JENAILA Prulla and Kriz Lim fashioned out a pair of victories each in varying fashions to share MVP honors in the Palawan Pawnshop-Palawan Express Pera Padala Angeles leg regional age group tennis in Pampanga last Monday.
Prulla whipped Angely Atos, 6-0, 6-1, in the girls’ 14-U finals then the Bulacan find upended top seed Achaia Cabahug, 6-1, 6-0, to claim the premier 18-U diadem in the event presented by Slazenger with Dunlop as the official ball and backed by Rep. Carmelo “Jonjon” Lazatin.
Prulla didn’t see action in the 16-U play but teamed up with Adriana Cabahug to repulse Charisse Bajet and Tristen Kitong, 8-4, in the 14-U doubles and partnered with Martina Naredo to rout Achaia Cabahug and Lucy Inalves, 8-2, in the 18-U doubles to emerge with four titles overall.
Kriz, from Urdaneta, Pangasinan, dominated sibling John twice, scoring a 4-2, 4-2 romp in the 10-unisex finals then hacking out a 2-6, 6-1, (10-7) decision to nail the 12-U crown in the Group 2 tournament sponsored by Palawan Pawnshop through president/CEO Bobby Castro at the Angeles City Tennis Club.
Lim fell short by one plum as he settled for the 10-U doubles diadem with John in an 8-1 rout of Jeremiah Labasano and Ethan Tiotuico in the tournament sanctioned by the Unified Tennis Philippines, made up of PPS-PEPP, Cebuana Lhuillier, Wilson, Toby’s, Dunlop, Slazenger and B-Meg,
Other doubles winners were local bets Jed Labasano and Izaak Virtucio, who nipped Eric Bajet and Brian Oliveros, 8-7(3); and Jundee Magtabog and Nathan Navilla, who thumped Jaycee Manganti and Sherwin Ramirez, 8-3.
Local bet Mike Gamalo stunned second seed Jundee Magtabog, 6-3, 6-1, to snare the boys’ singles 14-U title; Antipolo’s Michael Fuents took the 16-U cronw with a 6-0, 6-0 romp over Jeric Magtabog; Jed Labasano repelled Andrei Torres, 6-4, 6-4, to pocket the boys’ 18-U diadem; Baguio’s Adriana Cabahug routed Bernice Egipto, 6-1, 6-2, to bag the girls’ 12-U crown; and Angely Atos, also from Baguio, copped the girls’ 16-U trophy with a 6-4, 4-6, `0-4 decision over Achaia Cabahug.
Meanwhile, action resumes on April 2-9 for the PPS-PEPP Bicol Open at the Usant Tennis Club in Iriga City. Listup is ongoing. For details, call PPS Sports Program Development director and event organizer Bobby Mangunay at 0915-4046464.
Subic Bay International Triathlon on April 21 and 22
THE 3-in-1 2018 NTT Asia Cup Subic Bay International Triathlon slated at the Subic Bay Freeport on April 21 and 22, starting at ACEA Subic Bay looms to be the most significant edition ever.
As an Asian Cup Series 2018 event under the supervision of International Triathlon Union and Asian Triathlon Confederation, it offers to top local and international elite athletes ITU points for Asian and world rankings and qualification to major international competitions such as the 2020 Tokyo Olympics triathlon event and other international events.
To be held in conjunction with SUBIT sponsored by the Philippine Sports Commission, Philippine Olympic Committee, Arena, New Balance, Philippine Star, Gatorade, Omega Pain Killer Liniment, Standard Insurance, Lighthouse Marina Resort, Century Tuna, Gatorade, Subic Holiday Villas, Travelers Hotel, ACEA, Asian Center for Insulation and Solar Sports on the final day is the Subic Bay Southeast Asian Championships envisioned to alternate with the Southeast Asian Games Triathlon.
The curtain raiser on the first day of action is the local event for youth participants serving as a test race for the Asian Youth Olympic Games qualifier which will be held on June 17.
“This year’s staging of SUBIT will be one big celebration,” said Tom Carrasco, president of both the organizing Triathlon Association of the Philippines and Southeast Asian Games Triathlon Association. “We will not only commemorate the 25th anniversary of SUBIT, by far the country’s longest running triathlon competition, and the partnership of Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority and TRAP. We will celebrate TRAP’s award bestowed by Philippine Sportswriters Association as the “National Sports Association of the Year 2017”.
“On top of that, SUBIT 2018 serves as the vehicle for the revival of SEATA, which was founded in Subic Bay Freeport 10 years ago,” added Carrasco.
As of March 28, close to 800 triathletes have confirmed participantion, including 41 elite men and 14 elite women from 20 nations, namely: Australia, United States, Portugal, New Zealand, Palestine, Israel, Japan, China, Korea, Kazakhstan, Hong Kong, Uzbekistan, Chinese Taipei, Singapore, Macau, Malaysia, Thailand, Myanmar, Nepal and Philippines.