New York’s Graham To Play in American Collegiate Invitiational

August 17, 2017 | By a94bfb98_admin

The USTA announced that NCAA singles champions Brienne Minor and Thai-Son Kwiatkowski, along with top prospects Christopher Eubanks and Francesca Di Lorenzo, lead the group of top American collegiate players selected to play in the fourth annual American Collegiate Invitational at the 2017 US Open, September 7-9 at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in Flushing, N.Y.

The American Collegiate Invitational, open only to American college players, began in 2014 as a way to spotlight college tennis during the US Open. Eight men and eight women play single-elimination singles tournaments Thursday to Saturday during the second week of the US Open, with the winners receiving a wild card into the 2018 US Open, main draw or qualifying, depending on their ranking next summer.

For the second straight year, the American Collegiate Invitational will also serve as a testing ground for several innovations, including utilizing a 25-second serve clock between points and eliminating coaching violations, allowing players to communicate with coaches between points.

 

Men’s Field:

*J.C. Aragone (Sr., Virginia; Yorba Linda, Calif.)

William Blumberg (Fr., UNC, Greenwich, Conn.)

Christopher Eubanks (Jr. Georgia Tech; Atlanta)

Tom Fawcett (Jr., Stanford; Winnetka, Ill.)

*Thai-Son Kwiatkowski (Sr., Virginia; Charlotte)

Alfredo Perez (Soph., Florida; Miami)

*Mike Redlicki (Sr., Arkansas; Chicago)

**Alex Rybakov (Soph., TCU; Coral Springs, Fla.)

 

Women’s Field:

*Sydney Campbell (Sr., Vanderbilt; Franklin, Tenn.)

*Hayley Carter (Sr., UNC; Hilton Head Island, S.C.)

Sara Daavettila (Fr., UNC; Williamston, Mich.)

Francesca Di Lorenzo (Soph., Ohio State; New Albany, Ohio)

**Alexa Graham (Fr., UNC; Garden City, N.Y.)

Brienne Minor (Soph., Michigan; Mundelein, Ill.)

Ingrid Neel (Fr., Florida; Rochester, Minn.)

Ena Shibahara (Fr., UCLA; Rancho Palos Verdes, Calif.)

*Indicates player is a graduating senior and/or has turned pro/exhausted collegiate eligibility

** USTA Wild Card Selection

The fields are comprised of the top two players in the ATP/WTA rankings (as of August 7) and the top five players in the year-end Intercollegiate Tennis Association singles rankings (excluding those selected by pro ranking), including at least two graduating seniors or players who have turned pro/exhausted their collegiate eligibility.

The men’s/women’s American Collegiate Invitational champions will receive main draw wild card entries into the  2018 US Open if either is ranked No. 120 or better by the US Open entry deadline next summer. Otherwise, the winners will receive qualifying wild cards. The champions will also get wild cards into three USTA Pro Circuit events, while each runner-up will get one.


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