CNMI junior players begin bid in POJC today

CNMI junior tennis team players and coach Jeff Race pose for a photo at the departure area of the Saipan International Airport last week before leaving for Fiji to compete in the 2016 Pacific Oceania Junior Championships. (Contributed Photo)

Six of the 16 CNMI players in the 2016 Pacific Oceania Junior Championships are seeded in their respective divisions as action in the annual tournament kicks off today.

Carol Lee is ranked first in the girls U16 singles and is in Group 1 of the round-robin elimination, joining the fourth-seeded Ruby Coffin of Fiji, Sunshein Palik of the Federates States of Micronesia, Daisy Spiti of Vanuatu, and Maanaima Tausi of Samoa. Lee’s fellow CNMI bets—Tania Tan and Isabel Heras—are in Group B along with the second-ranked Vienna Kumar of Fiji, No. 3 Naia Guitton of Tahiti, and Tonga’s Skylawn Palelei. Heras will face Pelelei in today’s first round, while Tan will also duel the Tonga bet along with Guitton on Day 1 of the POJC. Lee is paired against Coffin.

In the girls U14 singles, the third-ranked Malika Miyawaki is pitted against CNMI teammate Asia Raulerson in the first round match in Group 2. In Group 1, the Commonwealth’s Conatsu Kaga and Maria Gregoire will challenge American Samoa’s Chrystal Christman and top-ranked Eleanor Schuster of Samoa, respectively.

Only the Top 2 players in each group after the round-robin play in the girls U14 and U16 singles will advance to the playoffs.

The boys U14 singles has the same format with the CNMI’s Robbie Schorr and Ken Song getting the Top 2 seeding in the division. The No. 1 rank Schorr will take on No. 4 pick Samuel Strid on Day 1 of the series of Group 1 matches. Sean Lee is also in Group 1 and will meet Strid, too, and American Samoa’s John Paul Lim in the opening day. In Group 2, the second-seeded Song will collide against No. 3 Vaitea Molinier of Tahiti and Fiji’s Shantanu Shail.

In the boys U12 singles, the CNMI also has two seeded players in No. 3 Ji Min Woo and No. 4 Seung Jin Paik. Woo is in Group 4 and will have back-to-back games today, facing Samoa’s Rafael Tapusoa first before battling Fiji’s Storm Cornish. Paik has twin matches, too on Day 1, as he takes on Tahiti’s Haunui Montas and Samoa’s Corey Duseigneur in Group 3.

The boys U16 singles is also divided into four pools with Vincent Tudela in Group 2 and Michael Ren in Group 3. Tudela’s first foe is Vanuatu’s Clement Mainguy, while Ren will start his bid in his group against Tahiti and No. 3 seed Heimanarii Laisan.

The 15 CNMI players competing in the POCJ are representing the North Pacific Team, which is coached by the Commonwealth’s Jeff Race.