The Week in Sports
Junior tennis players take spotlight
- Patrick Fernandez returns to Raphael Zapanta during their men’s C singles title game in the IT&E badminton tournament last week at the TSL Sports Complex. (Roselyn B. Monroyo)
- ICS Shooters’ Djay Ong is tightly guarded by Ali’i’s Errol Peredo during their playoff game in the DLX/IT&E caging last week at the Gualo Rai Basketball Court. (Roselyn B. Monroyo)
- I Love Saipan’s Ben Pelisamen pulls up for a running jumper during their playoff game against Hite in the DLX/IT&E caging last week at the Gualo Rai Basketball Court. (Roselyn B. Monroyo)
- From left, Ami Tsukagoshi, Tania Tan, and Julia Ishikawa pose for a photo during a break in the 2014 North Pacific Regional Championships held in Guam last week. (Contributed Photo)
- Championship Flight winner Gi Yeong Kim, left, poses with Hyatt Regency Saipan general manager Nick Nishikawa during the awards ceremony for the HANMI Golf Classic last week at the Pacific Islands Club. (Roselyn B. Monroyo)
- Shirley’s FC’s Alexa Vergara leads a breakaway during their game against Matansa FC in the 2014 NMIFA Women’s League last week at the Oleai Sports Complex Field. (Roselyn B. Monroyo)
- Robbie Schorr, left, and Ken Song, pose for a photo after their title game in the boys U12 singles division of the 2014 North Pacific Regional Championships in Guam last week. (Contributed Photo)
The Jeff Raced-coached squad had four players advancing to the semis in the girls U12 singles and three in the boys division with Malika Miyawaki and Robbie Schorr eventually topping their respective divisions. In the U14 girls, all four CNMI bets also made it to the semifinals with Tania Tan defeating Julia Ishikawa, Ami Tsukagoshi, and Mimi Sakano for the championship. In the boys U14 singles, Luther Lizama marched into the semis, too before settling for the third place finish. In the boys U16 singles, Colin Ramsey pulled off an upset over the second-ranked player in the division before losing to former CNMI bet Chris Cajigan in the finals.
Before the playoff games, Race’ wards were a force in the pool plays, beating players from host Guam, Palau, and the Federated States of Micronesia.
Meanwhile, other notable events last week were the 13th Annual HANMI Charity Golf Classic Tournament, the championship games in the 2014 IT&E Mixed Doubles and Singles Badminton Tournament, and the playoff matches in the 14 DLX/IT&E Invitational Basketball League.
The DLX/IT&E caging was down to four teams with Gwap Gang, Ali’i, Flip Top, and Island Saipan surviving their respective playoff matches.
In the HANMI Golf Classic, Gi Yeong Kim dethroned two-time champion Geon Ju Lee in the Championship Flight, while other top winners were A’s Shi Feng Jin, B’s Dong Young Lee, C’s Sung Nam Park, Seniors’ Toshiyuki Mo, and Ladies’ Sherlyn Jones.
In the IT&E badminton tournament, Andreau Galvez and Hannah Choi extended their reign in the men’s and women’s Class A. Other singles champions were Class B’s Ezekiel Macario and Toshiko Obata and Class B’s Nicole Malasarte and Patrick Fernandez.
Other on-going competitions on Saipan continued with the M-League and the 2014 NMIFA Women’s Spring League holding their games at the Oleai Sports Complex Field and the DL Corp. caging having its regular season matches at the Gillette Multipurpose Gymnasium.