Zoleta, Arcilla pocket PCA Open crowns

Top seed Bambi Zoleta foiled Czarina Mae Arevalo’s bid for a record fifth crown as she hacked out a 6-2, 4-6, 6-2 victory yesterday to capture her first Philippine Columbian Association Open championship before a big weekend crowd at the Plaza Dilao shell courts in Paco, Manila.

Johnny Arcilla later outsteadied fancied PJ Tierro and carved out a marathon 4-6, 7-6 (5), 5-7, 6-3, 6-1 win for his third straight crown and fourth overall worth P100,000.

“It’s a great feeling,” said the 28-year-old Arcilla.

The victory was sweeter for the 16-year-old Zoleta, who finally ended a pair of runner-up finishes in 2005 and 2006. She reached the semis last year and pulled off a come-from-behind 2-6, 6-3, 6-4 victory over Thai Thasha Vitayviroj last Saturday to gain a crack at this year’s crown.

More importantly, it ended a four-game losing skein to the more seasoned Arevalo, including a 1-6, 2-6 loss in the 2006 finale of the event presented by Cebuana Lhuillier and backed by Pagcor, Hewlett Packard, Dunlop, The Philippine STAR, Shirt Republik, Burlington, PVL Restaurant and Universal Paint.

“I wasn’t expecting to win because I lost all my four games to her (Arevalo) in straight sets,” said Zoleta, a first year Hotel and Restaurant Management student at St. Benilde. She pocketed P50,000 for her feat.

“But I was thinking that I have nothing to lose so maybe that helped me,” she said.

Unlike Zoleta, Tierro, 22, remained winless in the event.

Arevalo, on a break from her tennis scholarship at Bangkok University, downed Anna Christine Patrimonio, 6-3, 4-6, 6-4, in the semis to earn a shot at a record fifth title. – Joey Villar