Beverly Baker Fleitz  Beverly Baker Fleitz (March 13, 1930 – April 29, 2014) was a women's tennis player from the United States who was active in the late 1940s and during the 1950s. According to John Olliff and Lance Tingay of "The Daily Telegraph" and the "Daily Mail", Fleitz was ranked in the world top 10 in 1951, 1954, 1955, 1958, and 1959, reaching a career high of World No. 3 in those rankings in 1954, 1955, and 1958. Fleitz was included in the year-end top 10 rankings issued by the United States Lawn Tennis Association from 1948 through 1951 and in 1954, 1955, 1958, and 1959. She was the top-ranked U.S. player in 1959. She was ambidextrous and played with two forehands. Fleitz began playing tennis at age 11 and played mostly on public courts in Lincoln Park in Santa Monica, California. Her father Frank Baker was her only coach and was the assistant director of recreation for the city of Santa Monica. During 11 of the 12 weeks following June 19, 1950, Fleitz competed in tournaments across the U.S. In singles, she won three titles, was the runner-up three times, and was a semifinalist at both the U.S. National Championships and the U.S. Women's Clay Court Championships. Her 6 losses during this period were to Doris Hart (twice), Margaret Osborne duPont (twice), Maureen Connolly, and Magda Berescu Rurac. She recorded wins over Louise Brough, Connolly, Berescu Rurac, Patricia Canning Todd, and Dorothy Bundy Cheney. In women's doubles, she was a quarterfinalist at the U.S. National Doubles Championships. At the U.S. National Championships, Fleitz reached the semifinals twice and the quarterfinals in four of her six other attempts. She played Grand Slam singles tournaments outside the U.S. only six times. At the 1951 Wimbledon Championships, she defeated Althea Gibson in the third round 6–1, 6–3 and Margaret Osborne duPont in the quarterfinals before falling to Doris Hart in the semifinals 6–3, 6–1. Fleitz was the top seed at the 1955 French International Championships, but she was upset by fourth-seeded Dorothy Head Knode in the semifinals 6–2, 6–3. At the 1955 Wimbledon Championships, third-seeded Fleitz defeated top-seeded Hart in the semifinals 6–3, 6–0, which was the last Wimbledon singles match of Hart's career.