Five named NMASA athletes of the month

Two basketball players, a swimmer, a triathlete, and a cyclist were hailed as athletes of the month for October in voting Thursday night by the Northern Marianas Amateur Sports Association.

Tsunami Swimming Center Saipan’s Rezne Wong and Northern Mariana Islands Triathlon Federation’s Tyce Mister shared Male Athlete of the Month citation following swash-buckling performances last October.

Wong shattered the CNMI National Record in the 50m breaststroke swim during the Tsunami Saipan-Saipan Swim Club Dual Meet at the Kan Pacific Swimming Pool in Marpi.

Wong timed in at 33.39 seconds in the 50m breaststroke, eclipsing his own mark of 33.88 seconds which he posted on Feb. 1, 2008. Wong also set a new mark in the 17-18 age group which he himself recorded (34.95 seconds) on May 31, 2008.

The 17-year-old Wong swam in three other events during the one-day meet. He clocked in at 32.26 seconds in the 40m backstroke and 56.61 seconds in the 100m freestyle. In the 50m freestyle, Wong recorded 26.13 seconds, just a second behind Jonathan Sakovich’s mark in the 17-18 age group.

Mister, meanwhile, finished third in the Mini Hell of the Marianas 50-kilometer warm-up race after clocking in at 1:46:35.

The former U.S. nationally ranked cyclist in the Junior Velodrome battled Guam’s Jazy Garcia and Bobby Mandapat, who finished first and second with times of 1:44:47 and 1:45:02, respectively. A total of 49 competitors took part in the race held in ideal racing weather of cloudless skies.

Mamiko Berger, for her part, took home the Female Athlete of the Month award after taking part in a couple of half marathons last month.

Berger took part in the Nigata Japan Half Marathon last Oct. 11 and crossed the finish line in a blistering time of 1:36:52. She was the third female finisher of the race, a mere 20 seconds off the runner-up’s pace. The event drew more than 200 participants.

A week later, Berger tackled the Banzai Half Marathon and came in second overall to Roadrunner Bunny Ketson “Jack” Kabiriel in a time of 1:35:29.

A pair of veterans from the 7th FIBA Oceania Youth Tournament were then named October student athletes of the month.

High-flying Jericho Cruz was adjudged Male Student Athlete of the Month after leading the weeklong tournament in scoring with a 23 points per game average, besting players from the medal-winning teams of Australia, Tahiti, and Guam.

Aside from his scoring prowess, the 6’ forward also averaged 5.3 assists, 2.8 steals, and 6.2 rebounds for the CNMI Junior National Team, which finished sixth in the eight-team field following wins over Papua New Guinea and Palau.

Lia’mwar Rangamar also took home the Female Student Athlete of the Month award after averaging 12.7 points, 2.5 steals, 1.7 assists, and 6.0 rebounds per game for the CNMI Junior National Girls Team.

She saved her best for last, erupting for 31 points, hauling down 13 rebounds, and recording three steals in a win against Palau that helped the Commonwealth finish seventh out of eight in the women’s field.