Davao City netters top Palawan meet

MANILA, Philippines - Jaffary Cariga and Rachel Patricia Velez annexed a pair of victories in varying fashions as the Davao City bets bagged two crowns each in the Palawan Pawnshop-Palawan Express Pera Padala regional age-group tournament at the Tagum City Lawn Tennis Club in Davao del Norte last Monday.

Cariga ended unranked Regan Sorima’s giant-killing spree with a tough 3-5, 4-2, 11-9 victory in the boys’ 18-and-Under finals before the 15-year-old find demolished No. 4 Jefferson Alqueza, 4-2, 4-2, to cop the 16-and-U diadem.

The 14-year-old Velez, on the other hand, routed Jed Aquino, 4-1, 4-1, to clinch the girls’ 14-and-U title before surviving unseeded Rosvel Binondo, 5-4(6), 5-4(1), to pocket the 16-and-U crown in the event presented by Babolat which served as 23rd leg of the year-round, nationwide circuit sponsored by Palawan Palawan and sanctioned by Philta.

“This is a good grassroots tennis program for our young players here in Davao del Norte and in nearby towns and cities,” said Gov. Rodolfo Del Rosario, who thanked Palawan Pawnshop COO Bobby Castro for staging the tournament for the first time in Tagum City where tennis is very popular.

Binondo, also 14 and playing out of Santo Tomas, Davao del Norte, stunned top seed Jenni Dizon, 4-2, 5-4(4), to capture the girls’ premier 18-and-U crown while No. 2 Jessica Carcueva, 11 from Toril, took the 12-and-U title with a 4-1, 4-2 upset over top seed Ma. Angela Novis.

Kidapawan City’s Jefferson Alqueza, 13, hacked out a tense 5-4(2), 4-5, 10-5 win over Lordrenz Pacheco to cop the 14-and-U crown, Sultan Kudarat’s Mark Alfred Directo, 11, routed Lj Mangundadatu, 4-0, 4-1, to snare the 12-and-U title.