NY’s Loeb Falls to Wozniacki in Pro Debut

September 1, 2015 | By New York Tennis Magazine Staff
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New York native Jamie Loeb went 84-9 in her college singles career at The University of North Carolina and won the 2015 NCAA National Singles Championship. This was a different day, on a different level, against a much different opponent, as Loeb made her professional debut Tuesday in front of family and friends at the U.S. Open on the court of Arthur Ashe Stadium against the fourth-seeded Caroline Wozniacki.

Loeb played well early on and held her first service game. At 2-1, Wozniacki was able to break serve and at 5-2 in the first set, she broke again to win the first set 6-2. In the second set, Wozniacki, the runner-up at the 2014 U.S. Open and making her ninth appearance in Flushing Meadows, took control. She was relentless from the baseline and chased everything down, always keeping one more ball in play, and forcing Loeb to go for too much at times. Wozniacki is a veteran on Arthur Ashe Stadium Court and it showed today.

After the match, Wozniacki was very gracious in speaking about Loeb.

“Jamie was in a difficult spot (playing her first career match in such in a pressure situation), but she will gain a lot of experience out of this,” said Wozniacki. “I think she handled everything well."

While the results weren't what she had hoped for, Loeb said, "I had fun today. I always dreamed of playing on Ashe. I hit there this morning, looked up and took it all in."

Loeb will continue to train in New York as she embarks on her pro career, training at The John McEnroe Tennis Academy (JMTA) on Randall’s Island with her coach, Felix Alvarado. She called JMTA "a second home,” and mentioned her goal moving forward into 2016 is to make the qualies at the Aussie Open and return to Flushing Meadows next August for the 2016 U.S. Open.

 


New York Tennis Magazine Staff
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