Mixed Singles Results for Tadevosians

Brothers Hakop and Samuel Tadevosian don’t resemble each other, play different styles of tennis, and on Thursday they had different results in the first day of the 101st Ojai tournament.

Hakop Tadevosian, a freshman at Hoover High, was beaten by Patrick Buchanan of Servite, 6-0, 6-3, in the CIF Interscholastic division.

Samuel, a 14-year-old who will attend Hoover next year, beat Tyler Lee of Bermuda Dunes, 7-5, 6-3, in the boys’ 14-and-under division.

Hakop, 15, was the victim of a slow start and his own ambitious scheduling.

After winning the 14-and-under division last year, he could have competed in the 16-and-under bracket this time. Instead, he opted to make the jump to the tournament’s highest junior division, where he was among the youngest players in the draw.

“I wanted to play with the big boys,” he said. “I thought I might as well see how I measure up.

“I’m only going to get better by playing better players.”

Buchanan never allowed Tadevosian to mount an attack.

Samuel lived up to his standing as the top boys’ 14s player in Southern California, according to U.S. Tennis Assn. rankings.

He plays Ahmad Mohammadpour of Arcadia at 2 p.m. today.

“I just hope Sammy does well,” said Hakop, ranked No. 95 in Southern California in the boys’ 16s division. He reached as high as No. 17 in Southern California in 14s last year. “We’ll see if he can follow in my footsteps [at Ojai].”

Samuel won a Southern California sectional title as a 12-year-old and was ranked No. 6 in the boys’ 14s division last year.

“This is probably the biggest jump I’ve ever made,” said Hakop, a sandy-haired, slightly built teenager whose coloring and aggressive, quick-striking style contrast markedly with the darker looks and more cerebral play of his brother.

“As good as I feel like I’ve been playing lately, I have to be realistic, too,” Hakop said.

“The players in this division are on a whole new level.”

He wasn’t up to it against Buchanan.

“I think he needs one year more,” said Harout Khatchatrian, the Tadevosians’ private coach since Hakop was 7 years old and Samuel was 6.

“He can play one good match at a high level, or two good matches. But doing it for a whole tournament is hard.”

While concentration is difficult, the shots come easily.

“He has very good shots,” Khatchatrian said. “He can hit the forehand, serve, backhand, anything. I think he has a very good future.”

The future might be now for Samuel Tadevosian.

He is the No. 2-seeded player in his division at Ojai.

“Instead of just hitting the ball, I’m thinking on my feet more,” he said.

“I think my tactics are much better this year.”

So does his brother.

“I think Sam will win,” Hakop said.

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Much of the intricate and demanding work that goes into the tournament is done beforehand.

Joan Johnson, for example, is a tournament coordinator and supervises the determination of the draws under the guidance of competition chairwoman Caroline Thacher.

The two are instrumental in determining the draws for 34 divisions, based on players’ rankings, records and recent performances, plus input from USTA officials and college coaches.

Johnson also is responsible for tracking players’ schedules and results through the tournament while based at Ojai Valley Tennis Club headquarters across the street from Libbey Park.

A former athletic director and tennis coach at Los Angeles State College (now Cal State Los Angeles), Johnson played in the Ojai tournament while at USC in the 1950s.

She has been serving as a tournament coordinator since 1977.

“I love Ojai,” Johnson said. “I love working on a project, and doing the schedule is like working on a puzzle.

“Some way or other, the pieces fall into place. And it keeps me involved with the game, too.”