Championship Week
Unseeded Desiatnikov Wins Girls 16 Nationals
by Keith Kropp, 13 August 2015
| Share: |  |
|  | |
|
|
Because she entered the tournament as an unseeded player, it was understandable to overlook Abigail Desiatnikov as a serious threat at the 2015 USTA Girls 16 Nationals. Desiatnikov certainly didn't see it that way, believing in her preparation and game plan for each match.
Playing confidently right from her opening match, the 14-year-old Atlanta resident capped a brilliant performance stretched over seven matches when she defeated 15th-seeded
Whitney Osuigwe 6-1, 7-6 (2) to capture the Girls 16s singles title last Saturday on the Stadium Court at the
Barnes Tennis Center in San Diego.
Even though Desiatnikov entered the Nationals having not played a USTA junior event in 2015, she took the court for her first match believing she could be in the mix. Six matches later Desiatnikov earned her second gold ball and a wild card into the main draw of next month's 2015 U.S. Open Juniors.
"That is huge," Desiatnikov said following her victory. "My goal at beginning of the year was to get into the main draw of the U.S. Open (juniors). I am beyond happy."
Desiatnikov, who is coached by her father and Brian de Villiers, has spent the better part of 2015 playing junior ITF events and lower-level pro tournaments. She even ventured to South America to play in one of them.
"I did decent," Desiatnikov said. "It was good to be in that atmosphere. The mental game in the pros is so much stronger than the juniors."
Desiatnikov's best result at the pro level was advancing through the qualifying rounds at a $10,000 Futures event at Bethany Beach, Del., winning a first-round match in the main draw (6-3, 6-3 over fellow American Cameron Morra) before succumbing in the second round to No. 3 seed Nicole Frenkel 6-1, 6-2.
Despite being unseeded, Desiatnikov liked the way she was playing coming into San Diego.
"I expected to play well coming here," she said. "My mindset was 'I'm as good a player as anyone here. If I play my game I should do well.'"
Desiatnikov dropped just eight games in winning her first two matches, but needed three sets to win in the round of 32.
