Wimbledon Dreams: Southern California’s
Road to the Lawn

Wimbledon qualifying kicked off with a SoCal sizzle, and the gentlemen came ready to make some serious grass-stained noise across the pond. Out of six Southern California-connected players in the men’s draw, five powered their way into round two.

Zach Svajda (No. 232) was first to light it up. The Pacific Beach native played like he had a tee time at Centre Court, breezing past Austria’s Lukas Neumayer 6-2, 6-3 in a tidy straight-sets win. Up next? A showdown with the top seed in the qualifying draw, Hungary’s Marton Fucsovics (No. 103). Buckle up. It’s going to be a battle of straight-set steamrollers.

Then came Yannick Hanfmann, World No. 137, No. 27 seed in the qualifying draw, and a former USC Trojan with a game as strong as his serve. The German powerhouse delivered a composed and convincing 7-5, 6-2 win over France’s Hugo Grenier, never looking rattled for a second. He’ll face Kazakhstan’s Beibit Zhukayev (No. 251) in round two, bringing that same cool, calculated confidence to the court.

If drama is your thing, Emilio Nava (No. 119) delivered. In a match that could’ve gone either way, the Woodland Hills native and No. 13 qualifying seed, edged past Mitchell Krueger in two nail-biting tiebreaks: 7-6(6), 7-6(3). His reward? A second-round match against Swiss lefty Dominic Stricker (No. 244). Keep the popcorn handy.

Toreros on fire? You bet.

August Holmgren, the pride of San Diego (and Denmark), continues his run of Grand Slam magic. Now 3-for-3 in making it past round one of qualifying, the World No. 195 roared back from a set down to defeat Brit wildcard Giles Hussey 4-6, 6-3, 7-5. Next stop: a tricky clash with Kazakhstan’s Mikhail Kukushkin (No. 190).

And just one court over, his University of San Diego teammate Oliver Tarvet delivered one of the day’s biggest upsets. The Brit wildcard, an honorary SoCal son, stunned the No. 14 seed, Terence Atmane of France, with a 6-1, 7-6(2) victory that had the home crowd buzzing. He’ll now face Canadian Alexis Galarneau (No. 210) with third-round dreams on the line.

As for Tristan Boyer, the match couldn’t have been tighter. The Stanford standout and Altadena native dropped two heartbreaking tiebreaks to France’s Luka Pavlovic, 6-7(7), 6-7(7). A tough exit, but a gutsy performance all the same.

Next up: SoCal’s women, ready to turn up the heat in qualifying

After a strong showing from the SoCal men on day one, it’s time for the women to take center stage, and leading the charge is rising star Iva Jovic.

Fresh off cracking the WTA Top 100 and capturing her first WTA 125 title at the Ilkley Open, the 17-year-old Torrance native is riding a wave of momentum into Wimbledon qualifying. But this won’t be her first taste of SW19. Last year, Jovic captured the Junior Wimbledon doubles crown alongside her go-to partner Tyra Caterina Grant, marking their second junior major together.

“Playing the juniors last year was such a good experience to get used to the grounds and what everything looks like,” Jovic said. “I feel a lot less intimidated by the atmosphere having that experience from last year. I’m hoping to take the positives from my success at last year’s Wimbledon and my title (at Ilkley) and use it as confidence for the upcoming qualifying rounds. It will not be easy, but I look forward to the battle. That is the fun part!”

Now the No. 3 seed in the qualifying draw, Jovic kicks things off against 21-year-old Polish contender Linda Klimovicova (No. 186). Should she advance, she could face either Taylah Preston or Julia Riera in Round 2, with potential final-round opponents including Katarzyna Kawa, Julia Grabher, Amarni Banks, or Ranah Stoiber.

The goal? Punch her ticket into the women’s main draw at Wimbledon for the very first time, and prove that her breakout summer is just getting started.

She’s no stranger to Wimbledon’s iconic grass courts, but this year, Ena Shibahara is stepping into uncharted territory.

The Rancho Palos Verdes native and former UCLA All-American, now representing Japan, is making her singles debut at Wimbledon. Ranked No. 120 and seeded No. 21 in the qualifying draw, Shibahara has already left her mark in doubles, reaching the women’s semifinals in 2021 and the mixed doubles quarterfinals just last year.

Now, she’s looking to carve out a new legacy.

Last month, Shibahara reached the second round of qualifying at Roland Garros, but her biggest singles breakthrough came at her Grand Slam debut at the 2024 US Open. There, she stormed through three rounds of qualifying and advanced to the second round of the main draw in New York, a run that proved she has the game to hang on tennis’ biggest stages.

Her Wimbledon qualifying journey begins against Switzerland’s Stefanie Voegele. Should she advance, she’ll face either fellow Japanese player Sara Saito or Spain’s Marina Bassols Ribera in round two. A potential third-round clash could come against the likes of Lea Boskovic, Justina Mikulskyte, Nuria Párrizas Díaz, or Linda Fruhvirtova.

It’s a new chapter for Shibahara, but if her past results are any indicator, don’t count her out. This former Bruin knows how to rise to the occasion.

Fontana’s Hanna Chang (No. 227) returns for her third Wimbledon singles qualifying appearance, having previously competed in 2022 and 2024. She’s aiming to match, or surpass, her best result of reaching the second round. Chang opens against Lola Radivojevic, with a potential second-round matchup against Antonia Ruzic or Emerson Jones. A win there could set up her first-ever third-round qualifying appearance, where Oleksandra Oliynykova, Mona Barthel, Alina Charaeva, or Diane Parry may await with a main draw berth on the line.

Santa Barbara’s Kayla Day (No. 463) is back on the grass and ready to battle through qualifying. She opens against Germany’s Ella Seidel, the No. 13 seed, in a tough first-round matchup. Should she advance, she’ll likely face either Mai Hontama or Jule Niemeier in round two, with a potential third-round clash against Daria Snigur or Jana Fett for a spot in the main draw.

With the men already making noise and the women stepping in with serious momentum, Southern California’s presence at Wimbledon qualifying is impossible to ignore. From gritty comebacks to breakout opportunities, the road to the main draw is just heating up, and #TeamSoCal is ready for the fight.

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