Jason Kerst enjoys being under pressure and in the spotlight. He loves the feeling when all eyes are on him, even if he doesn’t think he’ll succeed.

At just 13 years old, Kerst didn’t think he was going to win the boys 18-and-under division of the Ann Arbor City Tennis Tournament last week.

He did just that, capping the two-day tournament with a 5-7, 6-1, 10-8 marathon win over No. 1 seed Ed Kielb, an Ann Arbor native and three-time tennis team captain at Portsmouth (R.I.) Abbey School.

“It was great. I had the whole crowd behind me,” said the 4-foot-11 Kerst, who was easily a foot shorter than his opponent. “That was awesome.”

When he was 3, Kerst was introduced to tennis at Liberty Athletic Club in Ann Arbor. While other youngsters ran off to swim or play other sports, Kerst watched older kids on the tennis court. Soon he would begin playing himself, and developing a love for the sport that hasn’t faded.

Peter Pusztai, a Big Ten singles champion at Michigan in 1996, has been coaching Kerst for six years at Liberty AC. Pusztai has only seen a handful of kids who are as passionate about the game as Kerst, which is why it has been such a joy to coach him.

“He just has the heart,” Pusztai said. “He has the drive and desire to get better.”

Kerst, who'll be an eighth grader at Forsythe Middle School this fall, is rated as the 87th-best player in the nation for the class of 2016. He’s seventh in the Great Lakes region and fourth in Michigan.

When talking tennis with Kerst, it becomes clear that he follows the game closely on all levels and has a knowledge that is far beyond his years. An infectious smile comes across his face as he rattles off statistics and champions.

Soon, Kerst might get a chance to meet some of the players he idolizes. He and a friend, Jack Martin-Dyer, will work as ball boys at the Western and Southern Open in Cincinnati, Ohio, from Aug. 13-21. The tournament will feature some of the top players in the world from both the men’s and women’s divisions of the ATP.

“Jack and I have been talking about it for as long as I can remember,” says Kerst.

After begging their parents, they were allowed to go to a ball boy tryout. A few weeks later, the boys got their confirmations and were soon preparing to work with the pros.

When they aren’t working the courts, Kerst and Martin-Dyer will be able to walk around and meet some of the players. Kerst hopes to meet Wimbledon champion Novak Djokovic.

Like most kids, Kerst dreams of one day being a professional athlete in the sport he loves. But he is aware that college is the next step and has started thinking about where he would like to play collegiate tennis.

Kerst, rated a 4-star prospect on TennisRecruiting.net, says he wants to attend a premier tennis school, such as Stanford or Duke, and continue to work under pressure.

That way, he can do his best work.

Matt Durr covers sports for AnnArbor.com. Contact him at mattdurr@annarbor.com.