Youth tennis stars compete in the Dominican Republic

A rain delay couldn’t stop Billy Boyle as he led the way for Bermuda’s youth tennis hopes in the U16 Main Draw of the JITIC 2013 Tennis Tournament in the Dominican Republic.

Boyle faced off against Marco Moreira of Costa Rica in what was a very even match-up. He utilized his strong ground game to take the first set 6-4 and was hanging on 6-5 in the second game when rain started falling. There was a 90 minute delay before the court was dry enough to play on, at which point Boyle returned to the court and powered through the rest of the game to win 7-5 and continue his bid to win the Main Draw.

Nicolas Lines played a very entertaining match against Moreira as part of the Consolation round, a tightly contested game that Bermudian tennis coach Jerome Bradshaw described in a press release as “worthy of the Main Draw.”

Lines took a tough 0-4 loss in the first set but returned the favor with a strong 4-1 victory in the next, setting the stage for a dramatic final set. The two went back and forth through the first six games of the set, resulting in a 3-3 tie. Lines was then able to up his aggression and finish strong through the last two sets come out on top with a 5-3 victory.

Courtland Boyle was matched up against Honduran Andres Argenal, a strong player who had beaten Billy Boyle previously in the round robin section of the tournament. Ultimately, Argenal prevailed 6-4, 6-3. According to Courtland Boyle’s assessment, he was unable to capitalize on his openings and his serve left him, resulting in the loss.