Game, set, match

Marian girls experience the magic of the US Open RuthieBarrett The silence is deafening, the ball makes a “thwack” noise against the green concrete and the score is deuce. The 2023 U.S. Open took place from Aug. 22 to Sept. 10 in New York City. The U.S. Open is one of the four Grand Slam…

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October 6, 2023

2–3 minutes

attendence, Coco Gauff, competition, experience, grand slam, Jada Vosik, Michelle Finnigan Drew, Novak Djokovic, tennis, travel, us open, usopen, win

Marian girls experience the magic of the US Open

RuthieBarrett

The silence is deafening, the ball makes a “thwack” noise against the green concrete and the score is deuce.

The 2023 U.S. Open took place from Aug. 22 to Sept. 10 in New York City. The U.S. Open is one of the four Grand Slam tournaments and a highly visited event with an attendance this year of more than 950,000 fans.

This year, at least two Marian girls were in the crowd: Michelle Finnigan Drew ‘87 and Junior Jada Vosik.

***Posing by the pros*** Jada Vosik ‘25 and her dad, Andrew, pose in front of the US Open tennis court waiting for the next match to go on. Vosik has been playing tennis since she was six years old and is excited for the upcoming tennis season. Photo courtesy of JadaVosik.

Vosik said, “I’ve been dreaming of going to this tournament since I was little, and I finally convinced my dad to let me go. My dad and I have always wanted to experience this together.”

Drew also enjoyed her time there and said that “the best moments are when there is a long rally between players and they are hitting trick shots and giving it everything they have.” She said that during rallies, the atmosphere becomes electrified because the crowd is so enthralled with the match.

Being among the best players in the world can inspire anyone whether or not they play tennis.

As a tennis player, Vosik said watching the athletes “inspired me to work on the mental aspect of the game.”

She added that watching the players’ endurance helped her realize the importance of her own mindset.

**• 950,000 people in**
**attendance**
**• about 1.5 million people watched on TV**
**• more than 3 million people tuned in for the finals**

The single winners were Serbia’s Novak Djokovic and America’s Coco Gauff. This will be Djokovic’s 24th Grand Slam title and Gauff’s first.

Although these players came out on top, Vosik said her favorite to watch was American Frances Tiafoe because “he always got the crowd involved, which made it fun.”

Drew said her favorite player was Denmark’s Caroline Woziniacki.

This was Woziniacki’s first U.S. Open since returning from a three and a half year break where she had two children.

“Her determination and will to return to the game she loves and missed was remarkable and inspiring,” Drew said.

This experience was a dream come true for Vosik. Watching the best of the best play at the highest level in sports can have a great impact on everyone, athlete or not.

At Marian, students are able to explore their interests in sports and maybe they will become the next world champions.