Arseneault, Nicholson win singles titles at Under 18 Fischer Outdoor National Championship

Credit: Peter Figura

While the current faces of Canadian tennis were playing at the National Bank Open in Toronto and Montreal, the future of Canadian tennis was on display at the 2024 Under 18 Fischer Outdoor National Championship.

The week-long tournament was played at the Ontario Racquet Club in Mississauga, Ont.

Let’s check out the results for the boys’, girls’ and doubles’ draw.

Boys’ Draw

Top-seeded Mikael Arseneault defeated Eric Crivei 6-1, 6-7 (6), 6-2 in the final to capture his third Junior National Championship. He previously captured singles titles in the U12 Indoor and Outdoor National Championships in 2019.

The Richmond Hill, Ont., native broke through for the title after losses to his twin brother and doubles partner, Nicolas, in the semifinals of the 2024 Indoor Nationals and the quarter-finals of the 2023 Outdoor Nationals.

Arseneault defeated No. 5 seed Alec Barin 6-0, 6-1 in the quarter-final and Felix Roussel, the No. 3 seed and 2024 U16 Indoor National runner-up 6-4, 6-7 (5), 6-2 in the semis on his road to the National Championship.

Crivei, also from Richmond Hill, defeated 2024 U18 Ontario Provincial Champion Dani Szabo in the quarter-final and topped two-time Junior National Champion and No. 2 seed, Adam Faragcao 6-3, 6-4 in the semifinal to reach the final on Sunday.

Crivei has committed to the University of Kentucky for the 2024-25 season and will join a team looking to defend its SEC Regular Season and Tournament championships.

Girls’ Draw

No. 1 seed Scarlett Nicholson defeated third seed Brooke Feth 6-1, 6-3 to win her fifth Canadian National Championship, adding to her trophy case that includes two U12 doubles championships and two in singles competition (U12 and U14).

The Toronto native compiled a 12-9 singles record while being named to the All-ACC Academic Team in her Freshman year at Georgia Tech.

Nicholson defeated Dylan Gelber 6-0, 6-3 in the quarter-final and No. 5 Lily Rochon 6-4, 6-3 in the semifinal on her road to the title.

Feth has now finished as the runner-up in two consecutive Junior National tournaments after losing to Clemence Mercier in the final of the Fischer Under 16 Indoor National Championships in March. She defeated Amy Lu in the quarter-final and Anastasia Malysheva in the semifinal to reach the final.

Doubles

In the boys’ doubles, Lucas and Zackary Kimelman defeated the third-seeded team of Benjamin Azar and Brayden William Woo 7-5, 6-4 in the final to claim the title. It’s the first National Championship for the brothers, who previously teamed to win the Yonex Ontario Junior Doubles Championships in 2021.

Lucas signed a National Letter of Intent to play for the University of Portland for the 2024-25 season.

In the girls’ draw, Amy Lu and Katherine Zhang defeated Clemence Mercier and Neda Rahimkhani 2-6, 6-4, 10-6 to capture the championship.

Lu, a native of British Columbia, continues her excellent 2024 season after winning the doubles title at both the U16 Indoor and Outdoor Provincial Championships. She was also runner-up in the singles draws at both events.

Zhang was runner-up at the U18 Ontario Closed Indoor Provincial Championships.

Written By

Jonathan Chan