MANILA, Philippines — Bogo City’s Etha Nadine Seno stamped her class with a pair of commanding victories to sweep the girls’ 14-and 16-and-under singles titles in the kickoff leg of the Visayas swing at the City of Naga Juniors Age Group Tennis Championships at the Naga Courts in Cebu over the weekend.
The 14-year-old standout survived her toughest test in her age bracket, edging Trisha Nocos in a tense opening-set tiebreak before pulling away for a 7-6(1), 6-1 victory. Earlier, Seno overcame Irene Rago, 6-0, 4-6, 10-5, in the quarterfinals before defeating Alessandra Garcia, 6-2, 6-3, in the semis to claim the MVP honors in the Group 2 tournament presented by Dunlop.
She proved even more dominant in the 16-and-U division, overwhelming Nocos, 6-1, 6-1, to complete a twin-title campaign in the tournament, which ushered in the three-leg Visayas swing of the Palawan Junior Series aimed at discovering and developing the country’s next generation of tennis stars.
Joining Seno in the MVP circle was Bohol’s Madison Rago, who delivered an equally impressive run on the boys’ side.
The unranked Rago outlasted Chris Villarin, 6-3, 4-6, 7-6(3), in a gripping boys’ 16-and-U final. He came within a match of duplicating Seno’s two-title feat before falling to top seed Andrio Estrella, 5-7, 7-5, 6-2, in the boys’ 14-and-U championship match.
Sanctioned by the Philippine Tennis Association (Philta) and Universal Tennis Rating (UTR), the Visayas swing follows the successful Mindanao launch and forms part of Palawan Pawnshop’s long-term grassroots development program aimed at identifying future national standouts through consistent, high-level competition.
Backed by the Palawan Group of Companies, with support from ICON Golf and Sports, the series gives aspiring junior players valuable match experience while creating a pathway toward higher levels of competition.
The second Visayas leg will be held from July 16 to 21 at the Villa Aurora Tennis Courts in Pardo, Cebu City, before concluding on July 23-28 at the Mandaue courts.
In other singles finals, third seed Kristian Kilat of Siquijor defeated Rynel Borgonia, 6-3, 6-4, to rule the boys’ 18-and-U division, while Mandaue City’s Juliana Tenepre dominated Moriah Laput, 6-0, 6-0, to capture the girls’ 18-and-U crown.
Top seed Miguel Lambating of Talisay City also weathered a stern challenge before beating No. 2 Dale Diamante, 6-3, 1-6, 6-4, for the boys’ 12-and-U title, while Cebu City’s Arianna Tiongko defeated Celestine Ngo, 6-2, 6-2, in the girls’ 12-and-U final.
Tenepre and Kilat likewise completed two-title campaigns in doubles.
Tenepre partnered Kristiana Villaber to rout Laput and Jamela Largo, 8-1, for the girls’ 18-and-U doubles championship, while Kilat and Urcisino Villa posted an identical 8-1 victory over Enzo Masaga and Rago in the boys’ 18-and-U final.
Estrella also emerged as a double champion after teaming up with Carlouie Canoy to defeat Diamante and Lambating, 8-6, for the boys’ 14-and-U doubles title. Tiongko added a second trophy as she and Beatrice Sicangco edged Garcia and Ngo, 8-7(5), to win the girls’ 14-and-U doubles crown. TMT
