Local tennis player aces national tourney
A local tennis player finished one match away from victory at a regional tennis tournament over the Thanksgiving holiday.
Olivia Mikkelson, 14, placed second in both doubles and singles at the USTA Regional Tournament at Darling Tennis Center in Las Vegas.
The invitation-only tournament gave Mikkelson a chance to compete against nationally ranked players across the Western United States.
Mikkelson lost a close match in the finals for the singles tournament. She lost both sets by close scores of 7-5 and 6-4 against Makenna Thiel of Piedmont, California.
Mikkelson and her partner, Bitsy Tullis of Centerville, Utah, lost in the doubles tournament finals 8-2 against Makenna Thiel and Chloe Blakey of Rolling Hills Estates, California.
After the tournament Mikkelson said she was proud of her performance.
“I played really well in this last tournament; in both finals matches me and my partner played well. The other players just deserved it more,” she said. “After the match all of my friends were calling me asking me to be their doubles partner at the next tournament.”
Mikkelson will head to Tucson, Arizona, on Dec. 26 for the Winter Nationals tournament, which she was invited to as the top-seeded player.
She is the only Nevada player invited to the tournament.
Contact reporter Max Lancaster at mlancaster@bouldercityreview.com or at 702-586-9401. Follow him on Twitter @MLancasterBCR.
