Allstate Sugar Bowl welcomes 256 of the nation’s top junior tennis players

NEW ORLEANS – The third annual Allstate Sugar Bowl Tennis Classic hosted by New Orleans City Park Tennis Center saw 256 of the top junior tennis players in the country battle for championships in 16 different events this weekend. Finals were played at the City Park Tennis Center and the indoor tennis courts at The Health Club by Hilton following the arrival of rain.

Players from throughout the United States were able to apply to compete in this year’s tournament; however, only the top 32 nationally ranked applicants in each event qualified to compete resulting in representation from 34 states and Puerto Rico.

The top local performer was Gavriella Smith, a New Orleans product who captured the girls’ 16-year old championship with a three-set victory over Violeta Martinez from Port St. Lucie, Fla., 7-6, 2-6, 6-3. Smith, who is a sophomore at Lusher High School, has won the last three Allstate Sugar Bowl/LHSAA Division III Singles State Championships – her first came when she was only a seventh-grader.

Also showing the national scope of the tournament were the hometowns of the other champions – Seattle; Dallas; Key Biscayne, Fla.; Calhoun, Ga.; Saratoga, Calif.; and Charlestown, Ind.; as well as another in-state product – Benjamin Koch from Abbeville, who captured the boys’ 18 championship with a 6-1, 7-5 win over Kenner Taylor from Houston.

My-Anh Holmes, another New Orleans product, teamed up with Maren Urata (La Canada, Calif.) to earn the girl’s 12-year old title in doubles.

The first two years of the Allstate Sugar Bowl Tennis Classic’s return it was a USTA Southern Tournament, which was only open to nine states that are in the Southern Region. In its first year as a national tournament, the Allstate Sugar Bowl Tennis Classic had nearly 800 applicants for the 300 available positions.

Official Tournament Site (includes all results)

Allstate Sugar Bowl Tennis Classic Champions
B18
Benjamin Koch (Abbeville, La.) def. Kenner Taylor (Houston), 6-1, 7-5

B16
Thomas Paulsell (Seattle, Wash.) def. Maks Silagy (Bradenton, Fla.), 7-5, 6-2

B14
Alex Cairo (Dallas) def. Donovan Spigner (New York City), 6-1, 6-3

B12
Roy Horovitz (Key Biscayne, Fla.) def. Nicholas Reeves (Boca Raton, Fla.), 7-6, 0-6, 7-5

G18
Carly Briggs (Calhoun, Ga.) def. Hadley Doyle (Colleyville, Texas), 6-4, 6-0

G16
Gavriella Smith (New Orleans) def. Violeta Martinez (Port St. Lucie, Fla.), 7-6, 2-6, 6-3

G14
Ria Bhakta (Saratoga, Calif.) def. Kennedy Gibbs (Humble, Texas), 6-3, 6-2

G12
Riley Trinkle (Charlestown, Ind.) def. Adriana Sciara (Mountain Brook, Ala.), 6-4, 6-1

Sportsmanship Awards:
Girls: Chloe Brown (Duluth, Ga.)
Boys: Georgi Mavrodiev (Norcross, Ga.)

Doubles
B18
Ryan Fung (Miami)/Georgi Mavrodiev (Norcross, Ga.) def. Welsh Hotard (New Orleans)/Benjamin Koch (Abbeville, La.), 8-6

B16
Thomas Paulsell (Seattle)/Jake Sweeney (Fayetteville, Ark.) def. Alexander Gujarathi (Novato, Calif.)/Jake Vassel (Danville, Calif.), 9-7

B14
Ethan Carr (Birmingham, Ala.)/Charlie Piegza (Hilton Head, S.C.) def. Astro Pilipovich (New York)/Donovan Spigner (New York), 8-5

B12
Alexander Di Staulo (Weston, Fla.)/Roy Horovitz (Key Biscayne, Fla) def. William Luke (Athens, Ga.)/Woodson McMillin (Knoxville, Tenn.), 9-8

G18
Carly Briggs (Calhoun, Ga.)/Chloe Brown (Duluth, Ga.) def. Hadley Doyle (Colleyville, Texas)/Melissa LaMette (Cypress, Texas), 9-8

G16
DJ Bennett (Belleview, Fla.)/Violeta Martinez (Port St. Lucie, Fla.) def. Anisha Apte (Austin, Texas)/Isabella Flodin (Dallas), 8-4

G14
Santianna Chrysopoulo (San Antonio)/Ylan Duong (Allen, Texas) def. Ahmani Guichard (Seminole, Fla.)/Sophia Pacheco (Weston, Fla.), 8-4

G12
My-Anh Holmes (New Orleans)/Maren Urata (La Canada, Calif.) def. Kaitlin Quevedo/Adriana Sciara (Mountain Brook, Ala.), 8-5

States Represented: Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Virginia, Washington, Wisconsin.

The mission of the Allstate Sugar Bowl is to sponsor and promote amateur sporting events which will foster revenue and spark economic growth in the city of New Orleans and the state of Louisiana. Through its year-round slate of events, the organization has generated over $2.5 billion of economic impact for the city and the state in the last decade alone.