University of California, Los Angeles, Athletics
Shibahara Picked for American Collegiate Invite
August 16, 2017 | Women's Tennis
WHITE PLAINS, NY -- UCLA women's tennis rising sophomore Ena Shibahara has been selected to the field for the fourth annual American Collegiate Invitational tournament at the 2017 US Open from Sept. 7-9 in Flushing, NY. Separate single-elimination singles tournaments, open only to American college players, will feature eight men and eight women competing for wild-card entries into the 2018 US Open.
The tournament, which began in 2014 in order to showcase the nation's top college talent, also serves to introduce new ideas to the tennis community. This year, matches will utilize a 25-second serve clock, while coaching violations will be eliminated to allow communication between players and coaches between points.
The fields are made up of the top two players in the ATP/WTA rankings (as of Aug. 7) and the top five players in the previous season's final Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) singles rankings (excluding those selected by pro ranking). A USTA wild-card selected rounds out each field, which is also open to recently-graduated seniors.
Shibahara, who finished her freshman campaign No. 4 in the Oracle/ITA singles rankings, held a 40-7 singles record in 2016-17. She collected a number of honors for her efforts, being named ITA National Rookie of the Year, Pac-12 Singles Player of the Year, Pac-12 Newcomer/Freshman of the Year and an ITA All-American. The Rancho Palos Verdes, Calif. native also went 25-6 in doubles play.
Men's Field:
*J.C. Aragone (Sr., Virginia; Yorba Linda, Calif.)
William Blumberg (Fr., UNC; Greenwich, Conn.)
Christopher Eubanks (Jr., Georgia Tech; Atlanta)
Tom Fawcett (Jr., Stanford; Winnetka, Ill.)
*Thai-Son Kwiatkowski (Sr., Virginia; Charlotte)
Alfredo Perez (Soph., Florida; Miami)
*Mike Redlicki (Sr., Arkansas; Chicago)
**Alex Rybakov (Soph., TCU; Coral Springs, Fla.)
Women's Field:
*Sydney Campbell (Sr., Vanderbilt; Franklin, Tenn.)
*Hayley Carter (Sr., UNC; Hilton Head Island, SC)
Sara Daavettila (Fr., UNC; Williamston, Mich.)
Francesca Di Lorenzo (Soph., Ohio State; New Albany, Ohio)
**Alexa Graham (Fr., UNC; Garden City, NY)
Brienne Minor (Soph., Michigan; Mundelein, Ill.)
Ingrid Neel (Fr., Florida; Rochester, Minn.)
Ena Shibahara (Fr., UCLA; Rancho Palos Verdes, Calif.)
Players Mentioned
