Suson, Velez share PPS Mactan spotlight

MANILA, Philippines – Young CJ Thalia Suson drew inspiration from the home crowd as she racked up two victories to share center stage with Davao ace Patricia Velez in the Palawan Pawnshop-Palawan Express Pera Padala regional age-group tennis tournament at the Mactan Island Lawn and Airbase Tennis Club in Cebu recently.

The second-seeded Suson, one of the rising stars from Liloan, upended No. 1 Chad Cuizon, 4-2, 4-0, to snare the 10-unisex crown then, as top seed, hit clutch winners to ward off Nicole Villar and clinch the 12-and-under title in the Group 2 event sponsored by Palawan Pawnshop and presented by Slazenger.

The third-seeded Velez wore down No. 2 Gennifer Pagente in hacking out a 6-2, 6-7(2), 11-9 thriller in the girls’ 16-U finals then overpowered Kristin Salimbangon, 6-1, 6-1, to complete a twinkill in the premier 18-U section.

Unranked local bet Nicole dela Rita worked her way up from a couple of walkover wins, a shock 6-0, 7-6(3) over second seed Lyra Repollo in the quarters and a 7-6(2), 6-1 stunner over No. 4 Bless Coderos in the semis with an imposing 6-0, 6-2 romp over fellow giant-killer Nicole Villar to bag the girls’ 14-U crown.