Corona del Mar’s Leslie Gets Herself Going in Back Draw

Local players in the 18-year-old age bracket did not exactly tear up the Southern California Junior Sectionals last week at Los Caballeros Racquet Club. Not one player in the boys’ 18s or girls’ 18s reached the quarterfinals of the main draw.

But there was one performance worth noting. Caylan Leslie of Corona del Mar High won the consolation bracket Sunday with a 6-3, 6-3 victory over Morisa Yang of Torrance. Along the way, the 10th-seeded Leslie defeated 12th-seeded Kim Nguyen of Saddleback, 16th-seeded Kelly Ramirez of Ontario, ninth-seeded Amber Liu of La Mesa and unseeded Jieun Jacobs of Valencia.

“I thought I had nothing to lose in the back draw,” said Leslie, who lost to second-seeded Bernadette Bayani of Simi Valley, 6-3, 3-6, 6-1, in the round of 16 main draw. “I just went after it and everything just seemed to click.”

Leslie, who won the Ojai 18s against a watered-down field, will prepare for next month’s National Clay Courts at the Evert Academy in South Florida. She also will play the National Hardcourts in San Jose in August.

LIKE BROTHER, LIKE SISTER

Until recently, Tracy Lin was known as Eric Lin’s little sister and Natalie Braverman was Brandis Braverman’s little sister. But that is starting to change. Lin, who will be an eighth grader this fall at El Rancho Middle School in Anaheim, won her third girls’ 12s title of the year Sunday at the sectionals and Braverman, a sophomore-to-be at Newport Harbor, reached the girls’ 16s final at Los Caballeros.

“I used to be Eric’s little sister, but now some people are seeing Eric and saying ‘That’s Tracy’s older brother,’ ” Lin said.

Eric Lin, a Canyon High graduate, was a nationally ranked junior who played four years at UCLA. Lin, entering his third year of medical school at UCLA, watched Sunday as his little sister claimed her first sectional title.

Brandis Braverman, once one of the nation’s top-ranked juniors and now a professional player, was also on hand to watch her sister lose in straight sets to top-seeded Luana Magnani of Pasadena.

Nonetheless, she was impressed with her 15-year-old sister: “My sister has the potential to be a good pro with the kind of power she possesses.”

OLSON RETIRES

Sam Olson, Eric Lin’s former coach, was on an adjoining court Sunday watching Sunny Hills High’s Joseph Kao play in the boys’ 16 final. Kao is the only player Olson is actively coaching. After 14 years of lessons and clinics, Olson is leaving tennis for real estate.

“I had a lot of fun in tennis, but real estate is more financially rewarding,” said Olson, who also coached national junior champions and current pros Kevin Kim of Sunny Hills and Meilen Tu of Northridge. “I accomplished what I wanted to.”