Top Seeds Breeze Into Semis

It was a day full of lopsided singles matches at the JSM Challenger. First, American Michael Russell (pictured) moved into the semis by handling qualifier Bjorn Rehnquist from start to finish. Russell raced to a 4-0 lead in the match and was never tested by the Swede. He will face a third qualifier in the semis as he will take on former No. 1 junior, Ricardas Berankis, who defeated Kaden Hensel. Berankis dominated the Australian 6-0, 6-2.

The No. 1 seed, Kevin Kim, continued his dominating play and dispatched of hard hitting Ryan Sweeting, 6-2, 6-2. Through his three matches this year, Kim has lost a total of twelve games. He'll face No. 4 seed, Taylor Dent, who overpowered Jesse Levine. While the two players haven't met in competition, they are familiar with each others' skills as they often train together. Tomorrow's semifinal between Kim and Dent should shape up to be a high-powered affair.

The defending doubles champion, Rajeev Ram, and his partner David Martin were ousted by Brian and Dann Battistone. The No. 1 seeded team of Ram and Martin dropped the first set but recovered to send the match into a third set super tiebreak. However, the brothers regained their composure and pulled away to secure their place in the semifinal. They'll face Jamie Delgado and John Paul Fruttero for a place in the final.

On the bottom half of the doubles draw both seeded teams advanced. The No. 2 seeded team of Treat Huey and Harsh Mankad defeated Dominic Inglot and Rylan Rizza. In the final quarterfinal match, Martin Emmrich and Andreas Siljstrom won two tiebreakers over Aswin Kumar and Ryan Rowe. The No. 4 seeds are aiming for their third doubles title in as many weeks.

Play at the Atkins Tennis Center on Friday, November 20 begins at noon. General admission tickets are $5 for adults and $3 for students. Come see tomorrow's tennis champions showcase their skills. Visit www.illinoischallenger.com for the latest tournament news, results, and updated schedules.