College Sport: AGS make it four tennis wins in row

By JENNI RUTHERFORD

Auckland Grammar have continued their dominance of the New Zealand teams' tennis championships, winning for the fourth consecutive year at Christchurch at the weekend.

Grammar have now had the trophy for six of the eight years the championships have been running, beating Christchurch Boys High in this year's final 4-2.

On a mission to gain points to qualify for Wimbledon, Grammar team members Simon Rea and Jacob Olsen ripped through their finals, and then raced to the airport with 15 minutes to spare before boarding a plane to Japan.

It is the second time Rea has played for his college team and then high-tailed it to Asian satellite matches.

After the annual Auckland champion-of-champions tournament, Rea set off for Singapore straight after his games.

At the national event in Christchurch, Rea, Olsen and Brendon Wright won their singles games, but Kiril Tcherveniachki lost to Timothy Meredith 1-6 4-6.

A lapse in concentration saw Rea have to go to three sets to beat Paul Ambrose 6-0 4-6 6-1, but Olsen had no problem in downing Daniel King-Turner in straight sets, 6-1 6-4.

Wright had a hard time putting away James Spence, winning the first set 7-5, dropping the second 3-6 but taking the third 6-3 for the match.

Rea and Olsen than teamed up for the doubles, beating Ambrose and Spence 6-0 6-3. Wright and Tcherveniachki lost to King-Turner and Meredith 2-6 4-6.

For the first time, a South Island school won the girls' competition, with Christchurch Girls' High edging out Whakatane High School in the final. King's College were downed by Christchurch's St Margaret's to finish fourth.


TRIATHLON


Auckland schools proved their strength at the New Zealand championships at Mt Manganui on Saturday, winning 10 out of the 18 possible placings.

Only 49s separated the senior boys' top three, with Josh Dyer, of Tauranga's Bethlehem College, winning by 12s from St Kentigern's Will Green.

Dyer had to dig deep to pass Green in the 5.5km run leg after Green led in the transition from the 18km cycle by over a minute.

Michelle Hyland from Gisborne Girls' High enjoyed a comfortable win in the senior girls' race, coming home 39s ahead of Debbie Tanner, of Diocesan. After leading in the 750m swim leg, Westlake Girls' Jenny Cooper faded to third.

Auckland Grammar's James Elvery won the intermediate boys' title in a time of 37m 51s over the 500m swim, 14km bike and 3km run distance. Julia Scopes was the best of the Auckland girls, finishing third.

Terenzzo Bozzone, of Rangitoto College, had an impressive win in the junior boys' event, leading from start to finish.

He headed off Australian No 2 Robbie Williams by over 2m 30s. Jade Gilbertson, of Epsom, added to her Auckland championship performance, leading in Seah Martin, of Diocesan by 11s.


WATERPOLO


Auckland schools have again featured at the top of a national championship.

This time Westlake Boys' High have done the region proud by winning the New Zealand championship in Lower Hutt.

It was a classic battle of the bridge in the final between Westlake and Auckland Grammar, both having met before in the finals of the Auckland and North Island championships. Westlake won the North Island trophy and Grammar the regional award.

In the Lower Hutt event, it came down to the dying seconds of the game. The first and second quarters were even at 1-1 and 2-2 but in the third quarter, Westlake charged ahead 4-2 and midway through the fourth spell scored again to lead 5-2.

Grammar responded with a last-ditch effort, planting two goals to close to 5-4 but it was not enough.

It was a historic win for Westlake, who had not had the title for 15 years.

In the girls' North Island championships in Hamilton, defending champions Epsom Girls' Grammar retained their title in the final against steady improvers Carmel College, winning 6-2.

In the playoff for third, Rangitoto came from a two-goal deficit against Sacred Heart College, of Lower Hutt to win in the final 20s, 3-2.