Maria Jose Vargas won her first Ladies Professional Racquetball Tour (LPRT) tournament on the weekend, and that further solidified her position as the LPRT's #2 player, behind #1 Paola Longoria and ahead of #3 Rhonda Rajsich.
Samantha Salas is back up to #4, with Frédérique Lambert in the 5th spot. Six, seven and eight are unchanged: Cristina Amaya, Cheryl Gudinas and Da'monique Davis, respectively.
Michelle Key cracks the top 10 for the first time in her career, as she's the 9th ranked player ahead of veteran left-hander Susana Acosta in 10th.
In the next 10, young players Alexandra Herrera and Maria Renee Rodriguez have cracked the top 20 for the first time. Herrera is 17th and Rodriguez is 20th.
The LPRT will begin the new year in Cincinnati with the Mercedes-Benz of Cincinnati Pro-Am January 23-25, 2015.
LPRT Rankings - December 15, 2014
Rank - Name - Country - Points
1 Paola Longoria (Mexico) 2850.00
2 Maria Jose Vargas (Bolivia) 1844.00
3 Rhonda Rajsich (USA) 1675.48
4 Samantha Salas (Mexico) 823.00
5 Frédérique Lambert (Canada) 763.50
6 Cristina Amaya (Colombia) 705.50
7 Cheryl Gudinas (USA) 543.50
8 Da'monique Davis (USA) 490.25
9 Michelle Key (USA) 488.55
10 Susana Acosta (Mexico) 434.50
11 Veronica Sotomayor (Ecuador) 417.00
12 Sofia Rascon (Mexico) 411.00
13 Sheryl Lotts (USA) 352.50
14 Aubrey Kirch (USA) 352.00
15 Adrienne Haynes (USA) 274.25
16 Jessica Parrilla (Mexico) 263.94
17 Alexandra Herrera (Mexico) 253.00
18 Carla Muñoz (Chile) 248.50
19 Maria Paz Muñoz (Ecuador) 195.00
20 Maria Renee Rodriguez (Guatemala) 180.25
Follow the bouncing ball....
Showing posts with label industry. Show all posts
Showing posts with label industry. Show all posts
Tuesday, December 16, 2014
Monday, February 17, 2014
Weekend Round Up - US Team members
The USA Racquetball Doubles Champions earned the right to represent the USA at the International Racquetball Federation (IRF) World Championships that will be held in Burlington, Ontario, Canada from June 14-21, 2014. All four of the men's and women's champions are US Team veterans, although two have competed many times and two not so much.
Rocky Carson will be making his 14th appearance for the USA, and Aimee Ruiz will be on the US team for the 9th time. In contrast, Jose Rojas will be making his 4th appearance and Janel Tisinger her 2nd.
All four have had success playing for their country. Carson is the three time defending IRF World Champion in Men's Singles. His three titles tie Carson with Jack Huczek for the most singles World Championships. A fourth title would put Carson alone at the top.
Ruiz has also been a IRF World Champion. Her titles came in doubles with Laura Fenton in 2006 and Jackie Paraiso in 2008. Ruiz has reached the podium each time she's been on the US Team, but she hasn't won gold this decade.
Rojas won gold in the team competition at the 2012 IRF World Championships, and was a bronze medalist in the individual part of that tournament.
Tisinger was a gold medalist in doubles with Rhonda Rajsich in 2007 at the Pan American Championships.
Carson and Rojas will likely be double qualifiers for the American team, as they will likely be two of the top three finishers on the International Racquetball Tour (IRT), which is one of the qualifying criteria for the US Team. Whether Carson and Rojas will play singles and doubles or whether the US will choose to send some other players as well is still to be determined.
The US have usually sent four players to Worlds, although they did send three in 2006, when Carson went as only a doubles player (Huczek and Shane Vanderson were the singles players).
Who the US women's singles players will be is less clear. Or rather who the second US woman will be is less clear, as Rajsich will more than likely qualify for the team as the top ranked American woman on the Ladies Pro Racquetball Tour (LPRT). The second player would likely be the one who finishes best in the US Team Qualifying Division at the US National Singles Championship in Fullerton, California in May.
Live Streaming of IRF Events
On the weekend, the IRF announced an agreement with EnetLive.tv/IRT Network, which will create an IRF channel (the IRF Network) on the EnetLive.tv/IRT Network website. They agreement will have the three principal 2014 international events broadcast over the IRF Network: the 2014 Pan American Championships (April 12-19 in Santa Cruz, Bolivia), the 2014 World Junior Championships (October 19-25 in Cali, Colombia) and the 2014 Worlds as mentioned above.
This is very good news. The IRT Network does a good job at presenting racquetball coverage over the web, and has been continually improving its capacity and capability.
If you are not an IRT Network subscriber, you are missing out.
Follow the bouncing ball….
Rocky Carson will be making his 14th appearance for the USA, and Aimee Ruiz will be on the US team for the 9th time. In contrast, Jose Rojas will be making his 4th appearance and Janel Tisinger her 2nd.
All four have had success playing for their country. Carson is the three time defending IRF World Champion in Men's Singles. His three titles tie Carson with Jack Huczek for the most singles World Championships. A fourth title would put Carson alone at the top.
Ruiz has also been a IRF World Champion. Her titles came in doubles with Laura Fenton in 2006 and Jackie Paraiso in 2008. Ruiz has reached the podium each time she's been on the US Team, but she hasn't won gold this decade.
Rojas won gold in the team competition at the 2012 IRF World Championships, and was a bronze medalist in the individual part of that tournament.
Tisinger was a gold medalist in doubles with Rhonda Rajsich in 2007 at the Pan American Championships.
Carson and Rojas will likely be double qualifiers for the American team, as they will likely be two of the top three finishers on the International Racquetball Tour (IRT), which is one of the qualifying criteria for the US Team. Whether Carson and Rojas will play singles and doubles or whether the US will choose to send some other players as well is still to be determined.
The US have usually sent four players to Worlds, although they did send three in 2006, when Carson went as only a doubles player (Huczek and Shane Vanderson were the singles players).
Who the US women's singles players will be is less clear. Or rather who the second US woman will be is less clear, as Rajsich will more than likely qualify for the team as the top ranked American woman on the Ladies Pro Racquetball Tour (LPRT). The second player would likely be the one who finishes best in the US Team Qualifying Division at the US National Singles Championship in Fullerton, California in May.
Live Streaming of IRF Events
On the weekend, the IRF announced an agreement with EnetLive.tv/IRT Network, which will create an IRF channel (the IRF Network) on the EnetLive.tv/IRT Network website. They agreement will have the three principal 2014 international events broadcast over the IRF Network: the 2014 Pan American Championships (April 12-19 in Santa Cruz, Bolivia), the 2014 World Junior Championships (October 19-25 in Cali, Colombia) and the 2014 Worlds as mentioned above.
This is very good news. The IRT Network does a good job at presenting racquetball coverage over the web, and has been continually improving its capacity and capability.
If you are not an IRT Network subscriber, you are missing out.
Follow the bouncing ball….
Tuesday, January 1, 2013
Top 10 Racquetball Stories of 2012
2012 has ended and 2013 has just begun, so it's time to reflect on the twelve months that have gone by and what's happened in racquetball during that period.
Thus, we present The Racquetball Blog Top 10 stories of 2012.
10) Ektelon. News of Ektelon's sale caused some ripples in the racquetball world, as Ektelon is the oldest racquetball manufacturer. But it seems like business as usual under the new ownership, which is good for all concerned. If a sport's companies aren't healthy, then how can the sport itself be healthy?
9) IRT Network. The IRT Network was created a few years ago to webcast matches from International Racquetball Tour (IRT) events, and they have continually improved their service. Racquetball is difficult to film but the IRT has multiple cameras and good definition, which makes following the action enjoyable. Moreover, they have expanded their coverage from IRT Tier 1 events to include Ladies Pro Racquetball Tour (LPRT) events as well as some outdoor events.
8) Krystal Csuk. Csuk (pronouced "CHUK") took a big step up in her game in 2012, reaching the semi-finals at three events, and she finished 4th at the end of the 2011-12 season, which was only her second top 10 finish (Csuk was 10th the pervious season). She's now ranked 3rd on the LPRT.
7) Injuries. Injuries always play a part in sports, but we can't recall a year when there have been more injuries to prominent racquetball players. It began in 2011 really, with Cheryl Gudinas having surgery on her left knee, and Samantha Salas sat out most of the 2011-12 women's pro season with an injury to her right shoulder. Also, Jennifer Saunders missed the last two events of 2012 due to neck and back issues. On the men's side, in second International Racquetball Tour (IRT) event of 2012, IRT #1 Kane Waselenchuk's back acted up on him and prevented him from finishing the final of the New York City Pro-Am, ending his tournament winning streak. Waselenchuk missed two more IRT tournaments before returning and beginning another winning streak. Then Waselenchuk missed the last tournament of 2012 with a knee injury. Also, Charlie Pratt will likely miss the rest of the 2012-13 season due to an ankle injury.
6) Rocky Carson. How's that old commercial go? "We're number 2. We try harder."? That could apply to Carson, who had another good year, as he maintained his ranking as the #2 player on the IRT. Carson also won the International Racquetball Federation (IRF) World Championship for the 3rd straight time - tying him for most men's titles with Jack Huczek. Carson's not the #1 player in the world, but he's clearly the next best player.
5) International wins. Players from outside North America had more impressive results in 2012 at both senior and junior events. Guatemala got their first medal at the International Racquetball Federation (IRF) World Championships, and Bolivia won men's doubles at the Pan-American Championships, a first for a South American nation. At the IRF World Juniors, Guatemala and Costa Rica both won gold for the first time. International racquetball is becoming more competitive and the North American nations' advantage continues to diminish.
4) Ladies Pro Racquetball Tour. The women's pro tour reorganized itself yet again. The year began with the Women's Professional Racquetball Organization (WPRO) but in the summer the players decided that they needed to make a change and that led to the creation of the Ladies Professional Racquetball Tour (LPRT). The change has been mostly seamless, as the event schedule is largely the same as previous WPRO seasons.
3) Mexican Women's Team Title. Mexico won the women's team title at the International Racquetball Federation (IRF) World Championships this year, and it was their first win ever and the first time the USA women did not take the title. The Mexican team of Paola Longoria, Samantha Salas and Jessica Parrilla, almost didn't get to the final as they split their first two matches with Canada, as Jennifer Saunders beat Parrilla in singles (2-0) and Longoria and Salas beat Saunders and Josée Grand'Maître in doubles (2-1) before Longoria won the deciding match against Brandi Jacobson Prentice (2-0). In the final, Mexico defeated the USA in two straight matches: Longoria defeated Rhonda Rajsich (2-1) and Parrilla took out Cheryl Gudinas (2-1). The win signals the ascendancy of Mexico - and decline of the USA - in women's racquetball.
2) Kane Waselenchuk. He's the most dominant IRT player. It's been almost four years since someone got 11 points in three out of five games against Waselenchuk. In November, he turned 31, so Waselenchuk's likely closer to the end of his career than the beginning, and he has had some injuries in recent years. But if you're a racquetball fan, you need to see Waselenchuk play before his career ends, because he is the most exceptional racquetball player ever.
1) Paola Longoria. Longoria has won every event she's entered since May 2011. Singles, doubles, team events: she's won them all. LPRT #1, World Champion, gold medalist. She's at the top of her game and at only 23 could be at the top of women's racquetball for some years to come.
There are The Racquetball Blog's top 10 racquetball stories of 2012. If you think we missed something, please leave a comment.
We look forward to another year of following the bouncing ball.
Happy New Year everyone!
Follow the bouncing ball....
Thus, we present The Racquetball Blog Top 10 stories of 2012.
10) Ektelon. News of Ektelon's sale caused some ripples in the racquetball world, as Ektelon is the oldest racquetball manufacturer. But it seems like business as usual under the new ownership, which is good for all concerned. If a sport's companies aren't healthy, then how can the sport itself be healthy?
9) IRT Network. The IRT Network was created a few years ago to webcast matches from International Racquetball Tour (IRT) events, and they have continually improved their service. Racquetball is difficult to film but the IRT has multiple cameras and good definition, which makes following the action enjoyable. Moreover, they have expanded their coverage from IRT Tier 1 events to include Ladies Pro Racquetball Tour (LPRT) events as well as some outdoor events.
8) Krystal Csuk. Csuk (pronouced "CHUK") took a big step up in her game in 2012, reaching the semi-finals at three events, and she finished 4th at the end of the 2011-12 season, which was only her second top 10 finish (Csuk was 10th the pervious season). She's now ranked 3rd on the LPRT.
7) Injuries. Injuries always play a part in sports, but we can't recall a year when there have been more injuries to prominent racquetball players. It began in 2011 really, with Cheryl Gudinas having surgery on her left knee, and Samantha Salas sat out most of the 2011-12 women's pro season with an injury to her right shoulder. Also, Jennifer Saunders missed the last two events of 2012 due to neck and back issues. On the men's side, in second International Racquetball Tour (IRT) event of 2012, IRT #1 Kane Waselenchuk's back acted up on him and prevented him from finishing the final of the New York City Pro-Am, ending his tournament winning streak. Waselenchuk missed two more IRT tournaments before returning and beginning another winning streak. Then Waselenchuk missed the last tournament of 2012 with a knee injury. Also, Charlie Pratt will likely miss the rest of the 2012-13 season due to an ankle injury.
6) Rocky Carson. How's that old commercial go? "We're number 2. We try harder."? That could apply to Carson, who had another good year, as he maintained his ranking as the #2 player on the IRT. Carson also won the International Racquetball Federation (IRF) World Championship for the 3rd straight time - tying him for most men's titles with Jack Huczek. Carson's not the #1 player in the world, but he's clearly the next best player.
5) International wins. Players from outside North America had more impressive results in 2012 at both senior and junior events. Guatemala got their first medal at the International Racquetball Federation (IRF) World Championships, and Bolivia won men's doubles at the Pan-American Championships, a first for a South American nation. At the IRF World Juniors, Guatemala and Costa Rica both won gold for the first time. International racquetball is becoming more competitive and the North American nations' advantage continues to diminish.
4) Ladies Pro Racquetball Tour. The women's pro tour reorganized itself yet again. The year began with the Women's Professional Racquetball Organization (WPRO) but in the summer the players decided that they needed to make a change and that led to the creation of the Ladies Professional Racquetball Tour (LPRT). The change has been mostly seamless, as the event schedule is largely the same as previous WPRO seasons.
3) Mexican Women's Team Title. Mexico won the women's team title at the International Racquetball Federation (IRF) World Championships this year, and it was their first win ever and the first time the USA women did not take the title. The Mexican team of Paola Longoria, Samantha Salas and Jessica Parrilla, almost didn't get to the final as they split their first two matches with Canada, as Jennifer Saunders beat Parrilla in singles (2-0) and Longoria and Salas beat Saunders and Josée Grand'Maître in doubles (2-1) before Longoria won the deciding match against Brandi Jacobson Prentice (2-0). In the final, Mexico defeated the USA in two straight matches: Longoria defeated Rhonda Rajsich (2-1) and Parrilla took out Cheryl Gudinas (2-1). The win signals the ascendancy of Mexico - and decline of the USA - in women's racquetball.
2) Kane Waselenchuk. He's the most dominant IRT player. It's been almost four years since someone got 11 points in three out of five games against Waselenchuk. In November, he turned 31, so Waselenchuk's likely closer to the end of his career than the beginning, and he has had some injuries in recent years. But if you're a racquetball fan, you need to see Waselenchuk play before his career ends, because he is the most exceptional racquetball player ever.
1) Paola Longoria. Longoria has won every event she's entered since May 2011. Singles, doubles, team events: she's won them all. LPRT #1, World Champion, gold medalist. She's at the top of her game and at only 23 could be at the top of women's racquetball for some years to come.
There are The Racquetball Blog's top 10 racquetball stories of 2012. If you think we missed something, please leave a comment.
We look forward to another year of following the bouncing ball.
Happy New Year everyone!
Follow the bouncing ball....
Wednesday, May 16, 2012
Ektelon's parent company files for bankruptcy protection
Ektelon, one of the major brands in racquetball and the one with longest history as it dates back almost 40 years, is owned by Prince Sports Inc., which recently filed for bankruptcy protection in U.S. court so as to facilitate reorganization.
Prince Sports has been a major brand in tennis, which is a bigger market than racquetball, so it's likely that their trouble stems from that side of the business rather than from racquetball. Sources tell us that it's business as usual on the Ektelon side.
Thus, while this is troubling news, it doesn't mean the end of Ektelon or even the end of Ektelon as a Prince Sports brand.
People often think of the health of a sport by the number of people playing, number of juniors, how well the pro tours are doing, but a major way to view the health of a sport is to see if there are companies making money from the sport. Again though the parent company is in difficulty, Ektelon itself seems to be doing fine. Proof to this is that Ektelon continues to be the title sponsor for the upcoming USA Racquetball National Singles Championships in Fullerton, California that begins next week.
Follow the bouncing ball....
Thursday, May 10, 2012
The IRF reaches agreement with Sports Unlimited
The International Racquetball Federation (IRF) issued a press release announcing an agreement with Sports Unlimited to be its Official Racquetball Court Supplier. Sports Unlimited of Stillwater, Oklahoma has built over 7000 racquetball and squash courts since it was established in 1974.
IRT Secretary General Luke St Onge said “we are most excited about our new relationship with Sports Unlimited and what they can do to help spread Racquetball worldwide. Currently there are over 70 courts either under construction or in the planning stages outside of the United States. We expect this trend to continue and will continue to accelerate. The time has come for us to provide the information and court construction to our members as racquetball continues to grow. Sports Unlimited will provide that expertise and support.”
Kent Taylor, Vice President of Sports Unlimited said “Sports Unlimited is also extremely excited about the opportunity to work closely with the IRF. As one of the very first companies to specialize in racquetball court construction we feel strongly that we have a lot to offer those outside the United states who are trying to develop and promote the sport of Racquetball.”
The 2012 IRF World Championships will be held in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic August 4-11.
Follow the bouncing ball....
Wednesday, May 9, 2012
Longoria signs with Head-Penn
Paola Longoria has signed a "long-term contract" with HEAD/Penn Racquet Sports. Previously, Longoria was with Ektelon, but our understanding is that arrangement was a tournament by tournament deal this season.
Longoria, 22, is the top ranked player on the Women's Professional Racquetball Organization (WPRO) tour. She's won 21 of the 35 Tier 1 or Grand Slam WPRO events over the past four seasons, including every event she entered this season.
Longoria, a native of San Luis Potosi, Mexico, joins fellow Mexican Samantha Salas, who teamed with Longoria to win the 2010 World Championship in doubles as well as Pan American Games gold in doubles last year, as well as her coach Fran Davis, in the HEAD/Penn racquetball group.
Longoria won her first tournament with a Head racquet last weekend, as she used the new HEAD Black Widow 160 racquet to win the SCS Title & Escrow Pro-Am in Herndon, Virgina.
A press release on the HEAD/Penn Facebook page quoted Doug Ganimm, HEAD/Penn's Manager of Indoor Promotions, as saying "we are thrilled to have Paola join the HEAD/Penn team. She is not only the most dominant women's player in the world but is a class act on and off the court. As the leading brands in the sport we look forward to providing her with the equipment she needs to further increase her competitive advantage."
For her part, Longoria said "I am very excited to join the premier racquetball equipment maker in the industry. By joining the HEAD/Penn team, I now have the best equipment on the market that will help me remain the No. 1 ranked player in the world. I’m so happy to be part of the HEAD/Penn team and look forward to achieving more titles."
The final WPRO event of the season is a Tier 3 event at USA Racquetball's National Singles Championships in Fullerton, California May 23-27. Longoria is expected to be competing there.
Follow the bouncing ball....
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