“It was a really fun summer,” said Jake, the No. 1 singles player who helped lead the Breakers to the CIF Southern Section Division IV championship match in June. He finished the summer ranked No. 389 in the country in boys’ 18 singles, although it was cut short last week with stress fractures in his right foot.
“I played a little mini junior-national tour,” he said. “It was pretty crazy. It was a really cool experience, just to cruise around and concentrate only on tennis. I really got to improve my game a bunch. I feel like my game improved a bunch the entire summer. It just sucks that I had to finish it with an injury.”
Among other highlights, he played at the St. Louis Junior Tennis Championships on clay. Jake reached the Round of 32 in singles and the quarterfinals in doubles with partner Mark Ellis of Sherman Oaks. In the same tournament, Lauren made her summer debut in the girls’ 18s division as a 15-year-old. She advanced to the Round of 16 in doubles.
Jake said it was his first time playing in a tournament on clay, but he had a ball.
“I love sliding around out there,” he said. “The matches are more of a grind, and they’re longer matches that kind of test your endurance and mental capabilities. On a hard court, it’s finishing it with a winner, but on a clay court it’s who’s willing to stay out there for the longest time. Points were like 25, 30 [shot] rallies, easy. It was a really awesome experience. I think I like clay more than hard courts.”
Another major tournament over the summer was the West Coast Championships in Sacramento earlier this month. All three siblings played in that one, with Jake reaching the quarterfinals in doubles with partner Shane Korber of Corona del Mar and also the Round of 32 in singles.
