Tyler Smith’s hopes of finishing her final year as a junior with a tournament victory on home soil were dashed yesterday by Felicity Maltby of the United States.

Smith, 17, was defeated 6-2, 6-0 by a ruthless Maltby on the penultimate day of the weeklong Bank of Bermuda Foundation ITF Junior Circuit Tournament at the WER Joell Stadium.

Hardly helping Smith’s chances of victory was the niggling shoulder injury that had threatened to derail her surprise 6-4, 6-4 victory over No 1 seed Elysse Graci in the quarter-finals on Wednesday.

Although she admitted that her discomfort had increased as the game wore on, Smith refused to use her strained shoulder as an excuse and praised Maltby for her impressive display.

“She was a good player, I was tired, and my shoulder was injured, so there really wasn’t much I could do,” said Smith, who has set her sights on winning a college tennis scholarship.

“My shoulder did hinder me today but [Maltby] did play really well. I thought I did well this week and it was a long tough match against [Graci] and that, perhaps, took it’s toll. I’m still proud of how I did.”

Smith, who is contemplating competing at the Junkanoo Bowl in Nassau, Bahamas, next week, will take a step into the unknown when makes her Central American and Caribbean Games debut in Veracruz, Mexico, in November.

“I don’t know what to expect as it’s my first games but I’m pretty excited about that.”