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Yukon table tennis players eliminated in quarterfinals

Half of Yukon's table tennis team reached the quarterfinals in the singles tournament at the Arctic Winter Games on Monday. However, none will be vying for medals in the finals on Friday in Fairbanks, Alaska.
SPORTStabletennis

FAIRBANKS, ALASKA

Half of Yukon’s table tennis team reached the quarterfinals in the singles tournament at the Arctic Winter Games on Monday. However, none will be vying for medals in the finals on Friday in Fairbanks, Alaska.

Four Yukon players reached the quarterfinal, thereby placing in the top-eight, but were eliminated in the first round of the playoffs.

Yukon’s Alysha Gullison staged her team’s biggest comeback of the day to reach the quarters of the junior female division.

Gullison fought back from down two sets to beat Nunavik Quebec’s Paasa Lemire 7-11, 6-11, 11-8, 11-8, 12-10. She finished the round-robin with a 2-1 record to advance to the quarterfinal where she lost to Valeriia Ovkadzhieva of Yamal, Russia, in three sets.

Yukon teammate Georgie Gaw went winless in junior female.

Both of Yukon’s juvenile females reached the quarterfinal. Grace-Anne Mary Janssen and Ashley Jade Harris produced wins over players from Canada’s other territories to advance.

Janssen lost in three sets to Yamal’s Karina Khusnullina and Harris lost in four to Charlotte Aculiak of Nunavik Quebec in the quarters.

“I was for the most part surprised by Ashley and Alysha, both of them had to win some tough matches,” said Yukon head coach Kevin Murphy. “All of them had to play a little tougher (matches to qualify), they didn’t win three straight (sets) in some of their matches.”

Yukon juvenile male Arcel Siosan reached the quarterfinal with a pair of wins in the round-robin. Teammate Abed Rajab went winless and did not make quarters in the same division.

Yukon’s Hassan Rajab won a tight five setter against Alex Huang of N.W.T. but two losses prevented him from making the quarters in junior male. Teammate Matthias Erik Hoenisch went winless in two matches in the same division.

Table tennis will recommence on Wednesday with the doubles tournament.

Contact Tom Patrick at

tomp@yukon-news.com