CITRUS HEIGHTS, CA (MPG) - MealPro LLC, a Citrus Heights-based food preparation and delivery service for ready-made meal plans, has announced a partnership with a rising United States Tennis Association (USTA) men’s tennis star, Jenson Brooksby, of Carmichael.

Brooksby is the first athlete brand ambassador for MealPro LLC, according to Andy Sartori, founder of MealPro.

Brooksby, 21, who goes by “JT,” is the son of Glen and Tania Brooksby. The young, Sacramento-based, tennis star recently stopped by MealPro headquarters in Citrus Heights at 7433 Greenback Lane, Suite A, and took time to play a round of tennis with Sartori.

While he’s home training, MealPro will deliver to him a custom weekly meal package especially tailored to the high nutritional needs of a competitive professional tennis player. He will also collaborate with MealPro on the creation of his own line of meals for other tennis players like himself.

Brooksby was a top-ranked collegiate tennis recruit of Baylor University in 2019. He sat out his freshman year of college competition in spring 2020 and decided to have a “redshirt year.” The term “redshirting” means a student-athletes can practice with the team and gain experience, but usually do not travel for road matches, saving a year of eligibility which may be needed later in their career as an upperclassman.

The current 21-year-old elected to forgo his remaining college eligibility following the COVID-19 shortened season that he redshirted, to turn professional on the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) tour in 2020. The Carmichael native gained his first professional experience in August 2019 when he qualified for the main draw of the US Open.

The ATP Tour is a worldwide top-tier tennis tour for men organized by the ATP. Men’s Grand Slam tournaments include the Australian, French and US Open championships and Wimbledon. He recently completed his first full calendar year as a professional tennis player and ranked as high as No. 33 in the world, ascending from outside the world’s Top 300 to the fringe of the Top 50.

At the age of 20, Brooksby became the youngest American to reach the US Open Tennis Championships’ fourth round since Andy Roddick did so in 2012. He battled through three tough matches and in the Round of 16, took the opening set from, at the time, World No. 1 Novak Djokovic 6-1 before the Serbian rallied behind unrelenting physical play.

“We believe (Brooksby) is the perfect partner to represent our brand and inspire future generations of athletes,” Sartori said. “It’s an ideal pairing, and we’re excited for what the future holds.”

According to Brooksby, this is a mutually beneficial relationship between himself and MealPro.

“MealPro’s commitment to creating high quality, nutritious and delicious meals is key to my fitness and training,” Brooksby said in a news release. “MealPro offers a range of meal plan options that support the varied nutritional goals of athletes at all levels, and I am delighted to expand our partnership with MealPro to share those options across the tennis community.”

MealPro is a vertically integrated meal delivery service. It delivers fully cooked meals directly to its customers’ doors in all 50 states from its headquarters in Citrus Heights. The founders of MealPro started the company in 2018 and recently achieved a long-term goal, buying the space it was leasing in Citrus Heights.

Its’ online meal selections use organic, gluten and dairy-free ingredients in multiple categories for all diet types, including keto, paleo, custom and a la carte.

Construction of a new customer service call center will be finished soon, Sartori said. A new walk-in reception area offers touch pad ordering, serving local customers who prefer to place and pick up their meal orders in person. One-on-one consultation with a MealPro nutritionist, who can design a personal meal plan, is also available.

For more information, call MealPro at 844-463-2577 or visit www.mealpro.net for ordering information.