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NMITA holds last local tourney
Richard Steele will be competing in two singles events in this weekend’s 2016 CNMI Junior Tennis Championships. (Roselyn B. Monroyo)
Northern Mariana Islands Tennis Association will start the 2016 CNMI Junior Tennis Championships this weekend at the American Memorial Park tennis courts.
The two-weekend event will be NMITA’s final local competition for the 2015-2016 season and will feature eight singles divisions and three doubles contests.
In the boys U10 singles, four players—Danny Jeoung, Andrew Chung, Anthony Gregoire, and Min Gi Jung—will battle for the championship and they will play in a round-robin contest.
Gregoire will also compete in the boys U12 singles and is one of the four seeded players in the group. Daniel Kang is ranked first, followed by Richard Steele, Seung Jin Paik, and Gregoire. Other players vying for the boys U12 singles crown are Chris Ryu, Jae Hoon Son, Rintaro Miyawaki, Seung Won Lee, Rentaro Suzuki, and Andy Kim.
In the boys U14 singles, Ji Min Woo and Paik are the Top 2 seeds and will be joined in the division by Sean Lee, Sam Ryu, and Jack Jeoung.
In the boys U18 singles, top-ranked Moris Villanueva leads the participants at the upper half of the draw, which also has Sean Lee, Ken Song, Woo, and Tony Kim. Michael Ren, the second-seeded player in the division, is at the bottom half of the field along with Vincent Tudela, Steven Goodwin, and Robbie Schorr.
In the girls division, U10 age group, Anika Camacho and Thaileena Raulerson took the Top 2 seedings and will be challenged by JC Ferrer, Helen Kim, and Yejin Son.
The girls U12 division also has five entries in Maria Gregoire, Rei Sekiguchi, Riko Ojima, Erika Tuttle, and Coume Kaga. Coume, Tuttle, and Maria are also competing in the girls U14 singles, joining Top 2 seeds Asia Raulerson and Conatsu Kaga.
In the girls U16, eight players will be vying for the division title. The list includes Isabel Heras, Tania Tan, Grace Choi, Mimi Sakano, Malika Miyawaki, Ami Tsukagoshi, Conatsu, and Asia.
In the doubles, the boys and girls U12 divisions have three and two entries, while three pairs will fight for the boys U18 doubles title.
Ranking points will be awarded in the CNMI junior championships and players who will make the grade will represent the Commonwealth to the 2016 North Pacific Regional Championships, which Saipan will be hosting in June.
