U.S.T.A. makes ballperson callbacks

Jamie Rojas, 18, did not think he did that well during ballperson tryouts for the U.S. Open. The wind picked up and slowed down his throws, as he tossed tennis balls across the court at the U.S. Tennis Association (U.S.T.A.) Billie Jean King National Tennis Center on Thursday, June 28.
“I think that made me look bad,” Rojas said.
Nevertheless, he must have been doing something right. Rojas got a callback to tryout again on Tuesday, July 17, giving him a chance to earn one of an estimated 75 spots on the rookie ballperson crew.
“I’m pretty much going to go with the same attitude,” Rojas said on Monday, July 16. “I don’t need to practice. I play enough baseball.”
If he makes it through the second grueling test, Rojas could earn a spot on the U.S.T.A.’s 270-member ballperson team, scheduled to work from Monday, August 27 through Sunday, September 9.
However, if he does not make it, he has other plans for a summer job - possibly working at Game Stop.
Rojas’ buddies Jonathan Contreras, Farouk Houssein, and Ivan Halpern also were called back to the courts. However, pal Lisandro Amezquita, 19, was not selected.
Bayside resident Aliyah Donni, 15, also received a letter saying that she did not make it to the second tryout. However, the basketball player from St. Francis Preparatory said that she might tryout again next year. If so, she plans to be better prepared.
“I would train, work on my throwing probably, and trying to be faster and more concise,” she said.