69 to compete in CNMI Junior Championships

Northern Mariana Islands Tennis Association will be holding the singles competition in the 2009 CNMI Junior Tennis Championship this weekend on two venues, as the annual event has drawn 69 players.

Preliminary games today and tomorrow will be held simultaneously at the Pacific Islands Club and American Memorial Park tennis courts. Final matches will be played at AMP.

The boys’ 14-and-under singles has the most entries with 20 players. The list includes Angelo and Rafael Jones, Clay McCullough-Stearns, Tommy Choi, Quintin Ramsey, Aaron and Jake Lee, Chris Cajigan, Kennedy Izuka, Chris and Daniel Park, Lucas Nutting, Christian Miller, Dylan Ackerman, Joel Hang, Amami Sakano, Andrew Johnson, John Cano, Seiya Eda, and Kevin Rhee.

Eight preliminary matches are scheduled for the boys’ 14-and-under division today.

In the girls’ 14-and-under singles, only four players will play today with Adela Hudkins colliding with Alina Ishikawa at PIC and Mikayla Lopez battling Gabrielle Race at AMP. Other players competing in the girls’ 12-and-under division are Jazmin Rayphand, Neghar Rastguiy, Ilia Corella, Amy Arenovski, Melody Johnson, and Jean Bracken.

Seventeen players, including top seed Carl Dela Cruz, will contest the boys’ 10-and-under division title. Others on the list are Michael Reon, Steven Goodwin, Michael Jones, Colin Ramsey, Clayton Izuka, Alex Park, Kui Lee, John Paul Tamayo, Geesyu and Insyu Hohn, James Hourican, Tomo Hatamata, Moris Villanueva, Brian Lee, Felix Kim, and Jordan Butcher.

The girls’ 10-and-under singles has 11 players in Tiffany Manlambayan, Liza Atalig, Emly Jones, Julia Ishikawa, Mimi Sakano, Ami Tsukagoshi, Malika Miyawaki, Tammy Ackerman, Riley Anne Buenaventura, Carol Lee, and Sakuya Imaya.

The girls’ 18-and-under singles has the least participants with only Jodel Fernandez, Dina Jones, and siblings Theecel and Thea Minor playing in the weekend tournament.

Ji Hoon Heo leads the field in the boys’ 18-and-under division and joining him are Benjie Decena, Nathan and Andy Nutting, Sung Hoon Ham, Bradley Brostrom, and Woo Suk Chang.

This weekend’s singles tournament offers 1.5 times the regular ranking points, which will be crucial in selecting players who will suit up for the Commonwealth in the boys and girls’ 18-and-under and 14-and-under competitions in the North Pacific Qualifying Tournament in Guam in June.