University’s Conrad Brown joins elite group by winning singles title at Ojai Tennis Tourney

University players from left senior Omar Khayat, senior Conrad Brown, and sophomore SangHyuk Im had big weekends at the Ojai Tournament. (Photo courtesy University tennis)

Conrad Brown became only the third University High School boy to win the singles championship at the Ojai Valley Tennis Tournament this past weekend, according to Coach John Kessler.

Brown joins former Trojans Aditya Gupta (2019, UPenn), and Gage Brymer (2011 to 2013, UCLA) in this elite group.

The Ojai Tournament began in 1899 and has crowned high school champions in both singles and doubles ever since.  Brown, a UC Santa Barbara commit, had to endure the lingering effects of the flu as well as four difficult matches before defeating Kelly Giese of Mira Costa high in Saturday night’s championship match, Kessler added.

Brown, a two time All-American, dropped just two sets all weekend.

In the doubles competiition Uni’s SangHyuk Im and Omar Khayat lost in the finals of the doubles draw to the top seed from Valencia.

Four University teams have advanced to the double’s final previously with Tyler Lu (Yale) and Drew Dawson(Notre Dame) winning the title in 2013 and Drew Dawson and Stefan Menichella (Pepperdine) winning in 2012.

By advancing to the finals in both singles and doubles, University clinched the prestigious Griggs Cup awarded to the high school team with the most accumulated points, Kessler said.

It’s the eighth time that University Has won the Griggs Cup. University is now second in total team titles going back to 1955. Only Santa Barbara has won more, Kessler added.

University, 22-0, also won the All-American Tournament in Newport Beach in March.