Lauderhill girl, 10, in pursuit of second ‘Little Mo’ trophy
Inside the Jimmy Evert Tennis Center at Fort Lauderdale Holiday Park, the walls are covered with photos of some of the local greats in the sport like Chris Evert, Jimmy Evert, Jennifer Capriati, Frank Froehling III, Brian Gottfried and Harold Solomon.
Below those pictures stands a six-foot-tall 2016 “Little Mo” Grand Slam trophy inscribed with the name of Lauderhill’s Akasha Urhobo. The rising young star at the center received the hardware for her championship run as a 9-year-old.
Urhobo has once again made it her goal to secure another “Little Mo” trophy, this time for a title in the 10-year-old division.
The ‘Little Mo’ trophy is presented in honor of Maureen Connolly, who became the first woman to ever win the Grand Slam in 1953.
On Aug. 26, Urhobo won the second leg of the “Little Mo” Internationals at Forest Hills, N.Y. after winning the first leg in Newport Beach, Calif. back in June. The world-renowned tournament includes 180 players from 23 countries. — Akasha Urhobo
Urhobo, a student at Pine Crest Elementary School, will attempt to become the first player to ever win a second “Little Mo” Grand Slam trophy when the last leg is played in December at Palm Beach Gardens.
Urhobo has her dad to thank for her passion and talent in the sport of tennis. T.J. Urhobo has been the tennis pro at the Jimmy Evert Tennis Center since 2008 and his daughter was following him around the tennis court since she was age 2.
The duo has played in various mixed doubles tournaments.
“When I was [little], my dad would be out on the court playing and all I wanted to do was be out there with him,” Urhobo said. “I played in my first tournament when I was five.”
Winning the “Little Mo” at age 9 has been the biggest success story of her young career.
“The ‘Little Mo’ tournament [last year] is my biggest win ever and I want to win it for the second consecutive year,” she said. “I don’t pay attention to national rankings which can be more of a distraction. I just love the sport.”
In the ‘Little Mo’ action in New York, Urhobo made it a clean sweep in the singles, doubles and mixed doubles competitions.
T.J. Urhobo was born in Gainesville and moved to Nigeria, where he played for the Nigerian National team. The 38-year-old Lauderhill resident is patiently guiding his daughter on the tennis court and letting her just enjoy the game.
“Akasha isn’t following my footsteps, she is already above that now,” T.J. said with a smile. “We twice played national open mixed doubles together and made it into the finals both times. It was so much fun.”
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