Oct 20, 2023
2023 Mercer Tennis Classic:
No. 1, 2, 3, 4 Seeds Advance to Semis
Doubles Final on Saturday
MERCER UNIVERSITY - John Drew Smith Tennis Center - OCT 16 - OCT 22, 2023
USTA Pro Circuit 80K Event
MACON, Georgia, (October 20, 2023) An exciting week in Macon is coming down the homestretch and semifinals in singles and the final in doubles are set at the Mercer Tennis Classic held this week at the John Drew Smith Tennis Center in Macon.
The singles semifinals and doubles final are slated for Saturday.
And for the first time in the history of the Mercer Tennis Classic, the top four seeds have advanced to the singles semifinals.
Top seed Taylor Townsend, ranked No. 77 in singles, is back in Macon this week and playing well. On Friday, she posted a 6-3, 6-1 win over American, Makenna Jones. Townsend took the net away from Jones and used her volleys and overhead to advance.
With the wind gusting over 20mph, Townsend said she had to make adjustments.
“I didn’t really change my tactics, but it messed up my timing. It hasn’t been windy all week and today it was constantly gusting and not moving in any one direction, so it made it a little more difficult to find my contact point.”
Kayla Day, the 2016 champ in Macon took 3 hrs and 45 minutes to hold off University of Miami’s Alexa Noel. The pair played 353 points in the almost 4 hour marathon to end the day. An exhausted Day broke Noel to end the match.
2022 singles finalist, Panna Udvardy of Hungary has spent a lot of time on the practice court this week. She spent three hours on court in her quarterfinal match to outlast Raluca Georgiana Serban, a Romanian who now plays for Cyprus.
Katie Volynets has been to Macon before and she apparently likes coming back. The 21 year-old has been the most consistent player all week. She hasn’t dropped a set all week, has been getting her first serve in at a 70% rate and is converting 61% of her break points.
Following Saturday’s singles semifinals, the doubles final will be contested with Jana Kolodynska/ Tatiana Prozorova vs. Sofiia Sewing/ Anastasia Tikhonova.
Results:
Katie VOLYNETS (USA) [3] Renata ZARAZUA (MEX) [8] 6-2 6-2
Jana KOLODYNSKA / Tatiana PROZOROVA Catherine HARRISON (USA) / Elvina KALIEVA (USA) 1-6 6-4 [10-5]
Taylor TOWNSEND (USA) [1] Makenna JONES (USA) 6-3 6-1
Panna UDVARDY (HUN) [4] Raluca Georgiana SERBAN (CYP) 7-6(6) 3-6 6-2
Kayla DAY (USA) [2] Alexa NOEL (USA) 6-7(5) 6-3 7-5
Sofia SEWING (USA) [2] / Anastasia TIKHONOVA Raluca Georgiana SERBAN (CYP) / Renata ZARAZUA (MEX) Walkover
On and off the court activities: Monday’s included the Volunteer’s Clinic which featured the pros hitting with and giving tips to sponsors and volunteers. High School Day, where high school kids came out all morning to watch the action.
On Wednesday, the Macon Area Tennis Association gave out its annual awards to area players and coaches.
Thursday was Youth Night, where about 100 school-aged children from Macon and the surrounding area attended.
The Mercer Tennis Classic was honored for its 10th anniversary by the USTA.
Notes:
Well attended night matches each evening.
10th Anniversary. The Mercer Tennis Classic will once again feature many of the best women tennis players in the world. It is the second biggest professional tournament in the state of Georgia in terms of prize money (ATP World Tour 250 event - Atlanta Open in July, is the largest). It is also the longest running professional women’s tennis tournament in the state of Georgia. The event has been showcased on USTA.com and the Tennis Channel.
Tickets are available at www.ustamaconclassic.com
The Mercer Tennis Classic has featured players with major titles, including 2014 Macon singles champ, Kateryna Bondarenko, of Ukraine, and her sister, Alona, who she teamed with to win the 2008 Australian Open Doubles title, and 2010 French Open singles champion Francesca Schiavone, of Italy, who was the tournament’s top seed in 2018.
Live streaming on USTA.com
Tournament volunteers are needed and any help is always appreciated. Call Mercer tennis coach and tournament director Eric Hayes at (478) 301-2269.