Mcleen Gomera and Judy Ann Padilla crushed their respective rivals to split the 16-and-under titles then matched runner-up finishes in the premier side to lead a mix of winners in the PPS-PEPP national juniors tennis championships in Consolacion, Cebu over the weekend.
The top-seeded Gomera warded off No. 6 Ariel Cabaral, 6-4, 6-3, in the semis then the Bacolod, Lanao del Norte rising star stopped unranked Juvels Velos in his tracks, 6-2, 6-2, to add the Consolacion leg to his growing 16-U trophy collection in the Group 2 tournament wrapping up the four-leg Cebu swing of the country’s longest talent-search that included stops in Mandaue, Lapu-Lapu and Naga.
Padilla, on the other hand, cruised to victory in her side of the battle, ripping Shara Paliwag, 6-0, 6-3, in the finals as the Ozamiz City bet made up for her three-set setback to absentee Kimi Brodeth in last week’s Naga leg of the circuit put up by Palawan Pawnshop president/CEO Bobby Castro.
Meanwhile, fierce action shifts to Mindanao starting Thursday with the men’s Open in Tagum, Davao del Norte featuring the country’s leading players and rising stars.
For details, contact event organizer and Sports Program Development director Bobby Mangunay at 0915-4046464.
John David Velez of Ormoc City and Lapu-Lapu City’s Tiffany Nocos kept their domination of the 18-U play, trouncing Gomera, 6-0, 6-0, and foiling Padilla, 6-4, 6-2, respectively, but the 16-U winners took the MVP honors with their two-medal feats at the Consolacion tennis clay courts.
The eight-category, week-long event produced seven winners from various cities and provinces, including two reversals, to underscore the level playing field with Paliwag from Valencia, Negros Oriental and Velos from Danao, Cebu bagging the 14-U crowns, and Ormoc City’s Chrystell Laguna and David Sepulveda from Talisay, Cebu winning the 12-U trophies in the tournament backed by ProtekTODO, PalawanPay, the Unified Tennis Philippines and UTR (Universal Tennis Rating).
Paliwag frustrated last week’s surprise winner Juliana Tenepre from Mandaue City, 6-2, 6-3; Velos upended second seed Frank Dilao from Laguna, 6-0, 6-1; Laguna stunned top seed Alexa Cruspero, 6-2, 6-2; and the top-ranked Sepulveda fended off surprise local finalist Chrislawrence Villarin, 6-1, 6-0.