Exequiel Jucutan captured two titles while Marielle Alexie Jarata posted a win and a runner-up finish in the Palawan Pawnshop-Palawan Express Pera Padala Southwoods leg regional age-group tennis tournament at the Southwoods tennis courts in Carmona, Cavite last Thursday.
The fourth-ranked Jucutan, 12, dropped just two games in three matches to reach the finals of his age-division then stunned No. 2 Marc Jarata, 6-2, 6-3, to snare the crown. The rising star from Pangasinan later re-asserted his mastery over the top-seeded Jarata, scoring a 6-0, 6-2, romp in the 14-U finals to complete a “double” in the Group 2 tournament sponsored by Palawan Pawnshop and presented by Slazenger.
The No. 2 Marielle Jarata, on the other hand, upended the top seeded Kean Enriquez, 5-4(5), 4-1, to nail the 10-unisex diadem but failed to match Jucutan’s two-title feat after bowing to Francine Dizon of Sta. Rosa, Laguna, 0-6, 2-6, in the girls’ 12-U championship.
Marielle Jarata, however, shared the MVP plum with Jucutan as they emerged the top performers in the week-long event backed by Asiatraders Corp. and the new Unified tennis group, led by PPS-PEPP, Cebuana Lhuillier, Wilson, Toby’s and B-Meg.
“The reversals, not to mention the winners from different cities and provinces, only underscored the level playing field with a number of players gaining ground through hard work and determination,” said Palawan Pawnshop president/CEO Bobby Castro.
