Thea returns after semis stints in French territory

CNMI junior netter Thea Minor will return to Saipan today after giving a good account of herself in tournaments in New Caledonia.

Minor, who stayed in the French territory for about three weeks, advanced to the semifinals of two tournaments in Noumea and also suited up for the Pacific Oceania Team that played against three regional teams in New Caledonia.

The 12-year-old CNMI junior netter played in the 13-14 and 17-18 age groups of the Open Jeunes 208 at TC Olympique court in the capital city of New Caledonia.

Minor was seeded eighth in the 13-14 age group division and routed Yaelle Honakoko in the first round, 6-0, 6-2.

She moved into the quarterfinals after beating Lucila Pattoua, 6-1, 6-4. Minor’s next match was a tough one, as she needed three sets to pull off a 6-3, 4-6, 6-2 triumph against Trimari Assya.

The three-set win moved Minor to the semifinals against fellow Pacific Oceania player Annie Shannon, who won against Eva Brocard in the quarterfinals, 6-0, 6-4.

The first set of the Minor-Shannon semis duel was a neck-and-neck battle with Fiji’s Shannon escaping with a 7-5 victory. After playing an extended set, Minor lost steam in the second set and bowed to Shannon anew, 4-6. Shannon eventually won the tournament, downing Tarani Kamoe in the finals, 6-1, 7-5.

With her semifinals finish in the 13-14 age group competition, Minor was seeded third in the Dames 17-18 division.

Minor dueled New Caledonia’s Zoe Letournelx in the first round and prevailed in two sets with an impressive 6-0, 6-0 victory.

The CNMI bet was then paired with Fiji’s Maria Tere Apisah in the semifinals. The Fiji netter easily defeated Minor in the first set, 6-1. But the Commonwealth’s junior netter gave Apisah a tough fight in the second set before bowing out, 7-6.

Apisah won the division, topping Anais Robert in the title match, 7-5, 6-2.

Minor was invited to play in New Caledonia after making it to the semifinals of the 2008 Pacific Oceania Junior Championships in Fiji last month. She stayed in Fiji until the first week of September to prepare for the tournaments in New Caledonia.

Minor arrived in the French territory on Sept. 10 and joined New Caledonia players in extensive training sessions.

Minor’s mother, Joy said the training sessions in New Caledonia were very tough and players there were much taller and heftier.

“Thea told us in the first day of the training session, she was asked to run six kilometers. She is not used to it so she made stops. The next day, she completed the six-kilometer run without stopping because the last time she took a break, other players were looking at her,” the older Minor said in a telephone interview with the Saipan Tribune.

Joy added that Thea’s first tournament was in We Lifou in the Provincial Islands of the French territory and her daughter competed in a Davis Cup-like event.

The tournament was called “Games Interprovinciaux” and featured qualifiers who represented New Caledonia’s three provinces namely the North of the Province Tennis, South of the Province Tennis, and the Provincial Islands Tennis.