Stanford freshman upsets sixth seed in NCAAs

Stanford freshman Carol Zhao, shown on May 10 at Stanford,
upset sixth-seeded Lauren Herring of host Georgia to reach the
round of 16 in the NCAA Championships and earn All-America
status. Tri Nguyen/TriNguyenPhotography.com

   Stanford's Carol Zhao, a freshman from Canada, upset sixth-seeded Lauren Herring of host Georgia 7-6 (4), 7-5 today to reach the round of 16 at the NCAA Championships in Athens, Ga.
   Zhao's teammate, third-seeded Kristie Ahn, also advanced. The senior from Upper Saddle River, N.J., defeated UCLA's Kyle McPhillips 6-4, 6-2 in a matchup of players who have clinched the last two NCAA team titles. Ahn won at No. 2 singles against Texas A&M last year, and McPhillips triumphed at No. 3 against North Carolina on Tuesday.
   Joining Zhao and Ahn as All-Americans in the round of 16 were 9-16 seed Jenny Jullien of Saint Mary's and Lynn Chi of Cal. Jullien, a senior from France, beat USC's Giuliana Olmos of Fremont 6-3, 7-6 (4).
   Falling in the second round were Stanford's Krista Hardebeck, Taylor Davidson and Caroline Doyle, and Cal's Anett Schutting and Zsofi Susanyi.
   Schutting was seeded 9-16, and Susanyi reached the semifinals two years ago as a freshman.
   Hardebeck, a sophomore from Santa Ana, had upset fourth-seeded Julia Elbaba of Virginia.
   The team of Ahn and Zhao also reached the round of 16 in doubles.
   On the men's side, Cal senior Ben McLachlan and UCLA freshman Mackenzie McDonald, from Piedmont in the San Francisco Bay Area, advanced to the round of 16.
   No seeds remain in the top half of the draw. Only three are left in the bottom half, where McLachlan and McDonald reside.

NCAA CHAMPIONSHIPS
In Athens, Ga.

(Players with Northern California ties only)

Women's singles

Second round

   Lynn Chi, Cal, def. Romy Kolzer, Clemson, 7-5, 6-1.
   Kristie Ahn (3), Stanford, def. Kyle McPhillips, UCLA, 6-4, 6-2.
   Abigail Tere-Apisah, Georgia State, def. Zsofi Susanyi, Cal, 7-6 (3), 6-1.
   Silvia Garcia (9-16), Georgia, def. Taylor Davidson, Stanford, 6-0, 6-7 (6), 7-5.
   Carol Zhao, Stanford, def. Lauren Herring (6), Georgia, 7-6 (4), 7-5.
   Ester Goldfeld, Duke, def. Krista Hardebeck, Stanford, 5-7, 6-3, 6-2.
   Jenny Jullien (9-16), Saint Mary's, def. Giuliana Olmos, USC/Fremont, 6-3, 7-6 (4).
   Danielle Collins, Virginia, def. Anett Schutting (9-16), Cal, 6-3, 6-3.
   Robin Anderson (2), UCLA, def. Caroline Doyle, Stanford, 6-2, 6-3.

Women's doubles

First round

   Kristie Ahn and Carol Zhao, Stanford, def. Julia Fellerhoff and Rebecca Shine, Louisville, 4-6, 6-3, 6-2.

Men's singles

Second round

   Ben McLachlan, Cal, def. Andrew Harris, Oklahoma, 7-5, 6-4.
   Mackenzie McDonald, UCLA/Piedmont, def. Jason Tahir, Duke, 6-4, 6-3.

Men's doubles

First round

   Gregory Bayane and Chase Melton, Cal, def. Becker O'Shaughnessey and Daniil Proskura (5-8), Alabama, 7-6 (5), 6-4.
   Marcos Giron and Mackenzie McDonald, UCLA (McDonald is from Piedmont), def. Casey MacMaster and Denis Nguyen, Harvard, 7-6 (2), 4-6, 7-6 (2).