College sport: There's no stopping Shona now

The domestic tennis season might be almost over, but for St Cuthbert's student Shona Lee, the sport doesn't stop and hopefully neither does her progress to becoming a professional.

Lee, 16, has a WTA world senior ranking of 985 and is 187 in juniors.

But it's the senior ranking she is more proud of.

Last year she staged a great run by qualifying at the US$25,000 ($34,680) Canberra challenger, winning her first round before losing in the second to a seeded player.

Lee, who is coached by long-time junior trainer Peter Blow, is set to play both senior and junior events this year.

She leaves on Friday to play two US$10,000 events in Indonesia.

Lee takes her tennis seriously but when asked how many hours she trains a week isn't too sure.

"I'm always asked that and I don't really know. Maybe 17 hours a week? Does that sound about right?"

On Monday, Lee played for her St Cuthbert's team in the national event at the Renouf Tennis Centre in Wellington.

They lost in a tough and sometimes testy final to St Kentigern 4-2.

Lee won her singles at No 1 beating rival Kairangi Vano in straight sets.

But Lee and Sarah McDermott lost in a third-set tiebreak after match points to Vano and Melissa O'Keefe.

In the boys' event, Saint Kentigern beat Wellington College 5-1, dropping just the top singles as Martin Colenbrander lost to Robert Foy in a third set tiebreak.

Sam Gould, Marcus Daniell, Lucas Wendlik and Josh Crozier were the other St Kentigern members.

The St Peters (Cambridge) team of Tristan Stayt, Todd Breeze, Rebecca and Jordan Moir won the mixed competition in a countback over Kristin seven sets to six. Many players from the teams event are remaining in Wellington for the 16's nationals where seeds are likely to come from Vano, Abigail Guthrie (St Cuthberts), Manumea Durie (home schooled from Manawatu) and Brittany Teei (St Kentigern) in the girls' draw, while the boys' top seeds should come from Daniell, Daniel Moser (Kristin), Jackson Bodle (Whangarei Boys) and Austen Childs (Tauranga Boys).

The tournament runs until Saturday.

Mountain biking

Bay of Plenty students Clinton Avery (Rotorua Lakes High) and Jon Gray (Western Heights High) dominated the national secondary schools mountain bike champs in Levin.

Avery won the hill climb and the cross country event with Gray second on each occasion.

Sam Blenkinsop (Wanganui Collegiate) grabbed the frantic downhill race by a second from St Paul's Collegiate's Cameron Cole.

Duathlon

A number of regular secondary schools multisport competitors made an impact at the National duathlon championships in Palmerston North. Competitors were trying to win places on the team to represent New Zealand at the World Junior Duathlon Championships in September in Newcastle, Australia.

Rebecca Spence, 16, from Rangitoto College, was second behind her old college team-mate Anna Hamilton over the testing 5km run, 20km cycle, 2.5km run course. Spence will almost certainly join Hamilton in the New Zealand team.

She has already been selected to compete at the World Junior Triathlon championships in Gamagori, Japan two weeks prior to World Junior Duathlon championships.

Matt Burgess from St Kentigern was third in the men's and will probably be named in the team travelling to Newcastle.

* Results

ATHLETICS

WORLD YOUTH CHAMPS
(Marrakesh, Morocco)

New Zealand team.-

Men: H. Carson (Wellington) 3000m, B. Loh (Canterbury) high jump, W. Maber (Rangitoto College) 100m, relay, M. Mildenhall (Auckland Boys) 1500m, B. Osborne (Manawatu) 800m, J. Robertson (Hamilton BH) 3000m, A. Underwood (Wellington) 400m, relay, K. Manu (Taranaki), T. Jones (Canterbury), D. Natusch (Manawatu).

Women: K. Adams (Hamilton GHS) 100m hurdles, A. Coates (Canterbury) 200m, long jump, relay, R. Coster (Pakuranga College) 100m, relay, L. Fayen (Wellington) 800m, relay, S. Francois (Tasman) heptathlon, G. Hamlin (Carmel College) 400m, relay, V. Hurley (Pakuranga College) shot put, T. Ikianofo (Auckland) discus throw, Te Rina Keenan (Hauraki Plains College) shot put, K. Olson (Waikato) 400m hurdles.

Other relay squad members: M. Coulton (Taranaki), S. Linderboom (Glenfield College), N. Okpala (Diocesan).

* * *

TENNIS

TEAMS FINALS
(Wellington)

Boys: St Kentigern College bt Wellington College 5-1. Singles, M. Colenbrander lost to R. Foy 6-4 5-7 6-7, S. Gould bt P. Metham 6-2 6-7 6-3, M. Daniell bt F. Tearney 6-1 6-2, L. Wendlik bt A. Ross 6-0 6-7 6-1. Doubles, Colenbrander/Daniell bt Foy/Metham 6-4 6-2, J. Crozier/Wendlik bt Tearney/Ross 7-5 6-2.

Third-fourth: Kings College bt Tauranga BHS 4-2.

Final placings: St Kentigern 1, Wellington College 2, Kings College 3, Tauranga BHS 4, Kavanagh School 5, Christchurch Boys 6, Palmerston North BH 7, St Peters School 8.

Girls: St Kentigern beat St Cuthberts College 4-2.Singles, K. Vano lost to S. Lee 4-6 1-6, M. O'Keeffe lost to A. Guthrie 3-6 1-6, V. Vano bt F. Johnston 6-3 7-6, B. Teei bt S. McDermott 6-1 6-3. Doubles, K. Vano/O'Keeffe bt Lee/McDermott 6-3 4-6 7-6, V. Vano/Teei bt L. Cole/Guthrie 6-2 2-6 6-4.

Third-fourth: Rangi Ruru College beat Hutt Valley HS 4-2.

Final placings: St Kentigern 1, St Cuthberts 2, Rangi Ruru School 3, Hutt Valley HS 4, St Peters School 5, St Margarets 6, Tauranga Girls 7, Wanganui Collegiate 8.

MIXED TEAMS EVENT
(Tawa)

St Peters School beat Kristin School 3-3 matches, 7-6 sets. Boys singles: T. Stayt lost to D. Moser 0-6 3-6, T. Breeze bt B. Alai 6-1 6-1. Doubles: Stayt/Breeze lost to Moser/Alai 3-6 4-6. Girls singles: R. Moir lost to M. Jones 6-3 6-7 0-6, J. Moir bt K. McDonald 6-1 6-0. Doubles: Moir/Moir bt Jones/McDonald 7-5 6-0. Third-fourth: Wanganui Collegiate bt St Andrews College 3-3 matches, 54-52 games.

Final placings: St Peters School 1, Kristin 2, Wanganui Collegiate 3, St Andrews 4, St Kentigern 5, Roncalli College 6, Otumoetai College 7, Wellington High 8.

* * *

WATERPOLO

GIRLS NATIONAL CHAMPS
(Lower Hutt)

Final: Sacred Heart (A) 3 Diocesan 1.

Semi-finals: Diocesan 4 Westlake GHS 3, Sacred Heart (A) 6 Avondale 4. Third-fourth: Westlake GHS 7 Avondale 6.

Fifth-sixth: St Cuthberts 8 Epsom GGS 4, Seventh-eighth: Rangitoto 13 Samuel Marsden 1.

Most valuable player: L. Smith (Westlake).

Best goalie: K. Gouldstone (Avondale).

Best offensive: L. Van Raalte (Epsom).

Best defensive: K. Mason (Avondale).