Tennis Manitoba: 2012 Manitoba Junior Open Championships

U10 Boys and Girls double participates from the top, left to
right: Rob Langan, David Kives, Trevor Skidmore.
Bottom: Stefan Barre, Reece Carter, Marcello Audino, Sahand
Marzban, Mya Arksey, Sabrina (Abby) Alano

The 2012 Manitoba Junior Open has come to a close, but not without some remarkable results. The U10 co-ed round robin seemed to entertain the entire crowd at the Winnipeg Lawn Tennis Club all week with their professional like demeanor and incredible shot-making. The tournament was extremely competitive and illustrated the immense amount of talent Manitoba has in this young age group. At the end of the day, Marcello Audino was crowned the provincial champion with a win over Reece Carter.

The Under 12 age group had its share of competitive matches as well. Come Thursday, it was the top two under 12 players in the province battling for hours in a three set fight. By a score of 6-3, 2-6, 6-1, Shawn Sophasath beat David Krowiak to become the provincial champion.

As it has been for the past several tournaments, the Under 16 draw was the event’s largest. With nine of the top u16 players in Manitoba competing, spectators saw some clashes for the ages. After first seed Patrick Fu was forced to battle through Eirenpreet Hirkewal in a tough three set semi-final, it appeared as if he would claim a perfect season in the under 16 age group. However, his only loss in this age category this season was to come the very next day. Fu fell victim to the talented second seed, Miraj Soni, who was able to hit through the extreme Winnipeg wind and capture the title, 6-1, 2-6, 7-5.

The under 18 draw saw outgoing junior Shane Nicholls cap off his junior career in fashion with a victory over Patrick Fu in the finals.

The under 12 girls draw was won by Mackenzie Miller, who closed out an impressive under 12 year by not only winning the provincial title, but also ending the year as the top junior in this age category. In order to reach this feat, she knocked off the highly talented young juniors, Reece Carter and Sabrina Alano.

The under 16 event was captured by Chantel Wallack, the top u14 player in the province. She defeated Jennifer Wang and Malika Sharma in the round robin format to claim provincial supremacy.

Next up is the National Junior Qualifier which will be hosted in Winnipeg starting on Wednesday, July 4th. Manitoba will be represented by the Top 3 finishers in each age group. Good luck to all of our competitors!