Top juniors vie in PPS Valle Verde National meet

MANILA, Philippines — Over 300 players from all over step up their drive for top honors and ranking points as they vie in the Palawan Pawnshop-Palawan Express Pera Padala Valle Verde Country Club National Age-Group which got under way yesterday at the VVCC indoor and outdoor tennis courts in Pasig.

Leading campaigners from Sultan Kudarat, Davao, San Carlos City, Los Baños, Ilocos, Lucena, Quezon City, Rizal, Pangasinan, Dumaguete, Agoo, La Union, Lipa, Cavite, Malabon, Cainta and Manila gear up for six days of top notch tennis, all seeking podium finish and ranking points in the Group 1 tournament presented by Dunlop and sponsored by Palawan Pawnshop.

Bea Acena from Ilocos and Anna Laura De Myer from San Fabian, Pangasinan topbill the girls’ 18-and-under cast that includes Denise Bernardo from Los Baños, Danna Abad from Davao, Paula Uy from QC and Sultan Kudarat’s Carlyn Guarde.

Vince EJ Tugade, also from Sultan Kudarat, Valle Verde’s Athan Arejola, Loucas Fernandez from QC and Dumaguete’s Ibarra Ortega lead the chase in the boys’ premier side of the event hosted by the Valle Verde Country Club headed by Unified Tennis Philippines OIC Richie Lozada and officers and members of VVCC.

All nine categories feature 32-player draws with the girls’ 16-U division even holding a qualifier to accommodate the big number of entries seeking spots in the event backed by Asiatraders Corp. and sanctioned by the Unified Tennis Philippines, made up of PPS-PEPP, Cebuana Lhuillier, Wilson, Toby’s, Dunlop, Slazenger and B-Meg.

“It’s inspiring to see these young, talented players going up against each other in a topnotch tournament, this being a Group I event,” said Palawan Pawnshop president/CEO Bobby Castro.

Next up in the country’s long-running, most comprehensive age-grouper are the PPS Manila Polo Club and the Olivarez Cup. For details, call PPS-PEPP Program Development director Bobby Mangunay at 0915-4046464. 

De Myer also leads the 16-U cast along with Uy, Renee Acena, Kryshana Brazal from Rizal, Gab Zoleta from Lucena and Bliss Bayking from San Carlos City with Exequiel Jucutan from Pangasinan and Marc Jarata from La Union loom as the players to beat in the boys side along with Elvin Geluz from Cavite and Laguna’s Jester Ocio.