No upsets at USA Racquetball National Singles

No upsets so far at the USA Racquetball National Singles Championships in Denver, Colorado. Top men's seed Rocky Carson will play Chris Crowther Friday afternoon in one semi-final with two young players - Jose Diaz and Jake Bredenbeck - in the other semi.

On the women's side, they are playing both quarterfinals and semi-finals on Friday. Similar to the men's draw, veterans are the higher seeds on the top of the draw with Rhonda Rajsich as the #1 seed and Cheryl Gudinas as #4 while young players Sharon Jackson and Michelle Key are seeded #2 and #3, respectively, and on the bottom of the draw.

But women's top four seeds could be hard pressed to all make the semis, as their respective quarterfinal opponents are no pushovers. Rajsich is up against 9th seed Kelani Bailey, a former Intercollegiate and USA Junior champion. Gudinas faces current USA Junior champion Erika Manilla. Also, Jackson plays veteran Janel Tisinger, and Key plays Da'monique Davis, a Ladies Professional Racquetball Tour top 20 player.

Also a surprise is that is in Denver, where he may be able to qualify for the US Team one more time. Crowther has represented the USA four times, most recently at the 2011 Pan Am Games, but he's never been to the World Championships.

You can watch some of the matches live from Denver via the USA Racquetball Livestream channel.

USA Racquetball National Singles Championship
May 25-29, 2016, Denver, Colorado

Men's US Team Qualifying

Round of 16

1) Rocky Carson - BYE
9) Luis Avila d. 8) Garrett Tyler, 15-14, 15-10

5) Jeff Stark d. 12) Michael Nigro, 15-4, 15-5
4) Chris Crowther - BYE

3) Jose Diaz - BYE
6) Nicholas Riffel d. 11) Matt Melster, 15-1, 15-8

7) Andrew Gale d. 10) Andrew Clarke, 15-5, 15-10
2) Jake Bredenbeck - BYE

Quarterfinals

1) Rocky Carson d. 9) Luis Avila, 15-2, 15-3
4) Chris Crowther d. 5) Jeff Stark, 15-4, 15-6

3) Jose Diaz d. 6) Nicholas Riffel, 15-5, 15-6
2) Jake Bredenbeck d. 7) Andrew Gale, 15-7, 15-6

Semi-finals - Friday

1) Rocky Carson v. 4) Chris Crowther - 5:30 PM
2) Jake Bredenbeck v. 3) Jose Diaz - 4:30 PM

Women's US Team Qualifying

Round of 16

1) Rhonda Rajsich - BYE
9) Kelani Bailey d. 8) Linda Tyler, 15-14, 15-11

5) Erika Manilla d. 12) Hannah Shnurman, 15-6, 15-2
4) Cheryl Gudinas - BYE

3) Michelle Key - BYE
6) Da'monique Davis d. 11) Mary Kirchoff, 15-7, 15-5

7) Janel Tisinger d. 10) Laura Brandt, 15-1, 15-5
2) Sharon Jackson - BYE

Quarterfinals - Friday

1) Rhonda Rajsich v. 9) Kelani Bailey - 1:30 PM
4) Cheryl Gudinas v. 5) Erika Manilla - 1:30 PM

3) Michelle Key v. 6) Da'monique Davis - 2:30 PM
2) Sharon Jackson v. 7) Janel Tisinger - 2:30 PM

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