First Serve - Tennis, Education, Life Skills

First Serve, Tour Work Together.
www.SonyEricssonWTATour.com - January 29, 2008.

US Open and given a chance to meet their favorite players.
Other awards in the program include the $25,000 grant from First Serve National to the First Serve chapter with the most competitors in the Top 25 (in both divisions).

"We are thrilled the Sony Ericsson WTA Tour is providing the scholarship funds for the girls division of the First Serve National Student Athlete Competition," said Trey Buchholz, Founder & CEO of First Serve National. "The 11-month national competition represents the highest level of all youth academic-sports contests and the support from the Sony Ericsson WTA Tour makes it exponentially more inspiring for inner-city youth to excel, both in the classroom and on the court."

There are currently 18 chapters throughout the country participating in the First Serve National Student Competition but with 30 more cities on the waiting list the program is growing. The goal of the program is to one day have full four-year scholarships for the annual winners.

First Serve is the only national organization that utilizes tennis with the solitary purpose of empowering youth with the skills, values and experience they need to be responsible, productive and successful in life. More about the organization can be found at www.firstserve.org.

ST. PETERSBURG, FL, USA - With the First Serve National Student Athlete Competition nearing its halfway point, those in the heat of battle have their sights set on the main goals of the program - achieving a good balance between education and tennis. Awaiting the boy and girl who perform the best are two scholarship funds; and that's where the Sony Ericsson WTA Tour comes in, having recently donating $5,000 toward the Girls Student Scholarship Fund, promoting advancement of girls and women through education.

The First Serve National Student Athlete Competition began on August 21, 2007 and runs through July 15 of this year. Academic grades and results at junior tennis tournaments are tabulated, and at the end of this, its first season, a No.1 male and a No.1 female First Serve Student Athlete of the Year will be crowned and awarded with the $5,000 scholarship. In addition to that they'll also be sent to the