8 December 2010 | Tennis Australia

Mia Vriens is the first girl through to the Optus 18s Girls Singles quarterfinals after defeating eighth seed Nina Catovic in a minor upset today.

With games delayed and moved indoors due to the rain, Vriens did not let the weather dampen her game on her way to a straight sets 6-4 7-6(2) victory.

Photos: Optus 18s Australian Championships

Catovic blew away her opponent early in the match, breaking the first game with three backhand winners and propelling herself to an early lead.

Loose errors from Catovic lost her the ascendency, while Vriens’s movement around the court and ability to make her opponent play extra balls started to make an impact.

She won the first set after another error ridden service game from Catovic.

The second started in a similar manner to the first, with a fired-up Catovic hitting the ball to the lines with precision and taking a break of serve, however, she was unable to serve out the set at 5-4.

Vriens scrambled her way back into the set before convincingly winning the tiebreaker and the match.

Vriens was surprised at her success in the Optus 18s tournament.

“I haven’t played too many tournaments so I didn’t go in with high expectations of myself, but I knew that if I played well I could get through,” she said after the match.

Vriens cited her fitness as the decisive factor in her win.

“I kept the ball in on the big points and probably my consistency and fitness got me through it as well.”

On a day where the rain was consistently pattering down on the tin roof above the courts, most girls’ matches didn’t start until well after 3pm and are still in progress.

This currently leaves Vriens the first and only girl to be able to celebrate her advancement to the next stage of the tournament.

“It’s good to be through my pool and into the quarterfinals. I’m happy,” she said.

Draws and scores
18s boys’ singles draws and scores
18s girls’ singles draws and scores
18s boys’ doubles draws and scores
18s girls’ doubles draws and scores