ZAMBOANGA del Norte bet Sydney Enriquez and Elizabeth Abarquez from Carcar City, Cebu led the winners in the recent inaugural leg of the 2017 Cebuana Lhuillier Age-Group Tennis Championships, hosted by the Citigreen Tennis Resort, Alta Vista Golf and Country Club, and Pardo Tennis Club in Cebu City.
Enriquez beat Minette April Bentino from Sultan Kudarat, 6-3, 6-1 for the 14-under girls’ championship and partnered with Bentino to share the 14-under girls’ doubles crown with an 8-0 victory over Helary Coderos and Corazon Lambunao.
Abarquez defeated Sultan Kudarat’s Carlyn Bless Guarde, 6-3, 6-3, to bag the girls’ 16-under title and teamed up with Shyne Villareal as they fashioned out an 8-4 win over Ghylliana Yu and Pherl Bless Coderos to share the the 18-under doubles’ crown in the tournament supported by Dunlop as the official ball.
Guarde avenged her defeat to Abarquez in the 18-under finals as she eked out a 7-5, 6-3 beating of Abarquez to win the title, while another familiar name in Jose Maria Pague from Zamboanga Sibugay beat old nemesis and 16-under boys’ titlist Vince Tugade, 6- 4, 6-3, in the boys’ 18-under finals.
Tugade earlier copped the 16-under crown over local bet Marc Nicole Suson, 7-6, 6-1.
“This year, we added 8 new cities in the Visayas-Mindanao area, believing that we will discover more young talents there as we have done in the past. We now have legs in Bacolod City, Damilag, Bukidnon, Mlang, North Cotabato, Digos City, Tagum, Davao Oriental, Puerto Princesa, Kidapawan, North Cotabato and Kalibo Aklan. The total legs this year will reach 46,” said Cebuana Lhuillier President /CEO Jean Henri Lhuillier, who is also the current Philippine Tennis Association Chairman.
Other winners in the Group 2 tournament were Oroquieta City’s Nash Agustines in the boys’ 12-under after he beat John Christopher Sonsona from Lanao del Norte, 6-2, 7- 5.
Agustines also shared the boys’ 14-under doubles’ title with partner Erie Tagal, beating Brent Sigmond Cortes and Ashton Benne Villanueva, 8-4; Tiffany Claire Nocos duplicated the feat in the girls’ side with an easy 6-0, 6-3 victory over Ormoc City bet Corazon Lambonao; and Lapu Lapu City’s Chad Connor Cuizon swept Bryzen Matthew Sanchez, 4-0, 4-0, in the finals of the 10-under unisex group.
Feb Wendell Deja and Rucel Cero conspired to win over Pague and Ramon Wilfred Bentillo, 8-4, for the boys’ 18-under title.
Next leg in the nationwide series will be in Iloilo City.