Jane Echon and Russel Daarol set out as the top favorites but both face tough tests in the premier side of the PPS-PEPP Liloy national age-group tennis circuit, which got going yesterday (Sunday) at the Liloy Tennis Club in Zamboanga del Norte.
Echon seeks to hurdle her first two matches with ease to build some kind of momentum in an expected clash with Faith Regencia in the 18-U division with the latter bracing for a final clash with Angel Repaja in the 16-U category of the Group 2 tournament presented by Dunlop.
Daarol, on the other hand, shoots for a “double” in the boys’ side of the week-long event serving as the second of a series of tournaments making up the Mindanao swing of a busy summer circuit, the long-running talent-search put up by Palawan Pawnshop-Palawan Express Pera Padala headed by president/CEO Bobby Castro.
But like Echon, Daarol will be hard-pressed to come out on top given the depth of the competing field with RJ Cagatan, Penshoppe Erquita and Aidree Pan out to stop in 16- and 18-U plays of the tournament sanctioned by the Unified Tennis Philippines made up of Palawan Pawnshop-Palawan Express Pera Padala, Cebuana Lhuillier, Wilson, Toby’s, Dunlop, Slazenger and B-Meg.
Keen competition is also seen in the lower age-group brackets with Pete Bandala and Rose Mesiona headlining the 10-U division, Eri Domiguez and Mesiona along with Bandala and Andrei Tan in the 12-U group; and Jalia Elumba and Yvonne Cuevas along with Cagatan, Erquita, Marc Fernandez and Andrei Omos in the 14-U sections.
Meanwhile, Sindangan, also in Zambo del Norte, will host the next stop on May 2-5 with action shifting to ZDN capital Dipolog the following week before the circuit winds up in Oroquieta, Misamis Occidental on May 8-11.
Listup for all tournaments is ongoing. For details, call PPS-PEPP Sports Program Development director Bobby Mangunay at 0915-4046464.
The Luzon swing also resumes next week in San Pablo, Laguna for the Escudero Cup on May 4-12. Next up is the Cainta Open featuring the country’s top players on May 13-21 while the two-weekend PPS-PEPP UP National Student Open will be played onMay 18-19 and on May 25-26.
