After 5 days of competition in the 2006 National
Squash Championships (May 15-19), a strong contingent was selected to represent
St. Vincent and the Grenadines in the upcoming O.E.C.S Squash Championships in
the British Virgin Islands. There were few surprises throughout the tournament,
as James Bentick, Colin Alexander and Keith Boyea retained the men's titles,
while Sherian Slater regained the Women's Open title she lost to Rachel Haslam
in 2005.
In the Men's 50+ division, Keith Boyea and Leroy
Lewis staved off challenges from John Horne and Rudi Daniel to set up a rematch
of last year's final. Once again, it was Boyea who emerged triumphant, winning
9/7, 9/2, 2/9, 10/8.
In the Men's 40+, the top 2 seeds - Colin
Alexander and Leroy Edwards came through 2 rounds unscathed to reach the final
showdown. After an epic 5-game battle, Alexander scraped through 5/9, 9/5, 9/4,
9/10, 10/8 to take the title.
In the Women's Open, 5 competitors battled for
the championship trophy, with Sherian Slater topping Rachel Haslam, Greta
Primus, Deirdre Myers and Alisa Alvis for the title. In the final, Slater led
Haslam 9/3 before Haslam was forced to retire due to injury.
In the premier division - the Men's Open,
perennial champ James Bentick found no trouble in defending his title, refusing
to drop a single game throughout the tournament (the only player to do so). In
the quarter-finals, the unseeded Leroy Edwards shocked no. 4 seed Roy Defreitas
9/4, 9/0, 9/1 in a rare upset of the seedings, as the top 3 seeds - James
Bentick and Paul Cyrus and Shane Slater easily handled their opponents in
straight games. In the semi-finals, Bentick recieved a walkover against
Edwards, while Cyrus survived a tough 9/7, 9/5, 7/9, 9/6 battle with the young
Slater, who recently returned from his first year of college in the US. In the
final match, the 2-time O.E.C.S Champion James Bentick continued his winning
ways with a 9/4, 9/1, 9/7 victory over Cyrus.
Following the tournament, a 10-player
national team was selected, comprising James Bentick, Paul Cyrus, Shane Slater,
Leroy Edwards, Colin Alexander, Keith Boyea, Sherian Slater, Rachel Haslam,
Greta Primus and Deirdre Myers. The team aims to regain the O.E.C.S Squash Team
title the took back from St. Lucia in last year's event.
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