Hwang nearly sweeps opener

Juncheol Hwang, seen here serving in a local tournament, won two of his three matches in the team event of the 2019 Pacific Oceania Junior Championships in Fiji yesterday. (Contributed Photo)

The CNMI’s Juncheol Hwang delivered two of the three wins for the North Team in their opening game in the team event of the 2019 Pacific Oceania Junior Championships in Fiji yesterday.

Hwang prevailed in his singles 2 match over Tahiti and East Team’s Keanau Lei Foc, 4-1, 1-4, 10-8, and then made it two in a row after teaming up with Guam’s Johnny Jackson in beating Foc and Hiva Kelley in the boys doubles 1, 4-0, 4-1. The Commonwealth player attempted a perfect performance on Day 1 when he and Guam’s Freemont Gibson saw action in the mixed doubles 1, but they were defeated by Samoa’s Darius Carruthers and Mahina Warren, 4-0, 4-0.

The East Team won the pairing, 11-3, as it topped three of the boys singles play, swept the girls singles, and took five of the six singles events in the U12 age group.

In the U14 division, the East Team also had a convincing victory versus the West, 10-4. The East went 6-for-8 in the singles and got four doubles wins, including a sweep in the last three to have a very productive opening day in the team event.

In the U16 age group, the West dominated the CNM-led North, 10-4.

Sean Lee and Jimin Woo gave the North one win after nosing out the Solomon Islands’ Junior Miki and Fiji’s Maka Ofati in the boys doubles 1, 5-4 (4), 5-4 (5). Another CNMI player, Maria Gregoire, delivered, as she teamed up with Guam’s Alicia Addison in slipping past the Solomon Islands’ Prudence Bird and the Cook Islands’ Joanita Takavety in the girls doubles 2, 2-4, 4-2, 11-9.

Addison also outclassed Takatavety in the singles 4 match, 4-0, 4-1, while the former’s compatriot Aidan Schembari prevailed against Kiribati’s Torua Boari in the boys singles 3 pairing, 0-4, 4-2, 11-9.

Meanwhile, the CNMI’s U14 players will suit up for the North today when they take on the West bets.

Anthony Gregoire and David Kwon are the North’s singles 3 and 4 players and they will challenge siblings Noah and Fintan Molbaleh of Vanuatu, respectively. In the girls singles, Hyejin Elliot is pitted against Kiribati’s Ereti Tabekatarawa, while Helen Kim will duel Samoa’s Emmanuella Masaai, and Serin Chung will take on Vanuatu’s Kerry Waita.

In the doubles, Gregoire will be paired with the Federated States of Micronesia’s Jones George, while Kwon will play with Jacob Jackson. Serin and Chung will team up in the girls doubles and will face Massai and Waita, while Elliot and Leilah Etscheit will battle Charlotte Nicolaus and Tabekatarawa.

In other matches today, the North will take on the East in the U16 age group, while the West and East collide in the U12 division.