Alex Eala absorbed a stunning 7-5, 6-3 loss to Sebastianna Scilipoti of Switzerland to bow out of the US Girls Singles quarterfinals Thursday (Friday in Manila).
The second-seeded Eala struggled throughout the one hour, 42 minute match, dropping her serve seven times and committing nine double faults.
The 16-year-old Filipina also stumbled with 46 unforced errors.
Eala trailed for most parts of the match. She briefly led 4-3 after holding serve in the first set before losing steam.
She held on in the second frame and tied it at 3-all after breaking Scilipoti’s serve, but the Swiss broke back in the seventh game to regain the momentum en route to the match win.
Despite the loss, Eala is still on the hunt for a third Grand Slam Girls Doubles title as she and partner Hanne Vandewinkel face Americans Elizabeth Coleman and Madison Sieg in the quarters.
The Filipina-Belgian pair is seeded sixth in the field.