Thirteen JTCC students were honored for their commitment to excellence in the classroom and on the court on May 31 as they were officially recognized as the JTCC School Class of ‘23, joining the more than 315 other successful alumni. All nine graduates in attendance were dressed to impress in front of the more than 100 proud parents, families, alumni, and friends of the graduates with beautiful weather on Pershing Square Center Court. “The JTCC Graduation is a capstone event that our entire staff looks forward to every year,” Director of School Mark Santangelo commented. “We are always excite ..read more

After enjoying spectacular Division I collegiate seasons, nine JTCC alumni will compete for the prestigious National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) individual and team championships in the next two weeks.  “We are so pleased with this impressive group of alumni who will be competing for national titles at the highest level of the collegiate game,” said JTCC CEO Ray Benton. “This is truly the culmination of at least a dozen years of hard work and discipline on and off the court.” Five women and four men will be seeded highly in team and individual competition when the NCAA Divisio ..read more

Mikael Carpenter’s junior season at Morgan State is one for the record books. The JTCC alumnus, who finished the year 13-2 playing No. 1 singles, was recognized for his sensational record when he was named 2023 Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) Men’s Tennis Player of the Year. The honor proved historic as Carpenter was the first Morgan State player to earn the Player of the Year accolade. “It’s a great feeling knowing I’m the first person from Morgan State to win the award, and I’m excited to win more next year,” said a beaming Carpenter who received the award at the team’s postseas ..read more

Three JTCC high performance players, Imani Jean, Mason Robbins, and Ameera Malik, have announced their intentions to play tennis at the next level!  Imani Jean has verbally committed to play NCAA Division I tennis in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference for Howard University, an HBCU in Washington, DC. Jean is the third member of her family to attend the university, with her father being a 1991 alumnus, and her older brother, Fritz Julian currently enrolled. She will join JTCC alumna Jordan Grayson who currently anchors the #1 spot on the women’s team.  “I’m thril ..read more

Frances Tiafoe returned to the winner’s circle for the second time on April 9 defeating 23-year-old Tomas Etcheverry of Argentina 7-6, 7-6 in the finals of the Fayez Sarofim & Co. U.S. Men’s Clay Court Championship in Houston, TX. Tiafoe, the top seed for the first time in his career, completed his run to the championship with four victories in two days without dropping a set to claim the title after unrelenting rain postponed play for a majority of the week. His first title since 2018 when he won the Delray Beach Open on hard courts, Tiafoe played brilliantly and closed out the match in s ..read more

Junior Tennis Champions Center (JTCC) founder Ken Brody passed away peacefully on March 26th in Manhattan, NY at the age of 79, following a long illness with multiple-system atrophy, a rare neurodegenerative disease. Ken will be remembered for his larger than life presence and boundless enthusiasm for everything he did. Aside from his beloved family, his proudest achievement was JTCC, which was built in 1999 in the backyard of his alma mater, the University of Maryland. “Ken was a true visionary and a passionate believer in how the benefits of tennis can extend far beyond the court. We are ext ..read more

Four JTCC High Performance players proudly represented JTCC on the other side of the country March 24-26, competing in the United States Tennis Association Foundation (USTAF) West Coast Excellence Team Regionals held at Barnes Tennis Center in San Diego, CA. USTAF Excellence Team events feature National Junior Tennis and Learning (NJTL) youth chosen to participate based on their elite tennis ability and tireless commitment to excellence on and off the court. Imani Jean, Nathen Martin, Amari O’Brien, and Antonio Warner competed in the three-day event that featured more than 40 players represent ..read more

Eight JTCC High Performance players will compete this week in the prestigious United States Tennis Association (USTA) Level 1 FILA Easter Bowl tournament at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden in Indian Wells, CA. Often referred to as the “Super Bowl of Junior Tennis,” the Easter Bowl is known for jumpstarting the careers of Hall of Famers Andre Agassi, Tracy Austin, and John McEnroe, among others. JTCC alumnus and current world #14 Frances Tiafoe won the Boys’ 18s championship as a 16-year-old in 2014. The Easter Bowl is a six-day tournament that features Boys and Girls 18s, 16s, 14s, and 12 and U ..read more

For JTCC alumnus Andrew Fenty, the decision to return to the University of Michigan for a fifth year of college tennis has been historic. Granted an extra year of eligibility due to the Covid-19 pandemic, Fenty cemented his name in the Wolverine record books as the first player to achieve 100 career wins in singles and 100 career wins in doubles making the Washington, DC native the winningest player in the esteemed program’s 130-year history. “I had no idea 100 wins in singles or doubles had never been accomplished before or that I was close to reaching triple-digit wins,” Fenty remarked. “I ..read more

JTCC alumna Ayana Akli is turning heads this year with her remarkable play for the University of South Carolina, achieving a career-high ranking of #7 in the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) national singles rankings. Akli has compiled a sterling 23-6 singles record as a senior while also becoming the first player from the prestigious Southeastern Conference (SEC) to win Player of the Week honors twice this year.  The #7 player in the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) national singles rankings, Akli has compiled a sterling 23-6 singles record as a senior while also becoming ..read more