Top seed Cheri-Ann Parris completed a rare sweep of the three local under-19 age group titles as the curtain came down on the 6th Toshiba Copy Centre Junior Squash Open. Parris, who turned fifteen in August and who is also the local and Caribbean under-15 squash champion, has also won the two other local under-19 titles this year. In April she easily won the Sagicor General Junior National Championships under-15 and under-19 titles and in October she cruised to victory in the under-19 age group final in the Rotherley Junior Open. In addition, Cheri-Ann travelled to Trinidad in early April this year and won the Vita Malt Junior Open under-19 title and is arguably the top under-19 female competing in the Caribbean at the moment.
In the final match of the Toshiba Copy Centre Junior Open Cheri-Ann faced her major rival, Bo Harris, in what turned out to be an exciting girl?s under-19 final at the Barbados Squash Club on Sunday. The appreciative spectators in court #1 witnessed some top quality squash played by two of the best junior girls in the Caribbean. The match was of a high standard and was full of unbelievable retrieving and shot making. The sixteen year-old Bo Harris, who is a former local and Caribbean under-15 champion, put up a brave fight especially in the second game which could have gone either way. But Parris’ superior fitness and hard hitting eventually overpowered her opponent and Cheri-Ann duly won her fifth straight under-19 final in convincing fashion 9/0 10/9 9/1 in 29 minutes. In the boy?s under-19 final the top seed Bryant Cumberbatch easily defeated Alex Garcia 9/2 9/5 9/2 in 23 minutes to claim his first Toshiba under-19 title.
The boy?s under-17 title was won by the lanky left handed top seed, Nkosi Ross, who defeated Ciaran Raymer, another lefty in straight games. The boy?s under-15 title was won as expected by Nkosi?s brother, Liu Ross, who defeated Jonathan O?Dowd 9/4 9/4 9/3. The boy?s under-13 title was won by #2 seed Maarten Edwards who upset the top seed, Raymond St. John 9/4 9/2 9/4, while the girl?s under-13 title was claimed by Kennilee Ward in another upset. Ward was seeded at #3 but defeated both the top seed Melanie Mark in five close games and the second seed Zoe Lisk 3-1 to claim her first Toshiba under-13 title.
The boy?s under-11 age group was won in convincing fashion by the top seeded Jamaican, Ashante Smith, in his first tournament in Barbados. Ashante crushed all comers in straight games including Matthew Hutchinson who nonetheless did very well to reach his first final by defeating the local #2 seed Mikey Cox 3-1 in impressive fashion in the semi-final on Saturday.
In the presentation ceremony that followed the finals, little Asha Gibbs was awarded the Most Helpful trophy, while Ashante Smith and Kennilee Ward were awarded the Most Promising trophies for boys and girls respectively. Trophies were also presented to Cheri-Ann Parris and Ciaran Raymer for the Most Outstanding Effort by a girl and boy respectively.
In his closing remarks, BSRA President Craig Archer noted that the Toshiba Copy Centre had been the sponsor of this tournament in December since 2000, and that this year end tournament had made a significant impact on the development of junior squash in Barbados. The BSRA continues to be extremely grateful to Mr. Charles Cox and the Toshiba Copy Centre for their invaluable contribution to the future of squash in the island.
Final positions were as follows (all Barbadian players unless stated otherwise):
Girl?s Under-19
1st Cheri-Ann Parris; 2nd Bo Harris; 3rd Nadia McCarthy; 4th Maia Blackman.
Plate Winner: Lea Solomon.
Boy?s Under-19
1st Bryant Cumberbatch; 2nd Alex Garcia.
Boy?s Under-17
1st Nkosi Ross; 2nd Ciaran Raymer; 3rd Timothy Tulip; 4th Copeland Straker.
Plate Winner: Paul Taylor; Plate Runner-up: Nicolas Dash.
Boy?s Under-15
1st Liu Ross; 2nd Jonathan O?Dowd; 3rd Ryan Foster; 4th Moishe Steinbok.
Plate Winner: Jonathan Karp; Plate Runner-up: Haiden Ward.
Girl?s Under-13
1st Kennilee Ward; 2nd Melanie Mark; 3rd Zoe Lisk; 4th Asha Gibbs.
Plate Winner: Ashleigh Robinson.
Boy?s Under-13
1st Maarten Edwards; 2nd Raymond St. John; 3rd Dillon Straker; 4th James Ince. Plate Winner: Alex Radulovic.
Boy?s Under-11
1st Ashante Smith (Jamaica); 2nd Matthew Hutchinson; 3rd Mikey Cox;
4th Stewart St. John.
Plate Winner: Johann Haywood; Plate Runner-up: Sebastian Straker.