Ole Miss Alum Wins First Pro Title

Former Ole Miss Rebel Julia Jones wins pro title. Photo courtesy of Ole Miss Athletics

A recent honors graduate in accountancy, former Ole Miss women’s tennis All-American Julia Jones had a job at a top accounting firm, but decided to put that on hold to pursue professional tennis.  Early on, it appears Jones hit an ace with that decision.

In her fourth event as a professional, Jones defeated Italy’s Giada Clerici 6-3, 6-4 Sunday, at the Jolie Ville Maritim Golf Resort in Sharm El Sheik, to win her first pro title.

“I was pretty set on finishing my tennis career with college but then I did so well my senior year I knew I owed it to myself to give it a shot,” Jones said. “I’m very happy with my decision, because I’m having so much fun with it. It’s very exciting to win my first title and it gives me a lot of confidence going into the higher level tournaments I have coming up next.”

It marked the second consecutive week for Jones to be in the final in Egypt. On her way to the title, Jones knocked out the top seed in the second round in three sets.

Last month, Jones qualified for the $25,000 tournament in Sumter, S.C. and lost in the first round. A week later she qualified for the $25,000 tournament in Baton Rouge and advanced to the quarterfinals.  Last week, Jones reached the finals in both singles and doubles, before this week’s win.

During her stay in Egypt, Jones got to play doubles with fellow alum Caroline Rohde-Moe and also spend time with current Rebel Mai El Kamash, who is from Egypt and also played in the tournament this week. Even half way around the world, Jones had people supporting her, with her family and her former coach following her matches through live scoring.

“We are so excited for Julia, she has worked very hard for this,” Ole Miss head coach Mark Beyers said. “She is off to a great start in her pro career. Playing at the top of the lineup in the SEC helped Julia get used to this level of tennis. She is not intimidated by any of these players who have been on tour a lot longer than she has.”

Jones became the 11th All-American in Ole Miss women’s tennis history in 2015 and the seventh player to join the 100-wins club. She finished her career ranked No. 12 in the nation.

Up next for Jones, two tournaments in the United States that she hopes will help prepare her for the US Open All-Star Tournament in mid-September.

For more information on Ole Miss Women’s Tennis, follow the Rebels on Twitter at @OleMissWTennis, on Facebook at OleMissWTennis and on Instagram at OleMissWTennis.

Courtesy of Ole Miss Athletics