By Akeem Greene in Tortola
Avery Arjoon, Ethan Bulkan, Kaylee Lowe, and Nicholas Verwey are the four Guyanese who will battle on Tuesday for a Caribbean title at the Junior Squash Championships in Tortola, British Virgin Islands.
The clinical Arjoon only dropped five points as she defeated teammate Emily Fung-A-Fat 11-2, 11-2, 11-1 for a showdown with another teammate, Kaylee Lowe, for the Girls’ U-15 title.
Lowe’s remarkable performance is noteworthy as she convincingly toppled number-two seed Josie Thong of Trinidad and Tobago 11-5, 12-10, 11-6.
Lowe will undoubtedly have to go another notch against the reigning U-15 champion, but from a Guyana perspective, gold and silver are assured.
Avery Arjoon is into another Junior CASA final (PHOTO: News Room/Shaconeil Burnette/July 1, 2024)
More so, Ethan Bulkan triumphed over his brother Egan and secured a spot in the U-13 final.
After losing the first set 9-11, Ethan stormed back to win the next three, 11-9, 11-7, and 11-3.
On Tuesday morning, Ethan will face number-one seed Jakob Noblett from BVI, while Egan will face Ethan Cyrus and has a chance to win bronze.
Under-19
Nicholas Verwey’s mental prowess in breaking down an opponent was ever-present again as he motored into another final and stayed firmly on course to defend his U-19 title. His opponent, again, will be Barbadian Alex Stewart.
Verwey reached the final compliments of a superb display against Trinidadian Seth Thong, winning the match 11-9, 11-8, 11-7.
The dream of another all-Guyana final was on as another exceptional talent from Guyana, Michael Alphonso Jr., battled Stewart in the other semi-final.
Nicholas Verwey was clinical against Seth Thong and is into his second successive U-19 final (PHOTO: News Room/Shaconeil Burnette/July 1, 2024)
Though a valiant effort to constantly come from behind to level the scores, the witty and fit Stewart found an answer to win 11-7, 11-9, 12-10.
While not the joy of gold, Alphonso Jr. can still end his Junior CASA career with bronze when he faces Thong.
First-year Under-19 players Mohryan Baksh and Louis DaSilva could likely battle in the plate final as both are in the semi-finals.
Under-17
After beating Ciara George of St. Vincent and the Grenadines 13-11, 11-4, 11-6, Guyana’s Rylee Rodrigues lost to Milanna Lamontagne 6-11, 6-11, 8-11 and therefore missed out on qualifying for the plate final in the Girls’ U-17 category.
More so, Safirah Sumner will battle Barbadian Sarrayah Yearwood for bronze after she lost her semi-final to number one seed Mehar Trehan of Jamaica 11-3, 11-6, 11-5.
It was a mixed return for the boys. Shiloh Asregado swept his match against Malachi McMaster, but Demetri Lowe lost 7-11, 6-11, 11-9, 1-11 to Zevieh Abraham after defeating Barbadian Kai Shepherd earlier in the day.
Safirah Sumner during her U-17 semi-final (PHOTO: News Room/Shaconeil Burnette/July 1, 2024)
With seedings a key factor for future tournaments, Asgregado will aim to reach the fifth-place playoff.
Under-15 Boys
The energetic Jacob McDonald lost another plate match, this time to Cole Brown, 2-11, 1-11, 9-11 to end his campaign.
Under -11
Tehani Munroe will challenge Jamaica’s Varenya Singh for bronze, while Zoey McDonald will aim to end on a high when she faces Ella Griffith in a playoff match.
More so, Zion Hickerson will have a shot at finishing fifth in the playoff category.