The Tribune

By TENAJH SWEETING

Tribune Sports Reporter

tsweeting@tribunemedia.net

AFTER competing against the Pool B teams at the Billie Jean King Cup (BJKC) in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, Team Bahamas was relegated to the Americas Group lll.

The team, featuring Sydney Clarke, Elana Mackey, Simone Pratt and Saphirre Ferguson, wrapped up their final games against Costa Rica, Venezuela and the Dominican Republic in a relegation play-off. The competition ended with Ecuador from Pool A and Venezuela from Pool B being promoted to Americas Group l.

Team Bahamas fell to the host country in two matches. Mackey went up against Ana Zamburek of the Dominican Republic in singles competition. The Bahamas dropped the first set of match one 6-3. The host team comfortably nabbed the win in the second set 6-0.

Match two got underway between The Bahamas’ Clarke and Kelly Williford of the Dominican Republic. The two ladies needed three sets to determine a winner in the competitive match. Williford was the first of the two to collect a win. She concluded the initial set 6-3. In the following set, Clarke bounced back for Team Bahamas, dropping the Dominican Republic 6-1. With match two now tied, both ladies were hungry for the win. Ultimately, Williford gained the upper hand in the third consecutive set, winning 6-2.

The Americas Group ll relegation play-off saw Clarke convert on 67% of her first serve ins.

Meanwhile, Williford went 36/72 in the same category at 50%.

However, the latter made 64% of first serve points won and Clarke went 32/51 for 63% in their match.

Perry Newton, president of the Bahamas Lawn Tennis Association (BLTA), was impressed with the way the team competed in the Dominican Republic. “I am firstly thankful that God kept all the teams safe. I am extremely proud of the players as it is a culmination of a year of hard work.” Newton said.

He added that despite the ladies being placed in Americas Group lll for 2024, they played an amazing tournament and just came up a bit short.

“The competition was intense and there were many positive takeaways. The team is in high spirits and is looking forward to next year’s competition,” he said.

Team Bahamas did not walk away from the BJKC empty-handed as the team took care of business against Costa Rica.

Mackey turned in a competitive performance in her singles match versus Lucia Gallegos en route to the team’s 2-1 win.

The match was evenly matched until the final set.

In set one, Mackey got the first win 6-4. Costa Rica stole set two with an identical score. The last set went to Team Bahamas after Mackey won 7-6(4).

Costa Rica won match two after Nicole Alfaro defeated Clarke in another best of three tiebreaker. The singles match saw Alfaro narrowly win set one 7-6(2). However, Clarke charged back in the consecutive set, winning 6-3.

In the final set, Costa Rica claimed the win 6-3.

The final match featured doubles action with the duo of Clarke and Pratt. The dynamic duo brought it home for Team Bahamas following a drubbing in two sets. The ladies won set one 6-2 and followed behind with 6-3 in the last set of the match.

Additionally, Venezuela earned a 3-0 win against The Bahamas this past weekend. After playing in three matches, The Bahamas finished third in Pool B with a 1-2 won/lost record. Also, the team went 2-7 in the matches won and lost.

The BLTA president said there is a lot of talent in The Bahamas but now it is the time to continue to provide opportunities for athletes to train and compete at a high level.