Athletes and Fans Enjoy 2018 Hall of Fame ITA Grass Court Invitational!
With dramatic matches, incredible shots and high intensity rallies, the 2018 Hall of Fame ITA Grass Court Invitational provided phenomenal college tennis action for fans and family in attendance this past weekend.
For the first time in the tournament’s three-year history, Division III teams competed for ITA Ranking points on the historic grass courts of the International Tennis Hall of Fame. Four men’s teams (Bowdoin, Claremont-Mudd-Scripps, Trinity (TX) and Washington University in St. Louis) and four women’s teams (Carnegie Mellon, Chicago, Emory and Washington & Lee) played singles and doubles flights during the three-day challenge.
The men’s final featured a rematch of the 2018 NCAA Division III National Singles Championship contest, with champion Grant Urken of Bowdoin once again facing Jack Katzman of Claremont-Mudd-Scripps.
Katzman grabbed an early lead in the opening set and would go on to claim the opener 6-3. In the second set, Urken’s big serves carried the way to a 6-1 decision, setting the stage for a third set 10-point tiebreaker. Urken again rode his heavy service game to an early advantage and held on for a 10-5 decision to clinch the championship.
“I had to rely on my serve a little more on the grass,” said Urken. “Jack’s a great player, so it was tough to get a lot of balls by him. I’m glad it all worked out.”
Being the first Division III champion at the Grass Court Invitational means a lot to the Bowdoin senior.
“This was an awesome event and I’m appreciative of everyone that made it happen,” said Urken. “It’s cool that this happened for Division III and the sport as a whole, because this is a special area.”
The women’s singles finals featured an all-Emory matchup as best friends Daniela Lopez and Ysabel Gonzalez-Rico faced off. They played the match all-out, displaying a high level of skill and competition throughout the two sets, which both went to Lopez, who claimed the championship with a 6-4, 7-6 (8) decision.
“It’s never fun to play a teammate, but we both went out there and left it all on the court,” said Lopez, a senior. “At the end of the day we’re best friends, and we’ll keep being that.”
For the majority of the student-athletes, this trip to Newport served as their first experience to the Hall of Fame and to grass courts.
“When coach (Conor Smith) told us we were playing (at the Grass Court Invitational), I was definitely excited about the opportunity,” said Bowdoin College senior and defending NCAA Division III National Singles Champion Grant Urken. “Where else would you rather be? I’m trying to enjoy myself, as I’ve never played on grass before. It’s a wild experience, but I’m definitely happy to be out here.”
Adjusting to the grass courts was quite the challenge for Washington & Lee freshmen Taylor Wright and Georgia Wright, who made their collegiate tennis debuts on the surface.
“Playing on the grass took some adjusting, considering I ate the grass on the very first point,” said Garcia. “It was really fun playing and my game did well on the grass.”
“The main goal was to have fun and be willing to adjust to the surface,” added Wright. “You can’t stress too much if you lose a point, because the ball moves in different directions, so you have to have fun with it because it’s a rare opportunity to play on grass.”
Between hard-fought tournament matches, the players and coaches took advantage of the chance to walk the legendary ITHF campus, share life advice with youth groups and local tennis teams, and tour the museum, which houses over 20,000 pieces of tennis history.
“This has been a very eye-opening experience. None of us have ever been here before,” said Emory women’s tennis head coach Amy Bryant. “Just feeling like you are part of something that’s so much bigger than yourself. We are a part of the international game of tennis and we are struck with that realization. It’s been phenomenal and a great way to start our season. I couldn’t ask for anything better.”
