Ronnie Schneider survived two rain delays and a feisty preformance from Luca Corinteli to win the boys 16s title Sunday afternoon. Schneider (2), Bloomington, Ind., defeated Corinteli (4), Alexandria, Va., 5-7, 7-6(3), 6-2, There were seven service breaks in the first set before Corinteli held service and won on his third set point. In the second set, Corinteli was serving for the match twice, but Schneider forced the tiebreak. At the final point of the breaker, a Corinteli double fault, Corinteli slammed his racquet to the court, getting a point penalty. “Starting the third set was just great,” Schneider said. “He got a point penalty to start off and that carried over well because I won the next three points to break him. From there, I felt really comfortable and just kept rolling.” The third set featured the two rain delays. The first, which lasted 34 minutes, came just after Schneider broke Corinteli for the 1-0 lead. At the second, for 51 minutes, Schneider was leading 4-0. “I didn’t mind the first one,” he said. “Second one, first of all, I was surprised by it. Second of all, I was up 4-0 and I was rolling and I’m like, ‘Oh, man, I just want to get this done. I hope these people (in the stands) don’t leave. “But I’m glad they stuck around. It ended up being a little tight. He had a break point at 5-2 in the third, and then I just bore down and said I’m going after it, and went after those next two points aggressively.” Schneider had four match points on Corinteli’s serve at 5-1, but he held for 5-2. Schneider then won on the first match point of his own serve. “That’s just how the game works some days,” Corinteli said. “I’m actually lucky I got out of the quarterfinals. I could have lost to Stephen Watson and been home already. “But that’s just how the sport works. I had my chances. Stephen had his chances in the quarters, so at least I got to the finals.” The final was Corinteli’s fourth three-setter in a row, but the first where he actually won the first set. “Being big and heavy like I am, being 6-foot-3, 210 pounds, definitely I felt it, the wear and tear on my body as we started the third set,” Corinteli said. “With all the rain delays, stopping, getting sore, getting tight, then loosening up again is obviously tough. “I think if I could have started the second set the way I ended the match, it could have turned out to be even better and maybe I could have had another chance to win. But that’s how it works. Some days it doesn’t work your way and sometimes it does. “Hopefully, my next couple big tournaments I can keep having runs like this, winning as many matches, because now I have experience, at least, if I’m in this situation again.”

Source: USTA Nationals Staff