Kimi Brodeth sets out for a sweep of the Leyte swing of the PPS-PEPP circuit while Gerald Gemida and Kenzo Brodeth go all-out to upend top seed Cyd Villamar in the boys’ side of the Mayor Lucy Torres-Gomez National Junior Tennis Championships beginning today (Thursday) at the Ormoc Midtown Tennis Club.
Brodeth pulled off a pair of two-title romps in Maasin and Baybay the past two weeks with Ormoc’s rising 16-year-old star all primed for another “double” in the Group 2 tournament against the likes of Kate Imalay, Sanschena Francisco and Ma. Nina Torrejos (16-U) and Corazon Lambonao, Joy Laguna, Davanee Velasco and Francisco in the centerpiece division.
Kenzo Brodeth, on the other hand, faces a stiff challenge in the 14-U category which he ruled in Maasin and Baybay as Christian Laguna, Urciano Villa and Claudwin Toñacao seek to stop his run, along with the rest of the bidders in the 32-player draw of the tournament presented by Dunlop.
He will also try to make up for his failed title bid in 16-U play the last time out and foil Villamar’s own two-title drive in the tournament serving as part of the OMTC’s youth sports program spearheaded by president Dr. Bingcol Rodriguez.
Gemida also braces for a tough outing against the top-seeded Villamar from Lanao del Norte in the 18-U category which also features Ariel Semblante, Jr. and Randy Pausanos, while fellow homegrown bet Ma. Caroliean Fiel is fancied to stretch her winning run in the 10-unisex and girls’ 12-U class after topping the Maasin and Baybay stops of the circuit put up by Palawan Pawnshop president/CEO Bobby Castro.
Meanwhile, action in the country’s longest talent-search, backed by ProtekTODO, PalawanPay, the Unified Tennis Philippines and UTR (Universal Tennis Rating), shifts to the Valle Verde Country Club in Pasig for the Group 1 juniors tournament on March 30-April 2. For details, contact tournament organizer Bobby Mangunay at 0915-4046464.
