Alyssa Ahn and Juliet Pareja (right). Photo credit: USTA
Editor’s Note: This is the girls version of the boys Kalamazoo event. The winner gets a wild card into the US Open main draw. The runner-up receives a wild card into the US Open main draw qualies. This FREE event is awesome look at all their local talent.
Local tennis stars Julieta Pareja and Alyssa Ahn highlighted Wednesday’s action at the 2025 USTA Billie Jean King Girls’ 16s and 18s National Championships as they each won Girls’ 18s Fourth Round singles matches on a breezy, sunny day at Barnes Tennis Center.
The second-seeded Pareja, a resident of nearby Carlsbad, Calif., eliminated 33rd seeded Shannon Lam of East Brunswick, N.J., 6-3, 6-3. She advances to Thursday’s Round of 16 against 33rd seeded Avery Nguyen of El Dorado Hills, Calif.
“I go into every tournament with the same goals. I just go match by match. It’s tennis, so you never know what will happen. I just try and not get ahead of myself. I have to stay concentrated and focused and be strong mentally,” Pareja said after her straight-set victory. “It’s really special to be able to stay at home. Usually, you’re traveling for tournaments. It’s a home crowd. To have everyone come out and support you, it’s very special.”
In the top-half of the draw, seventh-seeded Ahn, who trains year-round at Barnes Tennis Center, struggled in her fourth-round encounter, but pulled out a hard-fought 6-3, 3-6, 6-3 win over 33rd seed Sophie Suh of Orange, Calif. Ahn is scheduled to play 17th seeded JoAnna Kennedy of Englewood, Colo., on Thursday.
“She’s (Suh) a great player. It was tough. I had to grind though it. It took a lot of mental toughness on my part because I didn’t come out playing very well today. It’s tough knowing that you’re not peaking at the best tournament, but every match is different and hopefully it goes better tomorrow,” Ahn said. “I want to keep going as far as I can, but I’m taking it match by match and not focusing where I am in the tournament. It feels good, but I just want to play better.”
Girls’ 18s top seed Akasha Urhobo of Fort Lauderdale, Fla., had to fight through a tough first set, but ultimately came through with a 7-6 (2), 6-1 win over 17th seeded Valerie Shue of South Salem, N.Y. Urhobo will take on 17th seeded Alanis Hamilton of Addison, Texas, in the Round of 16 on Thursday.
All Girls’ 18s Round of 16 singles matches will begin at 10 a.m. (PDT).
Two other local entrants also moved into the Girls’ 16s singles quarterfinals, as 17th-seeded Yilin Chen of San Diego and unseeded Kiana Smith of Carlsbad, Calif., won Round of 16 matches on Wednesday.
After ousting second-seeded Armira Kockinis of La Habra Heights, Calif., 1-6, 6-3, 6-4 on Tuesday, Chen got past unseeded Anya Arora of Irvine, Calif., 6-4, 1-6, 6-2 in her match today. Chen will meet 33rd seed Nikol Davletshina of Boca Raton, Fla., on Thursday for a spot in Friday’s semifinals.
Smith staged an incredible comeback in her thrilling 3-6, 7-6 (5), 7-5 victory over 17th seeded Molly Widlansky of Parkland, Fla. Smith is scheduled to play fourth-seeded Paige Wygodzki of Huntington, N.Y., on Thursday.
Girls’ 16s top-seed Carlota Moreno of Knoxville, Tenn., had her toughest test of the tournament so far, but came through with a 6-0, 7-5 win over 10th seeded Natalie Kha of Chino Hills, Calif. Moreno advances to a quarterfinal match on Thursday against 17th seeded Hannah Ayrault of Atlanta.
All Girls’ 16s quarterfinal singles matches are slated to begin at 12:30 p.m. (PDT).
To view singles and doubles draws for each age division, click here.
Nearly 400 of the top junior tennis players in the country, aged 16 and 18 and under, are competing for the title of National Champion. In addition, wild cards for direct entry into the 2025 US Open will be awarded to the tournament’s top finishers.
Admission is free each day of the tournament and there is no charge for parking at Barnes Tennis Center. Matches are scheduled to begin each day at 8 a.m. (Starting times subject to change) To view the official tournament website, please go to: www.ustagirlsnationals.com.