Squash: NZ team named for Junior World champs in Tauranga

Finn Tremble made the NZ Junior Men's team to contest the World Junior Championships in Tauranga in July. Photo / File

Squash New Zealand has named the players who will represent the country at the World Junior Championships individual and team events in Tauranga in July.

The New Zealand Junior Women's team is Kaitlyn Watts, Anna Hughes, Anika Jackson and Camden Te Kani-McQueen. The reserve for the team is Nadia Hubbard. The five will also compete in the individual event with a sixth Kiwi - Rhiarne Taiapa.

Watts has won numerous titles throughout her squash career, and in 2017 she has already claimed the Under-19 Oceania Junior Championships title as well as the Aon New Zealand Junior Open title. Watts competed in the World Junior Championships individual event in Eindhoven in 2015 where she made her way to the quarter-finals of the Special Plate.

Hughes has recently moved to Drexel University where she is on a squash scholarship. Hughes has been a representative in transtasman teams for several years as well as claiming age-group titles.

Jackson is another team member with numerous age group titles to her name while Te Kani-McQueen hails from Rotorua and has previously represented New Zealand.

Taiapa will compete in the World Junior Women's Individual event and, having won the 2017 Under-17 Oceania Junior Championships title, will relish the opportunity of further international experience.

The junior men competing in the individual event are Finn Trimble, Matthew Lucente, Gabe Yam, Lwamba Chileshe, Mitchell Kempton and Quinn Udy.

Trimble will compete in the junior men's individual event after enjoying a strong start to 2017, having won the Under-19 Oceania Junior Championships title and the Aon New Zealand Junior Open title.

Lucente is making his first appearance at the World Junior Championships and was the recent winner of the Oceania Junior Championships Under-17 title.

Yam is the recent runner-up in the Aon New Zealand Junior Open is another young face looking to gain experience from this event while Chileshe will be making his debut performance on the world stage.

Kempton made his debut in a New Zealand team this year competing in the Transtasman Junior Test series. Udy was runner-up in the 2017 Oceania Junior Championships Under-19 event and then fourth in the Aon New Zealand Junior Open.

The junior women's team will be coached by Joanne Williams with Kylie Lindsay as the assistant coach while the junior men will be coached by Glen Wilson.