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Home , Aleksandra Wozniak, Allie Will, Angela Haynes, Anne Keothavong, Jacqueline Cako, Jana Nejedly

THE ASCENSION PROJECT WOMEN’S CHALLENGER

REDDING, CA * SEPTEMBER 7-14, 2014 Preview Notes as of Sept. 5, 2014

TOURNAMENT OVERVIEW Site: Sun Oaks & Fitness – Redding, Calif. Qualifying Draw: Begins on Sunday, Sept. 7 Main Draw: Begins on Tuesday, Sept. 9 Surface: Hard / Outdoor Prize Money: $25,000 Web sites: www.ascensionproject.com, www.procircuit.usta.com Facebook: Sun Oaks Tennis & Fitness Twitter: @sun_oaks

Tournament Director: Julie Garcia, (530) 227-3498, [email protected]

USTA Communications Contacts: Amanda Korba, (914) 697-2219, [email protected]

THE ASCENSION PROJECT WOMEN’S CHALLENGER RETURNS TO REDDING FOR 12TH YEAR ON THE USTA PRO CIRCUIT

The Ascension Project Women’s Challenger will be held in Redding for the 12th consecutive year. It is the first USTA Pro Circuit women’s event following the 2014 US Open and one of four USTA Pro Circuit women’s events hosted in California this year.

Notable players competing in the main draw include:

Top seed Mayo Hibi, who represents but lives in Irvine, Calif. Hibi won the 2013 US Open National Playoffs, earning a into the 2013 US Open qualifying event. She won her second and third career USTA Pro Circuit singles titles last year and started strong on the USTA Pro Circuit this year, reaching four singles quarterfinals. Hibi was also a standout junior, peaking at No. 22 in the ITF World Junior Rankings. She reached the singles semifinals of the junior US Open and the Easter Bowl in 2013.

2012 Redding doubles champion , who earned a wild card into the 2014 US Open mixed doubles draw after winning the US Open National Playoffs, an open tournament for all players 14 years of age and over and of all levels. Cako and her partner Joel Kielbowicz lost to young American and former Top 50 player Donald Young in the first round of this year’s US Open mixed doubles. Cako and Kielbowicz met at a tournament in Arizona earlier this year and were playing together for the first time this summer. Cako completed her outstanding NCAA career last year at Arizona State University, where she received All-America honors. She also competed on the USTA Collegiate Team. Cako has thrived in doubles on the USTA Pro Circuit, winning six titles and peaking at No. 169 in the world in doubles last September. In 2013, Cako and fellow American reached the doubles quarterfinals at the Emirates Airline US Open Series event in Stanford, Calif.

Defending doubles champion , who completed her outstanding college career in 2013 at the University of Florida by being named the ITA National College Player of the Year. Embree went 26-3 in her final year for the Gators at the No. 1 singles spot, and she compiled a staggering 117-16 singles record during her college career. As a pro in 2013, she won her second USTA Pro Circuit singles title at the $10,000 event in Fort Worth, Texas, and reached the second round at the $50,000 event in Lexington, Ky. In 2009, she won a USTA wild-card playoff to earn a berth into the main draw of the , where she lost in the opening round to former world No. 3 .

Jennifer Brady, who finished her freshman year this past season at UCLA and competed as a part of UCLA’s 2014 NCAA Championship-winning team. As a junior, Brady peaked at No. 36 in the ITF World Junior Rankings in October 2012 and competed in the junior US Open, French Open and Wimbledon.

Alexandra Stevenson, who drew international attention in 1999 by becoming the first female qualifier in Wimbledon history to reach the semifinals. She was ranked in the year-end Top 100 each year from 1999 to 2003, peaking at No. 18 in 2002. Injuries drove her ranking into the 600s in 2005, but Stevenson rebounded to climb back into the Top 200 in 2009, advancing to the final at the $50,000 USTA Pro Circuit event in Carson, Calif., for her best result on the USTA Pro Circuit since 1998. She is the daughter of basketball Hall- of-Famer Julius Erving.

Caitlin Whoriskey, a former University of Tennessee standout, who was named the 2010 College Senior Player of the Year after leading the Volunteers to the quarterfinals of the NCAA Tournament for the first time in eight seasons. Whoriskey captured her first career USTA Pro Circuit singles title this May at the $10,000 event in Hilton Head Island, S.C., where she also won the doubles crown. She has also captured seven USTA Pro Circuit and ITF-level doubles titles throughout the world. This year, Whoriskey won the US Open National Playoffs, earning a wild card into US Open qualifying, where she won her first round match.

Former world No. 158 Lauren Albanese, who reached at least one USTA Pro Circuit final each year from 2006 to 2009 and advanced to two semifinals in an injury-shortened 2011. Last year, Albanese won her first USTA Pro Circuit singles title in seven years, taking the title at the $10,000 event in Austin, Texas. She won the USTA Girls’ 18s title in 2006 to earn a wild card into the US Open, where she advanced to the second round in women’s singles. She also competed in the US Open in 2007.

Tournament Points and Prize Money for $25,000 Women’s Level

Winner Runner-Up Semifinalist Quarterfinalist Round 16 Round 32 Singles Prize Money $3,919 $2,091 $1,114 $654 $392 $228 Singles WTA Ranking Points 50 30 18 9 5 1 Doubles Prize Money (team) $1,437 $719 $359 $196 $131 --

Community Events

Saturday, September 6 – Ascension Wine Tasting Fundraiser, 6:00 p.m.

Sunday, September 7 – Team Ascension Doubles Grand Prix, 6:00 p.m.

Monday, September 8 – Road to College Workshop, 6:30 p.m.

Tuesday, September 9 and Wednesday, September 10 – School Site Visits

Wednesday, September 10 – Sun Oaks Junior Clinic, 4:30 p.m.

Friday, September 12 – USTA Night

Saturday, September 13 – Kids’ Carnival, 9:00-10:30 a.m.; High School Girls’ Clinic, 11:00 a.m.; 10 and Under Tennis Exhibition

Sunday, September 14 – Special Olympics Clinic, 11:00 a.m.-12:30 p.m.

Redding Past Champions

Singles Year Winner Runner-Up 2013 Adriana Perez (VEN) (USA) 2012 (USA) (USA) 2011 (USA) (RUS) 2010 (USA) Jelena Pandzic (CRO) 2009 (USA) (JPN) 2008 Barbora Zahlavova Strycova (CZE) (CAN) 2007 Su-Wei Hsieh (TPE) Ekaterina Afinogenova (RUS) 2006 Diana Ospina (USA) (GBR) 2005 Lucie Safarova (CZE) Ivana Lisjak (CRO) 2004 Anne Keothavong (GBR) (USA) 2003 (CAN) Jie (CHN)

Doubles Year Winner 2013 Robin Anderson (USA) – Lauren Embree (USA) 2012 Jacqueline Cako (USA) – (USA) 2011 (USA) – (USA) 2010 (USA) – Yasmin Schnack (USA) 2009 Anna Orlik (BLR) – Masa Zec-Peskiric (SLO) 2008 (USA) – (USA) 2007 Chin-Wei Chan (TPE) – (USA) 2006 Vasilisa Bardina (RUS) – Ahsha Role (USA) 2005 Yulia Beygelzeimer (UKR) – Stephanie Dubois (CAN) 2004 (USA) – Mashona Washington (USA) 2003 Zi (CHN) – (CHN)

About the USTA Pro Circuit With approximately 90 tournaments hosted annually throughout the country and prize money ranging from $10,000 to $100,000, the USTA Pro Circuit is the pathway to the US Open and tour-level competition for aspiring tennis players and a frequent battleground for established professionals. Celebrating its 35th anniversary in 2014, the USTA launched its Pro Circuit to provide players with the opportunity to gain professional ranking points, and it has since grown to become the largest developmental tennis circuit in the world, offering nearly $3 million in prize money. Last year, more than 1,000 men and women from more than 70 countries competed in cities nationwide. John Isner, , Mardy Fish, , Sam Querrey, and Andy Murray are among today’s top stars who began their careers on the USTA Pro Circuit. The USTA Pro Circuit is world-class tennis administered on the local level and played on local tennis courts as part of the fabric of communities nationwide -- an opportunity for current and new fans to experience the excitement and intensity of the professional game in their neighborhood.