Higa stuns fancied foes; Dagoon wins

Unranked Jonathan Higa defied the odds, toppling two seeded rivals, including No. 1 Ariel Cabaral, to claim the premier boys’ division title, while top seed Cadee Dagoon ruled the girls’ 16U class as they shared Most Valuable Player (MVP) honors in the Dr. Pablo Olivarez National Junior Tennis Championships in Sucat, Parañaque last Monday.

Representing Taguig City, Higa signaled his title intentions early with a commanding 6-0, 6-0 win over Jayson de Paz.

Then, he stunned No. 4 Antonio Ng Jr., 6-1, 6-2, before overcoming a tough challenge from Lucas Go, rallying for a 3-6, 6-4, 6-3 victory to enter the semifinals at the Olivarez Sports Center. There, he ousted fifth seed Al Tristan Licayan, 6-3, 7-5, to earn a shot at his first Palawan Pawnshop junior series crown.

Cabaral, the top seed from Bais City, powered through the upper half of the 32-player draw with straight-set wins, including a 1-0 (ret.) semifinal victory over France Dilao. However, he faltered against Higa’s resilience and power, retiring at 4-2 in the second set after dropping the first, 5-7.

Dagoon, meanwhile, dominated her bracket but faced a stiff challenge in the girls’ 16U finals, edging Isabel Ataiza, 6-0, 7-6(4).

The rising Olongapo City star later fell short in the 18U championship, bowing to unseeded Sabine See, 1-6, 6-4, 3-6, also held at the Parañaque courts.

Despite this, Dagoon’s stellar performance earned her co-MVP honors with Higa as the Palawan Pawnshop-sponsored circuit moves to Sultan Kudarat for its next Group 2 tournament in Isulan from 6 to 10 March. Multi-titled men’s singles Open champion Eric Jed Olivarez Jr. graced the awards rites.

Lipa City’s Rafa Monte de Ramos ruled the boys’ 16U division, while Nicolas Andal dominated the 14U category.

Jan Caleb Villeno of San Pablo City captured the boys’ 12U title, and Makati’s Liam Harrow triumphed in the 10U unisex event of the Group 2 tournament presented by Dunlop and part of the nationwide circuit sponsored by Palawan Pawnshop headed by president/CEO Bobby Castro.

In the girls’ division, Ataiza, from Albay, clinched the 14U crown, while Olongapo’s Athena Liwag secured the 12U championship in the week-long tournament sanctioned by Philta and supported by Universal Tennis Ranking and ICON Golf & Sports.

Monte de Ramos outlasted Anirudh Palanisamy, 3-6, 6-4, 6-3, while Andal overpowered Jairo Flores, 6-0, 6-1. Villeno edged Jairus Peralta, 7-5, 6-3, and Harrow upset top seed Maximus Calingasan, 4-2, 5-4(4).

In the girls’ finals, Ataiza dispatched Izabelle Camcam, 6-2, 6-1, while Liwag dominated Francine Wong, 6-4, 6-1.

Dagoon and See later teamed up to rout Kristina Tan and Andrea Pamandanan, 8-2, in the girls’ 18U doubles final, while Plata and Palanisamy took the boys’ title with an 8-4 win over siblings Nathan and Nicolas Andal.

Ataiza and Liwag captured the girls’ 14U doubles title with a narrow 8-7(5) victory over Camcam and Vania Parawan. In the boys’ category, Cristiano Calingasan and Villeno secured an 8-3 win over Tyronne Caro and Peralta.

Meanwhile, Terrence Battalones and Maximus Calingasan dominated the 10U doubles, blanking Alejandro and Alonzo Duque, 8-0.