Stanford's Hardebeck clinches win over Florida again

Krista Hardebeck gave No. 16 Stanford a 4-3 win over No. 7
Florida. File photo by Tri Nguyen/TriNguyenPhotography.com

   Fortunately for Florida, Krista Hardebeck is a senior.
   For the third time, Stanford's Hardebeck won the clincher against the rival Gators.
   No. 109 Hardebeck outlasted No. 72 Josie Kuhlman 6-4, 3-6, 7-5 on Court 4 today, lifting the 16th-ranked Cardinal (5-2) to a 4-3 victory over the seventh-ranked Gators (5-2) at Stanford.
   Hardebeck, from Santa Ana in the Los Angeles area, also clinched Stanford's 4-3 win over Florida in the 2013 NCAA semifinals and the Cardinal's 7-0 thrashing of the Gators during the 2014 regular season.
   Stanford and Florida have combined to win four of the last six NCAA team titles (2010-13). UCLA and Vanderbilt have earned the last two NCAA crowns, in that order.
   Carol Zhao, last year's NCAA singles runner-up, made her season debut for Stanford less than 24 hours after losing in the doubles final of the $25,000 Morgan Run Women's Open in the San Diego suburb of Rancho Santa Fe.
   Zhao, a junior from Canada, held off 12th-ranked Brooke Austin 6-3, 3-6, 7-5 on Court 1. Austin, a sophomore from Indianapolis, reached the semifinals of the $50,000 Sacramento Challenger last July.
   ITF Women's Circuit in Rancho Santa Fe -- Top-seeded Zhang Shuai of China topped unseeded Vania King of Long Beach 1-6, 7-5, 6-4 to win the Morgan Run Women's Open.
   Zhang, who needed 2 hours, 36 minutes to subdue King in a battle of 27-year-olds, reached the Australian Open quarterfinals as a qualifier last month. She had been 0-14 in Grand Slam tournaments before stunning second-seeded Simona Halep in the opening round in Melbourne.
   King, a two-time Grand Slam champion in women's doubles and former Sacramento Capital in World TeamTennis, continued her comeback from a herniated disc in her neck. She did not have surgery.

Querrey, Bellis lose; Federer pulls out of Indian Wells

Dominic Thiem, playing at Indian Wells in 2014,
dismissed Sam Querrey 6-2, 6-2 in 57 minutes in
the semifinals at Acapulco. Photo by Paul Bauman

   Dominic Thiem emphatically ended Sam Querrey's winning streak at eight matches on Friday.
   Thiem, seeded fourth, overwhelmed the unseeded Querrey 6-2, 6-2 in 57 minutes in the semifinals of the Abierto Mexicano Telcel in Acapulco.
   Thiem, a 22-year-old Austrian, will meet fifth-seeded Bernard Tomic of Australia for the first time in today's final. Tomic, 23, beat unseeded Alexandr Dolgopolov of Ukraine 1-6, 6-4, 6-3.
   Querrey, a 28-year-old San Francisco native, won his eighth career title but first since 2012 last week in Delray Beach.
   BNP Paribas Open -- Four-time champion Roger Federer, who underwent arthroscopic knee surgery on Feb. 3, has withdrawn from the March 7-20 tournament in Indian Wells.
   Federer had played Indian Wells for 15 consecutive years, winning the title from 2004 through 2006 and in 2012. He has been the runner-up to Novak Djokovic for the past two years. Federer, 34, entered the clay-court Monte Carlo Masters, scheduled for April 10-17.
   ITF Women's Circuit -- Defending champion CiCi Bellis, 16, of Atherton in the San Francisco Bay Area, lost to veteran Vania King of Long Beach 6-3, 6-4 in the quarterfinals of the $25,000 Morgan Run Women's Open in the San Diego suburb of Rancho Santa Fe.
   King, a two-time Grand Slam champion in women's doubles, returned to competition last August after missing almost one year with a herniated disc in her neck. She did not have surgery.
   In an all-American doubles semifinal, Bellis and Jacqueline Cako fell to top-seeded Asia Muhammad and Taylor Townsend 6-1, 6-3.
   Muhammad and Townsend will play third-seeded Jessica Pegula of Charleston, S.C., and Carol Zhao, a Stanford junior from Canada.
   Pegula and Zhao edged unseeded Mayo Hibi, an Irvine product who plays for her native Japan, and Grace Min of Boca Raton, Fla., 6-1, 3-6 [14-12].
   College women -- Freshman Olivia Hauger outlasted Brianna Morgan 4-6, 7-5, 6-4 on Court 5 to lift No. 1 Cal over No. 7 Florida 4-3 in Berkeley. The Bears improved to 10-0, and the Gators dropped to 5-1.
   College men -- Max de Vroome upset Tom Fawcett on Court 1, leading No. 13 USC over No. 29 and host Stanford 5-2. De Vroome, ranked 65th, topped Fawcett, ranked fourth, 6-5, 2-6, 6-2. The Trojans are 7-2, and the Cardinal is 5-5.

El Tabakh outlasts King in Redding Challenger semis

   Vania King said on Tuesday that she needed to get much stronger to return to the top 100 in the world.
   She was right.
   The unseeded American lost to eighth-seeded Heidi El Tabakh of Canada 7-6 (3), 2-6, 6-1 on Saturday in the semifinals of The Ascension Project Women's $25,000 Challenger in Redding, Calif.
   King, 5-foot-5 (1.65 meters), returned to competition in August after missing almost one year with a herniated disc in her neck. She reached a career-high No. 50 in 2006 and finished the year in the top 100 from 2009 through 2013 but has tumbled to No. 773.
   King also climbed to No. 3 in doubles in 2011 after winning Wimbledon and the U.S. Open in 2010 with Yaroslava Shvedova of Kazakhstan.
   El Tabakh, who will turn 29 on Friday, will face fifth-seeded Sherazad Reix of France for the title today at 12:30 p.m. at Sun Oaks Tennis & Fitness. Admission is free.
   Reix, 26, beat seventh-seeded Paula Cristina Goncalves of Brazil 6-4, 6-4.
   Reix and El Tabakh -- ranked No. 273 and No. 421, respectively -- have met only once, and that was seven years ago. El Tabakh won 7-6 (7), 3-6, 7-5 on a hardcourt in the second round of qualifying in the $25,000 Coimbra (Portugal) Challenger.  
   El Tabakh was ranked No. 174 at the end of 2014 but missed the first four months of this year. She  seeks her sixth career Challenger singles title and Reix her first.
   Top-seeded Ashley Weinhold and Caitlin Whoriskey of the United States won the doubles title, beating second-seeded Michelle Sammons of South Africa and Varatchaya Wongteanchai of Thailand 6-2, 7-5. Weinhold and Whoriskey also won the $50,000 Sacramento Challenger in July.

King ousts top seed, defending champion in Redding

   REDDING, Calif. -- Vania King's victory over top seed and defending champion Jennifer Brady highlighted a long day in The Ascension Project Women's $25,000 Challenger.
   King, a former top-50 player and a two-time Grand Slam champion in women's doubles, defeated Brady 6-3, 7-6 (2) on Thursday at Sun Oaks Tennis & Fitness in a first-round match that had been postponed by rain.
   King, a 26-year-old Southern California native, then outlasted American wild card Julia Jones 3-6, 6-4, 7-5 and withdrew from her doubles quarterfinal, also scheduled for Thursday, with Robin Anderson.
   Brady, who turned pro in June after two stellar seasons at UCLA, at times employed her whipping forehand to rocket passing shots past King in their first career meeting. More often, the 5-foot-5 (1.65-meter) King used her quickness to keep the ball in play until Brady slugged the ball out.
   Brady jumped out to a 3-0 lead (one service break) in the 9 a.m. match, but King reeled off the next seven games, including a Brady double fault on set point.
   Brady broke serve to lead 6-5 in the second set, but King, aided by a double fault for 0-40, broke back at love to force a tiebreaker. Brady made three consecutive unforced errors to trail 4-0 and couldn't recover.
   "She's an experienced player," Brady said of King, 26. "She knows how to play the big points well. She makes you play." 
  King is playing in her fifth tournament after missing almost one year with a herniated disc in her neck. She declined an interview request after defeating Brady, saying she had to prepare for her next match.
   Also falling were No. 3 seed Jovana Jaksic of Serbia and No. 4 Lauren Embree of Santa Monica.
   Chiara Scholl of the United States outlasted Jaksic 6-2, 5-7, 6-4 in the first round before losing to Klaartje Liebens of Belgium 6-4, 6-3. Liebens reached the quarterfinals for the second consecutive year.
   Scholl had two match points at 5-4 in the second set against Jaksic but failed to capitalize on them.
   "I think I played well overall," Scholl said. "I was getting really tired in the third set, so I'm glad I could still pull it out. She gave me a lot of free points in the last game of the third set. That was lucky for me."  
   Anna Zaja of Germany beat Embree, last year's runner-up, 6-4, 6-0 in the second round. They played their opening matches on Tuesday before rain wiped out Wednesday's singles schedule.
   Embree's bid for a third straight Redding doubles title ended when she and Ema Burgic Bucko of Bosnia and Herzegovina pulled out of today's scheduled semifinal against second-seeded Michelle Sammons of South Africa and Varatchaya Wongteanchai of Thailand.
   Embree, a former University of Florida All-American, won in 2013 with Anderson and last year with Brady.   

THE ASCENSION PROJECT WOMEN'S $25,000 CHALLENGER

At Sun Oaks Tennis & Fitness in Redding, Calif.

First-round singles

   Vania King, United States, def. Jennifer Brady (1), United States, 6-3, 7-6 (2).

   Chiara Scholl, United States, def. Jovana Jaksic (3), Serbia, 6-2, 5-7, 6-4.

   Klaartje Liebens, Belgium, def. Amy Zhu, United States, 7-6 (9), 6-1.

   Nadja Gilchrist, United States, def. Sophie Chang, United States, 7-5, 6-3.

   Heidi El Tabakh (8), Canada, def. Alexandra Stevenson, United States, 7-5, 7-5.

   Paula Cristina Goncalves (7), Brazil, def. Megan McCray, United States, 6-1, 6-3.

   Varatchaya Wongteanchai (2), Thailand, def. Ashley Weinhold, United States, 7-6 (1), 7-6 (5).

 Second-round singles

   Vania King, United States, def. Julia Jones, United States, 3-6, 6-4, 7-5.

   Caitlin Whoriskey (6), United States, def. Piia Suomalainen, Finland, 6-7 (5), 7-5, 6-1.

   Klaartje Liebens, Belgium, def. Chiara Scholl, United States, 6-4, 6-3.

   Heidi El Tabakh (8), Canada, def. Nadja Gilchrist, United States, 6-2, 6-2.

   Paula Cristina Goncalves (7), Brazil, def. Petra Rampre, Slovenia, 6-2, 6-2.

   Anna Zaja, Germany, def. Lauren Embree (4), United States, 6-4, 6-0.

   Sherazad Reix (5), France, def. Maegan Manasse, United States, walkover.

   Varatchaya Wongteanchai (2), Thailand, def. Lauren Albanese, United States, 6-3, 6-0.

 Doubles quarterfinals

   Ashley Weinhold and Caitlin Whoriskey (1), United States, def. Jennifer Brady, United States, and Caroline Doyle, San Francisco, 6-4, 6-3.

   Alexandra Facey and Kat Facey, Cameron Park, def. Robin Anderson and Vania King, United States, walkover.

   Ema Burgic Bucko, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Lauren Embree, United States, def. Darya Possokhova, San Francisco, and Seriana Saltzen, Cameron Park, 6-2, 6-2.

   Michelle Sammons, South Africa, and Varatchaya Wongteanchai (2), Thailand, def. Laura Schaeder and Anna Zaja, Germany, 6-3, 6-4. 

Doubles semifinals

   Michelle Sammons, South Africa, and Varatchaya Wongteanchai (2), Thailand, def. Ema Burgic Bucko, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Lauren Embree, United States. 

Today's schedule

Court 2
(Starting at 11 a.m.)

   Paula Cristina Goncalves (7), Brazil, vs. Anna Zaja, Germany.

   Vania King, United States, vs. Caitlin Whoriskey (6), United States.

(Not before 4:30 p.m.)

   Ashley Weinhold and Caitlin Whoriskey (1), United States, vs. Alexandra Facey and Kat Facey, Cameron Park.

Court 1 

(Starting at 11 a.m.)

   Varatchaya Wongteanchai (2), Thailand, vs. Sherazad Reix (5), France.

   Heidi El Tabakh (8), Canada, vs. Klaartje Liebens, Belgium.

Vania King couldn't crack Vinci code -- or Serena

Vania King, playing doubles in Redding on Tuesday,
faced Roberta Vinci this year and Serena Williams
last year in the U.S. Open. Photo by Paul Bauman

   REDDING, Calif. -- Perhaps more than anyone else, Vania King can appreciate Roberta Vinci's monumental upset of Serena Williams last week at Arthur Ashe Stadium in the semifinals of the U.S. Open.
   Vinci's shocking run to the final, in which she lost to fellow Italian Flavia Pennetta, began with a 6-4, 6-4 victory over King on an outside court. King also fell to Williams 6-1, 6-0 at Ashe in the second round at Flushing Meadows last year.
   "I admire (Vinci) very much because she's one of the most underrated players," said King, who is scheduled to play top seed and defending champion Jennifer Brady today at 9 a.m. in the rain-delayed first round of The Ascension Project Women's $25,000 Challenger at Sun Oaks Tennis & Fitness. "She's had a terrific career. She's been in the top 40 for many, many years, and she's been in the top 20.  
   "If you look at her, she's not an imposing person, and her personality is not imposing at all. She's very quiet and respectful. I actually admire the sportsmanship side much more than the tennis side, but I also admire her game."
   King, who's playing in her fifth tournament after missing almost one year because of a herniated disc in her neck, described Vinci's game as "very tricky. She's a very smart player. She uses her slice very well. She's very consistent with her slice. It's very difficult to play because it stays low, and she waits for the opportunity to attack with her forehand."
   King, in fact, is something of a poor woman's Vinci. 
   Both are small. King, a 26-year-old Long Beach product whose Taiwanese parents ran a fish and chips restaurant for 25 years, is 5-foot-5 (1.65 meters). Vinci, the 32-year-old daughter of an accountant father and homemaker mother, is 5-foot-4 (1.63).
   Largely for that reason, both have had more success in doubles than singles. Both are multiple Grand Slam champions in women's doubles. Vinci has won five majors, including a career Grand Slam, and King two (Wimbledon and the U.S. Open in 2010 with Yaroslava Shvedova of Kazakhstan). Vinci ascended to No. 1 in the world in women's doubles, and King reached No. 3.
   Vinci improved annually in the year-end singles rankings from No. 83 in 2008 to No. 14 in 2013.  She jumped from No. 43 to No. 19 by reaching the U.S. Open final. King finished the year in the top 100, fluctuating between No. 70 and No. 86, from 2009 to 2013. Vinci's career high is No. 11 in 2013; King's is No. 50 in 2006. 
   Also like Vinci, King is smart. She declined a scholarship offer from Stanford to turn pro in 2006.
   Even King's first name is similar to Roberta's last name.
   King conceded that Vinci had some luck at the U.S. Open, never playing a seed in five matches until facing Williams. In a bizarre twist, No. 25 Eugenie Bouchard of Canada withdrew from her scheduled fourth-round encounter against Vinci after falling in the locker room and suffering a concussion.  
   "At the U.S. Open, things all fell into place for her, and I think she knows that," King said. "At the same time, all these opportunities presented themselves to her, and she took them. That's very, very difficult. ... She totally deserved the result that she had there."
   Williams, who had not dropped a set in four career matches against Vinci, fell 2-6, 6-4, 6-4 this time. 
   "I think Serena was dealing with nerves trying to complete the calendar Slam," said King, who watched most of the match on television.
   King was a nervous wreck herself in her only career match against Williams but "not necessarily because of her. She was very imposing, but (it was) just because of the environment I was in, being on Ashe with so many people and cameras there. It was very overwhelming."
   Williams' tenacity impressed King the most.
   "I think Serena is mentally the strongest player," King said. "Granted, her game is incredible, but I think what really keeps her (on top) is her mental consistency and strength."
   Was King surprised, then, that nerves apparently contributed to Williams' loss in the U.S. Open?        
   "Yes and no," replied King, who sang "America the Beautiful" at Ashe during the 2006 U.S. Open before the last victory of Andre Agassi's career. "We put her on a pedestal and think she should perform the same way every time, but none of us can imagine what it's like to have to deal with breaking a record that's (almost) 30 years old. She's already going to go down in history as the best player, but this would have been the cherry on top."
   King had been feeling "a lot of nerve pain and limited mobility in my neck" for three months before facing Williams. An MRI a few weeks before the U.S. Open revealed a herniated disc caused "over time being a tennis player, putting my body into unusual positions," King said.
   King rested for eight months in Long Beach, avoiding surgery. She relaxed for the first month, volunteered for the charities Nothing But Nets and Acing Autism, and worked as a substitute teacher for two months in the Los Angeles Unified School District.
   Nothing But Nets provides bed nets to fight malaria in Africa, and Acing Autism runs weekly tennis programs around the United States for children with autism.
    Substitute teaching in elementary and high school, King said, "really made me appreciate how difficult a teacher's job is. It's very different from being a tennis player.
   "It was difficult because you have to go into a different school every day, teach a different class and see so many different students. A lot of them were rowdy, and you have to learn how to manage the students, get the most out of them, and get them to follow the lesson plan of the teacher. It was a great experience."
   King began hitting again in May and returned to competition last month in a $25,000 Challenger in Landisville, Pa. Since winning her first match, she has lost four straight.
   Going from finals at fabled Centre Court at Wimbledon and massive Arthur Ashe Stadium to humble Sun Oaks Tennis & Fitness is jolting. But at least King is playing tennis again.
   "(Redding) is a steppingstone," conceded King, whose ranking has plunged to No. 773. "This is not where I want to be, but I'm enjoying every moment of it. I'm really happy to be back on the court. I'm lucky to be back on the court. I didn't know if I'd be able to play again.
   "My goal is to get my ranking back up to the top 100, hopefully as fast as I can, but I've got to get a lot stronger. I've only been playing for a few months. I was out for eight months. I've got to play a lot of matches and keep my head up."

Embree pulls off incredible comeback in Redding

Lauren Embree, the fourth seed and 2014 runner-up in Red-
ding, beat 17-year-old Nicole Frenkel after trailing by a set
and 1-5. Photo by Paul Bauman

   REDDING, Calif. -- It's hard to say what was more shocking today, Lauren Embree's comeback or the mercifully cool weather.
   Embree, last year's singles runner-up and a two-time defending doubles champion, wore down Nicole Frenkel, a 17-year-old left-hander with a lethal forehand and deft volley, 6-7 (6), 7-6 (3), 6-1 in the first round of The Ascension Project Women's $25,000 Challenger.
   Frenkel served for the match at 5-1 in the second set at Sun Oaks Tennis & Fitness. Embree, a 5-foot-7 (1.70-meter) counterpuncher, then became more aggressive and broke Frenkel at love.
   "At that point, I knew I had nothing to lose," the fourth-seeded Embree said. "I just wanted to make her close out the match and make it as tough on her as possible."
   Until then, Embree spent much of the match watching passing shots whiz by her. After that, she spent much of it watching Frenkel, playing with tendinitis in her left shoulder, commit unforced errors.
   Frenkel, from Winchester, Mass., politely declined an interview request as she hurriedly left the site.  
   A blatantly bad line call almost derailed Embree's comeback. With Embree serving at 4-5, 30-15 in the second set, Frenkel slugged a ball that landed clearly long. Embree did not play it, but the chair umpire called it good.
   "Are you serious?" Embree, a 24-year-old former University of Florida All-American living in Santa Monica, said incredulously. "How long does it have to be for you to call it out?"
   Embree, however, quickly regained her composure and won the next two points to hold serve.
   "I freaked out a little bit, but I tried not to let it get to me," she said. "I couldn't do anything about it at that point, so I just tried to get the next point."

Frenkel overcame two set points against
her to win the first set. Photo by
Paul Bauman

   Frenkel pulled off an impressive comeback of her own to steal the first set. Embree had two set points at 6-4, but Frenkel reeled off the next four points for the set.
   "I was just rushing and not really thinking about what I wanted to do, and it got away from me," Embree said.
   Even with a one-sided third set, the late-afternoon match lasted 3 hours, 10 minutes. Fortunately for the players, the temperature reached only 69 degrees (20.6 Celsius). The average for Sept. 15 in this city of 92,000 people is 90 degrees (32.2 Celsius).
   "I like this weather. It's a good change of (pace) for me," Embree, who grew up in Florida's heat and humidity, said with a laugh.
   The weather is expected to get even stranger on Wednesday. Rain is forecast, but Sun Oaks has indoor courts.
   Embree, ranked No. 247, will meet No. 583 Anna Zaja of Germany on Thursday. Zaja, 24, defeated qualifier Klara Fabikova, a Cal senior from the Czech Republic, 4-6, 6-4, 6-2.
   Fabikova was one of three Cal All-American qualifiers in action.
   Maegan Manasse, a junior from Redondo Beach, routed qualifier Ashley Kratzer, a 16-year-old left-hander from Newport Beach, 6-3, 6-1. Manasse then pulled out of her second-round match on Thursday against fifth-seeded Sherazad Reix of France.
   The reason for Manasse's withdrawal was not disclosed. She is scheduled to play singles and doubles in the inaugural Oracle/ITA Masters, a college tournament Friday through Sunday in Malibu.
   Denise Starr, a junior from Brooklyn, lost to Piia Suomalainen, 31, of Finland 3-6, 7-6 (4), 6-3.
   Meanwhile, Lauren Albanese defeated fellow American Robin Anderson 7-5, 6-3. Anderson, the 2013 singles runner-up to Adriana Perez of Venezuela and doubles champion with Embree, graduated from UCLA this year.
   Petra Rampre, 35, of Slovenia outlasted UCLA-bound Ena Shibahara, 17, of Rancho Palos Verdes 6-4, 3-6, 6-3. Rampre wears a bandana because she lost all the hair on her body eight years ago. She has a rare disorder called alopecia universalis.
   In doubles, Anderson and Vania King crushed fourth-seeded Kaitlyn Christian and Reix 6-1, 6-0. King, a two-time Grand Slam champion in women's doubles, is playing in her fifth tournament after missing one year with a herniated disc in her neck.
   Christian won the 2013 NCAA doubles title as a USC junior with Sabrina Santamaria. 

THE ASCENSION PROJECT WOMEN'S $25,000 CHALLENGER

At Sun Oaks Tennis & Fitness in Redding, Calif.

First-round singles

   Anna Zaja, Germany, def. Klara Fabikova, Czech Republic,4-6, 6-4, 6-2.

   Caitlin Whoriskey (6), United States, def. Ema Burgic Bucko, Bosnia and Herzegovina, 4-6, 6-1, 6-2.

   Petra Rampre, Slovenia, def. Ena Shibahara, United States, 6-4, 3-6, 6-3.  

   Julia Jones, United States, def. Lisa Whybourn, Great Britain, 6-3, 6-1.

   Sherazad Reix (5), France, def. Laura Schaeder, Germany, 6-4, 6-3.

   Maegan Manasse, United States, def. Ashley Kratzer, United States, 6-3, 6-1.

   Piia Suomalainen, Finland, def. Denise Starr, United States, 3-6, 7-6 (4), 6-3.

   Lauren Albanese, United States, def. Robin Anderson, United States, 7-5, 6-3.
   Lauren Embree (4), United States, def. Nicole Frenkel, United States, 6-7 (6), 7-6 (3), 6-1.

First-round doubles

   Ashley Weinhold and Caitlin Whoriskey (1), United States, def. Lauren Albanese and Sophie Chang, United States, 6-4, 7-5.

   Varatchaya Wongteanchai, Thailand, and Michelle Sammons (2), South Africa, def. Tory Parravi and Karina Kristina Vyrlan, United States, 6-4, 1-6 [10-7]..

   Robin Anderson and Vania King, United States, def. Kaitlyn Christian, United States, and Sherazad Reix (4), France, 6-1, 6-0.

   Darya Possokhova and Seriana Saltzen, United States, def. Hanna Chang and Carolyn Xie, United States, walkover.

Wednesday's schedule

Court 2

(Starting at 10 a.m.)

   Jovana Jaksic (3), Serbia, vs. Chiara Scholl, United States.

(Not before 11 a.m.)

   Jennifer Brady (1), United States, vs. Vania King, United States.

(Not before 12:30 p.m.)

   Varatchaya Wongteanchai, Thailand, vs. Ashley Weinhold, United States.

  (Not before 2 p.m.)

   Jennifer Brady and Caroline Doyle, United States, vs. Brynn Boren and Nadja Gilchrist, United States.

Court 1

(Starting at 10 a.m.)

   Paula Cristina Goncalves, Brazil, vs. Megan McCray, United States.

(Not before 11 a.m.)

   Nadja Gilchrist, United States, vs. Sophie Chang, United States.

(Not before 12:30 p.m.)

   Ema Burgic Bucko, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Lauren Embree, United States, vs. Paula Cristina Goncalves, Brazil, and Jovana Jaksic (3), Serbia.

(Not before 2 p.m.)

   Laura Schaeder and Anna Zaja, Germany, vs. Lorraine Guillermo and Julia Jones, United States.

Court 3

(Starting at 10 a.m.)

   Amy Zhu, United States, vs. Klaartje Liebens, Belgium.

(Not before 11 a.m.)

   Heidi El Tabakh (8), Canada, vs. Alexandra Stevenson, United States.

(Not before 12:30 p.m.)

   Alexandra Facey and Kat Facey, United States, vs. Megan McCray and Morgan McCray, United States.

Defending champ to face Slam champ in Redding

Jennifer Brady, shown in July, will defend her Red-
ding title as the top seed. Photo by Paul Bauman 

   For the first round of a $25,000 Challenger, it doesn't get much better than this.
   Jennifer Brady, the top seed and defending champion, is scheduled to play fellow American Vania King, a former top-50 singles player and a two-time Grand Slam women's doubles champion, on Wednesday in the The Ascension Project Women's $25,000 Challenger in Redding, Calif.

   Brady, 20, is ranked No. 187 in the world. She turned pro in June after two years at UCLA, helping the Bruins win the 2014 NCAA title and reach this year's final.
   King, 26, will play in her fifth tournament after missing one year with a herniated disc in her neck. She reached career highs of No. 50 in singles in 2006 and No. 3 in doubles in 2011, winning the women's doubles titles at Wimbledon and the U.S. Open in 2010 with Yaroslava Shvedova of Kazakhstan.
   The main draw begins today at Sun Oaks Tennis and Fitness with the last two Redding runners-up in action. Fourth-seeded Lauren Embree (2014) will meet left-hander Nicole Frenkel, and Robin Anderson (2013) will face Lauren Albanese. All four players are American.
   Embree, a 24-year-old former University of Florida star, has won the last two Redding doubles titles. She teamed with Brady last year and Anderson in 2013.

Vania King, playing for the Sacramento Capitals in a 2012
World TeamTennis match, has won two Grand Slam women's
doubles titles. Photo by Paul Bauman

   Anderson graduated from UCLA this year after becoming the seventh player in school history to earn All-American honors in singles and doubles for all four years.

   On Wednesday, eighth-seeded Heidi El Tabakh of Canada will play Alexandra Stevenson in the opening round.

   Stevenson, 34, drew international attention in 1999 by becoming the first female qualifier to reach the Wimbledon semifinals. The daughter of basketball legend Julius Erving, she climbed to a career-high No. 18 in 2002 before injuries derailed her career.

   Three Cal All-Americans -- Maegan Manasse, Denise Starr and Klara Fabikova -- won in the second round of qualifying on Monday to reach the main draw.

THE ASCENSION PROJECT WOMEN'S $25,000 CHALLENGER

At Sun Oaks Tennis and Fitness in Redding, Calif.

Final-round qualifying

   Ema Burgic Bucko (1), Bosnia and Herzegovina, def. Lyann Hoang, Australia, 6-1, 6 -1.
   Amy Zhu, United States, def. Emma Christine Higuchi (11), United States, 6-0, 6-3.
   Denise Starr, United States, def. Lorraine Guillermo, United States, 6-3, 6-0.
   Klara Fabikova, Czech Republic, def. Olivia Hauger, United States, 6-3, 6-3.
   Maegan Manasse (3), United States, def. Darya Possokhova, United States, 7-6 (3), 6-2.
   Ashley Kratzer (9), United States, def.  Michelle Sammons (6), South Africa, 7-5, 7-6 (5).
   Sophie Chang (2), United States, def. Caroline Doyle, United States, 6-0, 4-6, 7-6 (1).
   Megan McCray, United States, def. Kaitlyn Christian, United States, 6-1, 6-2.

Today's schedule

Court 2

(Starting at 10 a.m.)

   Klara Fabikova, Czech Republic, vs. Anna Zaja, Germany.

(Not before 11 a.m.)

   Caitlin Whoriskey (6), United States, vs. Ema Burgic Bucko, Bosnia and Herzegovina.

(Not before 12:30 p.m.)

   Petra Rampre, Slovenia, vs. Ena Shibahara, United States.

(Not before 2 p.m.)

   Varatchaya Wongteanchai, Thailand, and Michelle Sammons (2), South Africa, vs. Tory Parravi and Karina Kristina Vyrlan, United States.

Court 1

(Starting at 10 a.m.)

   Julia Jones, United States, vs. Lisa Whybourn, Great Britain.

(Not before 11 a.m.)

   Sherazad Reix (5), France, vs. Laura Schaeder, Germany.

(Not before 12:30 p.m.)

   Maegan Manasse, United States, vs. Ashley Kratzer, United States.

(Not before 2 p.m.)

   Ashley Weinhold and Caitlin Whoriskey (1), United States, vs. Lauren Albanese and Sophie Chang, United States.

Court 3

(Starting at 10 a.m.)

   Denise Starr, United States, vs. Piia Suomalainen, Finland.

(Not before 11 a.m.)

   Lauren Albanese, United States, vs. Robin Anderson, United States.

(Not before 12:30 p.m.)

   Lauren Embree (4), United States, vs. Nicole Frenkel, United States.

(Not before 2 p.m.)

   Kaitlyn Christian, United States, and Sherazad Reix (4), France, vs. Robin Anderson and Vania King, United States.

Ex-Capital King withdraws from Gold River Challenger

   Well, that didn't take long.
   Two days after the initial acceptance list for the $50,000 FSP Gold River Women's Challenger was released, Vania King withdrew Sunday.
   King had topped all players on the list with a world ranking of No. 117 before improving to No. 113 this week. The 24-year-old Long Beach product played all or part of the past three seasons for the Sacramento Capitals of World TeamTennis. But she will return to the Springfield Lasers this season after being named the 2009 WTT Female MVP as a member of the Missouri-based team. 
   The top three entries for the Gold River Challenger, July 1-6 at the Gold River Racquet Club in the Sacramento area, are now No. 129 Julia Glushko of Israel, No. 131 Michelle Larcher de Brito of Portugal and No. 135 Jessica Pegula of Boca Raton, Fla.
   Glushko, 23, won three qualifying matches to advance to the main draw of the recent French Open. She then lost to 71st-ranked Maria-Teresa Torro-Flor of Spain in the first round.
   Larcher de Brito played one season for the Capitals, helping them win the last of their record six WTT titles in 2007. At 14, she was the youngest player in league history until Madison Keys surpassed her by 19 days two years later as a 14-year-old with the Philadelphia Freedoms. Keys, who also lives in Boca Raton, is now ranked a career-high 53rd.
   Pegula, whose billionaire father owns the Buffalo Sabres of the National Hockey League, reached the final of last year's inaugural Gold River Challenger at age 18. She lost to Modesto native Maria Sanchez, who is not entered this year but could receive a wild card.

Ex-Capital King tops Gold River Challenger entries

Vania King, playing for the Sacramento Capitals last season,
heads the field for the FSP Gold River Women's Challenger
with a No. 117 world ranking. Photo by Paul Bauman

   Three familiar faces head the acceptance list for the second annual FSP Gold River Women's Challenger.
   Former Sacramento Capital Vania King is ranked No. 117 in the world, and Jessica Pegula, last year's runner-up at Gold River, is No. 123. Ex-Capital Michelle Larcher de Brito is No. 130.
   The entries for the $50,000 tournament, July 1-6 at the Gold River Racquet Club in the Sacramento area, were released Friday. Absent from the list is 2012 champion Maria Sanchez, a Modesto native ranked No. 119. She could receive a wild card, though.
   King, a 24-year-old Long Beach product, played for the Capitals of World TeamTennis for all or part of the past three seasons. However, she will return to the Springfield Lasers this season after being named the 2009 WTT Female MVP as a member of the Missouri-based team.

At 18, Jessica Pegula reached the final
of the inaugural Gold River Women's
Challenger last year. 2012 photo
by Paul Bauman

   King won the 2010 Wimbledon and U.S. Open women's doubles titles with Yaroslava Shvedova of Kazakhstan, but they have since split. King, who reached a career-high No. 3 in the world in women's doubles in 2011, has slumped to No. 47. Her career high in singles is No. 50 in 2006.
   The Gold River Women's Challenger will be held during the second week of Wimbledon, which could prevent King from returning to the Sacramento area.
   Pegula, 19, of Boca Raton, Fla., has more than halved her ranking from No. 294 entering last year's tournament. Her billionaire father, Terry, owns the Buffalo Sabres of the National Hockey League.
   Larcher de Brito of Portugal played one season for the Capitals, helping them win the last of their record six WTT titles in 2007. At 14, she was the youngest player in league history until Madison Keys surpassed her by 19 days two years later as a 14-year-old with the Philadelphia Freedoms. Keys, who also lives in Boca Raton, is now ranked a career-high 53rd.
   Also entered in the Gold River Women's Challenger is No. 139 Casey Dellacqua of Australia. Dellacqua, a 28-year-old left-hander, won the 2011 French Open mixed doubles title with former Stanford All-American Scott Lipsky and reached this year's Australian Open doubles final with countrywoman Ashleigh Barty, then 16. It was the first time since 1977 that two Aussie women played in the Australian Open title match.   

GOLD RIVER WOMEN'S CHALLENGER

Acceptance list (subject to change)

Pos.  Player                                      Ranking

1	Vania KING (USA)	117
2	Jessica PEGULA (USA)	123
3	Michelle LARCHER DE BRITO (POR)	130
4	Julia GLUSHKO (ISR)	131
5	Casey DELLACQUA (AUS)	139
6	Olivia ROGOWSKA (AUS)	146
7	Chanel SIMMONDS (RSA)	166
8	Julie COIN (FRA)	176
9	Olga SAVCHUK (UKR)	178
10	Maria-Elena CAMERIN (ITA)	180
11	Sacha JONES (AUS)	187
12	Jovana JAKSIC (SRB)	190
13	Ana VRLJIC (CRO)	196
14	Ons JABEUR (TUN)	209
15	Irena PAVLOVIC (FRA)	218
16	Madison BRENGLE (USA)	219
17	Monique ADAMCZAK (AUS)	220
18	Petra RAMPRE (SLO)	225
19	Junri NAMIGATA (JPN)	227
20	Florencia MOLINERO (ARG)	230
21	Melanie KLAFFNER (AUT)	234
22	Ivana LISJAK (CRO)	236
23	Risa OZAKI (JPN)	279
24	Heidi EL TABAKH (CAN)	280

       

  

Schnack gives up promising pro career

Yasmin Schnack, shown in last summer's $50,000 FSP Gold River
Women's Challenger in the Sacramento area, lost in the second
round of singles but won the doubles title with Sacramento
Capitals teammate Asia Muhammad. Photo by Paul Bauman

   Yasmin Schnack was on her way in professional tennis.
   After 2 1/2 years on the circuit, the former UCLA All-American was headed toward the top 100 in the world in doubles. She played doubles at Wimbledon with her best friend, Vania King, and helped her hometown Sacramento Capitals come within two points of winning the World TeamTennis title.
   King, a two-time Grand Slam women's doubles champion with career highs of No. 3 in doubles and No. 50 in singles, said Monday that Schnack "is more talented than I am."
   None of it was enough. Weighed down by loneliness, financial considerations and family issues, Schnack retired from pro tennis last November at age 24.
   "I'd be going out (on the minor-league tour) for three, four, five weeks at a time, and I'd be meeting up with friends and players at tournaments, but as far as having someone there with me, my parents weren't there, I didn't have a trainer, I didn't have a coach or hitting partner," Schnack said earlier this month in Sacramento during the $2,000 Rio Del Oro Open, in which she won a three-team round robin in women's doubles with roommate and former Sacramento State standout Clarisse Baca. "After a while, it took a toll on me. I felt burned out and kind of lost that passion and competitiveness to be out there.
   "That was a big factor, and financially it's difficult. Your income is based solely on how you're doing. Some weeks I had great tournaments, and then for a few weeks there was nothing. You're paying for all your expenses -- air fare, hotel, food, equipment, stringing ... Everything just kind of adds up."
   Schnack also feels she needs to be at home.
   "My dad's 82, and his health is deteriorating, so my mom's at home taking care of him," said Schnack, whose Filipina mother, Candida, is almost 30 years younger than her father. "My sister is mentally handicapped, so my mom is really busy taking care of the family. ... My family is so important to me."
   Schnack's father, a retired physician named William, has Parkinson's disease.
   "It's still in the early stages, but I can really see differences with his health," she said. "Every minute I can be at home around him, it makes me feel better, and I know he appreciates me being at home and spending time with him."  
   Schnack, 5-foot-10 (1.78 meters), reached career highs of No. 140 in doubles and No. 371 in singles. She won 11 doubles titles and two singles crowns in tennis' minor leagues.
   In Schnack's Wimbledon main-draw debut last summer, she and King lost to eighth-seeded Iveta Benesova and Barbora Zahlavova Strycova, both of the Czech Republic, 6-4, 6-1 in the first round. King won the 2010 Wimbledon and U.S. Open women's doubles titles with Yaroslava Shvedova of Kazakhstan.
   Schnack played full-time for the Capitals the last two years, along with King for 10 of 14 regular-season matches in 2011 and two during last year's march to the WTT Finals.
   King, also 24, has known Schnack since they were juniors.
   "I've always thought she had amazing potential from when we were little," the 5-foot-5 (1.65-meter) King said by telephone. "She never had proper coaching or support. She's more talented than I am.
   "She has the potential to be top 100 in singles and doubles, but things don't always work out the way everyone expects. 'Potential' is a very vague word. A lot of other things come into it."
   But gifted?
   "She has very clean strokes," King said. "She has a great body, great physical ability and an all-court game. She has all the tools. The game came naturally to her."
   Maria Sanchez -- a 23-year-old rising pro from Modesto, 77 miles (124 kilometers) south of Sacramento -- has known Schnack since they were in high school. They were cross-town rivals in college -- Sanchez was an All-American at USC -- and played doubles with and against each other in the pros.
   "She's a great player, so it's sad to see her go, and she's also a good friend of mine," Sanchez said last week after winning her singles main-draw debut in the BNP Paribas Open at Indian Wells. "But you have to do what makes you happy."
   Even if you're approaching the top 100 in doubles.
   "Everyone was saying, 'Your ranking is steadily going up. Why are you stopping?' " Schnack said. "I guess I really didn't think about my ranking so much as how I was feeling. Did I feel good on the court? Was I having fun? Was I enjoying it? Was I competing?
   "Most of the time, I was just fighting myself. Tennis is so mental. You're putting yourself at a disadvantage if you're fighting yourself and not playing against your opponent."
   Schnack's case is reminiscent of Sam Warburg's. Also citing loneliness and financial struggles, the Sacramento product retired from professional tennis at 26 in 2009 after 4 1/2 years on the circuit.
   Warburg approached the top 100 not only in doubles with a career high of No. 117, but in singles, peaking at No. 132. He played five seasons for the Capitals, helping them win the last of their record six WTT titles in 2007.
   Both Warburg and Schnack won NCAA titles at Pacific-10 Conference schools and graduated. Warburg captured the 2004 doubles title with Stanford teammate KC Corkery, and Schnack helped UCLA earn its only women's team title, in 2008. Warburg graduated in communications, Schnack in sociology.
   Warburg, 29, works as a venture capitalist in the San Francisco Bay Area. Schnack plans to attend nursing school in the fall or next January.
   The biggest difference between Warburg and Schnack, who do not know each other well, is that Warburg vowed never to return to pro tennis. Schnack already is having second thoughts.
   "I'm sad to be gone from it," she admitted. "I really do miss it, which is why I've been playing these little opens, so I still can use the competitiveness that I have in me and go out and play and have fun."
   Schnack left the door open to returning to the tour.
   "I'm young enough and still have the time to go out and give it a little while, but I'm happy with where things are in my life, and I like the direction it's heading," she said. "I wonder if I do go back and play if it's going to be an emotional roller coaster again. Of course I'll have the highs and feel great and love that I'm back playing, but then there are going to be the lows, and I'll think, Why am I wasting my time?
   "You know that cycle. I've gone through that with tennis my entire life. I think it's nice to have consistency and routine and not this up-and-down struggle."
   BNP Paribas Open at Indian Wells -- Kevin Anderson and Mardy Fish, two part-time Capitals in 2012 who are coming back from health problems, won Monday.
   Anderson, playing in his second tournament after undergoing right elbow surgery, routed 31-year-old Jarkko Nieminen of Finland 6-3, 6-1 in the third round. Anderson, a 6-foot-8 (2.03-meter) right-hander from South Africa, will face 13th-seeded Gilles Simon of France on Wednesday.  
   Fish is competing in his first tournament in six months after battling an irregular heartbeat. The wild-card team of Fish and fellow American James Blake reached the doubles quarterfinals with a 6-3, 6-3 victory over Feliciano Lopez of Spain and Milos Raonic of Canada.
   Fish, seeded 32nd in singles, will meet eighth-seeded Jo-Wilfried Tsonga of France today in the third round.
   In a second-round doubles match consisting of the entire U.S. Davis Cup team that beat Brazil last month, top-seeded Bob and Mike Bryan dismissed 6-foot-9 (2.06-meter) John Isner and 6-foot-6 (1.98-meter) Sam Querrey 6-3, 6-3. Querrey also played part-time for the Capitals last year.
   The 34-year-old Bryan twins, who grew up about a two-hour drive west in the Los Angeles area, seek their first Indian Wells title. 

COLLEGE SCORE

Men

   Pacific def. Texas-Arlington 4-0 in Stockton. No. 1 singles: Sem Verbeek (P) led Yauheni Yakauleu 7-6 (2), 1-0 (did not finish).

Hall of Famer mentors Sanchez; Capitals' schedule

With mentor Chris Evert watching from the stands,
Maria Sanchez of Modesto won her main-draw
debut at Indian Wells. Photo by Paul Bauman

   INDIAN WELLS -- In less than two years as a professional tennis player, Maria Sanchez has yet to make a name for herself.
   But she has one of the biggest names in tennis history in her camp.
   Chris Evert, an International Tennis Hall of Famer, attended Sanchez's 6-3, 6-3 victory over error-prone qualifier Olga Puchkova of Russia on Wednesday in the first round of the BNP Paribas Open.
   Sanchez, a 23-year-old wild card from sleepy Modesto in Northern California, met Evert through World TeamTennis in the summer of 2011 after graduating from USC in real estate. Sanchez was playing for the since-disbanded St. Louis Aces against the host New York Sportimes, and Evert was in the crowd.
   "I played against Martina Hingis, and I got killed," the 5-foot-10 (1.78-meter) Sanchez said of the Swiss star, who will join Evert in the Hall of Fame on July 13. "After the match, I was feeling pretty bad, and she came up to me and was like, 'Hey, I really like your game. I just want to let you know I believe in you and see your potential, so if you ever need anything, let me know.' I was kind of surprised, like, 'Wow, all right.' So I just kind of kept in contact with her."
   Sanchez now trains full-time at the Evert Tennis Academy.  -- owned by Chris and her brother, John -- in Boca Raton, Fla.
   "She has kind of taken me under her wing and mentored me throughout my pro career," said Sanchez, who will meet third seed and 2012 Wimbledon runner-up Agnieszka Radwanska of Poland in the second round. "I work with (Jacopo Tezza) on the court when I'm there. She'll come and oversee the practice and help me out."

Olga Puchkova, who upset Venus Williams en route
to the final in Florianopolis, Brazil, last week, lost
to Sanchez after playing two qualifying matches
on Tuesday. Photo by Paul Bauman

   Evert, who's tied for fourth all-time with 18 Grand Slam singles titles, was not available for comment. Also among the sparse crowd in Stadium 2 on a cool, breezy night were Tezza; Sanchez's agent, Jordan Butler; and Sanchez's parents, Luis and Catherine.
   Luis, a high school math teacher in Modesto, said Evert "has been a lot of help, (telling Maria) what to expect in the pros. It's nice to have her in Maria's corner."
   Sanchez, who played with kinesio tape on her right knee but said afterward it was fine, has soared from No. 687 in the world at the end of 2011 to No. 112.
   She was much fresher Wednesday than Puchkova, who had played two straight-set qualifying matches on Tuesday after reaching the final on a hardcourt in Florianopolis, Brazil, last week. Four of Puchkova's five matches there went to three sets, including against top-seeded Venus Williams in the semifinals.    
   Puchkova reached a career-high No. 32 at 19 years old in 2007 and played two matches for the Sacramento Capitals of World TeamTennis the following year. She plummeted to No. 338 by the end of 2010 but has fought back to No. 79. 
   A part-time model, the 5-foot-11 (1.8-meter) Puchkova also is ranked seventh among the 30 hottest female tennis players of all time by Rant Sports. 
   Sanchez was one of two rising young Americans to win their main-draw debut in the BNP Paribas Open on Wednesday. Qualifier Mallory Burdette, a 22-year-old former Stanford star, dispatched 38-year-old wild card Jill Craybas of Huntington Beach 6-3, 6-1.
   Burdette, ranked No. 125 only six months after forgoing her senior season to turn pro, will face 23rd-seeded Tamira Paszek of Austria in the second round.
   Capitals veteran Vania King lost to Silvia Soler-Espinosa of Spain 6-7 (7), 6-2, 6-1.
   Meanwhile, there was an Alves sighting at Indian Wells. Dmitry Tursunov, a Sacramento-area resident seeded fourth in qualifying, outlasted Thiago Alves of Brazil 5-7, 6-2, 6-3 to earn his first main-draw berth at Indian Wells in four years.
   Alves wasn't wearing blue suede shoes, but the loss left him all shook up and headed back to the Heartbreak Hotel. 
   Tursunov, who reached the semifinals in Marseilles and quarterfinals in Dubai in the previous two weeks, will face another qualifier, Germany's Philipp Petzschner in the first round.
   Capitals' schedule released -- The good news for the Capitals is they will open their 2013 regular season with five home matches. The bad news is they will play seven of their remaining nine matches in the July 7-24 season on the road.
   Marquee players Mardy Fish and Sam Querrey are scheduled to return for their second part-time season with Sacramento. Fish, ranked No. 32 after reaching a career-high No. 7 in 2011, will play at Sunrise Mall on July 10, 12 and 13. Querrey, a San Francisco native ranked No. 23 after climbing as high as No. 17 in 2011, will appear in the last four matches of the regular season (two home and two away).
   Bob and Mike Bryan, the 34-year-old twin sons of Capitals coach Wayne Bryan, will play for the Texas Wild on July 17 at Sunrise Mall. The Wild, based in the Dallas suburb of Irving, moved from Kansas City during the offseason.
   Also, the two-time defending champion Washington Kastles will visit Sunrise Mall on July 13. Washington has won 32 consecutive matches, including 20-19 over Sacramento in the WTT Finals last season. The Capitals have won a record six league titles but none since 2007.
   Team rosters will be filled out in Tuesday's regular-player draft. The conference championships are set for July 25 and the WTT Finals for July 28 at the home of the Eastern Conference champion.

CAPITALS' SCHEDULE 

   Sunday, July 7 vs. Texas Wild

   Monday, July 8 vs. Philadelphia Freedoms
   Wednesday, July 10 vs. Orange County Breakers (Mardy Fish plays for Capitals)
   Friday, July 12 vs. Boston Lobsters (Fish plays for Capitals)
   Saturday, July 13 vs. Washington Kastles (Fish plays for Capitals)
   Sunday, July 14 @ Texas Wild
   Monday, July 15 @ Orange County Breakers
   Wednesday, July 17 vs. Texas Wild (Bryan Brothers play for Texas)
   Thursday, July 18 @ Springfield Lasers
   Friday, July 19 @ Boston Lobsters
   Sunday, July 21 @ Orange County Breakers (Sam Querrey plays for Capitals)
   Monday, July 22 vs. Orange County Breakers (Querrey plays for Capitals)
   Tuesday, July 23 @ Springfield Lasers (Querrey plays for Capitals)
   Wednesday, July 24 @ Texas Wild (Querrey plays for Capitals)

Capitals stun Explorers; King to return

   Suddenly, things are looking up for the Sacramento Capitals.
   After coming back from the brink of defeat on the road Friday night, the World TeamTennis franchise will play four of its five remaining regular-season matches at home and receive a much-needed boost from not only CoCo Vandeweghe but Vania King.
   Mark Knowles and 6-foot-6 Sam Querrey saved a match point Friday as visiting Sacramento rallied to shock the Kansas City Explorers 22-21 (7-4 Supertiebreaker).
   "We were hanging on by our fingernails all night," said Capitals coach Wayne Bryan, whose team was coming off tough losses at Washington and Springfield. "We were behind, behind, behind. We staged one of the most remarkable comebacks in my 11 years with the team."
   The Capitals actually led 13-12 at intermission, but 19-year-old Chanel Simmonds won 5-2 in women's singles to give Kansas City a 17-15 lead. Sacramento's Yasmin Schnack substituted for Asia Muhammad at 1-1.
   The Capitals have lost their last four sets in women's singles by a combined score of 20-5. Women's doubles has been only marginally better.
   But Knowles and Querrey pulled out a 5-4 (5-4 tiebreaker) victory over Nick Monroe and Aisam-Ul-Haq Qureshi in men's doubles to narrow the Explorers' lead to 21-20 after regulation.
   Because Kansas City, the leading team after four sets, failed to win the last set, the match went into overtime. Knowles and Querrey won the next game and prevailed in the Supertiebreaker.
   Sacramento (5-4) leads second-place Orange County (3-5) by 1 1/2 matches and third-place Kansas City and Springfield (both 2-6) by 2 1/2 in the four-team Western Conference. The top two teams in each conference after the 14-match regular season will advance to the WTT playoffs, Sept. 14-16 in Charleston, S.C.
   Vandeweghe will rejoin the Capitals for their last five matches, beginning Sunday against Springfield at Sunrise Mall in Citrus Heights, Calif., after playing for them full-time three years ago at 17. She reached the final of last week's Bank of the West Classic as a lucky loser and held a set point against Serena Williams in the title match before falling 7-5, 6-3.
   Bryan also announced that King, ranked fifth in the world in doubles, will return to the team for a home-and-home series Tuesday and Wednesday against Orange County. King played for Sacramento in 2010 and 2011 after being named the WTT Female MVP for Springfield in 2009. This year, she fell just short in her bid to make the U.S. Olympic team.
   See below for full results of Friday's match.
   WTA tour in Carlsbad, Calif. -- Second-seeded King of Boynton Beach, Fla., and Nadia Petrova of Russia dispatched Slovakians Dominika Cibulkova and Daniela Hantuchova 6-4, 6-2 to reach the semifinals of the Mercury Insurance Open.
   Third-seeded Raquel Kops-Jones, a former NCAA doubles champion from Cal, and Abigail Spears, playing near her home in San Diego, advanced with a 6-3, 4-6, 10-3 tiebreak victory over Americans Lindsay Lee-Waters and Megan Moulton-Levy.
   Kops-Jones and Spears will face top-seeded Liezel Huber and Lisa Raymond, while King and Petrova will meet unseeded Kai-Chen Chang of Taiwan and Noppawan Lertcheewakarn of Thailand.
   ATP World Tour in Atlanta -- Matthew Ebden of Australia and Ryan Harrison of Austin, Texas, topped South Africans Kevin Anderson and Rik de Voest 6-7 (2), 6-4, 10-4 tiebreak in the quarterfinals of the BB&T Atlanta Open.
   Anderson, 6-foot-8, will join the Capitals for their last four regular-season matches. De Voest won the singles title in the inaugural Sacramento Challenger in 2005.

WORLD TEAMTENNIS

Capitals 22, Kansas City 21 (7-4 Supertiebreaker) 

In Kansas City, Mo.

   Men's singles -- Sam Querrey (Capitals) def. Aisam-Ul-Haq Qureshi (Explorers) 5-4.
   Women's doubles -- Tetiana Luzhanska-Chanel Simmonds (Explorers) def. Asia Muhammad-Yasmin Schnack (Capitals) 5-3.
   Mixed doubles -- Mark Knowles-Yasmin Schnack (Capitals) def. Tetiana Luzhanska-Aisam-Ul-Haq Qureshi (Explorers) 5-3.
   Women's singles -- Chanel Simmonds (Explorers) def. Yasmin Schnack (Capitals) 5-2.
   Men's doubles -- Mark Knowles-Sam Querrey (Capitals) def. Nick Monroe-Aisam-Ul-Haq Qureshi (Explorers) 5-4.
   Overtime -- Mark Knowles-Sam Querrey (Capitals) def. Nick Monroe-Aisam-Ul-Haq Qureshi (Explorers) 1-0.
   Supertiebreaker -- Mark Knowles-Sam Querrey (Capitals) def. Nick Monroe-Aisam-Ul-Haq Qureshi (Explorers) 1-0 (7-4).

TV SCHEDULE

(All times PDT)

   Today -- Hamburg (men), semifinals, Tennis Channel, 4:30-9 a.m. (live), noon-2 p.m. (repeat), 8-10 p.m. (repeat); Atlanta (men), semifinals, Tennis Channel, 10 a.m.-noon (live), ESPN2, 4-6 p.m. (live); Carlsbad (women), semifinals, Tennis Channel, 2-4 p.m. (live), ESPN2, 8-10 p.m. (live); Bastad (women), Tennis Channel, 4-8 p.m. (delay). 
   Sunday -- Hamburg (men), final, Tennis Channel, 5-7 a.m. (live), 7-9 a.m. (repeat); Atlanta (men), final, ESPN2, noon-2 p.m. (live), Tennis Channel, 5-7 p.m. (repeat); Carlsbad (women), final, ESPN2, 2-4 p.m. (live); Gstaad (men), final, Tennis Channel, 3-5 p.m. (delay); Bastad (women), final, Tennis Channel, 7-9 p.m. (delay). 

CALENDAR

   Sunday -- World TeamTennis, Springfield at Capitals (with Sam Querrey, CoCo Vandeweghe), Sunrise Marketplace Outdoor Pavilion, Sunrise Mall in Citrus Heights, 7:35 p.m., http://www.saccaps.com/.
   Tuesday -- Orange County (with Lindsay Davenport) at Capitals (with Kevin Anderson, Vania King and Vandeweghe), Sunrise Marketplace Outdoor Pavilion, Sunrise Mall in Citrus Heights, 7:35 p.m., http://www.saccaps.com/.
   Wednesday -- Capitals (with King and Vandeweghe) at Orange County, 7 p.m.
   Friday -- Philadelphia (with Mark Philippoussis) at Capitals (with Anderson, Vandeweghe), Sunrise Marketplace Outdoor Pavilion, Sunrise Mall in Citrus Heights, 7:35 p.m., http://www.saccaps.com/.
   July 28 -- Boston at Capitals (with Anderson, Vandeweghe), Sunrise Marketplace Outdoor Pavilion, Sunrise Mall in Citrus Heights, 7:35 p.m., http://www.saccaps.com/.
   July 28-Aug. 5 -- OLYMPIC TENNIS TOURNAMENT, Wimbledon, www.london2012.com.

Something's Bruin as Capitals pick another UCLA alum

   When the Sacramento Capitals open their World TeamTennis season on July 9, the roster will look like a meeting of the UCLA alumni association.
   The Capitals added yet another former Bruin when they selected Jean-Julien Rojer, the 2011 WTT Male Rookie of the Year for St. Louis, in the second round of Tuesday's WTT roster player draft.
   Ironically, Rojer and Liezel Huber won the fifth set to give St. Louis a 20-19 victory over Sacramento in last season's Western Conference finals. The Aces then lost to Washington in the WTT Finals and folded in the offseason. 
   Sacramento, picking seventh in the eight-team draft, protected ex-UCLA stars Mark Knowles in the first round and local resident Yasmin Schnack in the fourth and final round.
   The Capitals also picked 20-year-olds Asia Muhammad of Las Vegas in the third round and CoCo Vandeweghe of Rancho Santa Fe in the San Diego area as a supplemental, part-time player.
   "Based on (picking seventh), I think we did really well," Capitals co-owner Ramey Osborne said. " ... We didn't think Rojer would be available."
   Vandeweghe, a former Capital and the 6-foot-1 niece of former NBA star Kiki Vandeweghe, will play at least four or five of Sacramento's 14 regular-season matches, Osborne said.
   Mardy Fish, chosen by the Capitals in last month's marquee player draft, is scheduled to play home matches on July 12 and 13. Fish, a 30-year-old Los Angeles resident, leads all American men and women at No. 8 in the world but has started slowly this year. 
   Vania King and Dusan Vemic, who have played key roles for the Capitals in the past two seasons, were  bypassed in the draft.
   King, the 2009 WTT Female MVP for Springfield (Mo.), still could play some matches for Sacramento if she does not make the U.S. Olympic team, which will be based on the June 11 rankings. Osborne said last week, though, that he was not interested in bringing back the entertaining but erratic Vemic, a 35-year-old Serbian.
   Knowles, 40, and Rojer, 30, have more in common than UCLA. Both are doubles specialists from Caribbean nations. Knowles is from the Bahamas, near Miami, and Rojer from Netherlands Antilles, off the coast of Venezuela.
   Knowles will return for his 11th WTT season, all with Sacramento. Ranked No. 1 in the world in doubles in 2002 and 2004, he has won four Grand Slam titles (three in men's doubles and one in mixed doubles), 55 overall and three WTT Male MVP awards (2001, 2005 and 2007). Knowles has dropped to No. 61 but last month won the doubles crown in San Jose with Xavier Malisse.
   Rojer is ranked 38th, down from a career-high 17th last August. He has won five ATP doubles titles, all with former Capital Eric Butorac since October 2010, and reached the semifinals of last year's Australian Open with Butorac.
   The addition of Rojer addresses Sacramento's biggest weakness last year. The Capitals finished fourth or better in every category except men's doubles, in which they placed eighth. That was baffling, given Knowles' background and Vemic's appearances in two Grand Slam doubles semifinals.
   "We're very happy about men's doubles," Osborne said. "We're not done. We have a couple ideas we're working on. ... We're working on a possible trade for a singles player."
   If necessary, Rojer could play singles. He earned All-American honors in singles and doubles at UCLA and played singles regularly on the pro tour until 2008.
   Schnack, 23, played well as a WTT rookie last year. She helped Sacramento finish second in women's doubles and went 16-15 (.516) in singles games filling in for King, who missed the first week of the season to rest after Wimbledon.
   Muhammad, who will make her WTT debut, is ranked 186th in doubles and 387th in singles. She has won four minor-league doubles titles, including three last year. In 2009, Muhammad won the USTA girls 18 national doubles crown in Berkeley with Christina McHale, now the second-ranked American in singles at No. 35 in the world.
   Vandeweghe, the 2008 U.S. Open junior girls champion, played for the Capitals as a WTT rookie in 2009 and for Boston the past two seasons. As a qualifier in her hometown of San Diego in 2010, she beat Wimbledon runner-up Vera Zvonareva en route to the quarterfinals. Vandeweghe is ranked No. 159 in singles after reaching a career-high No. 89 last April.
   The Capitals have won a record six WTT titles but none since 2007.
   Maria Sanchez, a Modesto resident who led the league in women's doubles last year for St. Louis, went to Springfield in the second round. She plays doubles with Schnack on the regular circuit.
   Defending champion Washington, which last season became the first team in the WTT's 36-year history to go 16-0, returns largely intact. Former Capital Anastasia Rodionova joins her sister Arina and replaces Rennae Stubbs, the 2008 WTT Female MVP who turns 41 on March 26.
   See the full WTT draft and team rosters below.
   BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells -- In a matchup of former No. 1 players and Indian Wells champions, 15th-seeded Ana Ivanovic of Serbia defeated fourth-seeded Caroline Wozniacki of Denmark 6-3, 6-2 in the fourth round of the BNP Paribas Open. Wozniacki won the tournament last year and Ivanovic in 2008.
   Top-ranked Victoria Azarenka of Belarus improved to 20-0 this year with a 6-3, 6-1 victory over No. 14 seed Julia Goerges of Germany.
   The last two American women lost in the fourth round. Eighteenth-seeded Angelique Kerber of Germany rallied from match points down against a U.S. teenager for the second straight round to beat No. 32 Christina McHale 6-3, 3-6, 7-6 (4). Also, wild card Jamie Hampton retired because of cramps with No. 5 Agnieszka Radwanska leading 6-3, 4-6, 3-0.
   Kerber, a U.S. Open semifinalist last year, survived three match points against the 19-year-old McHale, who had upset No. 3 seed and reigning Wimbledon champion Petra Kvitova in the third round. Kerber had rallied from 6-2, 5-1 and two match points down to stun 18-year-old Sloane Stephens 26, 75, 64 in the previous round.
   France's Marion Bartoli, the No. 7 seed and last year's runner-up, dismissed 23rd-seeded Lucie Safarova of the Czech Republic 6-4, 6-1. Bartoli won the 2009 Bank of the West Classic at Stanford and also reached the final there in 2011 and 2008.
   On the men's side, third-seeded Roger Federer extended his winning streak to 11 matches, but fifth-seeded David Ferrer's ended at 11.
   Federer, a three-time champion at Indian Wells (2004-06), outlasted 27th-seeded Milos Raonic, the two-time reigning SAP Open champion in San Jose, 6-7 (4), 6-2, 6-4 in the third round. It was their first career meeting. Unseeded Denis Istomin, the runner-up in last month's SAP Open, ousted Ferrer 6-4, 6-3 for his first career victory over a top-10 player in 11 attempts.
   In the second round of men's doubles, unseeded John Isner and Sam Querrey, a San Francisco native, edged fourth-seeded Robert Lindstedt and Horia Tecau, the runners-up at Wimbledon for the past two years, 6-3, 5-7, 10-5 tiebreak.

2012 WTT Roster Player Draft

Roster Exempt Draft Selections (Roster Exempt players play a limited season)

Sacramento Capitals:  Coco Vandeweghe

2012 WTT Roster Draft - March 13, 2012

Round One 

1.  PHILADELPHIA:  Karolina Pliskova

2.  SPRINGFIELD:  Timea Babos

3.  ORANGE COUNTY:  Anna-lena Groenefeld

4.  NEW YORK:  Robert Kendrick (protection)

5.  KANSAS CITY:  Chanel Simmonds

6.  BOSTON:  Jan-Michael Gambill (protection)

7.  SACRAMENTO:  Mark Knowles (protection)

8.  WASHINGTON:  Arina Rodionova (protection)

Round Two 

1.  PHILADELPHIA:  Kristyna Pliskova

2.  SPRINGFIELD:  Maria Sanchez

3.  ORANGE COUNTY:  John-Patrick Smith

4.  NEW YORK:  Jesse Witten (protection)

5.  KANSAS CITY:  Aisam-Ul-Haq Qureshi

6.  BOSTON:  Eric Butorac (protection)

7.  SACRAMENTO:  Jean-Julien Rojer

8.  WASHINGTON:  Leander Paes (protection)

Round Three   

1.  PHILADELPHIA:  Luka Gregorc

2.  SPRINGFIELD:  Amir Weintraub

3.  ORANGE COUNTY:  Travis Parrott

4.  NEW YORK:  Ashley Harkleroad (protection)

5.  KANSAS CITY:  Nick Monroe

6.  BOSTON:  Irina Falconi (protection)

7.  SACRAMENTO:  Asia Muhammed

8.  WASHINGTON:  Bobby Reynolds (protection)

Round Four 

1.  PHILADELPHIA:  Jordan Kerr

2.  SPRINGFIELD:  Devin Britton

3.  ORANGE COUNTY:  PASS

4.  NEW YORK:  PASS

5.  KANSAS CITY:  Tetiana Luzhanska

6.  BOSTON:  Carly Gullickson

7.  SACRAMENTO:  Yasmin Schnack (protection)

8.  WASHINGTON:  Anastasia Rodionova (doubles protection)  

2012 WTT TEAM ROSTERS (including Marquee & Roster players):

Boston Lobsters:  John Isner, Jan-Michael Gambill, Eric Butorac, Irina Falconi and Carly Gullickson.  Coach: Bud Schultz

Kansas City Explorers:  Bob Bryan, Mike Bryan, Chanel Simmonds, Aisam-Ul-Haq Qureshi, Nick Monroe, Tetiana Luzhanska.  Coach: Brent Haygarth

New York Sportimes:  John McEnroe, Martina Hingis, Robert Kendrick, Jesse Witten, Ashley Harkleroad.   Coach: Chuck Adams

Orange County Breakers:  Lindsay Davenport, Anna-lena Groenefeld, John-Patrick Smith, Travis Parrott.  Coach:  Trevor Kronemann

Philadelphia Freedoms:   James Blake, Mark Philippoussis, Karolina Pliskova, Kristyna Pliskova, Luka Gregorc, Jordan Kerr.  Coach:  Josh Cohen

Sacramento Capitals:  Mardy Fish, Coco Vandeweghe, Mark Knowles, Jean-Julien Rojer, Asia Muhammed, Yasmin Schnack.  Coach: Wayne Bryan

Springfield Lasers:  Timea Babos, Maria Sanchez, Amir Weintraub, Devin Britton.    Coach:  John-Laffnie de Jager

Washington Kastles:  Serena Williams, Venus Williams, Arina Rodionova, Anastasia Rodionova, Leander Paes and Bobby Reynolds. Coach: Murphy Jensen