By SDCN Editor
San Diego, CA–The top two seeds in the 16s singles draw advanced to Wednesday’s Round of 16, but two other 16s seeds were eliminated in fourth-round action of the 2024 USTA Billie Jean King Girls’ 16s and 18s National Championships on Tuesday afternoon at Barnes Tennis Center.
After surviving a tough third-round match on Monday, top-seeded Bella Payne of Bradenton, FL, eased past 33rd seed Aya Manning of Irving, TX, 6-1, 6-1 in 72 minutes to move into the Girls’ 16s Round of 16. Payne will meet 33rd seed Kara Garcia of Sylmar, CA on Wednesday at 10:30 a.m.
“I’ve been getting better every single match and every set. I’ve been dealing with the pressure as the number one seed, that’s been the biggest thing for me,” Payne said after her straight-set fourth-round victory. “I need to keep my mental game together and keep playing solid.”
Girls’ 16s second seed Thara Gowda of Rochester Hills, MI, eliminated 17th seeded Reiley Rhodes of Annapolis, MD., 6-2, 6-3 in one hour and 40 minutes. The 15-year-old Gowda is scheduled to meet 12th-seeded Lani Chang of Mission Viejo, CA., in the Round of 16 at 11 a.m.
In other Girls’ 16s fourth-round matches, 17th-seeded Aoife Kuo of Durham, N.C., ousted third-seeded Isabelle DeLuccia of Livingston, N.J., 6-2, 1-6, 6-3, and fourth-seeded Olivia Traynor of Scarsdale, N.Y., fell to 33rd seed Maria Aytoyan of Van Nuys, CA, 7-5, 6-2.
The Girls’ 18s third round was completed on Tuesday. Top-seeded Clervie Ngounoue of Orlando, Fla., was tested but managed to advance to Wednesday’s fourth round after getting past 33rd seed Olivia Center of South Pasadena, CA, 6-1, 7-6 (2). She will play 33rd seed Leena Friedman of Quogue, N.Y., at 10 a.m.
Second-seeded Akasha Urhobo defeated 33rd-seeded Emily Deming of Fallbrook, Calif., 6-3, 6-1 in 78 minutes and will take on 17th-seeded Kate Fakih of Pasadena, CA, in Wednesday’s fourth round at 1:30 p.m.
Third-seeded Iva Jovic of Torrance, CA, has yet to drop a single game in her singles matches as she swept past 33rd seed Sophia Webster of Bonita Springs, FL, 6-0, 6-0 in a third-round encounter.
Admission is free each day of the tournament and there is no charge for parking at Barnes Tennis Center.
Girls’ 18s Singles Third Round
Clervie Ngounoue (1), Orlando, Fla., def. Olivia Center (33), South Pasadena, Calif., 6-1, 7-6 (2)
Akasha Urhobo (2), Fort Lauderdale, Fla., Emily Deming (33), Fallbrook, Calif., 6-3, 6-1
Iva Jovic (3), Torrance, Calif., def. Sophia Webster (33), Bonita Springs, Fla., 6-0, 6-0
Valerie Glozman (5), Bellevue, Wash., def. Ava Esposito Cogan (33), Branford, Conn., 6-1, 6-2
Aspen Schuman (6), Menlo Park, Calif., def. Daniela Borruel (33), Buena Park, Calif., 6-1, 6-0
Alyssa Ahn (17), San Diego, def. Kay Moe (33), Avon, Conn., 6-1, 6-2
Claire Hill (8), Cary, N.C., def. Ella Brownback (33), Dallas, 6-1, 6-1
Ashton Bowers (7), Bloomington, Ill., def. Bianca Molnar (33), Ladera Ranch, Calif., 6-1, 6-3
Leena Friedman (33), Quogue, N.Y., def. Shannon Lam (17), East Brunswick, N.J., 6-3, 6-3
Victoria Osuigwe (10), Bradenton, Fla., def. Reese Sager (33), Waxhaw, N.C., 6-2, 7-6 (5)
Anna Frey (17), Farmington, Utah, def. Elena Mireles, Houston, 6-1, 6-1
Alexandra Wolf (33), Pacific Palisades, Calif., def. Julieta Pareja (11), Carlsbad, Calif., 2-6, 6-2, 7-6 (5)
Girls’ 16s Singles
Fourth Round
Bella Payne (1), Bradenton, Fla., def. Aya Manning (33), Irving, Texas, 6-1, 6-1
Thara Gowda (2), Rochester Hills, Mich., def. Reiley Rhodes (17), Annapolis, Md., 6-2, 6-3
Aoife Kuo (17), Durham, N.C., def. Isabelle DeLuccia (3), Livingston, N.J., 6-2, 1-6, 6-3
Maria Aytoyan (33), Van Nuys, Calif., def. Olivia Traynor (4), Scarsdale, N.Y., 7-5, 6-2
Kara Garcia (33), Sylmar, Calif., def. Tanika Saravanan, Sugar Hill, Ga., 6-4, 7-5
Carrie-Anne Hoo (8), Brooklyn, N.Y., def. Allison Wang, San Jose, Calif., 5-7, 6-1, 6-3
Nicole Weng (9), South Pasadena, Calif., def. Brooke Wallman (17), Centerport, N.Y., 6-4, 7-5
Nancy Lee (16), Belmont, Mass., def. Yilin Chen (33), San Diego, 6-4, 6-3
Sobee Oak (5), New York, def. Sasha Miroshnichenko (33), Southlake, Texas, 6-3, 6-0
Ishika Ashar (17), Boca Raton, Fla., def. Daria Budko (33), Frisco, Texas, 6-2, 6-4
Karlin Schock (6), Green Bay, Wis., def. Anjani Vickneswaran (17), Surprise, Ariz., 7-5, 6-2
Lillian Santos, Delray Beach, Fla., def. Kohana Darroch (17), Walnut Creek, Calif., 6-4, 7-5
Lyla Middleton (14), Santa Fe, N.M., def. Janae Preston, Henderson, Nev., 6-1, 6-1
Reagan Levine (7), Laguna Beach, Calif., def. Maria Navarro (17), Palm Beach Gardens, Fla., 6-3, 6-7 (4), 6-3
Baotong Xu, Lake Worth, Fla., def. Kennedy Drenser-Hagmann (10), Bloomfield Hills, Mich., 6-2, 6-4
