Tournament Feature
Weng Completes Collection with Gold Ball in 18s Singles
by Rhiannon Potkey, 18 July 2025
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No. 2 Nicole Weng was making progressive steps to obtaining the first gold ball of her junior career. The blue chip rising senior from South Pasadena, California won a silver ball in 16s singles last year at the USTA National Hard Court Championships, and a bronze ball in 18s singles at Easter Bowl in April.
Weng broke through last Sunday to complete the color scheme by capturing the title at the USTA Girls 18 National Clay Court Championships. Weng defeated No. 7 Janae Preston 6-4, 6-7(0), 6-1 in the final at LTP-Mount Pleasant in South Carolina.
Girls 18s Singles Champion Nicole Weng
© Contributed Photo
“It feels amazing just to think about. It’s kind of surreal,” Weng said. “I've never won an L1 before. To do it in the 18s age division and go through the 256 draw, that's exciting.”
Recalling the sweltering conditions she experienced last year in South Carolina, Weng prepared ahead of time to have her body ready to handle the humidity. The Vanderbilt commit had to call a medical timeout in the second round because “my head was spinning,” but didn’t have any more trouble in the remaining matches.
“I was taking much better care of my body, especially with hydration and nutrition in general,” Weng said. “I was just trying to fuel my body right, and I think that was a big help throughout this tournament.”
No. 17 Jordyn Hazelitt took out top seed Calla McGill 4-6, 7-6(3), 6-4 in the Round of 16 before losing to No. 17 Lucy Oyebog in the quarterfinals. Preston beat Oyebog 6-2, 2-6, 6-2 in the semifinals while Weng beat No. 10 Carlota Moreno 6-3, 6-3.
Having been rattled by nerves during the final at hard courts last year, Weng managed to remain more calm against Preston, a blue chip rising sophomore from Henderson, Nevada.
“The second set was tight, so in the third set I told myself to reset. I was like, she's not going to give you anything, and she's a great player, so you just have to go out and take it,” Weng said. “I just looked for all the opportunities I could get to try to gain the advantage in the point.”
Weng and Preston were doubles partners in the event, reaching the quarterfinals before being eliminated by eventual champions No. 10 Lillian Santos and Hazelitt.
“I think we've become good friends, but I think we both respect each other to the extent that we’re both going to go out and compete for the match,” Weng said of Preston. “We were both pretty nice with each other. It's just another match, and we can compete and still be friends after.”
Weng enjoys playing on clay, feeling her game style suits the surface.
“It makes you play with variety in your game, focusing on movement,” she said. “On hard courts, you can get away with hitting the ball really big. But I think clay makes people bring out different sides of the game, mentally and then obviously with different types of shots. It’s more fun.”
Weng didn’t get much chance to celebrate her title in the immediate aftermath, although she did enjoy a meal at a Dallas airport restaurant with her mom while waiting out a travel delay.
“I got really kind messages from some of my close friends who were tracking me and supporting me,” Weng said. “That was really nice to hear from them.”
Weng planned to take a few days off before she resumed training for hard court nationals to see if she can add another ball to her collection.
“I'm playing 18s this year, so I know it's going to be a stacked draw. Everyone comes,” she said. “There will be a lot of great players and matches, so I am just trying to prepare myself for that, and hopefully maybe go to the US Open.”
DOUBLES
Santos and Hazelitt captured the title by defeating No. 15 Francie Pate and Moreno 6-7(5), 6-3, 6-3 in the final.
Pate and Moreno had to play two three-setters on Sunday as opposed to just one match for Santos and Hazelitt. The duo beat No. 6 Anna Bugaienko and Danielle Young 2-6, 7-5, 6-3 in the semifinals before returning to the court a few hours later.
Other results
Singles Playoff 3-4: No. 10 Carlota Moreno def. No. 17 Lucy Oyebog 3-0 (retired/injury)
Singles Consolation: No. 17 Jordyn Hazelitt def. No. 17 Katie Spencer 6-2, 6-3
Doubles Playoff 3-4: No. 12 Ariana Gilbert/Briley Rhoden def. Bugaienko/Young (withdrew/injury)
Clay Court Coverage Wrap
And there you go - the final article of our coverage series. Check out any of the articles you might have missed, and read about all the gold balls awarded this week - as TRN wraps up our exclusive coverage of Clay Court Championship Week.
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About Rhiannon Potkey
Rhiannon Potkey is a veteran sportswriter with more than two
decades of experience in journalism. Potkey has covered many
sports at many levels and has a passion for finding great stories.
Potkey has covered the U.S. Open, junior sectional and national
events, college conference championships and Davis Cup matches.
Potkey is currently Content Strategist for Tennis Recruiting. You
can reach Rhiannon by email at
rhiannon@tennisrecruiting.net.
