Johnson, Mister beat Tahiti, Solomons in beach v-ball

The NMI’s Logan Mister gets ready to smack the ball in their game against Solomon Islands in Day 1 of the beach volleyball competition of the Northern Marianas Pacific Mini Games 2022 yesterday at the Crowne Plaza sand courts. (ANGEL LI)

The NMI men’s team scored wins against Solomon Islands and Tahiti in Day 1 of the beach volleyball competition of the Northern Marianas Pacific Mini Games 2022 yesterday at the Crowne Plaza sand courts.

Andrew Johnson and Logan Mister first took on Solomon Islands at noon and won before squaring off against Tahiti in the 4pm match and scored an upset of sorts (scores were not available as of press time).

“Feeling really good, I think that was probably one of the hardest competitions we are probably gonna have. I think, I don’t know but Tahiti has done well in like the past Pacific Games and the past Mini Games, so we are feeling good but we can’t let it get to our heads because we might be challenging them again in bracket play, but we are feeling great, really fired up,” said Johnson.

At one point in the game against the Solomons, Mister threw up due to the debilitating heat. Despite the double victories, Johnson said he and Mister are not relaxing any tiny bit.

“We’re super stoked on the wins, but there’s a long road ahead. We have two more games of pool play tomorrow and then bracket play should begin on Wednesday or Thursday. Bracket play is single elimination, which means one loss and we’re out of the contention for gold. We just have to stay consistent for the rest of the week,” he said.

The NMI women strikers were not as fortunate though as Kathy Winkfield and Charnessa Lizama lost their first two matches against Vanuatu and the Solomon Islands.

In tennis, top seed Colin Sinclair breezed past the second round with a win over Louam Boivin of New Caledonia, 6-0 6-2. His doubles partner, Robbie Schorr also beat Dakota Gibson of Guam, 6-0 6-1.

For the women, Isabel Heras overcame a slow start to defeat Tahiti’s Vaiani Dusserre-Valleaux, 3-6, 6-3, 6-4. Serin Chung, meanwhile, lost to Vanauatu’s Lorraine Banimataku, 6-2, 6-1.

In the women’s doubles, Asia Raulerson and Isabel Heras upended Tahiti’s Dusserre-Valleaux and Mehetua Boosie, 6-4 6-1, but Fremont Gibson and Sydney Packbier of Guam did a number on Chung and Hye Jin Elliott, 6-3, 6-2. Raulerson and his partnership with Schorr also lost to Ana Taminika and Matavao Fanguana of Tonga, 6-4 7-5.

In badminton, Team NMI lost to Tahiti, 5-0, and New Caledonia with the same score as the mixed event of the competition kicked off at the Gilbert C. Ada Gymnasium.

Golf competition starts tomorrow with CNMI top golfer J.J. Atalig feeling good about the CNMI’s prospects in the competition at their “home field” of the Coral Ocean Resort.

“We’re feeling good and putting in extra work and the final stuff that needs to be worked on. We’re waiting for the games to start,” he said, adding they will try to get good scores not necessarily as individuals but as a team.

On Rota, Tahiti’s Benjamin Zorgnotti won the gold medal in the men’s triathlon, while Guam’s Minami Iijima topped the women’s field. (with reports from Angel Li, Jin Kim Abogado, and Chrystal Marino)