Eala clips Martin, reaches Philta semis

MANILA, Philippines - Alex Eala put on a solid game and bundled out second seed Maxine Martin, 6-0, 6-1, to crash into the semifinal round of the girls’ 12-and-under division Philippine Sports Commission-Philippine Tennis Association Age-Group Tennis Championships at the Rizal Memorial Tennis Center yesterday.

Eala blanked Martin with a variety of shots in the opening set then dropped just one game in the next to complete the one-sided triumph that set her up against the winner of the Blanche Lagrisola-Monica Therese Cruz for a berth in the finals.

No. 4 Bettine Bautista, on the other hand, fended off Erika Manalo, 6-1, 6-3, to reach the semis against the winner between top seed Kristin Salimbangon and Gia Sagandoy in the other quarters match in the event sponsored by PSC and Philta with Dunlop Fort as the official ball.

Marcel Gonzales also breezed through the semis of the boys’ 16-and-under class with a 6-3, 6-3 romp over No. 7 Jose Cano while Betto Orendain shocked fourth seed Kyle Joseph, 7-6(4), 6-1, to clinch the first semis seat in the lower bracket of the week-long event which stakes ranking points.

Second seed Emmanuel Vacallares, meanwhile, stamped his class over Alquin Flores, 6-3, 6-2, to set up a semis clash with No. 4 Godfrey Seno, who downed Brysl Libao, 6-1, 6-3, in the boys’ 14-and-under category.

Third seed Soheimen Mama also played true to form and scored a 6-4, 6-1 victory over Jacob Martin in the upper half of the draw. He will meet the winner between top seed Cenon Gonzales Jr. and Elijah Arevalo, who were disputing the last semis berth at presstime.

The winners in various divisions will get 200 points with the runners-up and the two other semifinalists to gain 150 and 100 points, respectively. The quarterfinalists will receive 70 points.