Second Bronze Medal for Saint Lucia in Table Tennis

Saint Lucia’s exciting and determined young athletes earned another third-place finish at the highly competitive Caribbean Regional Table Tennis Federation Under-19 and Under-15 Championships on Friday. Former Caribbean age group champions Leshon Francis and Shatal Charles continued to excel. They took the mixed doubles bronze medal at the 28th edition of the championships, which Barbados is hosting at the Sir Garfield Sobers Gymnasium.

Two years removed from taking gold at the Caribbean Under-13 Championships, Francis and Charles added to Saint Lucia’s medal count, which already included a bronze medal in the Under-19 boys’ team competition. 

Francis and Charles prevailed 3-1 (11-3, 5-11, 11-2, 11-2) over the Jamaican pair of Ajani Spencer and Kira Scott in the opening round. In the quarterfinals, they mounted a massive comeback to beat Puerto Ricans Esteban Ayal and Ariana Aponte 3-2 (12-10, 8-10, 8-10, 10-8, 10-6). In the semifinals, the Saint Lucians were undone by another Puerto Rican duo. Owen Shemesh and Brianna Rodriguez won 3-0 (10-6, 10-5, 10-8) to advance to the finals, where they were beaten by compatriots Matthew Cao and Aurora Bonome.

Charles didn’t drop a game in topping her group in the Under-15 girls. She then swept past Trinidad & Tobago’s Zuri Radge Coomar 3-0 in the Round of 16, setting up a tough Saturday quarterfinal against Aurora Bonome of Puerto Rico.

Francis is hoping to earn at least a third-place individual finish as well. He got a bye into the second round of the Under-15 boys’ competition, advancing 3-0 over Barbados’ Maleeq Aimey from the Round of 16. On Saturday, he faces Jamaica’s Ajan Spencer in the quarterfinals.

Meanwhile, in the Under-19 boys’ singles, Manie Eleuthere and Joshua Lubin finished atop their  respective groups. Khamari Harris and Stephen Steele each finished second in theirs. All four advanced to the knockout phase, where they all succumbed at the first hurdle. 

In the Round of 16, Lubin was defeated by Guyana’s Jonathan Van Lange. Eleuthere was vanquished by Cuba’s Jonathan Leon. Harris fell to Yoel Mendoza of the Dominican Republic. And Steele lost to Cuba’s Fabio Estevez

In the Under-19 boys’ Round of 32, Eleuthere and Lubin outpointed Antigua & Barbuda’s Mekhi Simmons and Barrington Loague in the Round of 16, but were beaten by Rafale Cabrera and Ramon Vila of the Dominican Republic in the quarterfinals. Harris and Steele topped Grenada’s Qwanell Walker and Dewayne Dinnoh-Newland, only to go down to Eduardo Darley and Yoel Mendoza of the Dominican Republic in the Round of 16.