NMI wins bronze in U15 badminton tournament

Article from Marianas Variety (mvariety.com)

The NMI’s Danielle Joson reaches out for the return alongside teammate Breanna Lopez during a girls doubles match of the Pacific U15 Invitational Team Challenge 2025 at the North Harbour Badminton Centre in Auckland, New Zealand on Wednesday.

Contributed photos

THE NMI U15 National Badminton team concluded the Pacific U15 Invitational Team Challenge 2025 by winning the bronze medal at the North Harbour Badminton Centre in Auckland, New Zealand on Wednesday.

The NMI’s battle for third place against regional rival Guam was a tough one.

Guam claimed the girls singles match with Khloe Catacutan excelling in all aspects as she played the role of the aggressor in both sets. Although the NMI’s Keala Takeda fought back throughout most of the exchange, Catacutan held the lead long enough to triumph, 21-16, 21-14, and hand Guam the first match win, 1-0.

However, the NMI’s Evan Seguritan outclassed Guam’s Tyler Wang in both sets of the boys singles match, 21-7, 21-7, to equalize.

The seesaw battle for control continued throughout the next two matches.

In the girls doubles event, Guam’s Candice Pan and Serina Zhao defeated the NMI’s Danielle Joson and Breanna Lopez in two sets, 21-10, 21-16. But the NMI’s Benjamin Cai and Thaddaeus Tolentino claimed the boys doubles over Guam’s Ryan Koo and Wang, 21-11, 21-13, for the second deadlock of the match.

In the deciding mixed doubles match, the NMI reigned supreme.

The chemistry between Seguritan and Lopez was unbreakable as they outlasted Guam’s Noah Lu and Serina Zhao in the opening set to seize the upper hand, 21-15. The NMI duo then carried the momentum into the second set, where they finished off Lu and Zhao, 21-9, to claim both the game and the match, as well as the bronze medal.

On Tuesday, the NMI lost their chance at the gold, falling short against the Cook Islands in a thrilling 3-2 match. The Cook Islands, however, settled for silver after losing to New Caledonia in the finals, 3-2.