Play begins at 2019 Pan American Games

The racquetball competition began Friday at the 2019 Pan American Games in Lima, Peru, and right off the hop there are interesting results. As with other international racquetball events, the Pan Am Games has a group stage of matches that will seed players for the medal (or elimination) round. The group stage lasts three days, so the medal round will begin on Monday.

In Men’s Singles, Colombia’s Mario Mercado knocked off current Pan American Champion Carlos Keller of Bolivia, 15-14, 15-11, which should give Mercado the inside track to claim the 3rd seed in the medal round. Keller defeated the USA’s Charles Pratt to win Men’s Singles at the 2019 Pan Am Championships earlier this year, but Pratt also lost on Friday, as Canadian Coby Iwaasa defeated him in three games, 14-15, 15-11, 11-9.

In other matches, Samuel Murray - Iwaasa’s team-mate - also needed three games to win Friday, as he went the distance with Luis Pérez of the Dominican Republic, 15-13, 13-15, 11-0. Also, Conrrado Moscoso - Bolivia’s other player - needed a tie-breaker to fend off Andres Acuña of Costa Rica, 15-12, 9-15, 11-6. Finally, in a battle of two solid International Racquetball Tour (IRT) players, the USA’s Jake Bredenbeck beat Colombia’s Sebastian Franco, 15-10, 15-9.

In Women’s Singles, you could hardly get a closer match than the one played by Bolivian Valeria Centallas and Colombian Cristina Amaya, as they went three games with Cenellas narrowly coming out on top, 14-15, 15-14, 11-9. In another match that went breaker, Maria José Vargas of Argentina defeated Gabriela Martinez of Guatemala, 15-4, 12-15, 11-9.

Two somewhat surprising results were USA veteran Rhonda Rajsich beating young Mexican Montserrat Mejia, 15-4, 15-7, and Maria Paz Muñoz of Ecuador defeated Kelani Lawrence of the USA, 15-5, 15-6. Those results surprise us not by who won, but by the margin of victory, which was surprisingly decisive.

In Men’s Doubles there were two matches that went breaker on Friday. The USA’s Rocky Carson and Charles Pratt fended off Canadians Coby Iwaasa and Samuel Murray, 15-12, 10-15, 11-9. The Canadians led 9-7 in the breaker, but the USA got the serve back and won four straight points to win the match. Also, Dominicans Ramón De León and Luis Perez needed three games to defeat Cubans Enier Chacón and Maykel Moyet, 15-7, 4-15, 11-4.

Cuba and Canada were also involved in tie-breakers in Women’s Doubles. Cubans Loraine Felipe and María Regla Viera defeated Carla Muñoz and Josefa Parada of Chile, 6-15, 15-13, 11-9, while Bolivians Angelica Barrios and Jenny Daza beat Canadians Frédérique Lambert and Jennifer Saunders, 15-13, 10-15, 11-6.

Group play continues Saturday in Lima. The medal round will begin Monday with the finals on Wednesday. Then on Thursday 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

Group Stage Matches - Day 1

Men’s Singles

Pool A

Conrrado MOSCOSO (Bolivia) d. Andres ACUÑA (Costa Rica), 15-12, 9-15, 11-6
José UGALDE (Ecuador) - BYE

Pool B

Alvaro BELTRAN (Mexico) d. Fernando RÍOS (Ecuador), 15-12, 15-2
Felipe CAMACHO (Costa Rica) - BYE

Pool C

Mario MERCADO (Colombia) d. Carlos KELLER (Bolivia), 15-14, 15-11
Juan SALVATIERRA (Guatemala) - BYE

Pool D

Rodrigo MONTOYA (Mexico) d. Ramón DE LEÓN (Dominican Republic), 15-0, 15-7
Maykel MOYET (Cuba) d. Erik MENDOZA (Peru), 15-3, 15-2

Pool E

Jake BREDENBECK (USA) d. Sebastian FRANCO (Colombia), 15-10, 15-9
Edwin GALICIA (Guatemala) d. Jonathan LUQUE (Peru), 15-3, 15-6

Pool F

Samuel MURRAY (Canada) d. Luis PÉREZ (Dominican Republic), 15-13, 13-15, 11-0
Enier CHACÓN (Cuba) d. Fernando KURZBARD (Argentina), 15-12, 15-12

Pool G

Shai MANZURI (Argentina) d. Francisco TRONCOSO (Chile), 15-4, 15-10
Coby IWAASA (Canada) d. Charles PRATT (USA), 14-15, 15-11, 11-9

Women’s Singles

Pool A

Maria José VARGAS (Argentina) d. Gabriela MARTINEZ (Guatemala), 15-4, 12-15, 11-9
Alejandra JIMÉNEZ (Dominican Republic) - BYE

Pool B

Paola LONGORIA (Mexico) d. Merynanyelly DELGADO (Dominican Republic), 15-3, 15-2
Maria RODRIGUEZ (Guatemala) - BYE

Pool C

Natalia MENDEZ (Argentina) d. Adriana RIVEROS (Colombia), 15-10, 15-13
Lilian ZEA (Venezuela) - BYE

Pool D

Rhonda RAJSICH (USA) d. Montserrat MEJIA (Mexico), 15-4, 15-7
Frédérique LAMBERT (Canada) - BYE

Pool E

María Regla VIERA (Cuba) d. Josefa PARADA (Chile), 15-1, 15-4
Valeria CENTELLAS (Bolivia) d. Cristina AMAYA (Colombia), 14-15, 15-14, 11-9

Pool F

Maria Paz MUÑOZ (Ecuador) d. Kelani LAWRENCE (USA), 15-5, 15-6
Maricruz ORTIZ (Costa Rica) d. Jennifer SAUNDERS (Canada), 15-8, 14-15, 11-8

Pool G

Angelica BARRIOS (Bolivia) d. Maria José MUÑOZ (Ecuador), 15-3, 15-5
Carla MUÑOZ (Chile) d. Loraine FELIPE (Cuba), 15-12, 15-2

Men’s Doubles

Pool A

Fernando RÍOS & José UGALDE (Ecuador) d. Jonathan LUQUE & Sebastian MENDIGURI (Peru), 15-2, 15-1
Roland KELLER & Conrrado MOSCOSO (Bolivia) d. Sebastian FRANCO & Mario MERCADO (Colombia), 15-7, 15-4

Pool B

Rocky CARSON & Charles PRATT (USA) d. Coby IWAASA & Samuel MURRAY (Canada), 15-12, 10-15, 11-9
Fernando KURZBARD & Shai MANZURI (Argentina) d. Edwin GALICIA & Juan SALVATIERRA (Guatemala), 15-9, 15-10

Pool C

Javier MAR & Rodrigo MONTOYA (Mexico) d. Andres ACUÑA & Felipe CAMACHO (Costa Rica), 15-2, 15-0
Ramón DE LEÓN & Luis PEREZ (Dominican Republic) d. Enier CHACÓN & Maykel MOYET (Cuba), 15-7, 4-15, 11-4

Women’s Doubles

Pool A

Paola LONGORIA & Samantha SALAS (Mexico) d. d. Maria José MUÑOZ & Maria Paz MUÑOZ (Ecuador), 15-4, 15-3
Kelani LAWRENCE & Rhonda RAJSICH (USA) - BYE

Pool B

Natalia MENDEZ & Maria José VARGAS (Argentina) d. Cristina AMAYA & Adriana RIVEROS (Colombia), 15-11, 15-6
Loraine FELIPE & María Regla VIERA (Cuba) d. Carla MUÑOZ & Josefa PARADA (Chile), 6-15, 15-13, 11-9

Pool C

Angelica BARRIOS & Jenny DAZA (Bolivia) d. Frédérique LAMBERT & Jennifer SAUNDERS (Canada), 15-13, 10-15, 11-6
Gabriela MARTINEZ & Maria RODRIGUEZ (Guatemala) d. Merynanyelly DELGADO & Alejandra JIMÉNEZ (Dominican Republic), 15-1, 15-8

Follow the bouncing ball….