Palawan’s Santos posts rare tennis sweep

MANILA, Philippines - Alexie Santos knocked off three rivals, including two top seeds, to sweep three titles in the Palawan Pawnshop age-group tennis circuit presented by Babolat at the Mactan Island Lawn and Airbase Tennis Courts in Cebu over the weekend.

Santos, one of the rising stars from talent-rich Puerto Princesa, Palawan, toppled Zethley Alferez, 6-1, 6-2, to cop the girls’ 14-and-under crown then repeated over the same No. 1 rival, 6-1, 6-3, to annex the 16-and-U diadem last Saturday.

She kept the momentum of those twin victories and humbled top seed Jana Pagers, 6-3, 6-2, to snatch the premier 18-and-U plum and complete a rare three-title sweep in the tournament sponsored by Palawan Pawnshop, headed by COO Bobby Castro, and Technosports president Guillermo Nocom.

The wins came after Santos, 13, bagged the 14- and 16-and-U titles in the first of two Group 2 tournaments held in Cebu at the Consolacion Tennis Courts last week, validating her claim as one of the most talented and rising players in the ranks.

Sebastian Mosqueda, meanwhile, scored a repeat of his own sweep of two plums last week as the top Cagayan de Oro bet trounced Julian Dayrit twice, 6-1, 3-6, 6-2, in the 16-and-U finals and 6-3, 6-1 in the 18-and-U class of the event, part of the nationwide circuit sanctioned by the Philippine Tennis Association.

Fifth ranked Clyde Laquio scored a 6-0, 4-1 (ret.) win over Jabs Barcenas to pocket the boys’ 14-and-U crown while second seed Christian Unto upended No. 1 Diego Dayrit, 6-2, 6-0, to claim the boys’ 12-and-U plum.

Shyryn Salazar bounced back from a first set setback to beat Bliss Bayking, 3-6, 6-2, 6-2, and annex the girls’ 12-and-U title while Diego Dayrit played true to form and ruled the 10-unisex category with a 6-2, 6-1 romp over Sebastian Santos.