Weekend Round Up - Wins for Parrilla, Lawrence, Carter and Mercado & Mehta

Andree Parrilla won the International Racquetball Tour (IRT) Monterrey International Open on the weekend. He defeated Jordy Alonso, 15-6, 15-5, in the final. In the semi-finals, Parrilla, the IRT’s #2 player, beat Erick Cuevas Fernandez, 15-9, 15-3, while Alonso needed a tie-breaker to defeat Erick Trujillo, 15-5, 13-15, 11-8.

In Lombard, Illinois, Kelani Lawrence beat Valeria Centellas, 15-5, 15-8, to win Women’s Open on the weekend at the Platt Hill Nursery 30th Anniversary Turkey Shoot. In the semi-finals, Lawrence defeated Cristina Amaya, 15-4, 15-5, while Centellas beat Annie Roberts, 15-3, 15-6.

In Men’s Open, Thomas Carter beat Mario Mercado, 15-5, 15-2, which was an upset by the seeding: Carter was the 2nd seed and Mercado 1st, and perhaps a surprise too, as Mercado is ranked 10th on the IRT, while Carter is 16th. Carter reached the final by defeating Rodrigo Rodriguez, 15-13, 15-7, in one semi-final, while Mercado beat Jeremy Dixon, 15-2, 15-2, in the other.

Mercado did win Men’s Open Doubles with Alok Mehta. They needed three games to defeat Eugene Coyle and Eric Mathews, 15-8, 12-15, 11-9, in the final, and they also went the distance to get past Dixon and Rodriguez in the semi-finals, 10-15, 15-6, 11-8. Coyle and Mathews didn’t need three games to win their semi, but did win by the narrowest of margins against Carter and George Pappas, 15-14, 15-14.

Closing out 2022

Looking ahead three big events will happen in December to close out 2022. On the first weekend of the month the IRT will play their Tournament of Champions in Portland, Oregon, December 1-4, which will close out their 2022 season. The IRT switched to seasons that follow the calendar year in 2021 from seasons that would bridge two calendar years (e.g., 1999-2000).

The 2022 International Racquetball Federation (IRF) World Junior Championships also start on the first weekend of December in Guatemala City, Guatemala, and they will run to the second Saturday of the month, so December 3 to 10. This will be the first World Juniors with the U21 division.

That second weekend will also see the Ladies Professional Racquetball Tour (LPRT) in action at the Christmas Classic, December 9-11, in Severna Park, Maryland. It’s perhaps the longest running women’s pro event, and very much a racquetball Christmas tradition.

2022 IRT Monterrey International Open, November 16-19, 2022
Monterrey, Mexico

IRT Final

1) Andree Parrilla d. 3) Jordy Alonso, 15-6, 15-5

Semi-finals

1) Andree Parrilla d. 4) Erick Cuevas Fernandez, 15-9, 15-3
3) Jordy Alonso d. 2) Erick Trujillo, 15-5, 13-15, 11-8.

Quarterfinals

1) Andree Parrilla d. 8) Christian Longoria, 15-10, 15-7
4) Erick Cuevas Fernandez d. 5) Diego Gastelum, 15-14, 10-15, 11-10

3) Jordy Alonso d. 6) Oscar Nieto, 15-5, 15-11
2) Erick Trujillo d. 10) Sebastian Hernández, 15-14, 14-15, 11-4

2022 Platt Hill Nursery 30th Anniversary Turkey Shoot, November 18-20, 2022
Lombard, Illinois

Women’s Open Final

2) Kelani Lawrence d. 1) Valeria Centellas, 15-5, 15-8

Semi-finals

1) Valeria Centellas d. 5) Annie Roberts, 15-3, 15-6
2) Kelani Lawrence d. 3) Cristina Amaya, 15-4, 15-5

Men’s Open - Final

2) Thomas Carter d. 1) Mario Mercado, 15-5, 15-2

Semi-finals

1) Mario Mercado d. 5) Jeremy Dixon, 15-2, 15-2
2) Thomas Carter d. 3) Rodrigo Rodriguez, 15-13, 15-7

Men’s Open Doubles - Final

1) Mario Mercado & Alok Mehta d. 2) Eugene Coyle & Eric Mathews, 15-8, 12-15, 11-9

Semi-finals

1) Mario Mercado & Alok Mehta d. 4) Jeremy Dixon & Rodrigo Rodriguez, 10-15, 15-6, 11-8
2) Eugene Coyle & Eric Mathews d. 6) Thomas Carter & George Pappas, 15-14, 15-14

Follow the bouncing ball….