© Colette Lewis 2025–
Kalamazoo Mi-
A second day of Superb was the background for the march of seeds in the third round Saturday at the Usta Boys 18S and 16S National Championships in Kalamazoo, with the top 23 seeds in the 18S Division Bost victories.
Connor Plunkett from New York defeated 2022 boys 16s finalist Lachlan Gaskell, the no. 24 Seed, 4-6, 7-5, 6-3, while two other top 32 seeds fell in their first action of the tournament. Austin Cohen defeated no. 29 Seed Yashwin Krishnakumar 3-6, 6-4, 6-0 and Micah Ward defeated no. 32 seed Ethan Chung to continue to the third round. Seven no. 33 seeds also go to the comfort tournament after losing today in the second round.
Top seeds Darwin Blanch, who had not played a junior match since Kalamazoo last year, had some adjustments to make today, but he managed to pass Henry Lessard, who had a large cheering section behind Court 2, 6-2, 7-5.
Lessard, a 17-year-old from Columbus Ohio, was a break on a 4-2 in the second set, but Blanch got the break back to calm the songs of “Let’s Go Henry” that erupted occasionally.
“It doesn’t bother me all, frankly,” said the 17-year-old left-handed person, who understands that the underdog will always get support early in the tournament. “So it motivates me more. I was surprised, I knew that the crowd would cheer him for him, he had a whole team. I had something like that, am I at Davis Cup or something? But it has no influence on me at all, I just surprised that I had a big team for him.”
After a year his own lines call again on the ITF and ATP Challenger circuit, where a chair and lines referees are standard, was a bit more an obstacle for Blanch.
“I swear that ten balls were so far away,” said Blanch, with a spread of three or four inches with his hand. “And I didn’t call them. It was really hard to get the hang of it, because I wasn’t used to it at all.”
Blanch does not shy away from the reason he is back this year, with the Boys 16S champion of 2022 the US Open Main Draw Wild Card that goes to the winner.
“The whole reason I returned is for the Wildcard,” said Blanch. “This time sown 1, probably expects to win, and to be honest I have not been used to that lately because I have played pros and I am always the youngest, so not much pressure. This is definitely a change.
The ATP ranking list of Blanch, currently 404, contains two titles this year on the ITF Men’s World Tennis Tour: an M15 in February, an M25 in June and an M25 final last month.
“I am clearly happy with the way I play this year,” said Blanch, who was up in the fourth round last year in the fourth round by Nikita Filin in Kalamazoo. “I have the feeling that I have improved a lot. But here every competition comes complicated.
Blanch is confronted with No. 33 Seed Nicholas Mekhael, a semi -finalist last month at the Clay Courts in USTA 18S, in the third round Monday.
No. 2 Seed Cooper Woestendick started his fifth Kalamazoo today with a 6-0, 6-4 victory over Kyle Chesman, in which the 18-year-old from Kansas thinks about all the success he had at the Stewe Stadium courts since he reached the semi-final in 2021.
“It’s a different feeling, I want to say the last two years, but certainly this year,” said Woentendick, who turns 19 in November. “I am probably the oldest man in the draw (there are actually 30 players who compete in the 18S born in 2006, and several will be 19 next month), and a veteran of K-Zoo now. It’s a good feeling, especially after studying, come here, all my friends see again and can play this prestigious tournament.”
Woestendick has never had an early exit in the tournament, making the quarterfinals in the 16S in 2022, won the 16s title in 2023 and reached the 18S semi -finals last year.
“I have had a really good success here, but my maturity level is not the same, what you would hope for a 14-year-old child,” said Woentendick, who helped TCU to reach the final of ITA Team Indoor and NCAA Team Championships in his first semester in Fort Worth. “I am much more mature now, I feel much more comfortable around the terrain here.
Woestendick plays no. 33 seed David Wu in the third round Monday.
No. 3 Seed and 2024 finalist Jack Kennedy rode through his first Kalamazoo match since his loss against Matt Forbes in last year’s final, with Bode Campbell with 6-0, 6-0.
No. 4 Seed Benjamin Willwerth was in the most precarious position of one of the top 8 seeds, where the first set dropped to Magnus Weng before he returned for a 4-6, 6-2, 6-0 victory.
Willwerth and partner Noah Johnston, the Roland Garros Boys finalists, were also in trouble in their second round double match tonight in Stowe Stadium. The No. 2 seeds were surpassed by Matisse Farzam and Dylan long before the first half of the game before Willwerth and Johnson took over control in the second half for a 6-7 (2), 6-3, 10-5 victory.
Top seeds Woenstendick and Maxwell came out in the third round, with the 2024 Australian Open Boys champions who defeated Aaditt Rishi and Praneet Tulluri 6-0, 6-2.
There are no 18S main table Singles matches on Sunday, with the placed players in the 16s who take the courts for the first time. Sam Schumacher from Kalamazoo, who had enthusiastic support from the crowd on Saturday afternoon during his 7-5, 6-1 victory over Areeb Mefta, will be confronted with no. 33 Seed Liam Collins at 9:00 am on Sunday.
Schedule of Sunday:
8:00 am – 11:00 Boys 16S Main Draw Singles 2nd Round
10:30 am – 2.30 pm Boys 18s Feed -in 2nd round
2.30 pm – 4.30 pm Boys 16s Doubles 2nd Round
5:00 PM – 5:30 PM Boys 18S Doubles 3rd Round
Kang already has one Edwardsville title and wins the Doubles championship with teammate (EN 2021 Kalamazoo 16S champion) Alexander Razeghi tonight. The non-sown couple defeated Onseed Spencer Johnson (UCLA) and Nicolas Kotzen (Columbia) 6-7 (6), 7-5, 10-8.
The double title in Lexington went to No. 2 seeds Anirudh Chandrasekar and Ramkumar Ramanathan from India, who defeated Shu and Tsung-Hao Huang from Taiwan 6-4, 6-4 in the final.
Ayana Akli (South Carolina) and Eyn Cayetano (USC) won the Doubles title and defeated Alana Smith (NC State) and Elvin Kalieva with 4-6, 6-2, 10-4 in the All-USA, all-unclassified final.
#Boys #18s #top #seeds #blanch #Woestendick #lead #parade #seeds #Kalamazoo #16s #seeds #central #Sunday #Kang #moving #Edwardsville #M25 #final #Svajda #ATP #Challenger #title #Lexington