Family Circle Cup Gives Wild Cards Into Qualifying Draw

Three young Americans receive wild cards into tournament, including two local players

DANIEL ISLAND, SC – The Family Circle Cup has issued three wild cards into its qualifying draw to young American players. Jessie Pegula, 21, Samantha Crawford, 20, and Maria Sanchez, 25, will compete for a spot in the tournament’s main draw, beginning on April 4 on Daniel Island.

“We typically award wild cards into our qualifying round to American players,” said Bob Moran, Tournament Director. “It’s always a great honor to give these girls a chance to compete at a WTA Premier event. It’s even more rewarding this year, as the next two American players on the entry list are Jessie and Sam, who train at MWTennis Academy, right here on-site at the Family Circle Tennis Center.”

Jessie Pegula has won three ITF doubles titles. This will be Pegula’s fourth time playing in Charleston’s qualifying draw. In 2013, she made the third round of the tournament before losing to Jelena Jankvoic.

Samantha Crawford has won one ITF singles title and three ITF doubles titles. In 2012, she won the US Open girl’s singles title. This will be Crawford’s first appearance at the Family Circle Cup.

Top to bottom: Jessie Pegula, Samantha Crawford, and Maria Sanchez

Michael Joyce, former coach of Maria Sharapova, coaches both Pegula and Crawford at MWTennis Academy, the only training and coaching center for WTA touring players in South Carolina.

Maria Sanchez has won one WTA doubles title, two ITF singles titles and 10 ITF doubles titles. Sanchez attended the University of Southern California, where she was a three-time All American tennis player in both singles and doubles. She was named the No. 1 collegiate player for the 2011-2012 season. This will be her second time playing the Family Circle Cup, the first since 2012.

The Family Circle Cup’s 56-player draw is made up of 43 direct entries into the tournament, five wild cards and eight qualifiers. View full main draw player field here: http://familycirclecup.com/players/field/.

About the Family Circle Cup

The Family Circle Cup is the largest women’s only tennis tournament in the world, and Family Circle is the longest running title sponsor of a sporting event in the United States, as well as in all of professional tennis, worldwide. With more than 21 million readers, Family Circle is one of the most widely read monthly magazines in America and is one of 14 leading subscription magazines owned by Meredith Corporation, which speaks to 80 million women nationwide.  The Family Circle Cup receives four days of live broadcast domestically on ESPN2, and is viewed internationally in more than 143 countries, featuring more than 200 hours of live and delayed global broadcast time, reaching 9+ million viewers worldwide.

For more information on the Family Circle Cup, call (800) 677-2293, email [email protected], visitwww.FamilyCircleCup.com, Facebook (Family Circle Cup), Twitter (@FamilyCircleCup) or Instagram (@FamilyCircleCup).