TENNIS / DANA HADDAD : Boisclair Sending a National Warning

Florida was on full-scale alert for Hurricane Erin this week, but the 128-player draw at the United States Tennis Assn. National Championships in San Jose should be on alert for a different Erin come Sunday.

By then, Erin Boisclair will have arrived from her temporary residence in Tampa, Fla., hoping to take the girls’ 18-and-under field at the Almaden Valley Athletic Club by storm.

Seeded sixth, she’ll be one of the favorites. Boisclair, 15, an Agoura Hills resident who attends Palmer Academy in Tampa full time, has been on the threshold of a national championship for the better part of two years.

She was seeded No. 1 in the girls’ 16 tournament last year but faltered in the quarterfinals because she put too much pressure on herself.

Jumping to the 18s in 1995, in April she reached the semifinals of the Easter Bowl in Palm Springs, the nation’s largest invitational. Less than two weeks ago, she reached the final of the USTA National Clay Court tournament, losing to Lilia Osterloh of Canal Winchester, Ohio, 6-1, 6-1.

But this week her most difficult task was getting to San Jose. On Monday, Boisclair’s flight out of Florida was canceled because strong winds and heavy rain grounded the originating flight out of Miami. The Boisclair entourage couldn’t get out of Florida until Wednesday.

“Hurricane Erin, go figure that one out,” Alan Ma, Boisclair’s coach, said Tuesday. “We want to get out of here, because it’s raining and we can’t practice.”

Boisclair says she’s ready, and this year she vows not to succumb to pressure.

“Actually, nobody’s putting pressure on me,” she said. “The only person that has any expectations of me is me. I’m playing pretty well right now.”

Boisclair, a hard-hitting baseliner, started charging the net this summer while playing junior tournaments in Europe.

She reached the semifinals of the Cadets Masters in La Baule, France, and the quarterfinals of two events in Italy.

But Boisclair said she is still not comfortable enough to serve and volley.

“I just try to finish off the point and not let the opponent start the point over on me,” she said. “In that sense, that fits with my personality. I’m not looking to finesse the ball at the net.”

Speaking of personalities, Boisclair and Ma appeared to have switched roles. Boisclair is the confident one on the eve of the nationals, while Ma is nervous.

“I’m concerned about mental fatigue,” Ma said, noting that Boisclair has played 10 events in a 15-week span. “That’s a lot of tournaments. It might be too much for anybody to handle.

“They always say they can keep going. I tried to give her the analogy of a race car. She doesn’t want to stop. But you got to stop, change a tire and get gas once in a while.

“Obviously, she’s very confident and very focused.”

At age 14, Boisclair said her sole dream in life was to play professional tennis. While a pro career could be on the horizon, Boisclair for the past two years has been flirting with a national championship.

In 1993, her year-end ranking in girls’ 14s was No. 6. She was 13.

In 1994, she jumped to the 16-and-under division and finished No. 2.

Also hanging in the balance is an invitation to join the U.S. Junior National team.

A victory next week in San Jose could be the springboard to a bright future. That fact is not lost on Boisclair.

“If you win this thing, oh, God,” she said. “It’s big. It can basically change your life. You get a wild card in the U.S. Open main draw. Basically, you’re in the pros right there.

“But I’m not going to think about that. I’m going round by round.”

*

Former Harvard-Westlake High player Romy Mehlman returned from a European tour last week, having won three tournaments and enjoyed one of her high points in tennis, to receive news of a tragedy.

Driving home from the airport, Mehlman’s parents told her that her doubles partner, one of her best friends, had died.

Julie Banks of Victorville, who had been diagnosed as a manic depressive, committed suicide while Mehlman was away winning a singles title and two doubles championships in the Netherlands.

When she got home, Mehlman was hoping to spend time with Banks before the two were to go off to college on tennis scholarships--Mehlman to Illinois, Banks to Boston University.

Having been touched for the first time by a death of someone close to her, Mehlman is struggling to understand depression.

“I wish I could have seen it,” Mehlman said. “I wish I could have known. I wish I could have helped her. She was an energetic person who always smiled. She never seemed depressed to me, and I know people who are negative and depressed.

“She never hid her feelings from me. But I guess I really didn’t know her as well as I thought.”

Mehlman’s last playing experience with Banks ended on a sad note.

Seeded fourth in the Southern California sectional championships in June, Banks and Mehlman had reached the semifinals in 18 doubles, but they had to default because Mehlman had suffered a leg injury.

“I don’t understand how somebody with that much potential, making all these plans. . . . We talked about playing really great tennis in college and being partners again on the pro tour,” Mehlman said. “It was like it was set up. We were both really excited.

“I tried playing doubles the other day, and it was hard. I was thinking about her. I’m really going to miss her, and I’m always going to remember her.”