Josée Grand'Maître's good run in Miami at The Great Balls of Fire tournament, a Tier 1 event on the Women's Professional Racquetball Organization (WPRO), went a bit further Saturday, as she reached the semi-finals by defeating Diane Moore, 10-12, 11-5, 11-6, 1-11, 11-9. Grand'Maître was seeded 20th, as she rarely plays on the WPRO tour, but she's still one of the top players in Canada and will represent her country this year at the Pan American Championships in Columbia and the World Games in Taiwan.
Sadly for her however, top seed Rhonda Rajsich ended Grand'Maître's run in the semi-finals with an 11-5, 11-6, 11-5 victory. Fatigue may have played a factor in that match, as Grand'Maître, 47, played two five game matches on Friday as well as the five game victory over Moore earlier Saturday.
The second and third seeds met in the other semi-final, as second seed Cheryl Gudinas Holmes defeated Adrienne Fisher, 11-8, 11-5, 8-11, 11-3, in the quarter finals, while Paola Longoria took out Jennier Saunders, 4-11, 11-2, 11-6, 11-4.
Longoria came out on top over Gudinas Holmes in their semi-final match, 11-8, 11-6, 5-11, 11-9.
Earlier Saturday, Rajsich gained a measure of revenge by defeating Veronica Sotomayor in three straight games, 11-5, 11-5, 11-3. Sotomayor had defeated Rajsich twice in WPRO satellite events.
You can watch Sunday's final at 11 AM eastern time via the internet at Racquetballonline.tv.
2009 WPRO Great Ball of Fire
Miami, Florida
Quarter finals
(1) Rhonda Rajsich d. (9) Veronica Sotomayor, 11-5, 11-5, 11-3
(20) Josée Grand'Maître d. (12) Diane Moore, 10-12, 11-5, 11-6, 1-11, 11-9
(3) Paola Longoria d. (11) Jen Saunders, 4-11, 11-2, 11-6, 11-4
(2) Cheryl Gudinas Holmes d. (7) Adrienne Fisher, 11-8, 11-5, 8-11, 11-3
Semi-finals
(1) Rhonda Rajsich d. (20) Josée Grand'Maître, 11-5, 11-6, 11-5
(3) Paola Longoria d. (2) Cheryl Gudinas Holmes, 11-8, 11-6, 5-11, 11-9
Finals
(1) Rhonda Rajsich v. (3) Paola Longoria - 11 AM Eastern Time Sunday
Follow the bouncing ball....
Saturday, February 28, 2009
IRT - San Diego Open Quarter Final Results
The usual suspects are on track in the San Diego Open on the International Racquetball Tour (IRT). Rocky Carson, the IRT's #1 player, defeated Chris Crowther, 11-7,11-7, 5-11, 11-5, to book his place in the semi-finals.
Caron's semi-final opponent will be Kane Waselenchuk, who beat Mitch Williams, 11-8, 11-3, 11-3, in a battle of southpaws.
Second seed Jack Huczek will meet third seed Alvaro Beltran in the other semi-final. In the quarter finals, Huczek defeated Shane Vanderson, 11-3, 8-11, 11-5, 11-6, while Beltran beat Jason Mannino, 5-11, 11-8, 11-6, 11-5.
The semi finals are scheduled for 4 PM and 5 PM (Pacific time) Saturday with the final to follow on Sunday.
San Diego Open
Quarter finals
Rocky Carson d. Chris Crowther, 11-7, 11-7, 5-11, 11-5
Kane Waselenchuk d. Mitch Williams, 11-8, 11-3, 11-3
Alvaro Beltran d. Jason Mannino, 5-11, 11-8, 11-6, 11-5
Jack Huczek d. Shane Vanderson, 11-3, 8-11, 11-5, 11-6
Semi finals - Saturday
5 PM - Rocky Carson v. Kane Waselenchuk
4 PM - Jack Huczek v. Alvaro Beltran
Follow the bouncing ball....
Caron's semi-final opponent will be Kane Waselenchuk, who beat Mitch Williams, 11-8, 11-3, 11-3, in a battle of southpaws.
Second seed Jack Huczek will meet third seed Alvaro Beltran in the other semi-final. In the quarter finals, Huczek defeated Shane Vanderson, 11-3, 8-11, 11-5, 11-6, while Beltran beat Jason Mannino, 5-11, 11-8, 11-6, 11-5.
The semi finals are scheduled for 4 PM and 5 PM (Pacific time) Saturday with the final to follow on Sunday.
San Diego Open
Quarter finals
Rocky Carson d. Chris Crowther, 11-7, 11-7, 5-11, 11-5
Kane Waselenchuk d. Mitch Williams, 11-8, 11-3, 11-3
Alvaro Beltran d. Jason Mannino, 5-11, 11-8, 11-6, 11-5
Jack Huczek d. Shane Vanderson, 11-3, 8-11, 11-5, 11-6
Semi finals - Saturday
5 PM - Rocky Carson v. Kane Waselenchuk
4 PM - Jack Huczek v. Alvaro Beltran
Follow the bouncing ball....
WPRO - Great Balls of Fire - Round of 16 Results
The upsets keep coming in Miami at The Great Balls of Fire tournament, a Tier 1 event on the Women's Professional Racquetball Organization (WPRO) tour, although the top three seeds are through to the quarter finals.
The biggest upset came off the racquet of Josée Grand'Maître, seeded 20th but a two time Canadian Champion, who defeated 4th seed Kerri Wachtel in a five game match, 9-11, 11-7, 11-7, 10-12, 11-9. She'll next face 12th seed Diane Moore, who upset the 5th seed, Angela Grisar, 11-7, 7-11, 11-9, 11-5.
Earlier Jennifer Saunders upset sixth seed Kristen Bellows, 12-10, 11-6, 11-7. In the quarter finals, she'll face third seed Paola Longoria, who defeated Keely Franks, 11-2, 11-3, 11-2.
Finally, an upset by the seeding, but not by this season's results, was 9th seed Veronica Sotomayor's victory over 8th seed Doreen Fowler, 11-6, 11-4, 11-2. Next up for Sotomayor will be #1 Rhonda Rajsich, who defeated Krystal Csuk, 11-5, 12-10, 11-7, in the Round of 16.
Also, 2nd seed Cheryl Gudinas Holmes defeated Frédérique T. Lambert in the Round of 16, 11-3, 11-5, 11-6. She'll next face 7th seed Adrienne Fisher, who beat Maiko Sato in the Round of 16, 11-7, 11-8, 9-11, 11-9.
Finally, don't forget that some matches are being streamed live from Miami over the internet at Racquetballonline.tv.
2009 WPRO Great Ball of Fire
Miami, Florida
Round of 16
(1) Rhonda Rajsich d. (17) Krystal Csuk, 11-5, 12-10, 11-7
(9) Veronica Sotomayor d. (8) Doreen Fowler, 11-6, 11-4, 11-2
(12) Diane Moore d. (5) Angela Grisar, 11-7, 7-11, 11-9, 11-5
(20) Josée Grand'Maître d. (4) Kerri Wachtel, 9-11, 11-7, 11-7, 10-12, 11-9
(3) Paola Longoria d. (14) Keely Franks, 11-2, 11-3, 11-2
(11) Jen Saunders d. (6) Kristen Bellows, 12-10, 11-6, 11-7
(7) Adrienne Fisher d. (23) Maiko Sato, 11-7, 11-8, 9-11, 11-9
(2) Cheryl Gudinas Holmes d. (18) Frédérique T. Lambert, 11-3, 11-5, 11-6
Follow the bouncing ball....
The biggest upset came off the racquet of Josée Grand'Maître, seeded 20th but a two time Canadian Champion, who defeated 4th seed Kerri Wachtel in a five game match, 9-11, 11-7, 11-7, 10-12, 11-9. She'll next face 12th seed Diane Moore, who upset the 5th seed, Angela Grisar, 11-7, 7-11, 11-9, 11-5.
Earlier Jennifer Saunders upset sixth seed Kristen Bellows, 12-10, 11-6, 11-7. In the quarter finals, she'll face third seed Paola Longoria, who defeated Keely Franks, 11-2, 11-3, 11-2.
Finally, an upset by the seeding, but not by this season's results, was 9th seed Veronica Sotomayor's victory over 8th seed Doreen Fowler, 11-6, 11-4, 11-2. Next up for Sotomayor will be #1 Rhonda Rajsich, who defeated Krystal Csuk, 11-5, 12-10, 11-7, in the Round of 16.
Also, 2nd seed Cheryl Gudinas Holmes defeated Frédérique T. Lambert in the Round of 16, 11-3, 11-5, 11-6. She'll next face 7th seed Adrienne Fisher, who beat Maiko Sato in the Round of 16, 11-7, 11-8, 9-11, 11-9.
Finally, don't forget that some matches are being streamed live from Miami over the internet at Racquetballonline.tv.
2009 WPRO Great Ball of Fire
Miami, Florida
Round of 16
(1) Rhonda Rajsich d. (17) Krystal Csuk, 11-5, 12-10, 11-7
(9) Veronica Sotomayor d. (8) Doreen Fowler, 11-6, 11-4, 11-2
(12) Diane Moore d. (5) Angela Grisar, 11-7, 7-11, 11-9, 11-5
(20) Josée Grand'Maître d. (4) Kerri Wachtel, 9-11, 11-7, 11-7, 10-12, 11-9
(3) Paola Longoria d. (14) Keely Franks, 11-2, 11-3, 11-2
(11) Jen Saunders d. (6) Kristen Bellows, 12-10, 11-6, 11-7
(7) Adrienne Fisher d. (23) Maiko Sato, 11-7, 11-8, 9-11, 11-9
(2) Cheryl Gudinas Holmes d. (18) Frédérique T. Lambert, 11-3, 11-5, 11-6
Follow the bouncing ball....
Friday, February 27, 2009
IRT - San Diego Open Round of 16 Results
Seven of the higher seeds won their matches in the Round of 16 at the San Diego Open on the International Racquetball Tour (IRT). The only exception was Ben Croft, who lost to tour veteran Chris Crowther, 11-2, 11-6, 5-11, 11-3.
Most of the Round of 16 victories were three straight games with two exceptions. Fifth seed Jason Mannino needed four games against Polo Gutierrez, winning 7-11, 11-6, 11-3, 11-7, while second seed Jack Huczek was pushed to the limit Javier Moreno. Huczek needed five games to defeat Moreno, 11-7, 11-1, 8-11, 8-11, 11-7.
The quarter finals will be played later on Friday.
San Diego Open
Round of 16
Rocky Carson d. Andres Herrera, 11-5, 11-1, 11-4
Chris Crowther d. Ben Croft, 11-2, 11-6, 5-11, 11-3
Mitch Williams d. Gilberto Mejia, 11-8, 11-1, 11-7
Kane Waselenchuk d. Josh Tucker, 11-7, 11-1, 11-2
Alvaro Beltran d. Tony Carson, 11-3, 11-8, 12-10
Jason Mannino d. Polo Gutierrez, 7-11, 11-6, 11-3, 11-7
Shane Vanderson d. Andy Hawthorne, 11-6, 11-5, 11-0
Jack Huczek d. Javier Moreno, 11-7, 11-1, 8-11, 8-11, 11-7
Quarter finals
Rocky Carson v. Chris Crowther
Kane Waselenchuk v. Mitch Williams
Alvaro Beltran v. Jason Mannino
Jack Huczek v. Shane Vanderson
Follow the bouncing ball....
Most of the Round of 16 victories were three straight games with two exceptions. Fifth seed Jason Mannino needed four games against Polo Gutierrez, winning 7-11, 11-6, 11-3, 11-7, while second seed Jack Huczek was pushed to the limit Javier Moreno. Huczek needed five games to defeat Moreno, 11-7, 11-1, 8-11, 8-11, 11-7.
The quarter finals will be played later on Friday.
San Diego Open
Round of 16
Rocky Carson d. Andres Herrera, 11-5, 11-1, 11-4
Chris Crowther d. Ben Croft, 11-2, 11-6, 5-11, 11-3
Mitch Williams d. Gilberto Mejia, 11-8, 11-1, 11-7
Kane Waselenchuk d. Josh Tucker, 11-7, 11-1, 11-2
Alvaro Beltran d. Tony Carson, 11-3, 11-8, 12-10
Jason Mannino d. Polo Gutierrez, 7-11, 11-6, 11-3, 11-7
Shane Vanderson d. Andy Hawthorne, 11-6, 11-5, 11-0
Jack Huczek d. Javier Moreno, 11-7, 11-1, 8-11, 8-11, 11-7
Quarter finals
Rocky Carson v. Chris Crowther
Kane Waselenchuk v. Mitch Williams
Alvaro Beltran v. Jason Mannino
Jack Huczek v. Shane Vanderson
Follow the bouncing ball....
WPRO - Great Balls of Fire - Round of 32 Results
Some early upsets down in Miami at The Great Balls of Fire tournament, a Tier 1 event on the Women's Professional Racquetball Organization (WPRO). Three of four Canadians won their Round of 32 matches with Jen Saunders defeating Paula Truman in three games and Frédérique T. Lambert also winning in three over Vivian Gomez. Josée Grand'Maître also won, but needed a fifth game tie-breaker after losing the first two games against T. J. Baumbaugh. Only Catherine Nichols-Dickinson wasn't successful as she lost to Diane Moore in three games.
Saunders continued the success, as she upset sixth seed Kristen Bellows in the Round of 16, winning 12-10, 11-6, 11-7. In the quarter finals, she'll face third seed Paola Longoria, who defeated Keely Franks, 11-2, 11-3, 11-2.
Another big upset happened in the Round of 32 when Maiko Sato beat 10th seed Jo Shattuck, 11-6, 11-6, 11-7. But Sato then lost to Adrienne Fisher in the Round of 16, 11-7, 11-8, 9-11, 11-9.
Fisher will face second seed Cheryl Gudinas Holmes in the quarter finals, as Gudinas Holmes defeated Lambert in the Round of 16, 11-3, 11-5, 11-6.
The other Round of 16 matches will be completed later on Friday.
Also, some matches are being streamed live over the internet at Racquetballonline.tv.
2009 WPRO Great Ball of Fire
Miami, Florida
Round of 32
(1) Rhonda Rajsich v. BYE
(17) Krystal Csuk d. (16) Cristina Amaya, 11-9, 8-11, 11-4, 11-7
(9) Veronica Sotomayor d. (24) Sarah Warhaftig, 11-0, 11-2, 11-1
(8) Doreen Fowler v. BYE
(5) Angela Grisar v. BYE
(12) Diane Moore d. (21) Catherine Nichols-Dickinson, 11-0, 11-8, 11-6
(20) Josée Grand'Maître d. (13) T.J. Baumbaugh, 7-11, 8-11, 11-8, 13-11, 11-6
(4) Kerri Wachtel v. BYE
(3) Paola Longoria v. BYE
(14) Keely Franks d. (19) Da'Monique Davis, 11-8, 4-11, 5-11, 11-3, 11-5
(11) Jen Saunders d. (22) Paula Truman, 11-1, 11-0, 11-9
(6) Kristen Bellows v. BYE
(7) Adrienne Fisher v. BYE
(23) Maiko Sato d. (10) Jo Shattuck, 11-6, 11-6, 11-7
(18) Frédérique T. Lambert d. (15) Vivian Gomez, 12-10, 11-7, 11-8
(2) Cheryl Gudinas Holmes v. BYE
Round of 16
(1) Rhonda Rajsich v. (17) Krystal Csuk
(8) Doreen Fowler v. (9) Veronica Sotomayor
(5) Angela Grisar v. (12) Diane Moore
(4) Kerri Wachtel v. (20) Josée Grand'Maître
(3) Paola Longoria v. (14) Keely Franks
(11) Jen Saunders d. (6) Kristen Bellows, 12-10, 11-6, 11-7
(7) Adrienne Fisher d. (23) Maiko Sato
(2) Cheryl Gudinas Holmes d. (18) Frédérique T. Lambert, 11-3, 11-5, 11-6
Follow the bouncing ball....
Saunders continued the success, as she upset sixth seed Kristen Bellows in the Round of 16, winning 12-10, 11-6, 11-7. In the quarter finals, she'll face third seed Paola Longoria, who defeated Keely Franks, 11-2, 11-3, 11-2.
Another big upset happened in the Round of 32 when Maiko Sato beat 10th seed Jo Shattuck, 11-6, 11-6, 11-7. But Sato then lost to Adrienne Fisher in the Round of 16, 11-7, 11-8, 9-11, 11-9.
Fisher will face second seed Cheryl Gudinas Holmes in the quarter finals, as Gudinas Holmes defeated Lambert in the Round of 16, 11-3, 11-5, 11-6.
The other Round of 16 matches will be completed later on Friday.
Also, some matches are being streamed live over the internet at Racquetballonline.tv.
2009 WPRO Great Ball of Fire
Miami, Florida
Round of 32
(1) Rhonda Rajsich v. BYE
(17) Krystal Csuk d. (16) Cristina Amaya, 11-9, 8-11, 11-4, 11-7
(9) Veronica Sotomayor d. (24) Sarah Warhaftig, 11-0, 11-2, 11-1
(8) Doreen Fowler v. BYE
(5) Angela Grisar v. BYE
(12) Diane Moore d. (21) Catherine Nichols-Dickinson, 11-0, 11-8, 11-6
(20) Josée Grand'Maître d. (13) T.J. Baumbaugh, 7-11, 8-11, 11-8, 13-11, 11-6
(4) Kerri Wachtel v. BYE
(3) Paola Longoria v. BYE
(14) Keely Franks d. (19) Da'Monique Davis, 11-8, 4-11, 5-11, 11-3, 11-5
(11) Jen Saunders d. (22) Paula Truman, 11-1, 11-0, 11-9
(6) Kristen Bellows v. BYE
(7) Adrienne Fisher v. BYE
(23) Maiko Sato d. (10) Jo Shattuck, 11-6, 11-6, 11-7
(18) Frédérique T. Lambert d. (15) Vivian Gomez, 12-10, 11-7, 11-8
(2) Cheryl Gudinas Holmes v. BYE
Round of 16
(1) Rhonda Rajsich v. (17) Krystal Csuk
(8) Doreen Fowler v. (9) Veronica Sotomayor
(5) Angela Grisar v. (12) Diane Moore
(4) Kerri Wachtel v. (20) Josée Grand'Maître
(3) Paola Longoria v. (14) Keely Franks
(11) Jen Saunders d. (6) Kristen Bellows, 12-10, 11-6, 11-7
(7) Adrienne Fisher d. (23) Maiko Sato
(2) Cheryl Gudinas Holmes d. (18) Frédérique T. Lambert, 11-3, 11-5, 11-6
Follow the bouncing ball....
Weekend Predictions
The Racquetball Blog is predicting Paola Longoria to win the Great Balls of Fire tournament on the Women's Professional Racquetball Organization (WPRO) tour. We think that Rajsich will have difficulty getting past Veronica Sotomayor in the quarters, and even if she does so will have another tough match in the semis.
Longoria as the third seed faces her toughest competition from Cheryl Gudinas Holmes, the second seed, to get to the final, but Longoria's had success against Gudinas Holmes, so we think she's a good bet to get to the final. And if she gets there, we think she'll win it.
On the men's side, we'll again go for the favorite, Kane Waselenchuk to win this weekend at the San Diego Open on the International Racquetball Tour (IRT). He's in form, having won last weekend in Seattle. Moreover, Alvaro Beltran, who's the player who matches up best against Waselenchuk currently, will have a tough road to the final, as both Jason Mannino and Jack Huczek are on his side of draw.
Follow the bouncing ball....
Longoria as the third seed faces her toughest competition from Cheryl Gudinas Holmes, the second seed, to get to the final, but Longoria's had success against Gudinas Holmes, so we think she's a good bet to get to the final. And if she gets there, we think she'll win it.
On the men's side, we'll again go for the favorite, Kane Waselenchuk to win this weekend at the San Diego Open on the International Racquetball Tour (IRT). He's in form, having won last weekend in Seattle. Moreover, Alvaro Beltran, who's the player who matches up best against Waselenchuk currently, will have a tough road to the final, as both Jason Mannino and Jack Huczek are on his side of draw.
Follow the bouncing ball....
IRT - San Diego Open Qualifying Results
The eight qualifiers have been determined for the San Diego Open on the International Racquetball Tour (IRT), and some of the notable players The Racquetball Blog identified earlier have made it through including Josh Tucker, who made the Round of 16 for the second tournament in a row with victories over Allen Hernandez, Lee Connell and Hiroshi Shimizu.
Also through are Mexicans Polo Gutierrez and Gil Meija, although it wasn't easy for either of them. Gutierrez needed five games to beat World Junior Champion Jose Rojas before defeating Juan Herrera to make the main draw. Meija also need a tie-breaker to win his battle with Mike Orr, and then he beat Alejandro Herrera for one of the qualifying spots.
Canadians Mike Green and Tim Landeryou made it to the last qualifying round, but no further, as Andy Hawthorne prevailed over Green in four games and Chris Crowther beat Landeryou in three straight, while their countryman Kris Odegard lost to Javier Moreno in four games.
In the other final qualifying matches, Tony Carson defeated Travis Woodbury in three straight games, while Andres Herrera defeated Anthony Herrera in four games.
Thus, only three of the seeded qualifiers - Crowther, Hawthorne, and Andres Herrera - were successful in securing one of the eight qualifying spots.
San Diego Open
Men's Singles Pro Qualifier
Round 1 & 2
Q1 Tim Landeryou d. Luis Robles, 11-3, 11-2, 11-1
Q1 Rafael Filippini d. Javier Aldiez, 11-0, 11-1, 11-4
Q1 Landeryou d. Filipini, 4-11, 11-5, 11-4, 11-6
Q8 Anthony Herrera v. BYE
Q8 Felipe Munoz d. Dawoud Gharafshad, forfeit
Q8 Herrera d. Munoz, 11-4, 11-6, 11-3
Q5 Josh Tucker d. Allan Hernandez, 11-13, 11-7, 11-0, 11-4
Q5 Lee Connell d. Darrin McNally, 11-4, 11-2, 11-4
Q5 Tucker d. Connell, 11-8, 11-2, 11-7
Q4 Gil Meija d. Ricardo Soto, 11-2, 11-0, 11-4
Q4 Mike Orr d. Roby Partovich, 11-3, 11-3, 11-2
Q4 Meija d. Orr, 11-2, 8-11, 11-4, 6-11, 11-1
Q3 Polo Gutierrez d. Tom Resendez, 11-0, 11-1, 11-0
Q3 Jose Rojas d. Issac Hugo, 11-1, 11-6, 11-2
Q3 Gutierrez d. Rojas, 11-8, 5-11, 3-11, 11-0, 11-3
Q6 Tony Carson d. Jared Torres, 12-10, 11-6, 11-2
Q6 Gil De Los Rios d. Dan De La Rosa, 12-10, 11-1, 11-6, 13-15, 11-7
Q6 Carson d. De Los Rios, 8-11, 11-7, 8-11, 11-5, 11-4
Q7 David Horn d. Jaime Estrella, 11-7, 11-5, 12-10
Q7 Javier Moreno v. BYE
Q7 Moreno d. Horn, 11-5, 11-6, 11-8
Q2 Mike Green d. Fred Forbes, 11-2, 11-0, 11-1
Q2 Michael Burgess d. Tony Ramierez, 11-4, 11-2, 11-0
Q2 Green d. Burgess, 11-6, 11-8, 11-4
Round 3
Q1 Chris Crowther d. Tim Landeryou, 11-8, 11-7, 11-1
Q8 Andres Herrera d. Anthony Herrera, 11-7, 11-3, 3-11, 12-10
Q5 Josh Tucker d. Hiroshi Shimizu, 11-4, 11-4, 11-1
Q4 Gil Meija d. Alejandro Herrera, 11-4, 11-8, 11-4
Q3 Polo Gutierrez d. Juan Herrera, 11-9, 11-5, 11-1
Q6 Tony Carson d. Travis Woodbury, 11-2, 11-5, 11-9
Q7 Javier Moreno d. Kris Odegard, 11-6, 10-12, 11-2, 11-5
Q2 Andy Hawthorne d. Mike Green, 8-11, 11-2, 11-3, 11-5
Main Draw - Round of 16
Rocky Carson v. Andres Herrera
Ben Croft v. Chris Crowther
Mitch Williams v. Gilberto Mejia
Kane Waselenchuk v. Josh Tucker
Alvaro Beltran v. Tony Carson
Jason Mannino v. Polo Gutierrez
Shane Vanderson v. Andy Hawthorne
Jack Huczek v. Javier Moreno
Follow the bouncing ball....
Also through are Mexicans Polo Gutierrez and Gil Meija, although it wasn't easy for either of them. Gutierrez needed five games to beat World Junior Champion Jose Rojas before defeating Juan Herrera to make the main draw. Meija also need a tie-breaker to win his battle with Mike Orr, and then he beat Alejandro Herrera for one of the qualifying spots.
Canadians Mike Green and Tim Landeryou made it to the last qualifying round, but no further, as Andy Hawthorne prevailed over Green in four games and Chris Crowther beat Landeryou in three straight, while their countryman Kris Odegard lost to Javier Moreno in four games.
In the other final qualifying matches, Tony Carson defeated Travis Woodbury in three straight games, while Andres Herrera defeated Anthony Herrera in four games.
Thus, only three of the seeded qualifiers - Crowther, Hawthorne, and Andres Herrera - were successful in securing one of the eight qualifying spots.
San Diego Open
Men's Singles Pro Qualifier
Round 1 & 2
Q1 Tim Landeryou d. Luis Robles, 11-3, 11-2, 11-1
Q1 Rafael Filippini d. Javier Aldiez, 11-0, 11-1, 11-4
Q1 Landeryou d. Filipini, 4-11, 11-5, 11-4, 11-6
Q8 Anthony Herrera v. BYE
Q8 Felipe Munoz d. Dawoud Gharafshad, forfeit
Q8 Herrera d. Munoz, 11-4, 11-6, 11-3
Q5 Josh Tucker d. Allan Hernandez, 11-13, 11-7, 11-0, 11-4
Q5 Lee Connell d. Darrin McNally, 11-4, 11-2, 11-4
Q5 Tucker d. Connell, 11-8, 11-2, 11-7
Q4 Gil Meija d. Ricardo Soto, 11-2, 11-0, 11-4
Q4 Mike Orr d. Roby Partovich, 11-3, 11-3, 11-2
Q4 Meija d. Orr, 11-2, 8-11, 11-4, 6-11, 11-1
Q3 Polo Gutierrez d. Tom Resendez, 11-0, 11-1, 11-0
Q3 Jose Rojas d. Issac Hugo, 11-1, 11-6, 11-2
Q3 Gutierrez d. Rojas, 11-8, 5-11, 3-11, 11-0, 11-3
Q6 Tony Carson d. Jared Torres, 12-10, 11-6, 11-2
Q6 Gil De Los Rios d. Dan De La Rosa, 12-10, 11-1, 11-6, 13-15, 11-7
Q6 Carson d. De Los Rios, 8-11, 11-7, 8-11, 11-5, 11-4
Q7 David Horn d. Jaime Estrella, 11-7, 11-5, 12-10
Q7 Javier Moreno v. BYE
Q7 Moreno d. Horn, 11-5, 11-6, 11-8
Q2 Mike Green d. Fred Forbes, 11-2, 11-0, 11-1
Q2 Michael Burgess d. Tony Ramierez, 11-4, 11-2, 11-0
Q2 Green d. Burgess, 11-6, 11-8, 11-4
Round 3
Q1 Chris Crowther d. Tim Landeryou, 11-8, 11-7, 11-1
Q8 Andres Herrera d. Anthony Herrera, 11-7, 11-3, 3-11, 12-10
Q5 Josh Tucker d. Hiroshi Shimizu, 11-4, 11-4, 11-1
Q4 Gil Meija d. Alejandro Herrera, 11-4, 11-8, 11-4
Q3 Polo Gutierrez d. Juan Herrera, 11-9, 11-5, 11-1
Q6 Tony Carson d. Travis Woodbury, 11-2, 11-5, 11-9
Q7 Javier Moreno d. Kris Odegard, 11-6, 10-12, 11-2, 11-5
Q2 Andy Hawthorne d. Mike Green, 8-11, 11-2, 11-3, 11-5
Main Draw - Round of 16
Rocky Carson v. Andres Herrera
Ben Croft v. Chris Crowther
Mitch Williams v. Gilberto Mejia
Kane Waselenchuk v. Josh Tucker
Alvaro Beltran v. Tony Carson
Jason Mannino v. Polo Gutierrez
Shane Vanderson v. Andy Hawthorne
Jack Huczek v. Javier Moreno
Follow the bouncing ball....
Thursday, February 26, 2009
WPRO - Great Balls of Fire - Round of 32
The Women's Professional Racquetball Organization (WPRO) is back in action this weekend with The Great Balls of Fire tournament - a Tier 1 WPRO event - in Miami, Florida. All the top 10 players are there with the exception of Brenda Kyzer. Kyzer is out with a foot injury, plantar facitis, and may require surgery.
The highlight of the potential quarter final matches is #1 Rhonda Rajsich facing the teen phenom and WPRO #10 Veronica Sotomayor. Sotomayor has defeated Rajsich twice this season, but in WPRO satellite events - the New Jersey Open and Harrisburg Shootout.
Play begins on Friday with the Round of 32 and Round of 16 matches. Then they'll also play two rounds on Saturday, quarter finals and semi finals, with the finals slated for Sunday.
Some matches will be streamed live over the internet at Racquetballonline.tv.
2009 WPRO Great Ball of Fire
Miami, Florida
Round of 32
(1) Rhonda Rajsich v. BYE
(16) Cristina Amaya v. (17) Krystal Csuk
(9) Veronica Sotomayor v. (24) Sarah Warhaftig
(8) Doreen Fowler v. BYE
(5) Angela Grisar v. BYE
(12) Diane Moore v. (21) Catherine Nichols-Dickinson
(13) T.J. Baumbaugh v. (20) Josée Grand'Maître
(4) Kerri Wachtel v. BYE
(3) Paola Longoria v. BYE
(14) Keely Franks v. (19) Da'Monique Davis
(11) Jen Saunders v. (22) Paula Truman
(6) Kristen Bellows v. BYE
(7) Adrienne Fisher v. BYE
(10) Jo Shattuck v. (23) Maiko Sato
(15) Vivian Gomez v. (18) Frédérique T. Lambert
(2) Cheryl Gudinas Holmes v. BYE
Follow the bouncing ball....
The highlight of the potential quarter final matches is #1 Rhonda Rajsich facing the teen phenom and WPRO #10 Veronica Sotomayor. Sotomayor has defeated Rajsich twice this season, but in WPRO satellite events - the New Jersey Open and Harrisburg Shootout.
Play begins on Friday with the Round of 32 and Round of 16 matches. Then they'll also play two rounds on Saturday, quarter finals and semi finals, with the finals slated for Sunday.
Some matches will be streamed live over the internet at Racquetballonline.tv.
2009 WPRO Great Ball of Fire
Miami, Florida
Round of 32
(1) Rhonda Rajsich v. BYE
(16) Cristina Amaya v. (17) Krystal Csuk
(9) Veronica Sotomayor v. (24) Sarah Warhaftig
(8) Doreen Fowler v. BYE
(5) Angela Grisar v. BYE
(12) Diane Moore v. (21) Catherine Nichols-Dickinson
(13) T.J. Baumbaugh v. (20) Josée Grand'Maître
(4) Kerri Wachtel v. BYE
(3) Paola Longoria v. BYE
(14) Keely Franks v. (19) Da'Monique Davis
(11) Jen Saunders v. (22) Paula Truman
(6) Kristen Bellows v. BYE
(7) Adrienne Fisher v. BYE
(10) Jo Shattuck v. (23) Maiko Sato
(15) Vivian Gomez v. (18) Frédérique T. Lambert
(2) Cheryl Gudinas Holmes v. BYE
Follow the bouncing ball....
IRT - San Diego Open Qualifying Rounds
The International Racquetball Tour's (IRT's) San Diego Open qualifying draw will be kicking off shortly. Thirty-eight players are in the running for the eight spots in the Round of 16 on Friday. The 38 includes some notable players, such as Mike Green, Polo Gutierrez, Javier Moreno, Jose Rojas, and Josh Tucker, who was one of the 8 qualifiers last week in Seattle, as well as such usual suspects as Chris Crowther and Andy Hawthorne.
Thus, some of the 8 seeded qualifiers will be hard pressed to make the Round of 16. For example, Andy Hawthorne will potentially face Mike Green, a former IRT top 10 player and winner of the West Michigan Open this season, while Kris Odegard will likely be up against Javier Moreno.
Also on the bottom of the qualifying draw, Gil De Los Rios, who lost in a tie-breaker to Hawthorne last week, could push Travis Woodbury, although De Los Rios will probably have to beat Tony Carson for a chance at Woodbury. Similarly, there should be a good battle between Junior World Champ Jose Rojas, who got to the semis in his last IRT tournament (the California Open in January) and Polo Gutierrez, with the winner to face Juan Herrera for a spot in the main draw.
Highlights of potential matches in the top half of the qualifying draw are Hiroshi Shimizu versus Tucker, and yet another all Herrera battle this time between Andres and Anthony.
Start times for the qualifying matches are between 2 PM and 9 PM Pacific time Thursday with the survivors to play in Friday's Round of 16.
IRT San Diego Open
Men's Singles Pro Qualifier
Round 1 & 2
Q1 Tim Landeryou v. Luis Robles
Q1 Javier Aldiez v. Rafael Filipinni
Q8 Anthony Herrera v. BYE
Q8 Dawoud Gharafshad v. Felipe Munoz
Q5 Josh Tucker v. Allan Hernandez
Q5 Darrin McNally v. Lee Connell
Q4 Gil Meija v. Ricardo Soto
Q4 Roby Partovich v. Mike Orr
Q3 Polo Gutierrez v. Tom Resendez
Q3 Issac Hugo v. Jose Rojas
Q6 Tony Carson v. Jared Torres
Q6 Dan De La Rosa v. Gil De Los Rios
Q7 David Horn v. Jaime Estrella
Q7 Javier Moreno v. BYE
Q2 Mike Green v. Fred Forbes
Q2 Tony Ramierez v. Michael Burgess
Round 3
Q1 Chris Crowther v. Landeryou/Robles/Aldiez/Filipinni
Q8 Andres Herrera v. Ant. Herrera/Gharafshad/Munoz
Q5 Hiroshi Shimizu v. Tucker/Hernandez/McNally/Connell
Q4 Alejandro Herrera v. Meija/Soto/Partovich/Orr
Q3 Juan Herrera v. Gutierrez/Resendez/Hugo/Rojas
Q6 Travis Woodbury v. Carson/Torres/De La Rosa/De Los Rios
Q7 Kris Odegard v. Horn/Estrella/Moreno
Q2 Andy Hawthorne v. Green/Forbes/Ramierez/Burgess
Follow the bouncing ball....
Thus, some of the 8 seeded qualifiers will be hard pressed to make the Round of 16. For example, Andy Hawthorne will potentially face Mike Green, a former IRT top 10 player and winner of the West Michigan Open this season, while Kris Odegard will likely be up against Javier Moreno.
Also on the bottom of the qualifying draw, Gil De Los Rios, who lost in a tie-breaker to Hawthorne last week, could push Travis Woodbury, although De Los Rios will probably have to beat Tony Carson for a chance at Woodbury. Similarly, there should be a good battle between Junior World Champ Jose Rojas, who got to the semis in his last IRT tournament (the California Open in January) and Polo Gutierrez, with the winner to face Juan Herrera for a spot in the main draw.
Highlights of potential matches in the top half of the qualifying draw are Hiroshi Shimizu versus Tucker, and yet another all Herrera battle this time between Andres and Anthony.
Start times for the qualifying matches are between 2 PM and 9 PM Pacific time Thursday with the survivors to play in Friday's Round of 16.
IRT San Diego Open
Men's Singles Pro Qualifier
Round 1 & 2
Q1 Tim Landeryou v. Luis Robles
Q1 Javier Aldiez v. Rafael Filipinni
Q8 Anthony Herrera v. BYE
Q8 Dawoud Gharafshad v. Felipe Munoz
Q5 Josh Tucker v. Allan Hernandez
Q5 Darrin McNally v. Lee Connell
Q4 Gil Meija v. Ricardo Soto
Q4 Roby Partovich v. Mike Orr
Q3 Polo Gutierrez v. Tom Resendez
Q3 Issac Hugo v. Jose Rojas
Q6 Tony Carson v. Jared Torres
Q6 Dan De La Rosa v. Gil De Los Rios
Q7 David Horn v. Jaime Estrella
Q7 Javier Moreno v. BYE
Q2 Mike Green v. Fred Forbes
Q2 Tony Ramierez v. Michael Burgess
Round 3
Q1 Chris Crowther v. Landeryou/Robles/Aldiez/Filipinni
Q8 Andres Herrera v. Ant. Herrera/Gharafshad/Munoz
Q5 Hiroshi Shimizu v. Tucker/Hernandez/McNally/Connell
Q4 Alejandro Herrera v. Meija/Soto/Partovich/Orr
Q3 Juan Herrera v. Gutierrez/Resendez/Hugo/Rojas
Q6 Travis Woodbury v. Carson/Torres/De La Rosa/De Los Rios
Q7 Kris Odegard v. Horn/Estrella/Moreno
Q2 Andy Hawthorne v. Green/Forbes/Ramierez/Burgess
Follow the bouncing ball....
Wednesday, February 25, 2009
An Analogy - A is to B as C is to D
Kane Waselenchuk : Alexander Ovechkin :: Jack Huczek : Sidney Crosby
See: Star Wars: No love lost between Crosby and Ovechkin.
Follow the bouncing ball....
See: Star Wars: No love lost between Crosby and Ovechkin.
Follow the bouncing ball....
Sunday, February 22, 2009
IRT - Seattle Open - Final result
Kane Waselenchuk took another step towards regaining the #1 ranking on International Racquetball Tour (IRT) on Sunday with a win at the Seattle Open, where he defeated Jack Huczek, 11-0, 6-11, 11-9 11-5. It's Waselenchuk's second consecutive victory, and sixth of season.
Waselenchuk blanked Huczek in game one, 11-0, but Huczek bounced back to take game two, 11-6. However, the turn game - number three - went to Waselenchuk by the narrowest of margins, 11-9. Then he finished off the match by winning game four, 11-5.
The next IRT event will be the San Diego with qualifying beginning this Thursday.
Seattle Open
Finals
Kane Waselenchuk d. Jack Huczek, 11-0, 6-11, 11-9, 11-5
Follow the bouncing ball....
Waselenchuk blanked Huczek in game one, 11-0, but Huczek bounced back to take game two, 11-6. However, the turn game - number three - went to Waselenchuk by the narrowest of margins, 11-9. Then he finished off the match by winning game four, 11-5.
The next IRT event will be the San Diego with qualifying beginning this Thursday.
Seattle Open
Finals
Kane Waselenchuk d. Jack Huczek, 11-0, 6-11, 11-9, 11-5
Follow the bouncing ball....
Saturday, February 21, 2009
IRT - Seattle Open - Semi-final results
Kane Waselenchuk will have his chance to win a second tournament in a row on Sunday as he beat top seed Rocky Carson in the semi-finals of the Seattle Open on the International Racquetball Tour (IRT), 11-5, 11-2, 11-1. The victory margin is similar to Waselenchuk's victory over Carson in the US Open final last year when Waselenchuk also gave up only 8 points to Carson, the IRT's #1 player.
Jack Huczek, IRT #2, will face Waselenchuk in the final, as he defeated Alvaro Beltran in the other semi-final match, 15-13, 11-2, 11-1.
While Huczek's record against Waselenchuk this season is better than Carson's, he hasn't beaten Waselenchuk this year. In their most recent meeting, Waselenchuk defeated Huczek, 11-4, 11-4, 11-7 in the final of the New York City Pro-Am last month.
Waselenchuk is trying to regain the #1 ranking that he had for three seasons prior to being suspended from the IRT for two years due to a positive drug test at the Canadian National Championships in May 2006. In his first season back on tour, Waselenchuk has won five tournaments, losing only once in six events. However, he also skipped two Tier 1 events.
Thus, he's on track to regain the #1 position by season's end. A victory on Sunday in Seattle would be another step towards that goal.
Seattle Open
Semi-finals
Kane Waselenchuk d. Rocky Carson, 11-5, 11-2, 11-1
Jack Huczek d. Alvaro Beltran, 15-13, 11-2, 11-1
Finals - Sunday
Jack Huczek v. Kane Waselenchuk
Follow the bouncing ball....
Jack Huczek, IRT #2, will face Waselenchuk in the final, as he defeated Alvaro Beltran in the other semi-final match, 15-13, 11-2, 11-1.
While Huczek's record against Waselenchuk this season is better than Carson's, he hasn't beaten Waselenchuk this year. In their most recent meeting, Waselenchuk defeated Huczek, 11-4, 11-4, 11-7 in the final of the New York City Pro-Am last month.
Waselenchuk is trying to regain the #1 ranking that he had for three seasons prior to being suspended from the IRT for two years due to a positive drug test at the Canadian National Championships in May 2006. In his first season back on tour, Waselenchuk has won five tournaments, losing only once in six events. However, he also skipped two Tier 1 events.
Thus, he's on track to regain the #1 position by season's end. A victory on Sunday in Seattle would be another step towards that goal.
Seattle Open
Semi-finals
Kane Waselenchuk d. Rocky Carson, 11-5, 11-2, 11-1
Jack Huczek d. Alvaro Beltran, 15-13, 11-2, 11-1
Finals - Sunday
Jack Huczek v. Kane Waselenchuk
Follow the bouncing ball....
IRT - Seattle Open - Round of 16 & Quarter finals
The usual suspects have made the semi-finals of the International Racquetball Tour's (IRT's) Seattle Open. Kane Waselenchuk got there by winning six straight games, including bringing Josh Tucker's good run in Seattle to an abrupt halt with a 11-0, 11-1, 11-1 defeat in the Round of 16. Waselenchuk also beat Jason Mannino in the quarter finals, 11-2, 11-2, 11-7.
Mannino is 409 rankings point ahead of Waselenchuk, so it's possible that a victory this weekend will be enough to get Waselenchuk to fourth from fifth in the overall rankings.
Jack Huczek also had little trouble in reaching the semis, as he defeated both Kris Odegard and Ben Croft in three straight games.
Rocky Carson and Alvaro Beltran both won their Round of 16 matches in three straight games, but Carson needed four games to dispatch Mitch Williams in the quarters, while Beltran went the distance with Shane Vanderson, winning in a fifth game tie-breaker.
The semi-finals are scheduled for late Saturday afternoon.
Seattle Open
Quarter Finals
Rocky Carson d. Mitch Williams, 11-3, 7-11, 11-8, 11-3
Kane Waselenchuk d. Jason Mannino, 11-2, 11-2, 11-7
Alvaro Beltran d. Shane Vanderson, 12-14, 11-7, 11-8, 10-12, 11-7
Jack Huczek d. Ben Croft, 11-8, 11-3, 11-1
Round of 16
Rocky Carson d. Anthony Herrera, 11-1, 11-4, 11-1
Mitch Williams d. Chris Crowther, 0-11, 11-1, 7-11, 11-9, 11-5
Kane Waselenchuk d. Josh Tucker, 11-0, 11-1, 11-1
Jason Mannino d. Alejandro Landa, 11-7, 11-3, 8-11, 13-11
Alvaro Beltran d. Travis Woodbury, 11-3, 11-6, 11-1
Shane Vanderson d. Tim Landeryou, 11-6, 11-3, 11-9
Ben Croft d. Andy Hawthorne, 11-7, 11-4, 2-11, 5-11, 11-6
Jack Huczek d. Kris Odegard, 11-2, 11-2, 11-7
Semi-finals
Rocky Carson v. Kane Waselenchuk
Jack Huczek v. Alvaro Beltran
Follow the bouncing ball....
Mannino is 409 rankings point ahead of Waselenchuk, so it's possible that a victory this weekend will be enough to get Waselenchuk to fourth from fifth in the overall rankings.
Jack Huczek also had little trouble in reaching the semis, as he defeated both Kris Odegard and Ben Croft in three straight games.
Rocky Carson and Alvaro Beltran both won their Round of 16 matches in three straight games, but Carson needed four games to dispatch Mitch Williams in the quarters, while Beltran went the distance with Shane Vanderson, winning in a fifth game tie-breaker.
The semi-finals are scheduled for late Saturday afternoon.
Seattle Open
Quarter Finals
Rocky Carson d. Mitch Williams, 11-3, 7-11, 11-8, 11-3
Kane Waselenchuk d. Jason Mannino, 11-2, 11-2, 11-7
Alvaro Beltran d. Shane Vanderson, 12-14, 11-7, 11-8, 10-12, 11-7
Jack Huczek d. Ben Croft, 11-8, 11-3, 11-1
Round of 16
Rocky Carson d. Anthony Herrera, 11-1, 11-4, 11-1
Mitch Williams d. Chris Crowther, 0-11, 11-1, 7-11, 11-9, 11-5
Kane Waselenchuk d. Josh Tucker, 11-0, 11-1, 11-1
Jason Mannino d. Alejandro Landa, 11-7, 11-3, 8-11, 13-11
Alvaro Beltran d. Travis Woodbury, 11-3, 11-6, 11-1
Shane Vanderson d. Tim Landeryou, 11-6, 11-3, 11-9
Ben Croft d. Andy Hawthorne, 11-7, 11-4, 2-11, 5-11, 11-6
Jack Huczek d. Kris Odegard, 11-2, 11-2, 11-7
Semi-finals
Rocky Carson v. Kane Waselenchuk
Jack Huczek v. Alvaro Beltran
Follow the bouncing ball....
Friday, February 20, 2009
IRT - Seattle Open - Prediction
Readers of The Racquetball Blog (RTRBs) are overwhelming in their prediction of a victory for Kane Waselenchuk at the International Racquetball Tour's (IRT's) Seattle Open, and why not? Waselenchuk has won all but one of the tournaments he has entered this year, and is well on the way regaining the IRT's #1 ranking.
Alvaro Beltran is RTRBs's second choice, and The Racquetball Blog has gone on record saying that we think Beltran's game style matches up best with Waselenchuk. However, Beltran likely needs to get through Jack Huczek to have an opportunity to play Waselenchuk, who's on the other side of the draw from Beltran. Beltran's career record versus Huczek of 5-24 is not good, although it's 1-1 this season.
A Waselenchuk-Huczek match-up would also only happen in the final, and Waselenchuk would be favored in that, as he's won all their meetings this season, including a three straight game victory in New York City, the most recent Tier 1 IRT event. You might like to see a Huczek upset, but we think there's a little more motivation for Waselenchuk against Huczek, who's often been talked about as his greatest rival. That motivation likely runs from Huczek also for similar reasons, and that Waselenchuk is positioning himself to take the top spot, which Huczek would surely like to have for himself.
Rocky Carson now has the top spot, and will potentially meet Waselenchuk in the semi-finals this weekend, if things go according to form in Seattle. Carson went tie breaker with Waselenchuk in Denver, but got crushed at the US Open and beaten in the New York City event. Thus, it's difficult to see Carson knocking off Waselenchuk at this time.
Thus, The Racquetball Blog has to agree with its reader on this one, and pick Kane Waselenchuk to win the Seattle Open.
Seattle Open
Main Draw - Round of 16
Rocky Carson v. Anthony Herrera
Mitch Williams v. Chris Crowther
Kane Waselenchuk v. Alejandro Landa
Jason Mannino v. Josh Tucker
Alvaro Beltran v. Tim Landeryou
Shane Vanderson v. Travis Woodbury
Ben Croft v. Kris Odegard
Jack Huczek v. Andy Hawthorne
Follow the bouncing ball....
Alvaro Beltran is RTRBs's second choice, and The Racquetball Blog has gone on record saying that we think Beltran's game style matches up best with Waselenchuk. However, Beltran likely needs to get through Jack Huczek to have an opportunity to play Waselenchuk, who's on the other side of the draw from Beltran. Beltran's career record versus Huczek of 5-24 is not good, although it's 1-1 this season.
A Waselenchuk-Huczek match-up would also only happen in the final, and Waselenchuk would be favored in that, as he's won all their meetings this season, including a three straight game victory in New York City, the most recent Tier 1 IRT event. You might like to see a Huczek upset, but we think there's a little more motivation for Waselenchuk against Huczek, who's often been talked about as his greatest rival. That motivation likely runs from Huczek also for similar reasons, and that Waselenchuk is positioning himself to take the top spot, which Huczek would surely like to have for himself.
Rocky Carson now has the top spot, and will potentially meet Waselenchuk in the semi-finals this weekend, if things go according to form in Seattle. Carson went tie breaker with Waselenchuk in Denver, but got crushed at the US Open and beaten in the New York City event. Thus, it's difficult to see Carson knocking off Waselenchuk at this time.
Thus, The Racquetball Blog has to agree with its reader on this one, and pick Kane Waselenchuk to win the Seattle Open.
Seattle Open
Main Draw - Round of 16
Rocky Carson v. Anthony Herrera
Mitch Williams v. Chris Crowther
Kane Waselenchuk v. Alejandro Landa
Jason Mannino v. Josh Tucker
Alvaro Beltran v. Tim Landeryou
Shane Vanderson v. Travis Woodbury
Ben Croft v. Kris Odegard
Jack Huczek v. Andy Hawthorne
Follow the bouncing ball....
IRT - Seattle Open Qualifying Results - Round 3
Former top 10 player, Josh Tucker was one of four non-seeded qualifiers to earn a berth in the main draw of the International Racquetball Tour's (IRT's) Seattle Open on Thursday. He beat Alejandro Herrera in four games, 11-6, 11-7, 5-11, 11-0.
The other three non-seeded players joining Tucker in the Round of 16 are Alejandro Landa, with a three game sweep of Hiroshi Shimizu, Anthony Herrera who defeated Andres Herrera in five games, and Tim Landeryou, winner of last week's IRT Keystone Classic, who beat Juan Herrra in five games.
The remaining four qualifiers are tour veterans Chris Crowther, Andy Hawthorne, Kris Odegard and Travis Woodbury. Hawthorne had the hardest go of it, as he fell behind two games to Gil De Los Rios before rallying to win in five.
The Round of 16 and quarter finals will be played on Friday at the Washington Athletic Club in Seattle.
Seattle Open
Men's Singles Pro Qualifier
Round 3
Q1 Chris Crowther d. Charles Pratt, 9-11, 11-3, 11-4, 13-11
Q2 Andy Hawthorne d. Gil De Los Rios, 7-11, 6-11, 11-5, 11-9, 11-8
Q3 Tim Landeryou d. Juan Herrera, 12-10, 8-11, 4-11, 11-7, 11-6
Q4 Josh Tucker d. Alejandro Herrera, 11-6, 11-7, 5-11, 11-0
Q5 Alejandro Landa d. Hiroshi Shimizu, 12-10, 11-4, 11-9
Q6 Travis Woodbury d. Rafael Filippini, 11-5, 11-9, 14-12
Q7 Kris Odegard d. Lee Connell, 11-2, 11-2, 11-5
Q8 Anthony Herrera d. Andres Herrera, 11-0, 5-11, 9-11, 11-7, 11-5
Main Draw - Round of 16
Rocky Carson v. Anthony Herrera
Mitch Williams v. Chris Crowther
Kane Waselenchuk v. Alejandro Landa
Jason Mannino v. Josh Tucker
Alvaro Beltran v. Tim Landeryou
Shane Vanderson v. Travis Woodbury
Ben Croft v. Kris Odegard
Jack Huczek v. Andy Hawthorne
Follow the bouncing ball....
The other three non-seeded players joining Tucker in the Round of 16 are Alejandro Landa, with a three game sweep of Hiroshi Shimizu, Anthony Herrera who defeated Andres Herrera in five games, and Tim Landeryou, winner of last week's IRT Keystone Classic, who beat Juan Herrra in five games.
The remaining four qualifiers are tour veterans Chris Crowther, Andy Hawthorne, Kris Odegard and Travis Woodbury. Hawthorne had the hardest go of it, as he fell behind two games to Gil De Los Rios before rallying to win in five.
The Round of 16 and quarter finals will be played on Friday at the Washington Athletic Club in Seattle.
Seattle Open
Men's Singles Pro Qualifier
Round 3
Q1 Chris Crowther d. Charles Pratt, 9-11, 11-3, 11-4, 13-11
Q2 Andy Hawthorne d. Gil De Los Rios, 7-11, 6-11, 11-5, 11-9, 11-8
Q3 Tim Landeryou d. Juan Herrera, 12-10, 8-11, 4-11, 11-7, 11-6
Q4 Josh Tucker d. Alejandro Herrera, 11-6, 11-7, 5-11, 11-0
Q5 Alejandro Landa d. Hiroshi Shimizu, 12-10, 11-4, 11-9
Q6 Travis Woodbury d. Rafael Filippini, 11-5, 11-9, 14-12
Q7 Kris Odegard d. Lee Connell, 11-2, 11-2, 11-5
Q8 Anthony Herrera d. Andres Herrera, 11-0, 5-11, 9-11, 11-7, 11-5
Main Draw - Round of 16
Rocky Carson v. Anthony Herrera
Mitch Williams v. Chris Crowther
Kane Waselenchuk v. Alejandro Landa
Jason Mannino v. Josh Tucker
Alvaro Beltran v. Tim Landeryou
Shane Vanderson v. Travis Woodbury
Ben Croft v. Kris Odegard
Jack Huczek v. Andy Hawthorne
Follow the bouncing ball....
Thursday, February 19, 2009
IRT - Seattle Open Qualifying Results
Through two qualifying rounds of the International Racquetball Tour's (IRT's) Seattle Open there's been only one real upset. Josh Tucker defeated Michael Burgess in three straight games in Round 2, 11-8, 11-6, 11-5. Tucker was the lower seed, because this is only his second tournament of the season. However, Tucker was ranked 10th at the end of the 2004-05 IRT season.
As we anticipated, Andy Hawthorne will play Gil De Los Rios for a spot in the main draw, and at least one Herrera will be in the main draw as Andreas and Anthony are facing off in Round 3 of Qualifying. Those matches and the rest of the third qualifying round will be completed later on Thursday.
Seattle Open
Men's Singles Pro Qualifier
Round 3
Q1 Chris Crowther v. Charles Pratt
Q2 Andy Hawthorne v. Gil De Los Rios
Q3 Juan Herrera v. Tim Landeryou
Q4 Alejandro Herrera v. Josh Tucker
Q5 Hiroshi Shimizu v. Alejandro Landa
Q6 Travis Woodbury v. Rafael Filippini
Q7 Kris Odegard v. Lee Connell
Q8 Andres Herrera v. Anthony Herrera
Round 1
Sebastien Boissonneault d. Michael Ackerman, 11-7, 11-4, 11-3
Sean Barclay d. Rich Carver, 11-9, 4-11, 12-10, 11-9
Neale Jentsch d. Tanner Mattson, 6-11, 11-3, 8-11, 11-1, 11-2
Josh Tucker d. Bill Napier, 11-5, 11-0, 11-9
Craig Allen d. Alex Purcell, 11-9, 13-11, 9-11, 9-11, 11-2
Doug Jones d. David Rocchi Jr., 11-4, 11-6, 11-9
Jamie Slamko d. Eric Hagelin, 11-, 6, 11-6, 11-6
Taylor Knoth d. Kyle Purdy, 11-1, 11-2, 11-4
Round 2
Q1 Charles Pratt d. Sebastien Boissonneault, 11-3, 11-6, 11-8
Q8 Anthony Herrera d. Sean Barclay, 11-3, 11-8, 11-7
Q2 Gil De Los Rios d. Taylor Knoth, 11-7, 12-10, 9-11, 11-9
Q4 Josh Tucker d. Michael Burgess, 11-8, 11-6, 11-5
Q6 Rafael Filippini d. Doug Jones, 4-11, 11-4, 11-8, 11-4
Q7 Lee Connell d. Jamie Slamko, 11-4, 9-11, 11-0, 13-11
Q3 Tim Landeryou d. Craig Allen, 11-0, 12-10, 11-4
Q5 Alejandro Landa d. Neale Jentsch, 11-3, 11-9, 11-2
Main Draw
Rocky Carson v. Q8
Mitch Williams v. Q1
Kane Waselenchuk v. Q5
Jason Mannino v. Q4
Alvaro Beltran v. Q3
Shane Vanderson v. Q6
Ben Croft v. Q7
Jack Huczek v. Q2
Follow the bouncing ball....
As we anticipated, Andy Hawthorne will play Gil De Los Rios for a spot in the main draw, and at least one Herrera will be in the main draw as Andreas and Anthony are facing off in Round 3 of Qualifying. Those matches and the rest of the third qualifying round will be completed later on Thursday.
Seattle Open
Men's Singles Pro Qualifier
Round 3
Q1 Chris Crowther v. Charles Pratt
Q2 Andy Hawthorne v. Gil De Los Rios
Q3 Juan Herrera v. Tim Landeryou
Q4 Alejandro Herrera v. Josh Tucker
Q5 Hiroshi Shimizu v. Alejandro Landa
Q6 Travis Woodbury v. Rafael Filippini
Q7 Kris Odegard v. Lee Connell
Q8 Andres Herrera v. Anthony Herrera
Round 1
Sebastien Boissonneault d. Michael Ackerman, 11-7, 11-4, 11-3
Sean Barclay d. Rich Carver, 11-9, 4-11, 12-10, 11-9
Neale Jentsch d. Tanner Mattson, 6-11, 11-3, 8-11, 11-1, 11-2
Josh Tucker d. Bill Napier, 11-5, 11-0, 11-9
Craig Allen d. Alex Purcell, 11-9, 13-11, 9-11, 9-11, 11-2
Doug Jones d. David Rocchi Jr., 11-4, 11-6, 11-9
Jamie Slamko d. Eric Hagelin, 11-, 6, 11-6, 11-6
Taylor Knoth d. Kyle Purdy, 11-1, 11-2, 11-4
Round 2
Q1 Charles Pratt d. Sebastien Boissonneault, 11-3, 11-6, 11-8
Q8 Anthony Herrera d. Sean Barclay, 11-3, 11-8, 11-7
Q2 Gil De Los Rios d. Taylor Knoth, 11-7, 12-10, 9-11, 11-9
Q4 Josh Tucker d. Michael Burgess, 11-8, 11-6, 11-5
Q6 Rafael Filippini d. Doug Jones, 4-11, 11-4, 11-8, 11-4
Q7 Lee Connell d. Jamie Slamko, 11-4, 9-11, 11-0, 13-11
Q3 Tim Landeryou d. Craig Allen, 11-0, 12-10, 11-4
Q5 Alejandro Landa d. Neale Jentsch, 11-3, 11-9, 11-2
Main Draw
Rocky Carson v. Q8
Mitch Williams v. Q1
Kane Waselenchuk v. Q5
Jason Mannino v. Q4
Alvaro Beltran v. Q3
Shane Vanderson v. Q6
Ben Croft v. Q7
Jack Huczek v. Q2
Follow the bouncing ball....
Wednesday, February 18, 2009
IRT - Seattle Open Qualifying Rounds
The International Racquetball Tour's (IRT's) Seattle Open qualifying draw is now available, and it's below. Andy Hawthorne could be in tough as he will potentially face Gil De Los Rios for a spot in the main draw. Other potential tasty qualifying match ups are an all Herrera battle between Andreas and Anthony in Round 3, Alejandro Landa versus Hiroshi Shimizu in Round 3, and Josh Tucker and Michael Burgess in Round 2.
First round qualifying starts at 3 PM Pacific time Thursday, with the second round two hours after that and the third round three hours after the second.
2009 Seattle Open
Men's Singles Pro Qualifier
Round 1
Sebastien Boissonneault v. Michael Ackerman
Rich Carver v. Sean Barclay
Tanner Mattson v. Neale Jentsch
Bill Napier v. Josh Tucker
Alex Purcell v. Craig Allen
Doug Jones v. David Rocchi Jr.
Jamie Slamko v. Eric Hagelin
Kyle Purdy v. Taylor Knoth
Round 2
Q1 Charles Pratt v. winner of Sebastien Boissonneault & Michael Ackerman
Q2 Gil De Los Rios v. winner of Kyle Purdy & Taylor Knoth
Q3 Tim Landeryou v. winner of Alex Purcell & Craig Allen
Q4 Michael Burgess v. winner of Bill Napier & Josh Tucker
Q5 Alejandro Landa v. winner of Tanner Mattson & Neale Jentsch
Q6 Rafael Filippini v. winner of Doug Jones & David Rocchi Jr.
Q7 Lee Connell v. winner of Jamie Slamko & Eric Hagelin
Q8 Anthony Herrera v. winner of Rich Carver & Sean Barclay
Round 3
Chris Crowther v. Q1
Andy Hawthorne v. Q2
Juan Herrera v. Q3
Alejandro Herrera v. Q4
Hiroshi Shimizu v. Q5
Travis Woodbury v. Q6
Kris Odegard v. Q7
Andres Herrera v. Q8
Follow the bouncing ball....
First round qualifying starts at 3 PM Pacific time Thursday, with the second round two hours after that and the third round three hours after the second.
2009 Seattle Open
Men's Singles Pro Qualifier
Round 1
Sebastien Boissonneault v. Michael Ackerman
Rich Carver v. Sean Barclay
Tanner Mattson v. Neale Jentsch
Bill Napier v. Josh Tucker
Alex Purcell v. Craig Allen
Doug Jones v. David Rocchi Jr.
Jamie Slamko v. Eric Hagelin
Kyle Purdy v. Taylor Knoth
Round 2
Q1 Charles Pratt v. winner of Sebastien Boissonneault & Michael Ackerman
Q2 Gil De Los Rios v. winner of Kyle Purdy & Taylor Knoth
Q3 Tim Landeryou v. winner of Alex Purcell & Craig Allen
Q4 Michael Burgess v. winner of Bill Napier & Josh Tucker
Q5 Alejandro Landa v. winner of Tanner Mattson & Neale Jentsch
Q6 Rafael Filippini v. winner of Doug Jones & David Rocchi Jr.
Q7 Lee Connell v. winner of Jamie Slamko & Eric Hagelin
Q8 Anthony Herrera v. winner of Rich Carver & Sean Barclay
Round 3
Chris Crowther v. Q1
Andy Hawthorne v. Q2
Juan Herrera v. Q3
Alejandro Herrera v. Q4
Hiroshi Shimizu v. Q5
Travis Woodbury v. Q6
Kris Odegard v. Q7
Andres Herrera v. Q8
Follow the bouncing ball....
The Q Dub Count
Earlier this season, The Racquetball Blog introduced a new statistic for the International Racquetball Tour (IRT): qualifier wins, or QWs. Q Dubs to you cool kids. Q Dubs are the number of wins in the main draw (round of 16 and on) of an IRT event by a player who's come through the qualifying rounds.
Kane Waselenchuk leads the QW count this season with 12. He won the Denver, Kansas, Kentucky events from a qualifying position. Jose Rojas and Jason Thoerner are tied for second in QWs with two each. Thoerner's came in Denver and Kansas with two wins over Chris Crowther, while Rojas got both of his in California where he defeated Jason Mannino and Shane Vanderson.
Javier Moreno is the only other player to get a QW this season, when he defeated Vanderson in Juarez.
Two events had no QWs: Edmonton and New York City. It's three if you ignore Waselenchuk who was the only qualifying winner in Kentucky. (note: the US Open is not included in QW counts).
Last season, the mean number of QWs per IRT event was 0.92 (12 QWs in 13 events). This season the mean is 2.13 overall (17 in 8 events), and 0.63 excluding Waselenchuk's 12 QWs.
Q Dubs are one measure of competitiveness. If there are more Q Dubs, then the IRT is more competitive, as lower ranked players (qualifiers) are winning more matches. That would indicate more parity in the game.
The stats indicate there's been significantly more competitiveness if you count Waselenchuk as a qualifier, but his upsets of higher seeded players don't have the same significance in this context as those of other players. So, we think the lower mean of QWs obtained when Waselenchuk's wins are excluded from the mean is indicative of slightly less competitiveness this season.
That is, it's been more difficult to beat the big boys this season than last.
Follow the bouncing ball....
Kane Waselenchuk leads the QW count this season with 12. He won the Denver, Kansas, Kentucky events from a qualifying position. Jose Rojas and Jason Thoerner are tied for second in QWs with two each. Thoerner's came in Denver and Kansas with two wins over Chris Crowther, while Rojas got both of his in California where he defeated Jason Mannino and Shane Vanderson.
Javier Moreno is the only other player to get a QW this season, when he defeated Vanderson in Juarez.
Two events had no QWs: Edmonton and New York City. It's three if you ignore Waselenchuk who was the only qualifying winner in Kentucky. (note: the US Open is not included in QW counts).
Last season, the mean number of QWs per IRT event was 0.92 (12 QWs in 13 events). This season the mean is 2.13 overall (17 in 8 events), and 0.63 excluding Waselenchuk's 12 QWs.
Q Dubs are one measure of competitiveness. If there are more Q Dubs, then the IRT is more competitive, as lower ranked players (qualifiers) are winning more matches. That would indicate more parity in the game.
The stats indicate there's been significantly more competitiveness if you count Waselenchuk as a qualifier, but his upsets of higher seeded players don't have the same significance in this context as those of other players. So, we think the lower mean of QWs obtained when Waselenchuk's wins are excluded from the mean is indicative of slightly less competitiveness this season.
That is, it's been more difficult to beat the big boys this season than last.
Follow the bouncing ball....
Monday, February 16, 2009
USAR 2009 Doubles Championships
Repeat was the order of the day as the USA Racquetball National Doubles Championships concluded on Sunday in Tempe, Arizona, because the 2008 men's and women's champions won again.
Rocky Carson and Jack Huczek successfully defended their doubles title but it was a more difficult task this year, as the final match went to a tie-breaker with Carson and Huczek defeating Ben Croft and Mitch Williams by the slimmest of margins, 15-9, 7-15, 11-10. Williams was also on the runner up side last year, when Jason Thoerner was his partner.
The 2009 Championship is Carson and Huczek's fifth US doubles title together. Croft and Williams were the 2007 champions.
The story on the women's side was similar, with Jackie Paraiso and Aimee Ruiz defeating Rhonda Rajsich and Janel Tisinger, 15-11, 15-13, for their third consecutive title. It's Ruiz's fourth in a row. She won the 2006 title with Laura Fenton. But more remarkable is that this was Paraiso's 12th US women's doubles championship.
In mixed doubles, Kane Waselenchuk and Kim Russell-Waselenchuk defeated top seeds Andy Hawthorne and Diane Moore, 15-8, 15-6. Hawthorne and Moore were also runners up last year, when Ruiz and Mike Dennison took the title.
2009 USAR National Doubles Championships
Men's Final
Rocky Carson & Jack Huczek d. Ben Croft & Mitch Williams, 15-9, 7-15, 11-10
Semi-finals
Rocky Carson & Jack Huczek d. Chris Crowther & Tim Doyle, 8-15, 15-6, 11-5
Ben Croft & Mitch Williams d. Jason Thoerner & Shane Vanderson, 15-12, 3-15, 11-9
Women's Final
Jackie Paraiso & Aimee Ruiz d. Rhonda Rajsich & Janel Tisinger, 15-11, 15-13
Semi finals
Jackie Paraiso & Aimee Ruiz d. Krystal Csuk & Cheryl Gudinas Holmes, 15-8, 15-7
Rhonda Rajsich & Janel Tisinger d. Kristen Bellows & Kim Russell-Waselenchuk, 15-4, 15-12
Mixed Final
Kane Waselenchuk & Kim Russell-Waselenchuk d. Andy Hawthorne and Diane Moore, 15-8, 15-6
Semi-finals
Andy Hawthorne & Diane Moore d. Greg Solis & Janel Tisinger, 14-15, 15-14, 11-5
Kane Waselenchuk & Kim Russell-Waselenchuk d. Aimee Ruiz & Jason Thoerner, 12-15, 15-14, 11-10
Follow the bouncing ball....
Rocky Carson and Jack Huczek successfully defended their doubles title but it was a more difficult task this year, as the final match went to a tie-breaker with Carson and Huczek defeating Ben Croft and Mitch Williams by the slimmest of margins, 15-9, 7-15, 11-10. Williams was also on the runner up side last year, when Jason Thoerner was his partner.
The 2009 Championship is Carson and Huczek's fifth US doubles title together. Croft and Williams were the 2007 champions.
The story on the women's side was similar, with Jackie Paraiso and Aimee Ruiz defeating Rhonda Rajsich and Janel Tisinger, 15-11, 15-13, for their third consecutive title. It's Ruiz's fourth in a row. She won the 2006 title with Laura Fenton. But more remarkable is that this was Paraiso's 12th US women's doubles championship.
In mixed doubles, Kane Waselenchuk and Kim Russell-Waselenchuk defeated top seeds Andy Hawthorne and Diane Moore, 15-8, 15-6. Hawthorne and Moore were also runners up last year, when Ruiz and Mike Dennison took the title.
2009 USAR National Doubles Championships
Men's Final
Rocky Carson & Jack Huczek d. Ben Croft & Mitch Williams, 15-9, 7-15, 11-10
Semi-finals
Rocky Carson & Jack Huczek d. Chris Crowther & Tim Doyle, 8-15, 15-6, 11-5
Ben Croft & Mitch Williams d. Jason Thoerner & Shane Vanderson, 15-12, 3-15, 11-9
Women's Final
Jackie Paraiso & Aimee Ruiz d. Rhonda Rajsich & Janel Tisinger, 15-11, 15-13
Semi finals
Jackie Paraiso & Aimee Ruiz d. Krystal Csuk & Cheryl Gudinas Holmes, 15-8, 15-7
Rhonda Rajsich & Janel Tisinger d. Kristen Bellows & Kim Russell-Waselenchuk, 15-4, 15-12
Mixed Final
Kane Waselenchuk & Kim Russell-Waselenchuk d. Andy Hawthorne and Diane Moore, 15-8, 15-6
Semi-finals
Andy Hawthorne & Diane Moore d. Greg Solis & Janel Tisinger, 14-15, 15-14, 11-5
Kane Waselenchuk & Kim Russell-Waselenchuk d. Aimee Ruiz & Jason Thoerner, 12-15, 15-14, 11-10
Follow the bouncing ball....
Sunday, February 15, 2009
Keystone Classic - Results
Jen Saunders and Tim Landeryou were double winners at the 35th annual Keystone Classic in Winnipeg, Manitoba. They won their respective pro singles divisions and teamed up to win the men's open doubles division as well. The 2009 Keystone was an International Racquetball Tour (IRT) Tier 4 event and a Women's Professional Racquetball Organization (WPRO) satellite event.
Saunders, playing in her hometown, had more difficulty winning, as she lost her first game in the finals to fellow Canadian Brandi Jacobson Prentice. Jacobson Prentice's excellent shot making got her the first game, but then veteran Saunders adjusted and took the match to her opponent, winning 3-11, 11-2, 11-6, 11-2.
"I was happy with how I was able to adjust, especially serving," said Saunders.
Saunders and Jacobson Prentice may have just been happy to finish the tournament intact, as the other two players in the small draw suffered injuries. Samantha Cullen twisted her ankle during training the day before the tournament, and Stephanie Oteyza tore her medial collateral ligament during her match with Jacobson Prentice.
Landeryou fell behind 5-1 in the first game of his match against Lee Connell, the #1 seed, who he also trains with. But then Landeryou won the next 21 points to take games one and two and never looked back, winning 11-5, 11-0, 11-3. Connell, who'd been feeling under the weather during the weekend, was never on his game.
It was third seed Landeryou's second upset win in as many days, as he upset the hometown favorite and second seed Michael Burgess, 13-11, 3-11, 11-7, 11-8, in the semi-finals on Saturday.
Saunders and Landeryou teamed up in men's doubles and defeated Burgess and Kurtis Cullen in that final, 15-8, 15-1.
Follow the bouncing ball....
Saunders, playing in her hometown, had more difficulty winning, as she lost her first game in the finals to fellow Canadian Brandi Jacobson Prentice. Jacobson Prentice's excellent shot making got her the first game, but then veteran Saunders adjusted and took the match to her opponent, winning 3-11, 11-2, 11-6, 11-2.
"I was happy with how I was able to adjust, especially serving," said Saunders.
Saunders and Jacobson Prentice may have just been happy to finish the tournament intact, as the other two players in the small draw suffered injuries. Samantha Cullen twisted her ankle during training the day before the tournament, and Stephanie Oteyza tore her medial collateral ligament during her match with Jacobson Prentice.
Landeryou fell behind 5-1 in the first game of his match against Lee Connell, the #1 seed, who he also trains with. But then Landeryou won the next 21 points to take games one and two and never looked back, winning 11-5, 11-0, 11-3. Connell, who'd been feeling under the weather during the weekend, was never on his game.
It was third seed Landeryou's second upset win in as many days, as he upset the hometown favorite and second seed Michael Burgess, 13-11, 3-11, 11-7, 11-8, in the semi-finals on Saturday.
Saunders and Landeryou teamed up in men's doubles and defeated Burgess and Kurtis Cullen in that final, 15-8, 15-1.
Follow the bouncing ball....
Friday, February 13, 2009
Racquetball's Oldest Tournament
The 35th annual Keystone Classic is on in Winnipeg, Manitoba, and it's the longest running racquetball tournament in the world. Yes, the US and Canadian Championships go back further, but those events haven't been in the same city throughout their histories.
The history of the Keystone mirrors the history of racquetball. It was a huge tournament in the 70s and 80s and into the 90s. "There were 385 players in the '79 Keystone," says Ron Brown, Canadian National Team coach and longtime Keystone participant. "I played in men's C, and it was limited to a draw of 64."
Brown recalls that Wayne Bowes beat Wes Hadikin in the men's open final that year, winning cash and a television.
Sherman Greenfeld, 10 time Canadian Champion and a Winnipegger, says he marked his racquetball progress at the Keystone. "I won the C division one year and Bs the next, and it was where I beat Lindsay Myers for the first time," said Greenfeld.
The Keystone was one of the premier Canadian racquetball events - along with the National Championship and the Klondike tournament in Edmonton - during the sport's heyday, according to Brown and Greenfeld. The Klondike began before the Keystone, and was the longest running racquetball tournament until it ended in 2006.
The Keystone drew top players from across Canada, as well as participants from the US. Brown recalls a group of guys from North Dakota, who regularly came to Keystone in the past. One year they showed up in a used limousine that they'd bought for the sole purpose of traveling to tournaments. Why have a party bus when you can have a party limo?
Decline
This year's Keystone has 90 players, a good turnout, but far less than '79's 385. The Keystone regularly had 250-300 players during the 80s. In 1979, three clubs were used to hold the tournament, but now only one of those clubs still exists, and it only has one court.
Supreme Racquet Club, opened in the 80s, hosted the Keystone for several years. Supreme had 13 courts originally, yet that still wasn't enough to host all the matches for the 80s Keystone tournaments. Supreme closed in 1999, and this year's event is being played at the University of Manitoba with its 5 courts.
Rebirth?
In 2009, Racquetball Manitoba has tried to reinvigorate Keystone because of its 35th anniversary, and has made it an International Racquetball Tour (IRT) and Women's Professional Racquetball Organization (WPRO) event. Those pro designations were made after the season was well underway, so the pro draws are small, but hopefully, they can be built on in future years and help recapture some of the Keystone's past glory.
Follow the bouncing ball....
The history of the Keystone mirrors the history of racquetball. It was a huge tournament in the 70s and 80s and into the 90s. "There were 385 players in the '79 Keystone," says Ron Brown, Canadian National Team coach and longtime Keystone participant. "I played in men's C, and it was limited to a draw of 64."
Brown recalls that Wayne Bowes beat Wes Hadikin in the men's open final that year, winning cash and a television.
Sherman Greenfeld, 10 time Canadian Champion and a Winnipegger, says he marked his racquetball progress at the Keystone. "I won the C division one year and Bs the next, and it was where I beat Lindsay Myers for the first time," said Greenfeld.
The Keystone was one of the premier Canadian racquetball events - along with the National Championship and the Klondike tournament in Edmonton - during the sport's heyday, according to Brown and Greenfeld. The Klondike began before the Keystone, and was the longest running racquetball tournament until it ended in 2006.
The Keystone drew top players from across Canada, as well as participants from the US. Brown recalls a group of guys from North Dakota, who regularly came to Keystone in the past. One year they showed up in a used limousine that they'd bought for the sole purpose of traveling to tournaments. Why have a party bus when you can have a party limo?
Decline
This year's Keystone has 90 players, a good turnout, but far less than '79's 385. The Keystone regularly had 250-300 players during the 80s. In 1979, three clubs were used to hold the tournament, but now only one of those clubs still exists, and it only has one court.
Supreme Racquet Club, opened in the 80s, hosted the Keystone for several years. Supreme had 13 courts originally, yet that still wasn't enough to host all the matches for the 80s Keystone tournaments. Supreme closed in 1999, and this year's event is being played at the University of Manitoba with its 5 courts.
Rebirth?
In 2009, Racquetball Manitoba has tried to reinvigorate Keystone because of its 35th anniversary, and has made it an International Racquetball Tour (IRT) and Women's Professional Racquetball Organization (WPRO) event. Those pro designations were made after the season was well underway, so the pro draws are small, but hopefully, they can be built on in future years and help recapture some of the Keystone's past glory.
Follow the bouncing ball....
Wednesday, February 11, 2009
Can Waselenchuk be #1 in May?
New International Racquetball Tour (IRT) rankings are out, and Kane Waselenchuk has risen to 5th. He has stated that his goal for the season is to finish #1, but is it possible? Rankings are based on tournament performances. Currently, Waselenchuk has 2801 points, and Rocky Carson - the current #1 - has 4609 for a difference of 1808 points.
The IRT season is more than half over. There have been eight events to date (2 Grand Slams & 6 Tier 1 events) and there are six events still to come (1 Grand Slam & 5 Tier 1 events).
Winning a Tier 1 event earns about 390 ranking points with a Grand Slam event win being worth about 625. Thus, if Waselenchuk, or anyone else, won out the rest of the season he'd earn about 2,575 point, so there are enough points on the table for Waselenchuk to overtake Carson for top spot.
Another factor to consider is that players can drop their two worst performances. However, Waselenchuk has missed two events, so he's used up those his two drops. Hence, his semi-final finish at the California Open will count in his total.
Nonetheless, with about 2600 points on the table and a difference of about 1800, Waselenchuk does have some wiggle room. But he was beaten in January, so that should be a psychological boost to all the other players. With the remaining schedule back weighted - the last three tournaments (half of those remaining) are in April and early May - the other players, particularly Carson and Jack Huczek, have some time to adjust their games to try and deny Waselenchuk his goal with a late season push.
But, yes Virginia, Waselenchuk can be #1 in May.
Current IRT Rankings - February 9, 2009
Rank Pro Points
1 - Rocky CARSON - 4609
2 - Jack HUCZEK - 4324
3 - Alvaro BELTRAN - 3461
4 - Jason MANNINO - 3210
5 - Kane WASELENCHUK - 2801
6 - Shane VANDERSON - 2565
7 - Ben CROFT - 2471
8 - Mitch WILLIAMS - 2355
9 - Chris CROWTHER - 2100
10 - Jason THOERNER - 1928
11 - Andy HAWTHORNE - 1346
11 - Juan HERRERA - 1346
13 - Alejandro HERRERA - 1232
14 - Hiroshi SHIMIZU - 1013
15 - Travis WOODBURY - 923
16 - Kris ODEGARD - 855
17 - Javier MORENO - 851
18 - Andres HERRERA - 698
19 - Anthony HERRERA - 630
20 - Tony CARSON - 597
Follow the bouncing ball....
The IRT season is more than half over. There have been eight events to date (2 Grand Slams & 6 Tier 1 events) and there are six events still to come (1 Grand Slam & 5 Tier 1 events).
Winning a Tier 1 event earns about 390 ranking points with a Grand Slam event win being worth about 625. Thus, if Waselenchuk, or anyone else, won out the rest of the season he'd earn about 2,575 point, so there are enough points on the table for Waselenchuk to overtake Carson for top spot.
Another factor to consider is that players can drop their two worst performances. However, Waselenchuk has missed two events, so he's used up those his two drops. Hence, his semi-final finish at the California Open will count in his total.
Nonetheless, with about 2600 points on the table and a difference of about 1800, Waselenchuk does have some wiggle room. But he was beaten in January, so that should be a psychological boost to all the other players. With the remaining schedule back weighted - the last three tournaments (half of those remaining) are in April and early May - the other players, particularly Carson and Jack Huczek, have some time to adjust their games to try and deny Waselenchuk his goal with a late season push.
But, yes Virginia, Waselenchuk can be #1 in May.
Current IRT Rankings - February 9, 2009
Rank Pro Points
1 - Rocky CARSON - 4609
2 - Jack HUCZEK - 4324
3 - Alvaro BELTRAN - 3461
4 - Jason MANNINO - 3210
5 - Kane WASELENCHUK - 2801
6 - Shane VANDERSON - 2565
7 - Ben CROFT - 2471
8 - Mitch WILLIAMS - 2355
9 - Chris CROWTHER - 2100
10 - Jason THOERNER - 1928
11 - Andy HAWTHORNE - 1346
11 - Juan HERRERA - 1346
13 - Alejandro HERRERA - 1232
14 - Hiroshi SHIMIZU - 1013
15 - Travis WOODBURY - 923
16 - Kris ODEGARD - 855
17 - Javier MORENO - 851
18 - Andres HERRERA - 698
19 - Anthony HERRERA - 630
20 - Tony CARSON - 597
Follow the bouncing ball....
Monday, February 9, 2009
Just the facts, please
We here at The Racquetball Blog endeavor to bring you racquetball stories based on facts, and cite our sources as appropriate. Not to say that we don't give you our opinion about things from time to time and in the reporting of said facts.
But what we're saying is that we don't make stuff up.
However, dear reader, not all blogs are so scrupulous. Not a big whoop, you might think. And if blogs were just read by Molly killing time between secretarial tasks, then we'd agree. But in this day and age, dear reader, Big Media is paying attention to the blogs.
Again Big Media attention isn't a problem. Indeed, we'd like Big Media to give some attention to The Racquetball Blog. However, sometimes Big Media isn't diligent in checking out the validity of what they are reading on the blogs.
A case in point is the story of Masal Bugduv, a rising young football (that's soccer to you, Yankee) star in Moldova. Reportedly, Bugduv is a 16 year old striker, who the Times of London - no less - suggested might transfer to Arsenal, one of the 'big 4' clubs in the English Premier League. He was also reported in other Big Media outlets.
That's all well and good except for the fact that Bugduv doesn't exist. Masal Bugduv isn't even a traditional Moldovan name.
To read more about this fascinating story, see Brian Phillips article at Slate.com.
Follow the bouncing ball....
But what we're saying is that we don't make stuff up.
However, dear reader, not all blogs are so scrupulous. Not a big whoop, you might think. And if blogs were just read by Molly killing time between secretarial tasks, then we'd agree. But in this day and age, dear reader, Big Media is paying attention to the blogs.
Again Big Media attention isn't a problem. Indeed, we'd like Big Media to give some attention to The Racquetball Blog. However, sometimes Big Media isn't diligent in checking out the validity of what they are reading on the blogs.
A case in point is the story of Masal Bugduv, a rising young football (that's soccer to you, Yankee) star in Moldova. Reportedly, Bugduv is a 16 year old striker, who the Times of London - no less - suggested might transfer to Arsenal, one of the 'big 4' clubs in the English Premier League. He was also reported in other Big Media outlets.
That's all well and good except for the fact that Bugduv doesn't exist. Masal Bugduv isn't even a traditional Moldovan name.
To read more about this fascinating story, see Brian Phillips article at Slate.com.
Follow the bouncing ball....
Sunday, February 8, 2009
Lewis Pro-Am - Results
Jack Huczek defeated Rocky Carson to win the Lewis Pro-Am, a Tier 2 event on the International Racquetball Tour (IRT), in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. But Huczek needed five games to do it, winning 12-10, 8-11, 11-4, 12-14, 11-9.
With the win, Huczek gained the edge over Carson in the meetings between the IRT's top two players this season, having won two of their three matches. In October, Huczek (IRT #2) defeated Carson (IRT #1) for the Canadian Classic title, while Carson won their battle in the Juarez Open final in November.
Huczek and Carson teamed up to take the doubles title in a tune up for next weekend's US Doubles Championship in Tempe, Arizona. They beat Alvaro Beltran and Andy Hawthorne in the final, 15-13, 15-8.
Mitch Williams had a good weekend in Sioux Falls, winning third in both singles (defeating Beltran in three straight games for third, 11-9, 11-1, 11-2) and doubles with partner Ruben Gonzalez. However, Shane Vanderson didn't fare so well, losing to Williams in the quarter finals of singles and then again to Williams and Gonzalez in the doubles third place match.
Vanderson played doubles with Jason Thoerner, and they'll be playing together in Tempe, while Williams will be playing with Ben Croft, who wasn't in Sioux Falls.
Follow the bouncing ball....
With the win, Huczek gained the edge over Carson in the meetings between the IRT's top two players this season, having won two of their three matches. In October, Huczek (IRT #2) defeated Carson (IRT #1) for the Canadian Classic title, while Carson won their battle in the Juarez Open final in November.
Huczek and Carson teamed up to take the doubles title in a tune up for next weekend's US Doubles Championship in Tempe, Arizona. They beat Alvaro Beltran and Andy Hawthorne in the final, 15-13, 15-8.
Mitch Williams had a good weekend in Sioux Falls, winning third in both singles (defeating Beltran in three straight games for third, 11-9, 11-1, 11-2) and doubles with partner Ruben Gonzalez. However, Shane Vanderson didn't fare so well, losing to Williams in the quarter finals of singles and then again to Williams and Gonzalez in the doubles third place match.
Vanderson played doubles with Jason Thoerner, and they'll be playing together in Tempe, while Williams will be playing with Ben Croft, who wasn't in Sioux Falls.
Follow the bouncing ball....
Friday, February 6, 2009
Lewis Pro-Am
Two of the longest running racquetball tournaments happen the next two weekends. Next weekend, it'll be the 35th annual Keystone Classic in Winnipeg, Manitoba, a Tier 4 International Racquetball Tour (IRT) event and a satellite Women's Professional Racquetball Organization (WPRO) event.
But this week it's the Lewis Pro-Am in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. In its 31st year, this tournament is blessed with the generous sponsorship of Lewis Drug President and CEO, Mark Griffin. It's one of only three Tier 2 IRT events this season.
As such, six of the top 10 IRT players will be in Sioux Falls, including the top three players: Rocky Carson, Jack Huczek and Alvaro Beltran. Joining them are Shane Vanderson, Mitch Williams and Jason Thoerner, as well as Andy Hawthorne, Alejandro Herrera and the legend Ruben Gonzalez.
However, at 100 players this year, Lewis Drug Pro-Am participation is down considerably from last year, when there were 161 players. That large decrease may reflect an influence of USA Racquetball's shift of the timing of the US Doubles Championship, which will occur next weekend rather than in the fall as in seasons past. Alternatively, the tough economic times could be the explanation for the lower turnout this year.
Follow the bouncing ball....
But this week it's the Lewis Pro-Am in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. In its 31st year, this tournament is blessed with the generous sponsorship of Lewis Drug President and CEO, Mark Griffin. It's one of only three Tier 2 IRT events this season.
As such, six of the top 10 IRT players will be in Sioux Falls, including the top three players: Rocky Carson, Jack Huczek and Alvaro Beltran. Joining them are Shane Vanderson, Mitch Williams and Jason Thoerner, as well as Andy Hawthorne, Alejandro Herrera and the legend Ruben Gonzalez.
However, at 100 players this year, Lewis Drug Pro-Am participation is down considerably from last year, when there were 161 players. That large decrease may reflect an influence of USA Racquetball's shift of the timing of the US Doubles Championship, which will occur next weekend rather than in the fall as in seasons past. Alternatively, the tough economic times could be the explanation for the lower turnout this year.
Follow the bouncing ball....
National Team News
Team Canada Announcement
Racquetball Canada has announced its team for the 2009 Pan American Championships in Cali, Colombia, April 1-10. The 8 player team is a mix of veterans and younger players, including a rookie.
Michael Burgess is on the team for the first time based on his 2nd place finish at the selection event last weekend, and fourth place finish at last year's Canadian Championships. He'll play singles with Kris Odegard.
Sixteen year old Frédérique T. Lambert will make her second appearance for Canada in Colombia. She was also on the Pan Am Championship team last year, when she played doubles with veteran Josée Grand'Maître, but this year Lambert will play singles along with Jennifer Saunders.
The doubles players are two double G pairs, as Grand'Maître will play women's doubles with Véronique Guillemette, and Vincent Gagnon and Mike Green are the men's doubles team.
On the coaching side, for the first time since the 2004 World Championships Loren Prentice will be one of the coaches for Canada. Ron Brown will join Prentice in coaching the team in Columbia.
Team Canada 2009 Pan American Championships
Men
Michael Burgess, Michael Green, Vincent Gagnon, Kris Odegard
Women
Josée Grand'Maître, Véronique Guillemette, Frédérique T. Lambert, Jennifer Saunders
Coaches
Ron Brown, Loren Prentice
Dave Ellis's Resignation
Team Canada will be facing a new USA coach in Columbia, as Dave Ellis has resigned as the head coach of Team USA. Ellis had been head coach since 2004. The USA had considerable success during his reign, most recently sweeping the 2008 IRF World Championships in Ireland, winning all four individual competition medals (men's & women's singles & doubles) as well as the three team competitions (men's, women's & overall). So, Ellis is going out on top.
Ellis cited conflict of interest as the reason for his resignation, as he coaches some players - most notably Veronica Sotomayor - who compete on the pro tours against US team athletes. There have been rumours of unhappiness from some of US team athletes about this situation. Thus in resigning, Ellis is quashing such unhappiness, and doing the best thing for the team.
There's no word on Ellis's replacement, but with the Pan American Championships less than two months off, USA Racquetball will have to act quickly to name a replacement.
Follow the bouncing ball....
Racquetball Canada has announced its team for the 2009 Pan American Championships in Cali, Colombia, April 1-10. The 8 player team is a mix of veterans and younger players, including a rookie.
Michael Burgess is on the team for the first time based on his 2nd place finish at the selection event last weekend, and fourth place finish at last year's Canadian Championships. He'll play singles with Kris Odegard.
Sixteen year old Frédérique T. Lambert will make her second appearance for Canada in Colombia. She was also on the Pan Am Championship team last year, when she played doubles with veteran Josée Grand'Maître, but this year Lambert will play singles along with Jennifer Saunders.
The doubles players are two double G pairs, as Grand'Maître will play women's doubles with Véronique Guillemette, and Vincent Gagnon and Mike Green are the men's doubles team.
On the coaching side, for the first time since the 2004 World Championships Loren Prentice will be one of the coaches for Canada. Ron Brown will join Prentice in coaching the team in Columbia.
Team Canada 2009 Pan American Championships
Men
Michael Burgess, Michael Green, Vincent Gagnon, Kris Odegard
Women
Josée Grand'Maître, Véronique Guillemette, Frédérique T. Lambert, Jennifer Saunders
Coaches
Ron Brown, Loren Prentice
Dave Ellis's Resignation
Team Canada will be facing a new USA coach in Columbia, as Dave Ellis has resigned as the head coach of Team USA. Ellis had been head coach since 2004. The USA had considerable success during his reign, most recently sweeping the 2008 IRF World Championships in Ireland, winning all four individual competition medals (men's & women's singles & doubles) as well as the three team competitions (men's, women's & overall). So, Ellis is going out on top.
Ellis cited conflict of interest as the reason for his resignation, as he coaches some players - most notably Veronica Sotomayor - who compete on the pro tours against US team athletes. There have been rumours of unhappiness from some of US team athletes about this situation. Thus in resigning, Ellis is quashing such unhappiness, and doing the best thing for the team.
There's no word on Ellis's replacement, but with the Pan American Championships less than two months off, USA Racquetball will have to act quickly to name a replacement.
Follow the bouncing ball....
Monday, February 2, 2009
Weekend wrap-up of Hope and Canadian Singles
Racquetball Canada Singles Selection Event
Michael Burgess may have earned his first Canadian national team appearance by finishing 2nd at Racquetball Canada's National Team Singles Selection event in Brossard, Quebec. Burgess defeated top seed Vincent Gagnon and fourth seed Ryan Smith, who chose to default their match rather than face the player who broke his nose the last time they met.
Burgess lost to second seed Kris Odegard, who won the tournament by defeating all three final round players with Smith finishing third and Gagnon fourth.
Thus, The Racquetball Blog speculates that the men's team for the Pan American Championships in April will be Burgess, Odegard, Gagnon and Mike Green, who was not in Brossard due to injury. An official announcement from Racquetball Canada should be made soon.
Top seed Jennifer Saunders won the women's side with a gusty victory over Josée Grand'Maître, 15-12, 10-15, 11-6. In the second game, it looked like it would go the other way, as Grand'Maître served the lights out with several drive serve aces or winners.
Véronique Guillemette finished second despite losing to Frédérique T. Lambert on Sunday, 15-10, 14-16, 11-4. Lambert was third and Grand'Maître fourth.
Those four players - Saunders, Guillemette, Lambert and Grand'Maître - should be Canada's Pan American Championship women's team.
Racquetball Canada's National Team Singles Selection Event
Final standings - Men
1. Kris Odegard
2. Michael Burgess
3. Ryan Smith
4. Vincent Gagnon
5. Eric Desrochers
6. Lee Connell
7. Francis Guillemette
8. Jamie Landeryou
9. Tim Landeryou
10. François Viens
11. Sean Barclay
12. Alain Lavigne
Final standings - Women
1. Jennifer Saunders
2. Véronique Guillemette
3. Frédérique T. Lambert
4. Josée Grand'Maître
5. Brandi Jacobson Prentice
6. Geneviève Brodeur
7. Denise Haynes
8. Alison Schlichemeyer
9. Christine Richardson
10. Brigitte Richard
Wilson Tour of Hope
Kerri Wachtel, the 4th ranked player on the Women's Professional Racquetball Organization (WPRO), upset 2nd ranked Cheryl Gudinas Holmes in the final of the Wilson Tour of Hope tournament in Cincinnati, winning the WPRO satellite event 11-6, 11-8, 3-11, 11-6. It's Wachtel's first victory over a higher ranked opponent this season and her second match against Gudinas Holmes, who defeated Wachtel in the first event of the season, the Outback Blast It! tournament in Fayetteville, North Carolina.
There was no upset on the men's side, as top seed Andy Hawthorne beat second seed Juan Herrera, 11-7, 11-5, 5-11, 11-8, in the final of the Tier 4 International Racquetball Tour (IRT) event. Hawthorne and Herrera teamed up to win doubles by defeating Allan Crockett and Jonathon Doyle in the final, 15-6, 12-15, 11-6.
In women's doubles, Wachtel again got the better of Gudinas Holmes, as she and her partner Elaine Albrecht defeated Gudinas Holmes and Krystal Csuk, 15-11, 11-15, 11-0. Gudinas Holmes and Csuk are playing the USA Racquetball National Doubles Championship together, so this loss is not a positive sign going into that event.
Follow the bouncing ball....
Michael Burgess may have earned his first Canadian national team appearance by finishing 2nd at Racquetball Canada's National Team Singles Selection event in Brossard, Quebec. Burgess defeated top seed Vincent Gagnon and fourth seed Ryan Smith, who chose to default their match rather than face the player who broke his nose the last time they met.
Burgess lost to second seed Kris Odegard, who won the tournament by defeating all three final round players with Smith finishing third and Gagnon fourth.
Thus, The Racquetball Blog speculates that the men's team for the Pan American Championships in April will be Burgess, Odegard, Gagnon and Mike Green, who was not in Brossard due to injury. An official announcement from Racquetball Canada should be made soon.
Top seed Jennifer Saunders won the women's side with a gusty victory over Josée Grand'Maître, 15-12, 10-15, 11-6. In the second game, it looked like it would go the other way, as Grand'Maître served the lights out with several drive serve aces or winners.
Véronique Guillemette finished second despite losing to Frédérique T. Lambert on Sunday, 15-10, 14-16, 11-4. Lambert was third and Grand'Maître fourth.
Those four players - Saunders, Guillemette, Lambert and Grand'Maître - should be Canada's Pan American Championship women's team.
Racquetball Canada's National Team Singles Selection Event
Final standings - Men
1. Kris Odegard
2. Michael Burgess
3. Ryan Smith
4. Vincent Gagnon
5. Eric Desrochers
6. Lee Connell
7. Francis Guillemette
8. Jamie Landeryou
9. Tim Landeryou
10. François Viens
11. Sean Barclay
12. Alain Lavigne
Final standings - Women
1. Jennifer Saunders
2. Véronique Guillemette
3. Frédérique T. Lambert
4. Josée Grand'Maître
5. Brandi Jacobson Prentice
6. Geneviève Brodeur
7. Denise Haynes
8. Alison Schlichemeyer
9. Christine Richardson
10. Brigitte Richard
Wilson Tour of Hope
Kerri Wachtel, the 4th ranked player on the Women's Professional Racquetball Organization (WPRO), upset 2nd ranked Cheryl Gudinas Holmes in the final of the Wilson Tour of Hope tournament in Cincinnati, winning the WPRO satellite event 11-6, 11-8, 3-11, 11-6. It's Wachtel's first victory over a higher ranked opponent this season and her second match against Gudinas Holmes, who defeated Wachtel in the first event of the season, the Outback Blast It! tournament in Fayetteville, North Carolina.
There was no upset on the men's side, as top seed Andy Hawthorne beat second seed Juan Herrera, 11-7, 11-5, 5-11, 11-8, in the final of the Tier 4 International Racquetball Tour (IRT) event. Hawthorne and Herrera teamed up to win doubles by defeating Allan Crockett and Jonathon Doyle in the final, 15-6, 12-15, 11-6.
In women's doubles, Wachtel again got the better of Gudinas Holmes, as she and her partner Elaine Albrecht defeated Gudinas Holmes and Krystal Csuk, 15-11, 11-15, 11-0. Gudinas Holmes and Csuk are playing the USA Racquetball National Doubles Championship together, so this loss is not a positive sign going into that event.
Follow the bouncing ball....
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