17th IRF World Championships - Day 3

The group stage is over at the 17th International Racquetball Federation (IRF) World Championships in Burlington, Ontario, Canada, and the match of the day was between American Jose Rojas and Ecuadorian Fernando Rios, which went tie-breaker with Rios coming out on top, 7-15, 15-12, 11-8.

Rios closed out game two and began game three by drive serving to Rojas's backhand. Rojas wasn't drive serving in the tie-breaker, choosing instead to lob serve and hit drive Z serves to Rios's backhand.

Rios got the early lead in the tie-breaker with help from Rojas, who skipped balls for two of the first three points, and hit two more skips in the game.

Rojas did keep it close early in game three, and trailed by only one at 5-4 and 6-5. Then Rios extended the lead to 10-5, again with rallies that began with drive serves to the left - Rojas's backhand, which is commonly thought to be his stronger side.

But at his first match point opportunity, Rios drove serve to the right side, and lost the rally, which led us to wonder (a) why Rios went away from a winning strategy, and (b) could Rojas serve out the game?

We don't know the answer to the first question, but the answer to the second was almost yes, as Rojas scored three points, including two flat pinch shots (a backhand and a forehand), to cut the lead to 10-8.

They went back and forth at 10-8, and Rios tried a drive serve to the right side, which wasn't successful.

Then on his fifth match point Rios hit a half lob to the right side that had some observers thinking "Whaaaat?" only to have Rojas completely tank the return into the floor for fifth skip of the game.

It was an incredible match, which had both players diving for balls, and it's the sort of match that would convert any sceptic to racquetball.

The upshot of Rios's win is that he takes the 3rd seed from Rojas, and in the elimination round he could end up on the same side of the draw as team-mate Rocky Carson.

Carson won his match Monday, defeating Jose Daniel Ugalde of Ecuador, 15-2, 15-5, so he'll maintain his #1 seeding.

But American Aubrey Kirch was defeated by Ecuador's Maria Paz Muñoz, 13-15, 15-11, 11-2, so she will be 2nd in her group, and may end up on the same side of the draw as American #1 Rhonda Rajsich, who kept the top seed slot with a win over Melania Sauma Masis of Costa Rica, 15-4, 15-0.

The elimination round begins Tueday - there is no off day this year, but only a few of the doubles teams will play on Tuesday.

There will be live streaming of the semi-finals and finals on Friday and Saturday via the IRF Network.

17th IRF World Championships
June 14-21, 2014
Burlington, Ontario, Canada

Men's Singles

Group A

Rocky Carson (USA) d. Jose Daniel Ugalde (Ecuador), 15-2, 15-5
Noslen Jimenez (Cuba) d. Fernando Kurzbard (Argentina), 15-13, 7-15, 11-4

Group B

Tim Landeryou (Canada) d. Ezequiel Paez (Venezuela), 15-0, 15-13
Victor Montserrat (Catalunya) d. Anthony DeFusto (Ukraine), 15-5, 15-10

Group C

Fernando Rios (Ecuador) d. Jose Rojas (USA), 7-15, 15-12, 11-8
Pablo Kurzbard (Argentina) d. Peter Rakowski (Poland), 15-3, 15-4

Group D

Samuel Murray (Canada) d. Roberto Santander (Venezuela), 15-5, 15-2
Dani Pascual (Catalunya) d. Timothy Baghurst (England), forfeit

Group E

Alvaro Beltran (Mexico) d. Andres Aviles Solera (Costa Rica), 15-6, 15-2
Mingyu Kim (South Korea) d. Michael Barrett (Puerto Rico), 15-9, 15-2

Group F

Ramon De Leon (Dominican Republic) d. Michimune Kono (Japan), 11-15, 15-7, 11-5
Francisco Troncoso (Chile) d. Rajiv Varadarajan (India), 15-4, 15-1

Group G

Polo Gutierrez (Mexico) d. Felipe Camacho (Costa Rica), 15-4, 15-10
Daeyong Kwon (South Korea) d. Fernando Rivera (Puerto Rico), 15-5, 15-7

Group H

Takaaki Hirose (Japan) d. Junior Rodriguez (Dominican Republic), 15-6, 15-4
Alok Mehta (India) d. Rodrigo Salgado (Chile), 15-6, 15-14

Group I

Sebastian Franco (Colombia) d. Conrado Moscoso (Bolivia), 15-9, 15-13
Edwin Galicia (Guatamala) d. Mark Murphy (Ireland), 15-14, 15-8

Group J

Carlos Keller (Bolivia) d. Alejandro Herrera (Colombia), 15-5, 15-5
Patrick Hanley (Ireland) d. Pedro Manolo Sandoval (Guatemala), forfeit

Women's Singles

Group A

Rhonda Rajsich (USA) d. Melania Sauma Masis (Costa Rica), 15-4, 15-0
Mariana Paredes (Venezuela) - BYE

Group B

Paola Longoria (Mexico) d. Mariana Tobon (Venezuela), 15-5, 15-6
Sofia Soley Saborio (Costa Rica) - BYE

Group C

Maria Paz Muñoz (Ecuador) d. Aubrey Kirch (USA), 13-15, 15-11, 11-2
Aisling Hickey (Ireland) - BYE

Group D

Samantha Salas (Mexico) d. Jenny Daza (Bolivia), 12-15, 15-6, 11-5
Maria Cespedes (Dominican Republic) d. Disney Linares Barreras (Cuba), 15-14, 15-3

Group E

Donna Ryder (Ireland) d. Anna Ventura (Catalunya), 15-10, 15-9
Veronica Sotomayor (Ecuador) d. Christine Richardson (Canada), 15-7, 15-3

Group F

Veronique Guillemette (Argentina) d. Merynaanyelly Delgado Araujo (Dominican Republic), 15-9, 15-10
Natalia Mendez (Bolivia) d. Harumi Kajino (Japan), 15-9, 15-10

Group G

Maria Rene Rodriguez (Guatemala) d. Bat Consegal (Catalunya), 15-1, 15-5
Michèle Morissette (Canada) d. Maria Paz Riquelme (Chile), 15-8, 15-2

Group H

Cristina Amaya (Colombia) d. Maria Jose Vargas (Argentina), 15-11, 15-7
Jung Eun Ane (Korea) d. Maiko Satoh (Japan), 15-12, 15-6

Group I

Ana Gabriela Martinez (Guatemala) d. Claudia Andreade (Columbia), 15-2, 15-6
Carla Muñoz (Chile) d. Jin Seok (South Korea), 15-11, 15-13

Men's Doubles

Group A

Ben Croft & Thomas Fuhrmann (USA) d. Joaquin Solera & Pablo Sauma Masis (Costa Rica), 15-6, 15-7
Rodrigo Salgado & Francisco Troncoso (Chile) - BYE

Group B

Alvaro Beltran & Edson Martinez (Mexico) d. Edwin Galicia & Pedro Manolo Sandoval (Guatemala), forfeit
Luis Perez & Junior Rodriguez (Dominican Republic) - BYE

Group C

Cesar Castillo & Cesar Castro (Venezuela) d. Fernando Rios & Jose Daniel Alvarez (Ecoador), 9-15, 15-11, 11-10
Mingyu Kim & Daeyong Kwon (South Korea) d. Victor Montserrat & Dani Pascual (Catalunya), 15-7, 15-5

Group D

Mike Green & Vincent Gagnon (Canada) d. Hiroshi Shimizu & Michimune Kono (Japan), 15-9, 15-4
Alejandro Herrera & Sebastian Franco (Colombia) d. Michael Barrett & Fernando Rivera (Puerto Rico), 15-2, 15-4

Group E

Daniel Maggi & Shai Manzuri (Argentina) d. Conrado Moscos & Mario Mercado (Bolivia), 11-15, 15-6, 11-7
Pat O'Donnell & Conor Skehan (Ireland) d. Pratap Ballalasamudra & Sumeet Kamat (india), 15-6, 15-9

Women's Doubles

Group A

Paola Longoria & Samantha Salas Solis (Mexico) d. Jin Seok & Jung Eun Ane (South Korea), 15-4, 15-5
Mariana Paredes & Mariana Tobon (Venezuela) d. Anna Ventura & Bet Consegal (Catalunya), 15-8, 15-5

Group B

Aimee Ruiz & Janel Tisinger (USA) d. Maria Paz Muñoz & Veronica Sotomayor (Ecuador), 4-15, 15-12, 11-0
Véronique Guillemette & Maria Jose Vargas (Argentina) d. Maria Renee Rodriguez & Gabriela Martinez (Guatemala), 15-3, 15-11

Group C

Frédérique Lambert & Jennifer Saunders (Canada) d. Natalia Mendez & Adriana Riveros (Bolivia), 15-12, 12-15, 11-5
Maria Cespedes & Merynanyelly Delgado Araujo (Dominican Republic) d. Majella Haventry & Katie Kenny (Ireland), 15-5, 15-7

Group D

Angela Grisar & Carla Muñoz (Chile) d. d. Maiko Satoh & Naomi Wakimoto (Japan), 15-4, 10-15, 11-7
Melania Sauma Masis & Sofia Soley Saborio (Costa Rica) d. Cristina Amaya & Claudia Andrade (Colombia), 15-8, 15-7

Follow the bouncing ball....