Jr. netters invited to NZ tourneys

Thea Minor was invited anew to compete in tournaments in New Zealand and will be joined by fellow CNMI junior netters Christian Miller and Rafael Jones.

The three NMI bets received an invitation to play in New Zealand this December after their impressive performance in the 2008 Pacific Oceania Junior Championships.

Minor, who played in New Zealand last year, and Rafael Jones made it into the semifinals of POJC’s 13-and-under division, while Miller finished eighth in the same age group.

The trio will be part of the ITF Pacific Oceania Junior Team, which will compete in the Waikato Tournament, Poverty Bay Tournament, and Auckland Tournament.

Oceania Tennis Association Executive Officer Patrick O’Rourke extended the invitation to the three CNMI netters through CNMI coach Jeff Race.

Race was elated by the invitation, as this time, the CNMI will have three players joining the ITF Pacific squad. Last year, besides Minor, Ji Hoon Heo was also invited to be part of the 18-and-under team which competed in Australia.

“In the past we have had at most one invited to be a part of these teams, but to have three is a great testament to the hard work of these players, the sacrifices and commitment of their families and the success of the overall tennis program here on Saipan,” Race said.

He added the tournaments in New Zealand will provide the three junior netters the off-island experience they need to be as competitive as the rest of the players in the region.

“There are so many challenges to developing good athletes, including tennis players, here. Lack of resources, shortage of good quality competition, and physical distance and the expense of getting to anyplace else make an opportunity like this so important for these three kids,” he said.

The CNMI netters have until Oct. 3 to accept the invitation, as the scheduled flight to Auckland is in the first week of December.

Joy Minor, who with his husband Boyet coaches Thea, said they will allow their daughter to compete in New Zealand for the second straight year.

“When it comes to tennis and also her academics, Thea has our support. She works hard for these tournaments and we always want her to take the opportunities which come her way,” the older Minor said.

Race said the 13-year-old Minor will be competing in a higher age group in New Zealand this time and she hopes the CNMI junior netter will perform well, too in her second trip there.

“For Raffy and Christian, it will be the toughest competition they have ever faced. Their goal will be to not let themselves be intimidated by the competition and get everything they can out of the experience. Success there would be gravy, but as they train regularly, with Ji Hoon, Nicolas Son, and players of this caliber, they aren’t easily intimidated,” he added.

The CNMI junior netters’ first tournament will be the Waikato event, which will run from Dec. 7 to 13 and will be followed by the Poverty Bay Tournament (Dec. 14-17).

The tournament in Auckland, which will be the Commonwealth bets’ last, is set from Dec. 18 to 22.