There were two stunning upsets in the Girls U18 semi-finals as the finalists were determined across the girls age group divisions at the American Express SA Tennis Junior National Championships at Oranje Meisieskool in Mangaung on Saturday, 5 April 2026.
The biggest shocks of the day came in the Girls U18 category, where neither of the top two seeds reached the final. No 5 seed Meri Sandenbergh (Recreation Tennis Club, Western Cape) produced a fighting performance to defeat top seed Roxy Bredenkamp (Coppini Tennis Academy, Western Cape) 6-1, 3-6, 6-3, digging deep to come through a demanding three-set contest.
In the other Girls U18 semifinal, unseeded Cara le Grange (Hoopstad Skool, Free State) also caused an upset, recovering from a set down to defeat No 4 seed Lisa-Mari du Toit (Rhenish High, Western Cape) 2-6, 6-1, 6-2, and claim her place in Sunday’s final.
In the Girls U16 category, No 3 seed Charlotte Bouwer and No 11 seed Lika Claassens advanced to contest the final on Sunday.
Aside from keeping their title hopes alive, the players who reached the finals in each age group also received wildcard entries from Tennis South Africa for various international tournaments to be played in South Africa later this year.
Girls U18 Final of the American Express SA Tennis Junior National Championships at Oranje Meisieskool in Mangaung on Sunday, 6 April 2026
Meri Sandenbergh [5] vs. Cara le Grange
U16 Final
Charlotte Bouwer [3] vs. Lika Claassens [11]
U14 Final
Winnie Masemola [1] v Ariana van der Westhuizen [7]
U12 Girls
Linja Erasmus [1] v Lesedi Lamola [3]
Original Copy: Tennis SA, with editing by gsport
Main Photo Caption: No 5 seed Meri Sandenbergh defeated top seed Roxy Bredenkamp during the first Girls U18 semi-final of the American Express SA Tennis Junior National Championships at Oranje Meisieskool in Mangaung on Saturday, 5 April 2026. Photo: Barco Greeff
Photo 2 Caption: Unseeded finalist Cara le Grange beat No 4 seed Lisa-Mari du Toit to claim her place in Sunday’s final. Photo: Barco Greeff
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