More than 180 of the top junior players from around the Pacific Northwest, including the No. 1-ranked player in the nation in the Boys\u00e2\u20ac\u2122 14 section, will visit Newberg this weekend as the university hosts the United States Tennis Association’s George Fox University Juniors Champs Tournament Saturday through Monday, May 26-28.<\/p>\n
\u00e2\u20ac\u0153This is our first time to host an event like this, and the response has been tremendous,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d said George Fox coach Neal Ninteman. \u00e2\u20ac\u0153The field just mushroomed, so we\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ve had to engage additional courts at Newberg High School and Jacquith Park. We\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re excited to have so many of the top junior tennis players from across the Northwest coming to Newberg, and we want to invite everyone in the community to come out and see some of the up-and-coming young stars in U.S. tennis.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n
Highlighting the boys\u00e2\u20ac\u2122 field is Henrik Wiersholm of Kirkland, Wash., ranked No. 1 in the nation in the Boys 14 age bracket. The highest-ranked girls\u00e2\u20ac\u2122 player is Dasha Ivanova of Beaverton, Ore., who is No. 5 nationally in the Girls 14 age bracket. She is seeded second in the Girls 18 tournament, behind Erin Larner of Portland\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s Jesuit High School, the Oregon 6A girls\u00e2\u20ac\u2122 state champion. Also competing will be the Oregon 6A boys\u00e2\u20ac\u2122 state champion, Goutham Sundaram of Portland\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s Lincoln High School, who is the top seed in the Boys 16 tournament.<\/p>\n