Federal Way youth tennis player Mitch Stewart last month played in the prestigious Pacific Cup at the Tualatin Hills Tennis Center in Beaverton, Ore. The Pacific Cup featured the best youth tennis players ages 12 to 18.

The 14-year-old student at Sacajawea Middle School played for the Pacific Northwest team that competed against other teams from British Columbia, Northern California and Southern California. The teams consisted of four boys and four girls, and each player competed in nine matches during the weekend.

Stewart helped the Pacific Northwest team win the Pacific Cup team championship for the second time in the history of the competition. Southern California had won the previous four Pacific Cup titles before Stewart helped the Pacific Northwest win the last two.

Pacific Cup competition utilizes a round-robin format in which the teams play a total of three rounds, each featuring a new opponent. A complete round includes boys and girls singles, as well as boys, girls and mixed doubles. Each match consists of one set using regular scoring and team points are scored per the number of games won.

The teams consisted of four boys and four girls and each player competed in nine matches during the weekend.

According to the United States Tennis Association, Stewart has a 52-10 record during the 2009 season and is the No. 2-ranked 14-year-old player in the Pacific Northwest behind Redmond’s Toshiki Matsuya.