Little Rock's Taylor Shaw knew she had a formidable opponent Monday in the United States Tennis Association Southern Closed Boys and Girls 16's Championship.
Her foresight was proven accurate throughout her 6-3, 7-6 third-round victory over Brianna Taranto of Raleigh, N.C.
Shaw, 16, won the first set through a series of contested games against Taranto, 16, in the tournament hosted for the fourth consecutive year by Rebasmen Tennis Center in Little Rock.
Girls played their third round at North Little Rock's Burns Park Tennis Center. Early morning rain and mist delayed matches an hour, and Shaw's match with Taranto progressed through the first set under an overcast sky. But after Taranto paused for a bathroom break between sets, the sun reappeared. According to the National Weather Service, the heat index in North Little Rock increased from 78 degrees to 85 degrees over the 1-hour, 55-minute course of Shaw's and Taranto's match.
Despite the heat and humidity, Taranto said her brief time away from the court between sets helped.
"You're away from the court and you can get your mind some place else," she said.
Taranto said she adjusted as much as possible to the hard pace of Shaw's shots, and it showed as she broke Shaw's serve to take a 4-3 second set advantage.
"Her game is really just hitting it hard," Taranto said. "Whatever ball you give her, she just hits it hard wherever you're not. You have to recover quickly against her, and I wasn't really doing that."
"I don't really know where it comes from, but I like to hit the ball," Shaw said. "It's kind of natural. I just have natural pace. I've always liked to hit the ball, but she can hit the ball, too. She's a really good player."
Shaw said the quality of Taranto's play clearly improved in the second set.
"She definitely got a lot more balls back," Shaw said. "She got more consistent. She looked more relaxed. I could definitely tell that in her game. Her serve looked better, a little stronger. It threw me off a little bit. She's definitely a good player, without a doubt."
Shaw regained the advantage and led 6-5 before Taranto held serve to force a tiebreaker. Shaw won it 7-3 to advance to the fourth round.
"I really played badly," Taranto said. "I definitely feel I should have come a lot closer to winning. I did not play my best today."
Shaw's long-term tennis goals include playing for a prominent NCAA Division I program. She said a successful professional career is likely beyond her ability level.
Her wish list includes an academic scholarship to attend Villanova to pursue a career as a lawyer.
"I know what I want, and I think I know the limits to what I can be," Shaw said.
On summer break from Little Rock Christian, Shaw said the quality of her play in this tournament is meaningful.
"I want to do well," she said. "It's really important to me. All these girls are so tough, though, that if I lose, there won't be any hard feelings, and I think I've played well so far."
Sports on 06/13/2017