After competing in the Dominican Republic for a week, The Bahamas’ Under-12 (U12) girls tennis team returned home on Saturday with silver medals draped around their necks. The three-member team was in action at the 2021 Confederation of Tennis of Central American and the Caribbean (COTECC) Under-12 (U12) team competition for sub-region three and four.
The team won their final tie of the competition, 3-0, over the U.S. Virgin Islands (USVI) at the Centro Nacional de Tenis Parque del Este in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, on Friday, securing the second-place finish. With the placement, they punched their ticket to the COTECC U12 Team Competition Final set, for November 22-26 in Mexico.
The Bahamas was represented by Brianna Houlgrave, Tatyana Madu and Kaylah Fox. The head coach was Marion Bain.
The team finished with a 4-1 win/loss record in the tournament.
“I feel pretty comfortable about the results since we went into the tournament without any tournament play whatsoever,” Bain said. “The girls are just coming off summer break and have not been training, so it was exciting for them to be playing in this tournament. It shows them what they’re capable of doing with proper training, tournament play and with match play. It was exciting for us because they have never played at this level before.”
On Friday, Fox was up first and had complete control of the game. She defeated Safiyah Prasad, 6-0 and 6-0.
“At first it was a little rough being away from my parents but as I got into the groove of getting up early and getting to the courts, it became a simple thing to do,” Fox said. “I’ve never had an experience like this. I have been in tournaments in my country and around it, but never something so far away and without my parents. It was a strange feeling but it really wasn’t hard because I went there to play tennis and I like playing tennis.”
Madu followed suit in the next singles match against Aminad Prasad. She won 6-0 and 6-0 to seal the tie for The Bahamas.
“I’m happy with my performance,” Madu said. “I felt pretty confident, and confidence is all you need basically. I think I did well overall. It’s a team event, so we all did well placing second of course. Since I was away from my friends, I got a bit sad and scared. I was just trying to loosen up because I was there and got used to the rules. After the first day or two I got used to it and after that I just did what I do best – play tennis.”
In doubles, Houlgrave and Fox stepped up to win that match 6-0 and 6-1. It was an impressive tie as The Bahamas only lost one game on the day. They outscored the USVI 36 games to one.
“I was extremely happy with the experience,” Houlgrave said. “It was amazing because it made me feel proud of myself for getting this far because back then I used to doubt myself a lot. This tournament made my self-esteem a little bit higher. There’s no specific thing that I’m most happy with. I’m happy with everything that I’ve done.”
They were met at the Lynden Pindling International Airport on Saturday by a small welcoming party that included Bahamas Lawn Tennis Association (BLTA) President Perry Newton and Pauline Davis-Thompson from the Ministry of Youth, Sports and Culture.
“You know it’s an amazing feeling and I’m very proud. The girls had to work very hard. Playing one Dominican team in itself is tough, so to face two in one tournament is a very difficult challenge. It was good that they were able to come out and only lose one. We just have to keep the girls encouraged. Hopefully they’re inspired by their efforts and it encourages them to continue to train hard and just stay focused. That’s the biggest thing – staying focused and just continuing to prepare and be ready,” Newton said.
Davis-Thompson said she was proud of the girls’ performance. The Olympic gold medalist, who knows a lot about representing The Bahamas, said she was impressed at how they showed their national pride.
“They performed very well on behalf of our country, The Bahamas, and I just had to see them. They are so young but have that indomitable Bahamian spirit and I am so excited for our country, for tennis and just excited overall. Sports is strong in The Bahamas. We are a strong people and as many people know, sports more than any other entity, has educated Bahamians. I just hope that these young people keep performing the way they are performing because my end goal is for The Bahamas to get a sports academy.”
The final in Mexico is set for the week of November 22-26. The players know what they need to work on heading into that tournament. For 12-year-old Madu, she said she will be looking to work on everything. The Bishop Michael Eldon student out of Freeport, Grand Bahama, suffered some leg cramps last week but showed resilience. She recovered to help the team earn the silver medal finish.
For 11-year-old Houlgrave who attends the Windsor School, work will be put in on her serves. She gave up points on double faults. Fox, 11, who attends Saint Andrew’s School in Boca Raton, Florida, knows what she has to work on after having seen some great regional competition. Bain said she will ensure the girls get some match play before the Mexico trip.
“In our preparation leading up the next month or an event, what I want is for the girls to have more tournament and match play. We have a national tournament coming up in Freeport so they are going to play that tournament. For practices, I have asked their coaches to ensure that they play matches two weeks before the tournament. We are going to go to Florida and play a weekend tournament as well,” Bain said.
The Bahamas defeated St. Lucia, the Dominica Republic Team 1, Trinidad and Tobago and the U.S. Virgin Islands, and lost to the Dominica Republic Team 2. They won 10 matches and lost five over the week-long competition.
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