{
  "id": 6863293,
  "title": "American U.S. Open finalist's mom is from Carmel, family with IHSAA championships",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/12/american-u-s-open-finalists-mom-is-from-carmel-family-with-ihsaa-6863293",
  "topic": "culture",
  "section": "Culture",
  "published": "2026-09-12T04:33:37.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Yahoo Sports",
    "slug": "yahoo-sports",
    "url": "https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/american-u-open-finalists-mom-043337177.html"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Ben Shelton, the American tennis player who will face top-seeded Alexander Zverev in the U.S. Open final, is the son of a mother from a prominent tennis family in Carmel, Indiana. Lisa Shelton, Ben's mother, comes from the Witsken family, which has been involved in Indiana high school athletics, specifically producing IHSAA champions Todd and Rick (in the 1980 and 87-88 seasons respectively). Todd Witsken, a former professional doubles player, tragically passed away from cancer at the age of 34. Lisa Witsken, Ben's mother, also participated in youth tennis and met Bryan Shelton, Ben's father, in 1993. The couple got married in 1999 and raised Ben, along with his sister Emma, in Gainesville, Florida. While Ben and his sister were coached by Bryan at the University of Florida, he eventually left to coach Ben full-time. Ben's girlfriend, Trinity Rodman, is a soccer star and the daughter of former NBA player Dennis Rodman.",
  "summary": "An all-American semifinal at the U.S. Open led to Ben Shelton's first major final appearance. His mother is from a famed tennis family with IHSAA titles.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 2,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "Yahoo Sports",
        "title": "Shelton carries American hopes in US Open final after beating Tiafoe",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/12/shelton-carries-american-hopes-in-us-open-final-after-beating-tiafoe",
        "published": "2026-09-12T03:48:40.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}