Saraza, Sotelo bag Pres Cup tennis crowns

MANILA, Philippines - Chloe Mae Saraza racked up two victories, unranked Kim Sotelo snatched the girls’ 18-and-under crown and Daniel Estanislao reigned again in the 10-unisex in the President’s Cup age-group tennis tournament at the Olivarez Sports Center in Sucat last Monday.

The second seeded Saraza, 13, wore down No. 3 Angelica Santiago in a thrilling decider to hack out a 6-3, 5-7, 7-5 victory and capture the 14-and-U crown. The upcoming NCR star later added the 16-and-U diadem with a walkover win over Santiago to become the lone double winner in the event held in honor of Philta president and Parañaque City Mayor Edwin Olivarez.

Sotelo stunned top seed Jana Hernandez, 6-1, 4-6, 12-10, in the semis then survived Moira Velicaria, 6-4, 3-6, 6-3, to claim the 18-and-U title in tournament sponsored by Palawan Pawnshop and Babolat through its distributor Technosports.

“I would like to extend my heartfelt gratitude to Palawan Pawnshop and its COO Bobby Castro and Technosports president Guillermo Nocom for their contribution to the successful staging of Philta’s 28-leg circuit this year,” said Olivarez. “This grassroots program is Philta’s commitment to promote tennis and to develop our promising young players to become future champions.”

Estanislao dominated top ranked Diego Dayrit, 6-3, 6-1, as the Malabon bet copped the 10-unisex crown in a big follow-up to his victory in the PCA Open two weeks ago.