Close to 250 entries, headed by the top junior players in the National Capital Region and nearby cities, kick off their chase for top honors in various divisions as the PPS-PEPP Dr. Pablo Olivarez national age-group 2019 gets going today (Saturday, June 8) at the Olivarez Sports Center in Sucat, Parañaque.
Denise Bernardo, Julia Ignacio, Justine Maneja and Alaine Obra brace for a spirited duel in the girls’ 18-and-under class while Loucas Fernandez, Marcus del Rosario, Daniel Estanislao III and Jester Ocio banner the boys’ premier side of the Group I tournament which drew 32-player rosters in six age categories.
Maneja and Ignacio are also seeing action in the 16-U play that also features Gaby Zoleta and Melody Dizon while Ocio, JT Bernardo, Rafael Liangco and Lance Fernandez get the top billing in the boys’ 16-U bracket.
The organizing Palawan Pawnshop-Palawan Express Pera Padala set the event, sponsored by Dr. Pablo Olivarez, on two weekends (June 8-9 and June 15-16) and on June 12, a holiday, so as not to disrupt the student-athletes’ classes.
“We always put on consideration the student-athletes’ commitment to education and we’re inspired by the huge turnout which only underscores these young players’ continued support to the circuit,” said Palawan Pawnshop president/CEO Bobby Castro.
Keen competition is also expected in the other divisions with Bernardo, Joshua Diva, Jagat Sachdeva and France Dilao gearing up for a fierce battle in the boys’ 14-U class and Dizon, Mica Emana, Jiana Hernandez and Carrilyn Pesengco spearheading the 32-player draw in the girls’ 14-U play of the tournament presented by Dunlop.
Felicia Araneta and Alecsa Ilao, on the other hand, lead the cast in the girls’ 12-U category while a sibling rivalry looms in the boys’ 12-U section with John Prince and Kriz Roque Lim up against Frank and France Dilao.
Kriz Roque Lim is also the marked player in the 10-unisex side, which also lured the likes of Samuel Davila, Devin Yap and Rafael Llira in the tournament sanctioned by the Unified Tennis Philippines made up of PPS-PEPP, Cebuana Lhuillier, Wilson, Toby’s, Dunlop, Slazenger and B-Meg.
Next up is the Alamada, Cotabato leg on June 13-16. Listup is ongoing. For details, call PPS-PEPP Sports Program Development director Bobby Mangunay at 0915-4046464.