Lambert & Keller prevent Mexican sweep at Junior Worlds

Mexico won four of five finals that they had players in on Saturday at the 23rd International Racquetball Federation (IRF) World Junior Racquetball Championships in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. Mexico swept the U14 and U16 divisions, but were shut out in U18.

Canadian Frédérique Lambert won Girls U18 - the only division without a Mexican finalist - but she did it the hard way, as she played very poorly in game one of the final against Bolivian Maria Jose Vargas, losing it 15-4, before getting on track and winning it decisively in the end, 4-15, 15-7, 11-4. It's Lambert's second Junior Worlds title, as she won Girls U14 in 2007.

Lambert said she was "really nervous" to start the final, because earlier in the week Vargas beat Lambert in the preliminary pool part of the tournament. "My confidence wasn't good," said Lambert, so when she got off to a bad start Lambert just "wanted to get game one over with."

Between games, Lambert was able to go outside and collect herself. "I thought it's now or never," said Lambert, as it's her last year of junior eligibility, and "don't give up."

The difference was immediately evident in game two, as Lambert got off to a good start and made shots that she'd missed in game one. Lambert said "I stopped drive serving, because it wasn't working." She used lob serves instead to slow down the pace of the rallies and give herself a chance to get into position for the rally.

Lambert said Vargas is "a young, fast player," which meant the drive serve was playing to Vargas's strength.

The only Bolivian to win gold in singles was Carlos Keller, who won Boys U18 by defeating Mexican Daniel De La Rosa, 15-9, 15-5. Like Lambert, Keller won his second Junior World title in his last year of junior eligibility. Keller won U16 two years ago, when Junior Worlds were also in Santo Domingo.

Keller had a chance at double gold, which would have been a complete duplication of his 2009 performance, as he and Jorge Luis Michel were in the Boys U18 doubles final. However, Americans Josh Hungerford and Nick Montalbano had other ideas as they beat Keller and Michel, 15-9, 11-15, 11-4.

Hungerford and Montalbano almost won it two straight despite being down big in game two. They fought back to make it close before the Bolivians forced the tie-breaker. In the tie-breaker, the Bolivians served everything to Hungerford, who's left handed so was playing the left side, but he was equal to the task.

In U14, Mexicans Rodrigo Montoya and Diana Aguilar were double gold medalists. Montoya defeated Marcelo Vargas of Bolivia twice. He got the better of Vargas, 15-4, 15-4, in the singles final and won the doubles final with Erik Garcia against Vargas and Cristhian Mina, 15-8, 11-15, 11-8.

Aguilar beat Bolivian Natalia Mendez in the Girls U14 gold final, 15-11, 10-15, 11-5, and defeated Canadians Danielle Drury and Michelle Morissette, 15-4, 15-4, with partner Monserrat Perez to win doubles.

In U16, Mexicans Rodrigo Garay and Alexandra Herrera were double gold winners. Garay beat Andres Acuna of Costa Rica 15-10, 8-15, 11-2, in the singles final, and then took out the home country team of Junior Rodriguez & Francisco De Leon (Dominican Republic), 15-5, 15-6, in doubles with partner Eduardo Garay.

Acuna is the first Costa Rican player to reach the final of a World Cup event at Junior Worlds.

Herrera won the Girls U16 final against American Kelani Bailey, 15-11, 5-15, 11-3, and also came first in doubles with partner Ximena Gonzalez ahead of Bailey and Mercedes Arias in Girls U16 doubles, which was a round robin.

During the closing ceremonies, the IRF presented sportsmanship awards to Coby Iwaasa (Canada) and Natalia Mendez (Bolivia) who were selected from nominations by the coaches from the 17 countries participating in Santo Domingo.

23rd Junior World Racquetball Championships
Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic

Boy's 14 and Under

Singles final: Rodrigo Montoya (Mexico) d. Marcelo Vargas (Bolivia), 15-4, 15-4
Doubles final: Rodrigo Montoya & Erik Garcia (Mexico) d. Marcelo Vargas & Cristhian Mina (Bolivia), 15-8, 11-15, 11-8

Boy's 16 and Under

Singles final: Rodrigo Garay (Mexico) d. Andres Acuna (Costa Rica), 15-10, 8-15, 11-2
Doubles final: Rodrigo Garay & Eduardo Garay (Mexico) d. Junior Rodriguez & Francisco De Leon (Dominican Republic), 15-5, 15-6

Boy's 18 and Under

Singles final: Carlos Keller (Bolivia) d. Daniel De La Rosa (Mexico), 15-9, 15-5
Doubles final: Nick Montalbano & Josh Hungerford (USA) d. Carlos Keller & Jorge Luis Michel (Bolivia), 15-9, 11-15, 11-4

Girl's 14 and Under

Singles final: Diana Aguilar (Mexico) d. Natalia Mendez (Bolivia), 15-11, 10-15, 11-5
Doubles final: Diana Aguilar & Monserrat Perez (Mexico) d. Danielle Drury & Michelle Morissette (Canada), 15-4, 15-4

Girl's 16 and Under

Singles final: Alexandra Herrera (Mexico) d. Kelani Bailey (USA), 15-11, 5-15, 11-3
Doubles (round robin): 1st - Alexandra Herrera & Ximena Gonzalez (Mexico), 2nd Kelani Bailey & Mercedes Arias (USA)

Girl's 18 and Under

Singles final: Frédérique Lambert (Canada) d. Maria Jose Vargas (Bolivia), 4-15, 15-7, 11-4
Doubles final: Maria Jose Vargas & Riveros (Bolivia) d. Sofia Rascon & Robles (Mexico), 15-11, 15-5

Follow the bouncing ball....

5 Gold Medals Possible for Mexico at 2011 Junior Worlds

Mexico will have a chance for gold medals in five singles divisions on the last day of the 23rd International Racquetball Federation (IRF) World Junior Racquetball Championships in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. But unlike some recent years, there are no finals with two players from the same country, so while Mexico has five finalists they may not have any gold medals at the end of the day.

The only division without a Mexican finalist is Girls U18, where Canadian Frédérique Lambert will try to avenge her loss earlier in the week against Bolivian Maria Jose Vargas. Vargas is one of four Bolivians going for gold Saturday. Carlos Keller (Boys U18), Marcelo Vargas (Boys U14), and Natalia Mendez (Girls U14) are the other Bolivian finalists.

The other finalists are American Kelani Bailey in Girls U16, where she'll play Alexandra Herrera of Mexico, and Costa Rican Andres Acuna, who'll face Mexican Rodrigo Garay for the Boys U16 title.

The 23rd Junior World Racquetball Championship finals will be streamed live from Santo Domingo starting at 10 AM via the IRF website.

23rd Junior World Racquetball Championships
Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic

Boy's 14 and Under - Singles

Quarter finals
Rodrigo Montoya (Mexico) d. Cristhian Mina (Bolivia), 15-8, 15-0
Coby Iwaasa (Canada) d. Matthew Swaine (Canada), 15-4, 15-7
Marcelo Vargas (Bolivia) d. Andree Parrilla (Mexico), 15-11, 15-14
Hansel Martinez (Guatemala) d. Stevie Quinn (Ireland), 15-7, 15-14

Semi-finals
Rodrigo Montoya (Mexico) d. Coby Iwaasa (Canada), 15-5, 13-15, 11-7
Marcelo Vargas (Bolivia) d. Hansel Martinez (Guatemala), 15-7, 15-1

Final - Rodrigo Montoya (Mexico) vs. Marcelo Vargas (Bolivia)

Boy's 16 and Under - Singles

Quarter finals
Adam Manilla (USA) d. Junior Rodriguez (Dominican Republic), 15-9, 3-15, 11-8
Rodrigo Garay (Mexico) d. Ernesto Ruiz (Bolivia), 15-4, 15-11
Andres Acuna (Costa Rica) d. Luciano Garcia (Nicaragua), 15-8, 5-15, 11-5
Ramon Yanez (Mexico) d. Mario Mercado (Bolivia), 15-5, 15-14

Semi-finals
Rodrigo Garay (Mexico) d. Adam Manilla (USA), 15-12, 15-3
Andres Acuna (Costa Rica) d. Ramon Yanez (Mexico), 15-6, 12-15, 11-5

Final - Rodrigo Garay (Mexico) vs. Andres Acuna (Costa Rica)

Boy's 18 and Under - Singles

Quarter finals
Nick Montalbano (USA) d. Jorge Luis Michel (Bolivia), 15-5, 15-7
Daniel De La Rosa (Mexico) d. Samuel Murray (Canada), 15-10, 15-6
Carlos Keller (Bolivia) d. Jose Diaz (USA), 10-15, 15-11, 11-9
Jaime Martell (Mexico) d. Kurtis Cullen (Canada), 15-3, 15-6

Semi-finals
Daniel De La Rosa (Mexico) d. Nick Montalbano (USA), 15-14, 15-13
Carlos Keller (Bolivia) d. Jaime Martell (Mexico), 15-11, 15-6

Final - Daniel De La Rosa (Mexico) vs. Carlos Keller (Bolivia)

Girl's 14 and Under - Singles

Quarter finals
Natalia Mendez (Bolivia) d. Sofia Soley (Costa Rica), 15-3, 15-0
Michelle Morissette (Canada) d. Kaitlyn Simmons (USA), 15-7, 14-15, 11-8
Nathaly Mina (Bolivia) d. Lexi York (USA), 15-14, 4-15, 11-7
Diana Aguilar (Mexico) d. Melania Sauma (Costa Rica), 15-0, 15-4

Semi-finals
Natalia Mendez (Bolivia) d. Michelle Morissette (Canada), 15-8, 15-3
Diana Aguilar (Mexico) d. Nathaly Mina (Bolivia), 15-3, 15-6

Final - Natalia Mendez (Bolivia) vs. Diana Aguilar (Mexico)

Girl's 16 and Under - Singles

Quarter finals
Alexandra Herrera (Mexico) d. Masiel Rivera (Bolivia), 15-6, 15-14
Maria Renee Rodriguez (Guatemala) d. Regina Franco (Mexico), 15-7, 6-15, 11-6
Mariana Tobon (Venezuela) d. Samantha Simmons (USA), 15-8, 15-12
Kelani Bailey (USA) d. Sylvia Zamora (Nicaragua), 15-1, 15-7

Semi-finals
Alexandra Herrera (Mexico) d. Maria Renee Rodriguez (Guatemala), 15-1, 15-4
Kelani Baily (USA) d. Mariana Tobon (Venezuela), 15-4, 15-11

Final - Alexandra Herrera (Mexico) vs. Kelani Baily (USA)

Girl's 18 and Under - Singles

Quarter finals
Devon Pimentelli (USA) d. Pamela Sierra (Honduras), 15-8, 15-3
Frédérique Lambert (Canada) d. Adriana Riveros (Bolivia), 15-8, 15-8
Sofia Rascon (Mexico) d. Joselyn Loredo (Mexico), 15-5, 15-9
Maria Jose Vargas (Bolivia) d. Amanda Lindsay (USA), 15-5, 15-6

Semi-finals
Frédérique Lambert (Canada) d. Devon Pimentelli (USA), 15-3, 15-5
Maria Jose Vargas (Bolivia) d. Sofia Rascon (Mexico), 15-13, 15-11

Final: Frédérique Lambert (Canada) vs. Maria Jose Vargas (Bolivia)

Follow the bouncing ball....

World Junior Racquetball Championships - Day 3

Canadian Frédérique Lambert's march to a Junior Worlds title hit a snag Wednesday at the 23rd International Racquetball Federation (IRF) World Junior Racquetball Championships in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, as she lost her last game in Girls U18 pool play to Maria Jose Vargas of Bolivia, 15-9, 12-15, 11-9. In the elimination round Thursday, Lambert faces Cristina Ana Velez of Ecuador.

One of the matches of the day was between Josue Perdomo of Dominican Republic and Cesar Barragan of Mexico in Boys U12. It was on one of the end courts, which has a glass side wall (this one has glass on the right side) and some bleachers on that side.

The home crowd was pumped up after Perdomo won the second game to force a tie-breaker. It was close in game three but Barragan got to 10 first, which led the Mexican supporters to chant "UNO! UNO! UNO!" indicating there was one point left to go.

However, Barragan didn't get that point, as Perdomo got the serve back tied it at 10-10 - causing the Dominican fans to chants "UNO!" themselves and then Perdomo won it to the jubilation of the Dominican crowd. It was a great match with the boys - 12 year olds! - crushing the ball and throwing themselves all over the court to keep the rallies going. Good times.

Not so good times for American Jacob Matthews. The IRF rules are that you can leave the service box as soon as you've hit the ball, which sounds like a great idea to enable you to get into center court position after serving.

Matthews was taking full advantage of this in his match against Canadian Matthew Swaine. After dropping game one to Swaine, Matthews came back and won game two and then came back again in the tie-breaker after Swaine had got to 10 first.

During his comeback, Matthews a left handed player was hitting a high Z lob to the left side - so to the righthanded Swaine's backhand. Matthews did this again at 10-10, but as he was leaving the box looking back to see how Swaine was going to receive the ball, the ball hit Matthews. Side out.

Swaine got the serve back, and won the match with the ensuing three shot rally. It was an "oh my god!" moment that won't be soon forgotten by those who were there.

The 23rd Junior World Racquetball Championships continue through the week with the finals on Saturday. Note, there is live streaming from Santo Domingo for all 8 courts via the IRF website.

Follow the bouncing ball....

World Junior Racquetball Championships - Day 2

Day two of competition at the 23rd International Racquetball Federation (IRF) World Junior Racquetball Championships in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic saw some more interesting results on day two as the preliminary pool part of the competition continued.

In Girls U16, Maria Renee Rodriguez of Guatemala defeated Alexandra Herrera of Mexico, 15-12, 15-5, and that was Rodriguez's second upset in as many days, as she beat Mariana Tobon of Venezuela, 15-12, 15-12, on Monday. Rodriguez will likely win the pool, as her opponent on Wednesday - Kristy Rosario of Dominican Republic lost to both Herrera and Tobon.

The two singles matches between the USA U16 boys and the Costa Rican U16 boys went to tie-breakers with a player from each country winning once. Andres Acuna (Costa Rica) beat John Linsay, 10-15, 15-6, 11-6, while Adam Manilla beat Pablo Sauma 7-15, 15-10, 11-3.

Finally, in Girls doubles the Americans were 1-2, as Amanda Lindsay and Jessica Munoz defeated Canadians Valerie Fallu and Frédérique Lambert, 15-3, 15-9 in Girls U18, but in U16 Kelani Bailey and Mercedes Arias lost to Mexicans Ximena Gonzalez and Alexandra Herrera, 7-15, 15-5, 11-9, and Krystie Boyle and Lexi York lost to Costa Ricans Melania Sauma and Sofia Soley, 15-6, 15-13.

The bottom line is that the quality of play has risen considerably across countries, so easy matches for anyone - including players from the Big 3 nations of the USA, Mexico and Canada - are few and far between.

The 23rd Junior World Racquetball Championships continue through the week with the finals on Saturday. Note, there is live streaming from Santo Domingo for all 8 courts via the IRF website.

Follow the bouncing ball....

World Junior Racquetball Championships - Day 1

Some intriguing results from day one of competition at the 23rd International Racquetball Federation (IRF) World Junior Racquetball Championships in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, although most of the tops seeds won their matches.

Thus, Daniel De La Rosa of Mexico, Americans Nick Montalbano and Jose Diaz and Bolivian Carlos Vargas Keller all won their matches in Boys U18, as did Canadian Frédérique Lambert in Girls U18.

However, also in Girls U18 singles, American Amanda Lindsay lost to Honduran Pamela Sierra, 8-15, 15-7, 11-8. How big was that upset? Consider that Lindsay was seeded 3rd and Sierra 14th.

Similarly, 17th seed Stevie Quinn of Ireland beat 4th seed Jacob Matthews, 11-15, 15-14, 11-6.

In Girls U16 doubles, top seeds Masiel Rivera and Andrea Quioga of Bolivia were upset by Guatemalans Ana Gabriela Martinez and Maria Renee Rodriguez, 15-13, 15-8. Girls U16 is a 6 team round robin, so Boliva's loss gives the USA and Mexico - the 2nd & 3rd seeds - an upper hand, as they both won their matches.

Note, there is live streaming from Santo Domingo for all 8 courts via the IRF website.

Follow the bouncing ball....

2011 IRF Junior World Championships

The 23rd International Racquetball Federation (IRF) World Junior Racquetball Championships begin Sunday in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic.

The Boys U18 division should be hotly contested this year. The favorite could be Daniel De La Rosa of Mexico, who won the Pan American Championships in April, defeating Chris Crowther in the final. De La Rosa's competition will come from Americans Nick Montalbano and Jose Diaz as well as Bolivian Carlos Vargas Keller.

On the girls side, Canadian Frédérique Lambert may be the player to beat in Girls U18, as she was the U18 silver medalist last year and the gold medalist - American Aubrey O'brien - won't be in Santo Domingo.

As a reminder, we've got the winners from last year's Junior Worlds below.

We understand that the IRF will have a link on its website to the tournament results page. They do have a link for results on their page now, but it's empty as no results have happened. Would be nice to see the team rosters.

Also, it seems the IRF is going to try to do live streaming from Santo Domingo for all 8 courts, which would be great though it does seem ambitious.

2010 IRF Junior World Racquetball Championships
Los Angeles, California

Boy's 14 and Under
Singles
1st Javier Mar (Mexico)
2nd Roman Ramos (Mexico)
3rd Coby Iwaasa (Canada) and Sawyer Lloyd (USA)

Doubles
1st Eduardo Garay & Javier Estrada (Mexico)
2nd Adam Manilla & Sawyer Lloyd (USA)
3rd Sami Harb & Coby Iwaasa (Canada) and Danilo Torrico & Victor Pardo Jr. (Bolivia)

Boy's 16 and Under
Singles
1st Marco Rojas (USA)
2nd Jose Diaz (USA)
3rd Daniel De La Rosa (Mexico) and Vladimir Soria (Bolivia)

Doubles
1st Marco Rojas d. Jose Diaz (USA)
2nd Alejandro Romo & Salvador Ortiz (Mexico)
3rd Oscar Arias & Vladimir Soria (Bolivia) and Samuel Murray & Anthony Schonberger (Canada)

Boy's 18 and Under
Singles
1st Taylor Knoth (USA)
2nd Pedro Castro (Canada)
3rd Bradley Kirch (USA) and Jaime Martell (Mexico)

Doubles
1st Bradley Kirch & Nick Montalbano (USA)
2nd Carlos Keller Vargas & Jorge Luis Michel (Bolivia)
3rd Pedro Castro & Jamie Slamko (Canada) and Fernando Muñoz & Pietro Sudassasi (Costa Rica)

Girl's 14 and Under
Singles
1st Natalia Mendez (Bolivia)
2nd Ximena Gonzalez (Mexico)
3rd Kaitlyn Simmons (USA) and Maria Renee Rodriguez (Guatemala)

Doubles
1st Monserrat Perez & Regina Franco (Mexico)
2nd Abbey Lavely & Kaitlyn Simmons (USA)
3rd Mckenzie Brayley & Michelle Morissette (Canada) and Maria Rocio Martinez & Maria Renee Rodriguez (Guatemala)

Girl's 16 and Under
Singles
1st Maria Jose Vargas (Bolivia)
2nd Kelani Bailey (USA)
3rd Masiel Rivera (Bolivia) and Devon Pimentelli (USA)

Doubles
1st Masiel Rivera & Maria Jose Vargas (Bolivia)
2nd Courtney Chisholm & Devon Pimentelli (USA)
3rd Aisling Hickey & Katie Kenny (Ireland) and Ana Paola Camacho & Natalia Villagomez Beltran (Mexico)

Girl's 18 and Under
Singles
1st Aubrey O'brien (USA)
2nd Frédérique Lambert (Canada)
3rd Maria Paz Munoz (Ecuador) and Danielle Key (USA)

Doubles
1st Danielle Key & Aubrey O'brien (USA)
2nd Adriana Riveros & Carolina Oña (Bolivia)
3rd Cristina Cordova & Maria Paz Munoz (Ecuador) and Jocelyn Loredo & Sofia Rascon (Mexico)

Follow the bouncing ball....