Squash BC athletes had another fantastic week at the 2021 Canadian Junior Open presented by Forthlane Partners. The event was hosted by The Club at White Oaks in Niagara-On-The-Lake, Ontario from December 11-14, 2021. There were over 40 BC athletes who competed, with Hermione Cao (Girls U17) and Brooke Herring (Women U23) being crowned National Champions to go along with 9 BC podium finishes! Squash BC is extremely proud of our athletes’ accomplishments and congratulate them on capping off a successful return to competition in 2021.
In the Girls U13 Division Joelle Kim continued her dominate play by finishing second overall (and placing as the top Canadian in the draw) with a 3-0 loss to American Reghan McLaughlin. Veera Dhaliwal also had a very strong event, finishing fourth overall.
In the Boys U13 Division, Vancouver’s Daniel Tiwana followed up his 2021 Canadian Junior Closed Championship title with a strong 3rd-place finish. Daniel lost in the semi-finals to eventual U13 Boys Champion Jacob Price 3-0. Daniel came back with a strong bronze medal match winning 3-1 against Caleb Hickox.
The Boys U15 Division, WeiHan Wang of Vancouver finished the tournament with a silver medal and placed as the top Canadian in his division. WeiHan only dropped a single game over 4 matches on his way to the final, where he came up just short in a 3-1 defeat to American Colten McLaughlin. Other top 8 performances in the Boys U15 draw were Vancouver’s Dylan Scott, who finished 6th and Yusuf Matti-Alvarez, who placed 8th.
Cynthia Cao led the way for the BC Girls in the U15 draw where she finished 8th.
Vancouver’s Hermione Cao was crowned Girls U17 Champion after a very strong tournament where she only dropped 3 games in 4 matches! Hermione defeated Iman Shaheen of Ottawa 3-0 in the final. Richmond’s Spring Ma also had a strong event, finishing 4th overall and 3rd among Canadians after a 3-1 loss in the bronze medal match to American Eva Salzman. Victoria’s Kathryn Herring also had a very impressive tournament where she finished 5th overall.
Richmond’s Joesph Toth lead the way for BC athletes in the Boys U17 division with a 3rd place showing. Joseph bounced back from a tight 3-2 semi-final loss to Columbian Juan Irisarri with a dominant performance in the bronze medal match, winning 3-0. U17 BC boys had a very strong showing overall, representing 4 of the top 8 finishers (Henry Jiang 5th, William Jensen 6th and Geoffrey Yee 7/8th).
In Boys U19 action, Jacob Lin followed his Boys U17 Canadian Junior Closed title with a strong showing while playing up an age division, finishing 5th overall.
Vancouver’s Maria Min finished off her very strong 2021 calendar year with a second place showing in the Girls U19 draw. The 15-year-old played up in the U19 division after an undefeated calendar year versus female opponents, which included a Girls U17 Canadian Junior Closed Championships title. Maria’s U19 championship run came up just short after losing 3-1 to Toronto’s Niki Shemirani in the final. Richmond’s 14-year-old Ocean Ma also had a very impressive tournament playing-up two age categories and earning a 3rd place finish. She won the bronze medal match 3-0 over Armal Izhar of Oakville. Victoria’s Alex Brown capped off a strong showing in the U19 division with a 5th place finish.
In the Women’s U23 PSA Satellite draw the only two BC participants crushed the field to meet each other in the final. Both Victoria’s Brooke Herring and West Vancouver’s Lucia Bicknell did not drop a single game in their matches along the way. In the end, Brooke was crowned the Women’s U23 Canadian Junior Open Champion after defeating Lucia 3-0 in the final – meaning she won the title without dropping a game!
Sebastian Rodriguez Rayo lead the way for BC participants in the Men’s U23 PSA Satellite draw after winning the consolation final against Niagara Fall’s Akasham Rajagopaul 3-1. Sebastian faced off against Vancouver’s Matt Bicknell in the consolation semi-final, winning 3-1.
Squash BC would like to congratulate and thank all the athletes, coaches, parents, officials, and supporters who participated in the 2021 Canadian Junior Championships. We can’t wait to see your continued success in 2022!
For a full list of draws and match results, visit the 2021 Canadian Junior Open Club Locker Page at: https://clublocker.com/tournaments/12303/info