PC Bikes Jr National Squash Champs
Patrick Foster, Director of Squash at the BSRA, has hailed the just concluded PC Bikes Junior National Squash Championships held at the Devonshire Courts a great success. In comments to Bernews, Foster said, “Junior squash is not only surviving but it’s really thriving if the standard of these Championships is anything to go by.”
“We had a superb tournament for boys and girls, and the quality of squash in the Boys Under 19 division was exceptional. Before our own championships we had three of our Boys Under 19’s compete overseas. Noah Browne, Micah Franklin (pictured below), and Christian Muldoon all made the final 32 in the U.S. Junior Open where Franklin finished in 10th position. Franklin also had a brilliant performance in the Canadian Open where he placed 5th overall.”
Franklin was clearly the favourite going into the Bermuda Championships, but he was pushed hard by much improved Noah Browne in the Under 19 final after beating another much improved player, Chris Stout, in the semi-final. Franklin won the final 3-0 but Browne more than held his own and will clearly be a force to be reckoned with in the future.
The Girls Under 19 final was won by Rachel Barnes who defeated Alex Marshall 11-8, 11-5, 11-9 in a match that was much closer than the score suggests, while 14 year old Emma Keane continued to impress by winning both the Girls Under 15 and Girls Under 17 finals against Brittney Wall and Alex Marshall respectively.
The Knights brothers featured in two finals. Kyler Knights played D’Vario Thompson in the Boys Under 17 final where Thompson showed that he is also rapidly improving with a 3-0 win, but Kion Knights came through with a 3-0 victory over Dylan Muldoon in the Boys Under 15 final. Muldoon, however, is still only 12 and he played exceptionally well in reaching the finals of both the Boys Under 13 and Under 15 finals. In the Boys Under 13 final he lost in a tough match against Dylan Pratt who had already won the Boys Under 11 final against Anaya Smith. Pratt is just 10 years old but he already has excellent racket skills and great determination. According to insiders at the BSRA, Dylan Pratt is a name to remember.
Meanwhile the Girls Under 13 and Under 11 divisions were dominated by the Rose sisters, as Madeleine won the Girls Under 13 final against her younger sister, and Charlotte took the Under 11 title.
In summing up the championships Foster said, “We had a first class tournament of high caliber squash, and it is most impressive to see the level of good sportsmanship displayed by all the competitors.”
Prizes were presented by Melrindo Caines of PC Bikes who was himself a graduate of the junior squash programme and has represented Bermuda on numerous occasions. Caines also paid tribute to the standard of junior squash and commented that he was delighted to be able to give something back to the Squash Club.
You’re rock’n skyward Micah!