill.)

Top seeded in the boys’ 14s are: Stefan Leustian (Mather, Calif.), Keshav Chopra (Marietta, Ga.), Ryder Jackson (Nicasio, Calif.), Spencer Whitaker (Richmond, Va.), and Andrew Dale (Leesburg, Va.).

Top seeded in the girls’ 14s are: Mae Fmar Canete (Los Angeles), Victoria Hu (Northborough, Mass.), Fiona Crawley (San Antonio), Gianna Pielet (El Paso, Texas), Noel Graham (Saint Johns, Fla.), and Amanda Chan (Pasadena, Calif.).

Top seeded in the boys’ 12s are: Samuel Landau (Los Angeles), Nishesh Basavareddy (Carmel Ind.), Eli Gordon (Highland Park, Ill.) Phillip Deaton (Auburn, Wash.), Noelle Ampong (Downers Grove, Ill.), and Jack Anthrop (Orlando, Fla.).

In the girls’ 12s, the top seeded players are: Nikki Yanez (Sarasota, Fla.), Katrina Scott (Woodland Hills, Calif.), Madison Sieg, (Greenwich, Conn.), Zoe Hammond (Edmund, Okla.), and Robin Montgomery (Washington, D.C.).

The 14s and 12s begin play on Saturday with the finals on Wednesday.

This year, the ASICS Easter Bowl will allow $10,000 in travel grants that will be awarded evenly in the boys’ and girls’ ITF divisions beginning in the round of 16. The grants will take the form of vouchers for airline travel and hotel expenses. The travel grants will be awarded as follows: Winner and finalist: $750; semifinalist: $500; quarterfinalist: $325; Round of 16: $150.

Once again this year, the USTA Team USA will hold a coaches reception this Sunday night where it will honor coaching legends Dick Gould, Tim Gullikson and Pancho Segura. In addition, Guy Fritz and Diego Moyano will be named 2015 Team USA Developmental Coaches of the Year, while 4-Star Tennis Academy in Fairfax, Va., will be honored as the 2015 Team USA Developmental Program of the Year. USTA Mid-Atlantic will receive the inaugural Team USA Player Development Section of the Year distinction.

In addition to live streaming the ASICS Easter Bowl again this year, Kuhle also announced the tournament’s new mobile app, which can be found in both the Apple iTunes store or at Google Play. Search “Easter Bowl” to download the app.

Check back to www.easterbowl.com to watch the live stream and for all ASICS Easter Bowl news, results and schedules.

Editors Note: Many of the 10sBalls Family were involved in the 1st Easterbowl. Seena Hamilton Fineberg the visionary, Lee Jackson the Official, and a 1,000 interns over 49 years. Maybe 10,000. Seena and her husband Dr. S.K. Fineberg (Sy to his friends) and their son Bryan Fineberg were so important to the growth of junior tennis. Having the EasterBowl in New York during the winter was golden. It had to help develope Vitas Gerulaitus and the Mcenroes and Mary Carillo. For the first time it made everyone come to the north east in the winter. Instead of the kids in the eastern (ELTA) section (New York, New Jersey, Conn.) having to go to Florida, Puerto Rico or California.

The event stayed in the New York area as long as it could. But the tourney grew and the indoor facilities couldn’t handle the event. Seena used all the sites she could get. Midtown tennis was the main site. They played in Harlem they played all over the island of Manhattan. At one point it included Port Washington? ( vague)

Seena then moved the Easterbowl to Florida. And then to the Coachella Valley. Seena is a remarkable woman. She changed junior tennis. She fought the USTA many times. Won some lost some. But she took them on.

Topics: 2016 ASICS Easter Bowl, Francis Tiafoe, Indian Wells Tennis Garden, Taylor Fritz, Tennis News

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TENNISMOMAZ says:

April 2, 2016 at 10:54 am

RT @10sBalls_com: -@asicseasterbowl Begins Today At #IndianWells #Tennis Garden, It’s Free Admission All Week
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playmoretennis says:

April 2, 2016 at 11:02 am

RT @10sBalls_com: -@asicseasterbowl Begins Today At #IndianWells #Tennis Garden, It’s Free Admission All Week
https://t.co/D5QEe7Z0Ux https…
ParentingAces says:

April 3, 2016 at 5:17 am

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10sBalls_com says:

April 3, 2016 at 6:34 am

RT @ParentingAces: 2016 @asicseasterbowl is underway! https://t.co/GOGPRqdxit