Here’s how youth tennis is growing on the Big Island: nurture some seeds and by summer a whole bunch of promising flowers are filled with national-climbing aspirations.
Waiakea incoming sophomores Anna Oda and Keilyn Kunimoto headline the list of 14 junior players who qualified for national tournaments this summer, an unprecedented number and testament to the high-level competitive tennis on the island.
In the current United State Tennis Association Hawaii Pacific section girls 16 rankings, Oda and Kunimoto are listed at No. 1 and 2 in the state, respectively. The reward is a huge one. They both qualified for the USTA Summer National Championships in San Diego.