Top-seeded Kayla Day came up short in Sunday’s USTA SoCal Series women’s singles final in San Diego, losing to Stanford-bound Tianmei Wang of San Marino, 6-4, 6-3.
But the Santa Barbara tennis pro’s longest tournament run in her comeback from ankle surgery in December was a big step in the right direction. She won four matches to reach the final of the ITF professional event.
“I’m really happy to be able to play five matches in a row — I haven’t been able to do that — so it’s definitely a good stepping stone,” said Day after the match. “I’m sure in a couple hours I’ll be looking back and feeling much happier. To win four matches in a row is definitely a confidence booster. No matter how small a big tournament, being in a final is a good feeling. I’m pretty upset right now. I feel like when you get so close, it stings a little bit more, but it’s also a good thing.”
Day, 25, wrapped up her eighth tournament of 2025 — all since the end of April — as she continues to progress in her recovery and match fitness from the surgery to repair a pinched nerve in her right ankle.
A five-time ITF singles champion, Day held a career-best WTA ranking of No. 84 in April 2024. She reached the third round of the French Open in 2023. In 2024, she competed in the main draw at the Australian Open and French Open and the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells, among other WTA events, and also in the qualifying stages at Wimbledon and the U.S. Open.
Wang wound up eliminating the tournament’s top three seeds, upending No. 2 seed Ukrainian Anita Sahdiieva, 5-7, 6-4, 6-1, in Friday’s quarterfinals and ousting University of Texas-bound No. 3 seed Christasha McNeil, 6-4, 2-6, 6-2, in Saturday’s semifinals.
