The final point secured, Ellery Mendell raised her arms and let out a loud scream — the 2026 Easter Bowl Girls’ 18s singles title was all hers.
The 16-year-old Mendell from Watkinsville, Ga., lived up to her No. 1 seeding, defeating unseeded Yilin Chen of Poway, Calif., 6-2, 6-4, as the 58th Annual Easter Bowl Presented by adidas came to a close Sunday at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden.
After embracing her father and friends, signing the draw board, and posing for the final trophy photo, Mendell finally exhaled.
“It feels so awesome and I’m really proud of myself,” Mendell said. “I’m really proud that I get to have my name on the same list as all those players.”
Alyson Shannon of Plano, Texas, captured the Girls’ 18s bronze ball. In doubles, the Georgia pairing of Chloe Zigliara and Sadira Ouyang claimed gold with a 7-6(1), 6-4 victory over silver medalists Raina Miae Kim of Santa Monica and Carolina Castro of Maryland.
Boys’ 18s
In the Boys’ 18s singles final, unseeded wild card Rishvanth Krishna of Irvine defeated Arcadia’s Peter Jorniak, 6-4, 6-2.
“I was nervous when the match started, but I relaxed as it went on,” said Krishna, a high school junior committed to Rice University. “I served really well today and was finding my forehand.”
Jorniak reflected positively on the week: “I’ll look back at this as a very big accomplishment. I’ll practice a couple of things when I get home that I can do better because there’s always something you can improve on.”
No. 2 seeds Joseph Nau and Marcel Latak captured the Boys’ 18s doubles gold balls with a three-set win over Matteo Huarte of Tustin and Liam Alvarez of Long Beach. Bronze went to Justin Riley Anson of Laguna Niguel and Andre Alcantara of Las Vegas.
Boys’ 16s
Unseeded wild card Anay Kulkarni of Gilbert, Ariz., rallied to defeat No. 3 Piotr Gradzki of New York, 4-6, 6-3, 6-2.
“I had a lot of highs and lows and I’m really grateful I was able to pull through,” said Kulkarni, who was cheered on all week by his father Vijay.
Asked about the message during the break after the split sets, Kulkarni said: “Mainly we just talked about keeping the energy up, focusing on my serve and return, making sure I’m not giving anything away, and just fighting for every ball while having fun.”
Gradzki admitted he got ahead of himself after winning the opening set. “I was thinking too much ahead,” he said. “I wasn’t in the moment, and it just runs away from you.”
In doubles, Arjun Krishnan of San Jose and Garin Arun of Arizona defeated Karthik Thumu of Fremont, Calif., and Carson Kuchar of South Carolina in three sets. The Minnesota team of Ethan Turnnen and Dylan Warn won bronze.
Girls’ 16s
In a battle for Maryland supremacy, No. 4 seed Shristi Selvan of Laurel defeated her good friend and fellow 15-year-old No. 1 seed Sylvana Jalbert of Mount Airy, 6-1, 7-5, to capture her second straight USTA Gold Ball after winning the Winternationals in January.
“She’s one of my best friends, and I can tell when she’s nervous and putting more pressure on herself,” Selvan said. “She’s No. 1 in the country and has all these sponsorships, which she deserves. She’s such a great player, but I knew the pressure would be there, so I stayed relaxed.”
Selvan said her improved serve was the difference. “That’s been the weakness. I would double-fault or they’d attack my second serve. We’ve been working on it for months.”
Later, Selvan teamed with Emery June Martin of Los Angeles in the doubles final, where the No. 5 seeds defeated Alexandra Grilliot of Indiana and Boca Raton’s Nikol Davletshina, 6-2, 6-3, giving Selvan a second gold ball in 2026.
2026 Easter Bowl Sportsmanship Winners
Boys’ 18s: Hunter Nelson, Lincoln, Neb.
Girls’ 18s: Chloe Zigliara, Murrieta, Ga.
Boys’ 16s: JiHyuk Im, Irvine, Calif.
Girls’ 16s: Tanvi Pandey, Irvine, Calif.
Boys’ 14s: Michael Chervenkov, Canton, Ga.
Girls’ 14s: Violetta Mamina, Henderson, Nev.
Boys’ 12s: Jaden Joyner, Tarzana, Calif.
Girls’ 12s: Cordelia Skye, West Hollywood, Calif.
Photo Gallery
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Source: Easter Bowl Presented by adidas. Photos provided courtesy of Easter Bowl Presented by adidas. Photos (from top to bottom): Ellery Mendell celebrates; G18 singles winner Ellery Mendell & Yillin Chen; G16 Sylvana Jalbert & winner Shristi Selvan; Boys 16s singles Piotr Gradzki & winner Anay Kulkarni; B18s singles Peter Jorniak & winner Rishvanth Krishna.