The Sports Leigh-out Feb. 14-20, 2026

Hafa Adai and Tirow sports fans, this is Leigh Gases with this week’s Sports Leigh-Out brought to you by Joeten Motors!

Let’s take a closer look at what our athletes have been up to in off-island competitions and on their home turf—whether it’s on the pitch, mat, courts, fields, track, pools, or the beautiful ocean.

Isaiah is Sun Conference Swimmer of the Year, again

NMI’s swimming prodigy Isaiah Aleksenko is having another breakout season in his sophomore year after being named Sun Conference Swimmer of the Year for the second straight year, once again helping Keiser University capture its fourth consecutive title at the Sun Conference Championships last Feb. 7 in Ocala, Florida.

After bursting onto the collegiate scene at the NAIA school last year with five gold medals and the conference title, Aleksenko somehow raised the bar even higher this season—collecting seven gold medals and setting seven meet records.

Most notably was his gold medal in the 100 backstroke breaking the meet record with a time of 45:77 seconds. He said he’s currently ranked 23rd among all college divisions (NCAA DI, DII, DIII, and NAIA) and says he’s just milliseconds away from cracking the top eight.

He also bagged a gold in the 200 individual medley at 1:46.72 and gold in the 200 butterfly at 1:44.09. In relay events, he and his team swam to gold in the 200 relay at 1:26:47, in the 200 freestyle at 1:19.06, in the 400 medley relay at 3:12.04, and the 400 freestyle relay 2:56.42.

With back-to-back Sun Conference Swimmer of the Year titles, Aleksenko said the second one hit differently. “I’m really appreciative to win again and it means a lot,” he said. “This one meant a lot because I was also able to motivate some of my teammates and push them harder.”

There was pressure this year because he swam some off events than his usual lineup, but he said, “I still did good and I’m happy with the times.” When asked what was different this season, he said it was his mindset. “The biggest difference is motivating my teammates and pushing myself more in practice,” he said.

One swim he’s especially proud of? The 100 back. “I’m most proud of my 100 back,” he said. “Next year or maybe even this year, I’m going to push harder to achieve my goals.”

Even with all the success, he said he hasn’t forgotten home. “I want to not only carry my school’s name but also represent Saipan and my team back home and make sure to never forget where I truly came from and what built me from the ground up.”

Tania Tan resets 1,500m nat’l record

Track season has begun for NMI’s Tania Tan, and it started with a bang as she reset her 1,500m short track national record with a time of 5:19.18 at the Armory in New York City on Thursday, Feb. 12.

The race was held indoors, and Tan’s performance surpassed her previous 1,500m outdoor national record, which she set in Tonga last year—marking her breakthrough into that distance.

She then entered the New York meet aiming for a personal record and a sub-5:20 finish—goals she successfully achieved. Now, she’s already setting her sights on lowering that mark even further.

Tan owns national records in every distance event from the 1,500m, 3,000m, 5,000m, 10,000m and the half marathon.

When asked what was the hardest record to earn, she said it was her outdoor 1,500m record in Tonga because she does not consider herself a mid-distance runner. She had come close to breaking the record before finally accomplishing it at that race.

As for the short track opportunity, she acknowledged how rare it is for athletes from the CNMI and the Pacific region to compete indoors.

“Not many people in the CNMI and our Pacific region get the chance to run on a short track because it’s usually only in cold places where there’s winter and freezing temperatures,” she said. “So I feel like I was lucky to be able to get that record because I’m only one of the few people from the CNMI who was lucky enough to compete in a short track race.”

After opening her year on the rugged cross country course at the 46th World Athletics Cross Country Championships 2026 at Apalachee Regional Park in Tallahassee, Florida last Jan. 10, she transitioned from the trails to the rubberized oval of the track.

The 1,500m race serves as part of her preparations for the Oceania Athletics Championships 2026 in Darwin, Australia from May 18-23.

Bronze for NMI U17 Badminton Team in New Zealand

The NMI Junior National Badminton program continues to show steady progress and success on the international stage, as the U17 team brought home a bronze medal after the Pacific U17 Invitation Team Challenge 2026 in Auckland, New Zealand on Saturday, Feb. 14.

Lina Tsukagoshi, Eunho Park, Peng Fei Lin, Kate Yi Xu, William Guo, and Evan Seguritan represented the CNMI in the tournament, which began on Feb. 12.

On the final day, after picking up key wins earlier in the tourney, they faced Wallis and Futuna and came away with a 4-1 victory to secure their spot on the podium.

Before that on Friday, the team had to grind it out but pulled off a tight 3-2 win over Tahiti for their second team victory. Seguritan and Tsukagoshi led the way, winning their matches to help seal it. The day before that, NMI fell just short against the Cook Islands, 3-2.

The team opened the tournament and their road to the podium on Thursday with a strong 4-1 win over Guam. Seguritan and Tsukagoshi each won their singles matches, while the women’s doubles team of Eunho Park and Kate Xu followed with a 21-7, 21-16 victory over Yuxi Chen and Yunuo Zhong. Seguritan and Tsukagoshi then teamed up to finish it in mixed doubles, defeating Phillip Noret and Catacutan 21-11, 21-13.

The bronze win continues a strong run for NMI’s junior national program as last year, the U15 team also won bronze at the Pacific U15 Invitational Team Challenge in New Zealand, while the U19 squad claimed bronze at the VICTOR Oceania Junior Mixed Team Championships in Saipan.

For head coach Nate Guerrero, the medal means more than just the result. He said every team has to start somewhere, and he hopes this showing pushes more young athletes to pick up the sport—or any sport, and work toward representing the islands.

Gregorio, Kathy crowned King and Queen of the Beach

Sun’s out, and that means it’s time to dig, spike, set, and kick up some sand at the beach—and that’s exactly what players of different ages and skill levels did as the NMI Volleyball Association hosted the King/Queen Beach Volleyball Tournament on Monday, Feb. 16, on the sands of the Crowne Plaza Resort Saipan.

After a full day of fun under the sun, Gregorio Perez was crowned king with an average of 14.6 points, finishing with four wins and one loss (73 total points divided by five games played), while Kathy Winkfield was crowned queen with 19 points, also going four wins and one loss (76 points divided by five games played).

Each match was played in a single set to 21, with players rotating partners and competing against each other while racking up individual points. Everyone played with and against one another, all racing to finish with the highest total. After the morning preliminaries, the top men and top women advanced to the playoffs later in the day.

Perez, a Northern Marianas College student, who is mainly an indoor volleyball player, said of the tournament, “I was really nervous at first. I didn’t know how it was going to go, and I was really clueless of how the tournament was going to be like.” When they announced that he was king of the beach, he said, “I was kind of shocked, not going to lie. I had some losses so I didn’t think I was going to win at all.”

Winkfield, an NMC instructor, NMIVA member, and national beach volleyball player/coach, said the turnout was good. “We got a little delayed in the morning, but it was great to see a lot of players come out and hoping everyone had a good time. Some of them it’s not their strength, but just seeing them out here, motivates players to come out and train, especially with the Marianas Games coming up, so I thank everyone for coming out.”

As for the upcoming Marianas Games in June, she said NMIVA hosted its first practice last Saturday, Feb. 14, and said that there will be more practices to come. They hold practice at the Crowne Plaza Resort Saipan beach side every Saturday from 7am to 9am, and said she hopes more people will come out.

Landen, Brennfleck, Kaide top Heartbreak 5K

Run Saipan’s 2026 Heartbreak 5K on Valentine’s Day up Mt. Tapochau was no heartbreaker for first placers Landen Taflinger, Shawna Brennfleck, and Kaide Benson.

Steep hills and the early morning didn’t stop Taflinger from running and being the fastest overall with a time of 25:44, with Frank Lumanlan in second at 29:06. Zian Sinday was third at 30:48.

Brennfleck topped the women’s field at 33:52, followed by Angela Taflinger at 38:22, and An Bang with a time of 40:51. In the U18 division, Kaide Beson was first with a time of 33:14. Second was Brayden Brennfleck at 36:58 and Sirjoe Castro with 55:40.

White Coconut Memorial Tennis Classic underway

The White Coconut Memorial Tennis Classic is underway at the American Memorial Park Tennis Courts, with players of all ages competing for one-of-a-kind trophies—white-painted coconuts that match the tournament’s name.

The long-running event traces back to longtime sponsors Bud and Donna White and their business, White Coconut Computer Services. Over the years, awarding white-painted coconuts became a tournament tradition. After the Whites passed away, NMI Tennis Federation technical director and former longtime president Jeff Race said he reached out to their children and officially renamed the event the White Coconut Memorial Tennis Classic in their honor.

Race said it’s his favorite tournament in Saipan, especially because of its unique “mixed up doubles” format. Unlike traditional mixed doubles, the division pairs more experienced players with younger or less experienced competitors.

The tournament also features traditional age groups and divisions for both adults and juniors. Many of the junior players are coming off a strong performance in Guam at the North Pacific Regional Championships and are now using this tournament as preparation for the Pacific Oceania Regional Championships in Fiji this April.

With the team’s performance in Guam, Race said it’s a very positive development for the CNMI.

“We’re going to try to get the best performance we can when we get to Fiji,” Race said.

This Saturday’s (Feb. 21) matchups include Cody Park vs. Seungwoo Lee (MS4), Stella Choi vs. Hoo Wang (WS), Natsuki Tilipa vs. Jane Choi (GS10), John Bradley vs. Richard Li (MS3), Cody Park and Evan Zhang vs. Jason Choi and Peter Loken (Mixed Up Doubles), Tylor Kang vs. Lawrence Kwan (BS10), John Casauran vs. Daniel Kang (MS), Matthew Hwang vs. Henry Choi (MS), Derek Li vs. Yo Suzuki (BS12), Jason Choi vs. Richard Li (MS3), Tomas Abel vs. Ryan Choi (MS), June Yu vs. Siwoo Lee (MS), Paul Jang vs. Seungwoo Lee (MS4), Daniel Kang vs. Isaiah Arriola-Mook (BS14), Matthew Hwang and Fiona Yu vs. Siwoo Lee and Ming Pascual (Mixed Up Doubles), Matt Zhu vs. Richard Li (BS12), and Tim Watson vs. Evan Zhang (BS12).

Sunday’s (Feb. 22) schedule features Hannah Chae vs. Hoo Wang (WS2), Cody Park vs. Isaiah Arriola-Mook (BS14), John Bradley vs. Jason Choi (MS3), Daniel Kang vs. Matt Zhu (BS14), Ming Pascual vs. Hua Jin (WS3), Gabriel Walsh vs. Yo Suzuki (BS12), Fiona Yu vs. Selina Chi (GS14), Seungwoo Lee vs. Isaiah Arriola-Mook (BS14), Cody Park vs. Jason Choi (BS14), Stella Choi vs. Irin Chung (WS), Anne Lee vs. Vivian Chung (GS16), Lynore He vs. Annabella Zhu (GS10), Paul Jang vs. Matt Zhu (MS4), Scarlett Loken vs. Harper Loken (GS14), and Tylor Kang vs. Grayson Jo.

Carol Lee reflects on Aussie Open run, eyes more tournaments

NMI’s own professional tennis player, Carol Lee, recently made history at the Australian Open (Jan. 13-15), then went straight into another tournament before heading to France this week for her next competition

The 24-year-old Lee won two matches at the AO, defeating Germany’s Hanne Vandewinkel 3-6, 6-3, 6-4, and Australia’s Elena Micic 6-2, 6-2, before falling to Czech Republic’s Linda Fruhvirtova in a tough three-set battle, 7-5, 2-6, 4-6. With her run, Lee became the first woman from the Pacific Oceania region to compete in the women’s singles at the Australian Open.

Lee’s work didn’t stop after the AO. She played in the singles and doubles at the W100 Fujairah in the United Arab Emirates held from Jan. 26–Feb. 1, reaching the singles quarterfinals and the doubles semifinals. She then returned to her academy in Germany to train and is set to compete in France this week.

Ranking now at 173, Lee shared that the experience at the AO was an incredible one. “I really enjoyed my time there—the atmosphere, the people around, and just being on the same spot and experiencing and meeting so many good, top players around the world, it was really incredible and I learned so many things.”

Recapping her matches, she said each one was a battle. She was nervous too, but said she was more excited to see how far she could go. Her goal was to play in the main draw, but fell a little bit short—losing in the final round of the qualifiers, but Lee said it was a good match. “I gave it my all and I’ve learned some things that I could definitely work on and improve my game level, so that’s good,” she said. “Overall, I felt like I belonged there with other top players internationally.”

She added, “I’m just proud to represent as well, coming from a small island. It was an honor to be able to compete at a high level. I felt the belief and trust from everyone in the island, my family back at home, and the crowd as well, they were cheering for me, so it gave me an extra push to even give it my all.”

The confidence from the AO carried into her UAE tournament, Lee shared. She said she focused on being more solid with her serve plus ones, more aggressive, steadier on her footwork, and more relaxed on court.