“I told Kathy Rinaldi, (the national coach for women’s tennis), I’m going to have to bring Sachia home,” I don’t have any money,” said Liverpool. “She said ‘No, you can’t take her home, she could win the tournament…’She made a phone call and the USTA paid for a room for Sachia to stay.” Liverpool, however, had to leave.
“My mom (Sachia’s grandmother) said don’t worry. God is in charge.”
A lot was at stake for then 17-year-old Vickery. If she won the National Championships, she would get a wildcard to compete in the U.S. Open and have the opportunity to earn “real” prize money at WTA events. Liverpool was financially stretched to her maximum, meaning a loss would have likely meant the end of Vickery’s career.
“She ended up winning the tournament,” says a very proud Liverpool. Vickery not only went to the U.S. Open in 2013, but she also won her first round match, and went on to win a total of $50,000 in prize money that year.
“It did change a lot… just playing the bigger tournaments. The expectations were a bit more and I wasn’t used to that,” says Vickery.