Colin, Hye Jin rain aces on drizzly Sunday

Ramsey

Rain may have abbreviated the matches at the 2023 Bridge Capital Tennis Classic last weekend, but that didn’t stop top seeds Colin Ramsey and Hye Jin Elliott from claiming victory anew in their respective men’s and women’s open divisions last Sunday at the American Memorial Park tennis courts.

Top seed Colin Ramsey beat third seed Jonny Jackson, 6-1, 6-1, in the finals of the men’s open. 

Ramsey earlier handily defeated No. 4 David Kwon, 6-0, 6-1, and Jackson turned back No. 2 Tomas Abel, 6-4, 6-3, in their respective semifinals.

In the men’s open doubles, the 23-year-old Ramsey partnered with brother Quentin and the duo upended top seeds Abel and Jeff Race, 4-1, 5-3.

Colin Ramsey attributed his twin championships in the two-weekend tournament to his new mental approach to the game of tennis.

Elliott

“My nerves were under control and my shots were flowing smoothly. It was a good tournament for me. My brother and I worked well as a doubles team. We plan to team up again in future tournaments.”

While he could name countless individuals who have contributed to his past and present success, he especially thanked Sports Hall of Fame inductee and national tennis coach Jeff Race for continuing to foster the sport in the CNMI, allowing him and others to excel.

“I’ve seen firsthand how he is willing to fight for the longevity of tennis in the NMI. He has given so many kids the opportunity to grow with tennis, myself included. We are all lucky enough to have had him from the beginning,” he said.

Meanwhile, Elliott went 3-0 in the women’s open, beating Serin Chung (6-4, 6-0), Hannah Chae (6-2, 6-2), and Anne Lee (6-3, 6-0).

The 17-year-old senior at Grace Christian Academy said she’s just happy she was able to overcome old and new opponents during the tourney.

“I am glad that I won the women’s open title because my hard work paid off as I played against a new player and was able to adjust to her game style,” she said, referring to Chae as the new player.
As
far as her play during the entire tournament, Elliott said she’s pretty satisfied that what she trained for paid dividends. 

“My ground strokes were working for me because that is what really helped me earn points during matches. I want to thank my parents for my success in this tournament. Additionally, a big thank you to coach Jeff for holding this tournament and making sure that all of our matches run smoothly. Also, to Bridge Capital for being the sponsor for this tournament as we cannot have this tournament without them.”

In the men’s 4.0, Cody Shimizu justified his No. 1 ranking by turning back Quentin Ramsey,  6-1, 6-4.

Daniel Kang, meanwhile, went 3-0 in the men’s 3.0, beating Hoyang Song (5-7, 6-2, 13-11), Matt Zhu (6-3, 6-2), and Chris Zhu (3-6, 6-4,10-6).

In the women’s 3.0, top seed Stella Choi nearly swept second seed Jin Hua, 4-0, 4-1, in the finals. 

Paul Jang emerged the champion in the men’s 40 after going undefeated in his matches against Gary Ramsey (6-1, 6-0), John Bradely (7-5, 6-1), and Edwin Simbulan (6-0, 6-1).

In the men’s doubles 40, Ed Javier and Ronnie Lacbayo beat Bradley and Gary Ramsey, 6-0, 6-2, in the finals.

Mae Kim and Jocelyn Paano topped the women’s doubles 3.0 after beating  Sadako Arriola Yuko Kumada, 6-4, 6-2, and Isa Nishitani and Mei Rengiil, 6-0, 6-2, in the championship.

Siblings David and Anna Kwon won the mixed doubles after an undefeated run in the tournament. They beat top seeds and another brother-and-sister tandem of Jun and Hoo Wang (4-1, 4-0), second seed Elliott and Simon Tang (4-6, 6-3, 10-7), and Shimizu and Irin Chung (6-4, 7-6(5)).

In the boys 16, unseeded Siwoo Lee upset No. 1 seed June Yu,  3-5, 4-1, 10-4, in the finals. Irin Chung also upset top seed Hoo Wang, 6-3, 6-2, for all the marbles in the girls 16.

Siwoo Lee also won the boys 14 after the second seed surprised top seed Nason Wessel in the finals, 6-2, 3-6, 11-9.

No. 1 seed Lina Tsukagoshi reigned supreme in the girls 14 with victories over Sarah Lim (walkover), Stella Choi (4-1, 4-0), and Eunho Amy Park (6-1, 6-2).

Haoyang Song continued his rampage in the boys 12 after beating No. 2 seed Michael Jeon, 4-6, 6-3, 10-3, in the last game.

Emma Lang won the girls 12 tiara after beating Vivian Chung (6-3, 6-1),  Selina Chi (6-0, 6-0), and Jenna Pascual (6-1, 6-1).

In the mixed 12, Michael Jeon and Vivian Chung walked the tightrope against Jinho Cody Park and Jenna Pascual (3-6, 6-3, 10-6) and Haoyang Song and Emma Lang (4-2, 2-4, 12-10 ) to win the division.