Singles drawing to a close

The 3rd Taga Tennis Tournament is just about ready to kick off its doubles round, as majority of the singles and mixed doubles division finals wrapped up last night at the American Memorial Park tennis courts.

Results were pending as of press time, but match-ups for the championships were already decided Tuesday night even as Vangie Espanola claimed the first singles championship of the Pacific Trading Co. and Telesource CNMI-sponsored event after she beat Leriza Debrum, 6-2, 6-2, in the women’s 3.0 final.

Playing in the finals of the men’s open, meanwhile, are former partners Peter Loyola and youth netter Ji Hoon Heo. Loyola breezed through his semifinal match against Nicolas Son and upended the talented but temperamental Korean 6-1, 6-2.

Heo, for his part, scored a giant upset when he outlasted Son’s older brother Daniel in three sets. Daniel Son controlled the match early on and won the first set 6-2, but Heo came charging back to win the second 6-2. All the running around seemed to get the better of Son and in the third as he was forced to retire after going down 2-1.

In the men’s 4.5, Buddy Garote and Nanding Cajigan will play for all the marbles after the two literally had to go through the eye of the needle in their matches against separate opponents.

Garote dropped the first set against baseliner Toshi Beltau but cruised in the next two to win 6-7 (7-9), 6-2, 6-0. Cajigan, for his part, battled Bong Gamab in two tiebreakers in the first two sets before finally controlling the match in the third for a 7-6 (7-4), 6-7 (4-7), 6-1 triumph.

Babu Malayil, Rodel Macasinag, Noel Manalang, and Ed Taniegra are all in the semis of the men’s 3.0. Malayil edged Romy Espeleta (6-4, 6-4), Macasinag had an easier time against Dr. Gary Ramsey (6-1, 6-1), Manalang had a walkthrough win against Boy Cruz, while Taniegra soundly defeated Ed Casing (6-2, 6-1).

Vener Urena and Sunny Shakir are the last two standing in men’s 3.0 following Urena’s 3-6, 6-4, 6-3 victory against Eury Bobis and Shakir’s 4-6, 6-3, 6-0 win over towering Bobby Nato.

Mayuko Arriola will play Aramis Dailo in the semis of the men’s 4.0 after the teenage sensation turned back Hector Benitez 6-4, 6-1. Dailo, for his part, barged into the Final Four after winning by default.

The mixed 3.0 finals will have Espanola trying to add another trophy to her name when she teams up with Ruben Leynes in the finals against Malayil and Tinian’s Sue Reyes.

Espanola and Leynes grabbed the first final seat after disposing of Ramsey and Karen Buettner 6-4, 6-0. Malayil and Reyes had a far more difficult route, as they had to beat Nato and Ligaya Paculanang 6-2, 3-6, 6-3.

Mixed 4.0 so far only has one finalist after Ronnie Lacbayo and Cleofe Santos got the better of Ricky Castro and Lucita Pasana 6-3, 6-3.

Mixed open, meanwhile, will have Loyola and Santos taking on Arriola and her brother Reo in the finals. Loyola and Santos earned their finals ticket after a 6-2, 6-1 win against Lito Cabrera and Delia Johnson, while the Arriolas got their’s after vanquishing Lope Padilla and Karen Ramsey 6-4, 6-3.