Sunday, August 30, 2015

Longoria wins singles & doubles at Cali Open

Paola Longoria was a double winner on Saturday at the Cali Open in Cali, Colombia that kicked off the 2015-16 Ladies Professional Racquetball Tour (LPRT) season. Longoria beat Maria Jose Vargas, 11-13, 11-2, 11-6, 11-3.

She teamed up with Samantha Salas to win Women's Doubles, defeating Michelle Key and Frédérique Lambert in the final, 10-15, 15-0, 11-5.

Thus, Longoria - the LPRT's #1 player - has got the season off to a good start. The next main event on the LPRT schedule is the US Open in Minneapolis, October 7-11, although the 3 Wall Ball World Championships is an LPRT satellite event, which will be in Las Vegas November 23-27.

If you missed this weekend's action, you can check it out on the LPRT Livestream channel.

The Cali Open
Cali, Colombia

Women's Singles Final


1) Paola Longoria d. 2) Maria Jose Vargas, 11-13, 11-2, 11-6, 11-3

Women's Doubles Final

1) Paola Longoria & Samantha Salas d. 3) Michelle Key & Frédérique Lambert, 10-15, 15-0, 11-5

Follow the bouncing ball….

Saturday, August 29, 2015

Longoria reaches both singles & doubles in Cali, Colombia

Paola Longoria, the #1 players on the Ladies Professional Racquetball Tour (LPRT), in the both the Women's Singles final and Women's Doubles final at the Cali Open in Cali, Colombia, the first LPRT event of the season.

Longoria defeated 8th seed Sofia Rascon, 11-0, 11-2, 11-9, in the quarterfinals, and then 5th Samantha Salas, 5-11, 11-2, 11-3, 11-1, in the semi-finals. Longoria and Salas teamed up in doubles and advanced to the final with a win over Susana Acosta and Jessica Parrilla, 15-2, 15-11, in the semis.

Frédérique Lambert was involved in two upsets. Seeded 4th in singles, Lambert lost to 5th seed Salas, 11-2, 11-7, 11-3, in the quarters. But in the doubles semis, Lambert and Michelle Key, seeded 3rd, upset 2nd seeds Rhonda Rajsich and Maria Jose Vargas, 15-9, 15-10.

Both the Women's Singles and Doubles finals are Saturday evening.

The Cali Open
Cali, Colombia

Round of 16
(seeding)

1) Paola Longoria - BYE
8) Sofia Rascon d. 9) Susana Acosta, 11-8, 11-3, 11-6

5) Samantha Salas d. 12) T.J. Baumbaugh, 11-4, 11-3, 11-2
4) Frédérique Lambert - BYE

3) Rhonda Rajsich - BYE
6) Cristina Amaya d. 11) Carolina Luque, 3-11, 11-6, 11-9, 11-6

7) Michelle Key d. 10) Jessica Parrilla, 12-10, 11-0, 12-10
2) Maria Jose Vargas - BYE

Quarterfinals

1) Paola Longoria d. 8) Sofia Rascon, 11-0, 11-2, 11-9
5) Samantha Salas d. 4) Frédérique Lambert, 11-2, 11-7, 11-3

3) Rhonda Rajsich d. 6) Cristina Amaya, 11-9, 11-6, 4-11, 5-11, 11-4
2) Maria Jose Vargas d. 7) Michelle Key, 9-11, 11-3, 11-5, 11-5

Semi-finals

1) Paola Longoria d. 5) Samantha Salas, 5-11, 11-2, 11-3, 11-1
2) Maria Jose Vargas d. 4) Rhonda Rajsich, 11-7, 6-11, 13-11, 11-2

Final

1) Paola Longoria v. 2) Maria Jose Vargas

Doubles

Quarterfinals


1) Paola Longoria & Samantha Salas - BYE
4) Susana Acosta & Jessica Parrilla d. 5) Cristina Amaya & Sofia Rascon, 15-9, 15-7

3) Michelle Key & Frédérique Lambert d. 6) T.J. Baumbaugh & Carolina Luque, 15-8, 15-3
2) Rhonda Rajsich & Maria Jose Vargas - BYE

Semi-finals

1) Paola Longoria & Samantha Salas d. 4) Susana Acosta & Jessica Parrilla, 15-2, 15-11
3) Michelle Key & Frédérique Lambert d. 2) Rhonda Rajsich & Maria Jose Vargas, 15-9, 15-10

Final

1) Paola Longoria & Samantha Salas v. 3) Michelle Key & Frédérique Lambert

Follow the bouncing ball….

Friday, August 28, 2015

Cali Open kicks off 2015-16 LPRT season

A small but elite field has gathered in Cali, Colombia to kick off the 2015-16 Ladies Professional Racquetball Tour (LPRT) season. Paola Longoria, the LPRT's #1 player, will be looking to start the season on the right foot.

Longoria, a triple gold medal winner - Women's Singles, Doubles & Team - for Mexico at last month's Pan American Games in Toronto, is joined in Cali by five other Mexicans. She'll face the winner of veteran left hander Susana Acosta and Sofia Rascon. Also, Samantha Salas, Longoria's doubles partner in Toronto, is the 5th seed, and Jessica Parrilla and Carolina Luque are the 10th and 11th seeds, respectively.

There are only 12 players in the draw, so they are doing the tournament in two days. The Round of 16 and quarterfinals will be Friday with the semi-finals and final on Saturday.

The Cali Open
Cali, Colombia

Round of 16 (seeding)


1) Paola Longoria - BYE
8) Sofia Rascon v. 9) Susana Acosta

5) Samantha Salas v. 12) T.J. Baumbaugh
4) Frédérique Lambert - BYE

3) Rhonda Rajsich - BYE
6) Cristina Amaya v. 11) Carolina Luque

7) Michelle Key v. 10) Jessica Parrilla
2) Maria Jose Vargas - BYE

Follow the bouncing ball….

Friday, August 21, 2015

Interview with Sudsy Monchik

Sudsy Monchik, a four time US Open Champion, five time #1 player on the International Racquetball Tour (IRT), Pan Am Games gold medalist, and USA Racquetball Hall of Fame member, coached Team Ecuador at last month's Pan Am Games in Toronto. Towards the end of the week, we interviewed Monchik about his experience in Toronto.

TRB: How did you come to coach Team Ecuador?

Monchik: It was at a women's pro stop, an LPRT event, in January. I saw Veronica Sotomayor, Ecuador's #1 player, and she asked would I be interested in coaching her. She was playing Paola Longoria at the time, and she looked like she could hang. She had the ability and obviously the passion and the drive. And I said sure. Honestly, I didn't think much of it. I went back home. Another week or two later, she contacted me, and the ball got rolling, then the Ecuador government got involved, and here I am.

What it's like being an American coach coaching a non-American team?

It was tough. These guys came out to New York for two months prior to this event. So the sacrifice was pretty amazing. And like I told them, and told my fellow Americans, I'm a competitor. I like to compete. That's what I've done my whole life. I've competed against my best friends and family members, so this is just another competition.

What did you address first in coaching the team?

I let them know that a lot our approach is going to be mental strength and conditioning. At this level so many players can do so many of the same things well, and to me it's what does it take to get to that next level, not just physically, but mentally. What's your plan? What's your approach? I kind of reconditioned their entire minds into what I believe is what it takes to become a champion.

Do you have an ongoing commitment to coach Ecuador?

It's in the air, not confirmed or unconfirmed. They go back to their government. They [the players] want me to continue working with them. I want to continue working with them. Now, it just has to make sense to everybody.

You competed at the first Pan Am Games that included racquetball in 1995 in Argentina, how does this experience - the set up in Toronto, being a coach compared to a player - feel to you?

First off, Toronto has done a top shelf job. It's been absolutely amazing. The city, the people, the volunteers. Everybody's been absolutely incredible. When I played in '95 in the first one, it was in Argentina. It was a little different.

As far as [coaching], I didn't realize how hard it was to coach, because as a player, as a competitor in life, it's so hard to be out there and have no control of the outcome. And I'm exhausted. I'm physically drained. I played every match and every point, because I feel like I'm in there with them. Their success is their success, but their defeat is my defeat, and I put that on me. They have a lot to learn. This is an amazing group, and I'm looking forward to helping them improve. They're driven, and they're ready. They are right there.

Apart from Team Ecuador, do you see more coaching in your future?

Yeah, I love it. I'm definitely available to coach. I live in New York. I love coaching. The passion has been brought back. I had a lot of amazing memories. Being here at the Pan Ams, it brought back so many memories from Argentina. The coaching really has relit that flame that we all have that racquetball flame. This is the first time I've been around racquetball for so long and so much in many, many years.

Describe the level of competition that you've seen here.

I think it's amazing. I think what South America is doing, what Mexico is doing, is spectacular for the sport. With that said, Rocky Carson comes here. He wins the gold medal. He's the number two ranked player in the world. Paola Longoria comes here. She's the number one player. She wins gold. And my answer to that is that's awesome. Congratulations. But as an ex-professional - and ex-amateur - I say that's what you're supposed to do. You're supposed to come represent. You're the best in the world. Number two in Rocky's case. Number one in Paola's case. You did your job. That's what you're supposed to do. You guys are the best players in the world.

These countries are amazing. The fight they have. The motivation, the drive, the competition's great. But the best players at the end usually prevail.

Follow the bouncing ball....

Monday, August 17, 2015

Horn wins WRT 2015 San Luis Open

David Horn won his first World Racquetball Tour (WRT) event Sunday by defeating fellow American Jake Bredenbeck, 15-9, 15-2, in the final of the WRT San Luis Open in San Luis Potosi, Mexico. Afterwards Horn spoke of how he didn’t try to match Bredenbeck’s power, taking a bit off of his serves hoping that it would put Bredenbeck’s timing off. The strategy worked.

It worked so well Horn didn’t need a third game to win the final, although he’d played three games in each of his first three matches in San Luis, including knocking off 2nd seed Alejandro Cardona in the semi-finals.

Bredenbeck had a tough Sunday, as he also lost the doubles final with Sebastian Franco to Edson Martinez and Gilberto Mejia.

The WRT website has the next tournament as this coming weekend - August 20-22 - in Chihuahua, Mexico, but on the webcast it was stated that the next event is the Atlanta Open September 11-13, so we’ll see what happens.

2015 WRT San Luis Open
San Luis Potosi, Mexico

Men’s Singles - Final


3) David Horn d. 1) Jake Bredenbeck, 15-9, 15-2

Men’s Singles - Final

3) Edson Martinez & Gilberto Mejia d. 1) Jake Bredenbeck & Sebastian Franco

Men’s Singles - Semi-finals

1) Jake Bredenbeck & Sebastian Franco d. 4) Rodrigo Montoya & Andree Parrilla
3) Edson Martinez & Gilberto Mejia d. 2) Alejandro Landa & Cristian Longoria

Men’s Singles - Quarterfinals

1) Jake Bredenbeck & Sebastian Franco d. 8) Ruben Estrada & David Ortega
4) Rodrigo Montoya & Andree Parrilla d. 5) Jaime Martell & Fabian Parrilla

3) Edson Martinez & Gilberto Mejia d. 6) Cesar Barragan & Gerardo Franco
2) Alejandro Landa & Cristian Longoria d. 7) Eduardo Garay & Javier Mar

Follow the bouncing ball….

Saturday, August 15, 2015

All American final at WRT 2015 San Luis Open

The World Racquetball Tour (WRT) resumed its season this weekend with the 2015 San Luis Open in San Luis Potosi, Mexico. This is the first of back to back tournaments, as the WRT will be in Chihuahua, Mexico next weekend for the Chihuahua Open.

Tie-breakers have been the order of the tournament, as 9 of 14 matches from the Round of 15 to the semi-finals went three games. The finalista - Jake Bredenbeck and David Horn - played five tie-breakers between them to reach the finals.

Bredenbeck needed three games to advance to the semi-finals, as he defeated Edson Martinez, 15-9, 14-15, 11-7, in the Round of 16, and then took out Cristian Longoria, 12-15, 15-5, 11-10, in the quarterfinals, before beating Andree Parrilla, 15-7, 15-3, in the semi-finals.

Horn played three breakers to get to the final. In the 16s, he came from a game down to defeat Erick Sandoval, 12-15, 15-6, 11-2, and did the same against David Ortega, 11-15, 15-13, 11-7, in the quarters. In the semis, Horn upset 2nd seed Alejandro Cardona by squeaking out the first game, and then narrowly winning in the breaker, 15-14, 11-15, 11-9.

Bredenbeck and Horn have only faced each other twice in recent years, and Bredenbeck’s won both times. But Horn will be playing in his first WRT final, we think, so he could be peaking at the right time. However, Horn’s played a lot of racquetball to reach the final, so will he have anything left to take out the big Minnesotan?

You can watch the final live Sunday at noon via the World Racquetball Tour website. Click the “Live” link in the upper right corner.

2015 WRT San Luis Open
San Luis Potosi, Mexico

Men’s Singles - Round of 32


1) Jake Bredenbeck - BYE
16) Edson Martinez d. 17) Eduardo Portillo, 15-4, 15-12

24) Eduardo Garay d. 9) Francisco Troncoso, 15-2, 15-6
8) Cristian Longoria v. 25) Ruben Estrada, 15-11, 15-12

5) Anthony Herrera - BYE
12) Gerardo Franco d. 21) Fabian Parrilla, 8-15, 15-2, 11-2

13) Javier Mar d. 20) Cesar Barragan, 15-9, 15-6
4) Andree Parrilla - BYE

3) David Horn - BYE
14) Erick Sandoval d. 19) Alejandro Guevara, forfeit

22) David Ortega d. 11) Gerardo Guevara, 15-10, 15-3
6) Sebastian Franco - BYE

7) Jaime Martell d. 26) Rodrigo Garay, 15-14, 15-8
23) Rodrigo Montoya d. 10) Gilberto Mejia, 15-9, 4-15, 11-4

15) Jordy Alonso d. 18) Daniel Rodriguez, 15-3, 15-1
2) Alejandro Cardona - BYE

Men’s Singles - Round of 16

1) Jake Bredenbeck d. 16) Edson Martinez, 15-9, 14-15, 11-7
8) Cristian Longoria d. 24) Eduardo Garay, 9-15, 15-8, 11-7

5) Anthony Herrera d. 12) Gerardo Franco, 15-8, 9-15, 11-10
4) Andree Parrilla d. 13) Javier Mar, 12-15, 15-5, 11-9

3) David Horn d. 14) Erick Sandoval, 12-15, 15-6, 11-2
22) David Ortega d. 6) Sebastian Franco, 15-2, 15-10

23) Rodrigo Montoya d. 7) Jaime Martell, 15-12, 15-8
2) Alejandro Cardona d. 15) Jordy Alonso, 15-11, 15-5

Men’s Singles - Quarterfinals

1) Jake Bredenbeck d. 8) Cristian Longoria, 12-15, 15-5, 11-10
4) Andree Parrilla d. 5) Anthony Herrera, 12-15, 15-5, 11-9

3) David Horn d. 22) David Ortega, 11-15, 15-13, 11-7
2) Alejandro Cardona d. 23) Rodrigo Montoya, 15-13, 15-8

Men’s Singles - Semi-finals

1) Jake Bredenbeck d. 4) Andree Parrilla, 15-7, 15-3
3) David Horn d. 2) Alejandro Cardona, 15-14, 11-15, 11-9

Men’s Singles - Final

1) Jake Bredenbeck v. 3) David Horn - Noon Sunday CDT

Follow the bouncing ball….