麻豆社区

Seven players battled it out at the Rix Rookie Junior Tennis Tournament on Saturday 鈥� the first competitive event on the summer tennis schedule.

In the end, Josh Lauer emerged victorious, beating No. 2-ranked Caelen Lewis in the final playoff match at the Mount McIntyre courts.

Lauer had won 44 games in his six round-robin matches, while Lewis won 32.

Kaelen Halowaty took third, beating Christopher Arsenault in the third-place game.

Halowaty won 30 games overall, while Arsenault won 18.

Marin Lewis, Sarah Charlton and Alex Arsenault also competed.

The event is part of the Rogers Rookie Tour, which offers non-elimination events for novice players ages eight to 16.

The weekend tournament marked the fifth time Whitehorse has hosted.

"We had a lot of fun at the Rix Rookie over the weekend,鈥� organizer Stacy Lewis told the Star. "It was a neat opportunity for the juniors to play, because they were all new to tennis, and had just completed a program.鈥�

Of the participants, some had completed the spring Junior Team Tennis program, while others were enrolled in last week's golf/tennis camp.

The national Rogers Rookie Tour program is designed to bridge the gap between entry-level tennis and the provincial competitive junior circuit. Hundreds of junior players participate each year.

Lewis said Tennis Yukon will continue to hold camps and lessons for junior players, including a mountain bike/tennis camp this week.

This weekend, Whitehorse will host the Capital Cup tournament, which sees local players square off with Juneau players for the chance to hoist the annual trophy.

"It's one of the most fun tournaments on the schedule,鈥� said Lewis. "We do have this big silver cup that changes hands.鈥�

The tournament began in the early 90s, and after a hiatus, restarted again in 2008. Whitehorse won last year.

The Yukon Territorial Championships will take place in late August.

Lewis said Tennis Yukon numbers are up this year, but noted the construction occurring near the tennis court complex has seen mud and runoff seep onto the courts.

"It's a problem,鈥� she said. "There's been a fair bit of mud.鈥�