SAN DIEGO — A San Diego teenage tennis star has a memory to cherish after winning a national tournament hosted by Billie Jean King. In this Zevely Zone, I share a teenager's dream come true from the Barnes Tennis Center last fall.
Playing tennis on center court is nerve-racking enough but try doing it in front of a tennis icon.
Alyssa Ahn is a 16-year-old Carmel Valley resident. She began taking tennis lessons when she was 7. By age 10, she was ranked No. 1 in her age group in Southern California. She plays tennis for Torrey Pines High School and won the CIF San Diego Section Girls' Singles title in 2022.
Last August, she earned a spot in the USTA Billie Jean King Girls' 16s National Championship at the Barnes Tennis Center, where she happens to train year-round. "It's a lot one of the biggest draws of the year for national tournaments," said Alyssa.
The tournament featured a large draw with 256 players. Alyssa was seeded ninth.
With home-court advantage, she advanced to the final where she won a tough match to win the title before a large crowd that included tennis legend Billie Jean King.
"She is an amazing girl to work with, that's all I can say. I feel like I am the lucky one," said Steve Adamson who is the Director of Tennis at the Barnes Tennis Center. He told me when a tournament is hosted by one of the biggest names in tennis history, everyone feels the pressure. "I think I was a lot more nervous than she was," said Steve.
Alyssa can be a bit stoic off the court but when she gets on the court, she becomes laser focused. "Oh absolutely, she has a little bit of a split personality when she gets on the court, she is an incredible competitor," said Steve.
After the match, King had high praise for Alyssa, who was awarded a spot in the singles draw of the junior girls' US Open Championships in New York last year. Last October, Ahn was also given a wild card into the doubles draw San Diego Open WTA 500, the women's professional tennis tournament that was played at the Barnes Tennis Center.
This year, Alyssa has started playing lower-level professional tennis tournaments to gain experience. This August, instead of playing in the 16s division as the defending champion, she will play the USTA Billie Jean King Girls' 18s National Championship at the Barnes Tennis Center.
If all goes well, she could get another opportunity to play in the women's professional tennis tournament at the Barnes Tennis Center in September, which has been renamed the Cymbiotica San Diego Open.
Alyssa continues to train at Barnes Tennis and is looking forward to playing collegiate tennis when she finishes high school. Despite all of her success, she remains very humble and well-grounded.
Alyssa volunteers for beginners' tournaments at Barnes Tennis Center and often feeds practice balls to beginners.
"I know at one point I was at that stage," she said. "It really helped when other people cheered for me, and volunteers helped out. I want to give back to the community I came from."
The United States Tennis Association Billie Jean King Girls’ 16s and 18s National Championships will be played Saturday, August 5 through Sunday, August 13, 2023, at the Barnes Tennis Center. Over 400 of the top junior tennis players in the country, aged 16 and 18 and under, will compete for the title of National Champion.
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