Medal rounds begin at 2019 Pan American Games

Adriana Riveros of Colombia is the surprise semi-finalist in Women’s Singles at the 2019 Pan American Games in Lima, Peru, as the 12th seed defeated two higher seeds to reach the semis, and guarantee herself a medal. In the Round of 16, Riveros defeated the 5th seed Bolivian Valeria Centellas, 6-15, 15-11, 11-8, and then in the quarterfinals, she beat the 4th seed USA veteran Rhonda Rajasich, 15-10, 15-10. Riveros will play either Maria José Vargas of Argentina who defeated Kelani Lawrence of the USA, 15-9, 15-13.

Vargas and Lawrence were level at 9-9 in game one, but Vargas scored six straight points to close it out. Nonetheless, Lawrence started strong in game two going out to a 9-0 lead. However, Vargas scored 11 straight points to lead 11-9. But Lawrence tied it again at 11-11. They were back and forth from there on, tying at 12-12 and 13-13. But again it was Vargas who was able to get the last points and close out the game, 15-13, and win the match in two straight games.

On the other side of the Women’s Singles draw, Argentina’s Natalia Mendez reached the semis with two tie-breaker victories. In the Round of 16, she defeated Guatemala’s Gabriela Martinez, who is the current International Racquetball Federation (IRF) Women’s Singles World Champion, 15-10, 12-15, 11-6. Then in the quarters, Mendez beat Ecuador’s Maria Paz Muñoz, 15-5, 10-15, 11-7. In that breaker, Mendez went out to a 4-1 lead. Muñoz got within one point at 4-3, but Mendez then ran five straight points to lead 9-4. Muñoz did get cut into that lead, making it 9-7, but Mendez then closed it out, 11-7.

In the semis, Mendez will play 2nd seed - and two time defending Pan Am Games gold medalist - Paola Longoria of Mexico, who beat Bolivian Angelica Barrios, 15-6, 15-4.

In Men’s Singles, the top four seeds are through to the semi-finals. Top seed Alvaro Beltran of Mexico narrowly defeated Canadian Coby Iwaasa, 15-14, 15-13, in the quarterfinals, and he’ll play Colombia’s Mario Mercado, who needed three games to defeat Jake Bredenbeck of the USA, 15-8, 8-15, 11-8. They were tied at 6-6 in the breaker, when Mercado ran four points to get to match point at 10-6. Bredenbeck denied Mercado’s first match point, but he couldn’t prevent the second, as Mercado won the breaker, 11-8.

On the other side of the draw, Bolivian Conrrado Moscoso - the 2nd seed - beat Charles Pratt of the USA, 15-7, 15-7, and 3rd seed Rodrigo Montoya defeated Samuel Murray of Canada, 15-7, 15-10.

Unimaginable

With today’s quarterfinal results there will be no USA or Canadian players on the podium in either Men's or Women's Singles at this year's Pan Am Games. That would have been unimaginable a decade ago. It’s more evidence that the centre of power in racquetball has shifted south.

Doubles

A couple of upsets in Men’s Doubles Monday. Guatemalans Edwin Galicia and Juan Salvatierra , the 11th seeds, defeated Ecuador’s Fernando Rios and José Ugalde, the 6th seeds, 15-10, 15-10. Guatemala will play 3rd seeds Andres Acuña and Felipe Camacho of Costa Rica in the quarterfinals Tuesday.

Also, 10th seeds Enier Chacón and Maykel Moyet of Cuba needed three games to defeat the 7th seeded veteran team of Fernando Kurzbard and Shai Manzuri of Argentina, 15-10, 11-15, 11-4, so they will play 2nd seeds Roland Keller and Conrrado Moscoso of Bolivia.

In Women’s Doubles, the 10th seeded Canadian team of Frédérique Lambert and Jennifer Saunders upset the 7th seeds Maria José Muñoz and Maria Paz Muñoz of Ecuador), 15-9, 9-15, 11-5. Also, the Dominican Republic’s Merynanyelly Delgado and Alejandra Jiménez, the 9th seeds, beat the 8th seeds Carla Muñoz and Josefa Parada of Chile in two straight games, 15-13, 15-10. In the quarterfinals, Canada will play 2nd seeds Argentina - Maria José Vargas and Natalia Mendez - and the Dominican Republic will play the top seeded Mexico team - Paola Longoria and Samantha Salas.

The semi-finals will be Tuesday with the finals on Wednesday morning. Then on Wednesday afternoon a team competition will begin with each country fielding two singles players and a doubles team in a best of three matches against each other. The finals of the team competition will be Saturday.

2019 Pan American Games - Lima, Peru

MEDAL ROUNDS

Men’s Singles - Round of 16

1) Alvaro BELTRAN (Mexico) - BYE
8) Coby IWAASA (Canada) d. 9) Sebastian FRANCO (Colombia), 9-15, 15-13, 11-0

5) Jake BREDENBECK (USA) d. 12) Ramón DE LEÓN (Dominican Republic), 15-3, 15-9
4) Mario MERCADO (Colombia) d. 13) Felipe CAMACHO (Costa Rica), 15-3, 15-4

3) Rodrigo MONTOYA (Mexico) d. 14) José UGALDE (Ecuador), 15-0, 15-5
6) Samuel MURRAY (Canada) d. 11) Carlos KELLER (Bolivia), 13-15, 15-14, 11-3

7) Charles PRATT (USA) d. 10) Luis PÉREZ (Dominican Republic), 13-15, 15-10, 11-5
2) Conrrado MOSCOSO (Bolivia) - BYE

Men’s Singles - Quarterfinals

1) Alvaro BELTRAN (Mexico) d. 8) Coby IWAASA (Canada), 15-14, 15-13
4) Mario MERCADO (Colombia) d. 5) Jake BREDENBECK (USA), 15-8, 8-15, 11-8

3) Rodrigo MONTOYA (Mexico) d. 6) Samuel MURRAY (Canada), 15-7, 15-10
2) Conrrado MOSCOSO (Bolivia) d. 7) Charles PRATT (USA), 15-7, 15-7

Men’s Singles - Semi-finals

1) Alvaro BELTRAN (Mexico) v. 4) Mario MERCADO (Colombia)
2) Conrrado MOSCOSO (Bolivia) v. 3) Rodrigo MONTOYA (Mexico)

Women’s Singles - Round of 16

1) Maria José VARGAS (Argentina) - BYE
9) Kelani LAWRENCE (USA) d. 8) Carla MUÑOZ (Chile), 15-10, 11-15, 11-7

12) Adriana RIVEROS (Colombia) d. 5) Valeria CENTELLAS (Bolivia), 6-15, 15-11, 11-8
4) Rhonda RAJSICH (USA) d. 13) Merynanyelly DELGADO (Dominican Republic), 15-8, 15-14

3) Natalia MENDEZ (Argentina) d. 14) Gabriela MARTINEZ (Guatemala), 15-10, 12-15, 11-6
6) Maria Paz MUÑOZ (Ecuador) d. 11) Montserrat MEJIA (Mexico), 15-14, 7-15, 11-5

7) Angelica BARRIOS (Bolivia) d. 10) Cristina AMAYA (Colombia), 15-11, 12-15, 11-10
2) Paola LONGORIA (Mexico) - BYE

Women’s Singles - Quarterfinals

1) Maria José VARGAS (Argentina) d. 9) Kelani LAWRENCE (USA), 15-9, 15-13
12) Adriana RIVEROS (Colombia) d. 4) Rhonda RAJSICH (USA), 15-10, 15-10

3) Natalia MENDEZ (Argentina) d. 6) Maria Paz MUÑOZ (Ecuador), 15-5, 10-15, 11-7
2) Paola LONGORIA (Mexico) d. 7) Angelica BARRIOS (Bolivia), 15-6, 15-4

Women’s Singles - Semi-finals

1) Maria José VARGAS (Argentina) v. 12) Adriana RIVEROS (Colombia)
2) Paola LONGORIA (Mexico) v. 3) Natalia MENDEZ (Argentina)

Men’s Doubles - Round of 16

1) Rocky CARSON & Charles PRATT (USA) - BYE
8) Sebastian FRANCO & Mario MERCADO (Colombia) d. 9) Ramón DE LEÓN & Luis PEREZ (Dominican Republic), 15-8, 15-14

5) Coby IWAASA & Samuel MURRAY (Canada) d. 12) Jonathan LUQUE & Sebastian MENDIGURI (Peru), 15-2, 15-3
4) Javier MAR & Rodrigo MONTOYA (Mexico) - BYE

3) Andres ACUÑA & Felipe CAMACHO (Costa Rica) - BYE
11) Edwin GALICIA & Juan SALVATIERRA (Guatemala) d. 6) Fernando RÍOS & José UGALDE (Ecuador), 15-10, 15-10

10) Enier CHACÓN & Maykel MOYET (Cuba) d. 7) Fernando KURZBARD & Shai MANZURI (Argentina), 15-10, 11-15, 11-4
2) Roland KELLER & Conrrado MOSCOSO (Bolivia) - BYE

Men’s Doubles - Quarterfinals

1) Rocky CARSON & Charles PRATT (USA) v. 8) Sebastian FRANCO & Mario MERCADO (Colombia)
4) Javier MAR & Rodrigo MONTOYA (Mexico) v. 5) Coby IWAASA & Samuel MURRAY (Canada)

3) Andres ACUÑA & Felipe CAMACHO (Costa Rica) v. 11) Edwin GALICIA & Juan SALVATIERRA (Guatemala)
2) Roland KELLER & Conrrado MOSCOSO (Bolivia) v. 10) Enier CHACÓN & Maykel MOYET (Cuba)

Women’s Doubles - Round of 16

1) Paola LONGORIA & Samantha SALAS (Mexico) - BYE
9) Merynanyelly DELGADO & Alejandra JIMÉNEZ (Dominican Republic) d. 8) Carla MUÑOZ & Josefa PARADA (Chile), 15-13, 15-10

5) Kelani LAWRENCE & Rhonda RAJSICH (USA) - BYE
4) Angelica BARRIOS & Jenny DAZA (Bolivia) - BYE

3) Gabriela MARTINEZ & Maria RODRIGUEZ (Guatemala) - BYE
6) Cristina AMAYA & Adriana RIVEROS (Colombia) d. 11) Loraine FELIPE & María Regla VIERA (Cuba), 15-6, 15-4

10) Frédérique LAMBERT & Jennifer SAUNDERS (Canada) d. 7) Maria José MUÑOZ & Maria Paz MUÑOZ (Ecuador), 15-9, 9-15, 11-5
2) Natalia MENDEZ & Maria José VARGAS (Argentina) - BYE

Women’s Doubles - Quarterfinals

1) Paola LONGORIA & Samantha SALAS (Mexico) v. 9) Merynanyelly DELGADO & Alejandra JIMÉNEZ (Dominican Republic)
4) Angelica BARRIOS & Jenny DAZA (Bolivia) v. 5) Kelani LAWRENCE & Rhonda RAJSICH (USA)

3) Gabriela MARTINEZ & Maria RODRIGUEZ (Guatemala) v. 6) Cristina AMAYA & Adriana RIVEROS (Colombia)
2) Natalia MENDEZ & Maria José VARGAS (Argentina) v. 10) Frédérique LAMBERT & Jennifer SAUNDERS (Canada)

Follow the bouncing ball….