Sabah squash juniors go top in NJC Grand Final

KOTA KINABALU: Duncan Lee and Jessica Keng were crowned overall champions in their respective categories after the conclusion of the CIMB Foundation 13th Rising Star NJC and 9th National Junior Circuit (NJC) Grand Final in Bukit Jalil on Sunday.

Duncan and Jessica accumulated the highest average points from the NJC’s first leg, second leg and the Grand Final to top the Boy’s and Girl’s Under-17 standings.

Still only 16 years old, both also benefited from competing in the older age group of under-19, which allowed them to gain more points from the circuits.

Despite skipping the NJC second leg in Perak in August along with Bukit Jalil Sports School players, Duncan’s victories in the first leg in Penang in May and Sunday’s Grand Final was adequate to earn him the overall first placing in his age group.

Jessica, on the other hand, registered victory in the first leg and two runner-up finishes in the 2nd leg and Grand Final to emerge as the top performer in her age group.

As the under-17 Grand Prize winners, Duncan and Jessica both pocketed RM1,000 each.

Meanwhile, Sabah had 19 players who qualified for the Grand Finals of the tournament, with 12 competing in the Rising Star and the rest in the NJC.

Duncan and his younger sister Doyce were Sabah’s gold medallists in the Grand Final after their victories in the Boy’s Under-19 and Girl’s Under-11 categories.

The victory for Doyce was extra special as she finally got the better of her nemesis in the first and second legs by winning in the Grand Final.

The other Grand Final medallists were Jessica with a silver and Yee Xin Ying with a bronze, both from the Girl’s Under-19, as well as Euven Liaw (Boy’s Under-13) and Euodia Lai (Girl’s Under-11)

“Overall happy with the achievement delivered by the athletes. All the hard training by the athletes and the coaches have also contributed to their achievement.

“I would like to thank the MSN (Sabah Sports Council) and Sabah Squash Association who have assisted and supported the players in their tournaments,” said team manager Connie Lo in a WhatsApp conversation.

Connie went on to say that the coaches who accompanied the team were Bryan Faurillo and Mohd Raffie Sahari.

ALL SMILES: Jessica (from left, front), Duncan and Connie as well as Bryan (from left, back), Yee, Euven, Doyce and Euodia gathered together at the end of the tournament in Bukit Jalil, Kuala Lumpur on Sunday.