TUCSON — The Inaugural USHA National Three-Wall Masters Doubles & WPH Icebreaker Pro Doubles wrapped up on Sunday afternoon with all Masters division finals. The WPH Icebreaker Pro Doubles began an completed a tough eight-team draw on Saturday with Luis and Daniel Cordova stopping Sam Esser and Braulio Ruiz, 15-1, 15-8. Read the WPH’s full write-up of the Icebreaker Pro Doubles HERE.
A special thank you to Scott Cleveland, Jim Verhaeghe and Russ Whitten for providing special Ole Pueblo hospitality (taco bar!) for the event all day Saturday.
Thank you to tournament donors and supporters: Doug Clark, Jeff Healam, Art Benitez.
With temps staying in the low 90s and partially sunny, players enjoyed ideal conditions the entire weekend–many enjoying the warm respite from the winter weather back home. San Diego Handball was well-represented on Championship Sunday. Bobby Nicholas played some of the best handball of the weekend, winning each of his divisions–the only player to achieve the feat and win his 10th Masters Division National title.
The first match of the day featured Dan Zimet and Bobby Nicholas against Southern California’s Tommy Valenzuela and Jim Ramirez in the Golden Masters (50-plus) final. Both teams brought tremendous athleticism and shot-making ability to the contest. Valenzuela brings a dangerous serve-and-shoot game with an equally talented Ramirez playing the right side. The combination of Zimet along with Nicholas proved too much for any team to handle. Zimet darted across the front court while a relentless Nicholas blasted the ball seemingly from anywhere he could set up. After dropping the first game, Valenzuela and Ramirez made a late run in the second, trying to extend the match to a tiebreaker. Zimet and Nicholas answered their opponent’s rally by regaining the serve and closing out match point, 21-12, 21-18.
In the Diamond Masters (70-plus) final, Gary Eisenbooth (CA) and Bob Dyke (VA) could do no wrong in the first game, while National Three-Wall finalists, Ed Campbell (CA) and Tim Murray (FL) couldn’t find their rhythm early. It produced a lopsided 21-1 result that indicated the final may come to a quick conclusion. The second game was slug-fest, with Campbell being more aggressive while Murray dug deep to power drives against their opponents. Dyke and Eisenbooth answered each point, keeping the game in doubt before Campbell asserted his will and helped his team force the tiebreaker, winning 21-19. The long second game didn’t help their chances in the tiebreaker, as Eisenbooth and Dyke secured the title with an 11-3 victory.
In the Veteran Diamond (75-plus) Round Robin decider, Rob Nichols and Art Brooks played the spoilers to Jim Smith and Bob Bardwell’s title run indicating why EVERY match, game and point in a round robin format can be crucial. Brooks was a late substitute partner for Nichols on Friday afternoon just before play began. On Sunday, Bardwell and Smith began the day in first place after their tiebreaker win over Dave Ackerman and Peter Anderson the day before.
Nichols and Brooks dropped their first match on Friday to Ackerman and Anderson in two games. On Sunday, they looked like a different team.
“We played loose and didn’t think about any outcome on the leader board.” Nichols stated.
Nichols stayed off his heals and attacked the ball, converting most of his shots into kills or passes. Brooks played well up front, retrieving or rekilling the majority of shots hit his. While the teams traded wins by the exact score in the first two games, Nichols and Brooks built a 9-4 lead in the tiebreaker before sealing the win, 13-21, 21-13, 11-7.
Both Ackerman and Anderson politely showed up Sunday morning, thinking they were only making an appearance for a runner-up trophy and picture; however, they earned the championship by virtue of the round robin tiebreaker format. Their title was determined by Rule 5.9.(3) Fewest Games Lost tiebreaker. Nichols and Brooks secured second place by virtue of the head-to-head result against Bardwell and Smith.
The Senior (35-plus) final saw the match’s momentum continually shift for each team. Bill Mehilos and Adam Szatkowski survived a game one blitz from brothers Adam and Dan Zimet, (21-2) to turn things around in game two by building a big lead. But the Zimet brothers didn’t concede easily, mounting a comeback to nearly even the score before Mehilos and Szatkowski forced a third game, winning 21-17. Things stayed close in the tiebreaker, with both teams playing to a 9-9 tie before Mehilos and Szatkowski notched an 11-9 win.
The Super Masters (60-plus) didn’t go to three games, but it was by far the closest match of the day. Scott Walker (OH) and Lloyd Garcia (WY) battled San Diego’s Marc Penick and Bob Nicholas in two marathon games. Penick and Nicholas prevailed, winning 21-20, 21-20, with Nicholas dramatically ending the match with a 50 foot rollout kill–a fitting end for his second doubles title of the day.
Finally, the Veteran Super (65-plus) final was between current Three-Wall Champions Bob Bardeau / Phil Kirk (OH) against Lloyd Garcia / Bob Paulsen (WY/CO). Garcia and Paulsen have played well against the pair from Ohio, but Kirk and Bardeau pulled away late to close a tough back-and-forth first game, 21-15. In the second, Kirk and Bardeau hit their stride to take the final, 21-5.
Thank you to all the players and supporters who made this event happen. It was an incredible collaboration with the WPH, and we hope to offer it again next year!
All five of the beautiful courts at the WPH Outdoor 3-Wall Handball “Clark Park” at Randolph were buzzing with activity as play begin Friday
The Inaugural USHA National Three-Wall Masters Doubles & WPH Icebreaker Pro Doubles kicks off on Friday afternoon at WPH Outdoor 3-Wall Handball “Clark Park” at Randolph (200 S Alvernon Way, Tucson, AZ 85711).
SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – Saturday and Sunday were full of hard-fought and thrilling matches that brought out the incredible atmosphere that can only be found at the collegiates: Players playing their hearts out, and their teammates roaring them on.
The first men’s open semifinal saw David Walsh defeat reigning champion Shane Dunne in impressive fashion. Walsh overwhelmed Dunne with his power and precise pass shots taking the match 21-15, 21-12.
The second semifinal was between Minnesota State’s Ray Ure and Dublin’s Diarmuid Mulkerrins. Mulkerrins was on fire to begin the match, taking game one 21-8. Ure grinded out the second game to edge Mulkerrins 21-19. The tiebreaker saw Mulkerrins regain the form he had in the first game, and defeat Ure 11-5 to go to the finals.
The finals was a rematch from the 2020 national collegiates where Walsh and Mulkerrins met in the semifinals with Mulkerrins defeating Walsh in a tight tiebreaker. This was just as exciting.
Walsh caught fire in the first game and easily defeated Mulkerrins 21-4. Mulkerrins came out a completely different player the second game and won a lopsided game himself, 21-5. The tiebreaker was full of incredible rallies with diving retrievals and flat kills. Mulkerrins had a 10-9 lead and earned a back-wall set-up that skipped inches from the wall. Walsh came in and hit a left hand rollout followed by a lob serve that stuck on the wall that forced a Mulkerrins hand error that gave him the 11-10 victory.
Fiona Tully continued her impressive Collegiate career by winning another open title on the women’s side of the bracket.
Tully faced off with Aoife Holden in the first women’s semifinal and cruised to a 21-3, 21-5 victory. Waiting for her in the final would be Ulster University’s Mairead Fox who was making her collegiate debut.
Fox was impressive in her semifinal win over Holly Hynes, but was overmatched by the experience and all around game of Tully. Tully hit lasers down the right side and followed them up with winning kill shots and pass shots that never allowed Fox to get in her groove. Tully took the title 21-7, 21-5.
SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – Friday’s matches produced more competitive contests with the winners advancing to Saturday’s semifinals.
The final match of the day produced some of the most excitement. In the Men’s Open quarterfinals, Ray Ure (Minnesota State, Mankato) defeated Conor Walsh (Munster Technological University), 21-16, 18-21, 11-8. Ure mixed in smooth pass shots to take game one 21-16 and was cruising towards a victory in the second game. But Walsh had other plans, sharpening his shots with pinpoint accuracy, many landing just beyond Ure’s reach. Walsh kept the pressure on Ure with unanswered scoring runs until clinched game two 21-18 to force a tiebreaker decider.
In the tiebreaker, a red hot Walsh jumped to an 8-2 lead before Ure began turning the match into his favor. But soon an ensuing rally, Walsh crumpled to the floor with an apparent injury to his left leg, causing him to use nearly 11 minutes of his injury timeout before returning. Able to get back on the court, Walsh was clearly hobbled during some moments. But Ure continued his comeback, hitting crack serves followed by amazing kills which fired up the Mankato fan base in the gallery and fueled him to the semifinal.
The main exhibition court matches are featured and streamed on two separate links on the USHA YouTube Channel. Look for LIVE streaming at top of the channel page.
Follow results by clicking on each division below.
See the preliminary brackets (how final brackets were formed) click HERE.
SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – Day two brought the preliminary rounds to an end, creating the final 16 person brackets for both men and women. The first round will be played Friday morning while the quarterfinals will be play Friday Night.
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SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – Day one kicked off at Thomas H. Burnett Handball courts with women’s doubles and men’s singles. All schools were in action and there were great matches throughout the day!
The men began their singles while the women played the opening round of their doubles. It was great to see the return of collegiate handball. The women will begin their first round of singles Thursday morning and finish up in the afternoon. The men will also finish up their preliminary round this afternoon and bracket play will start Friday.
SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – The Missouri State University Handball Club welcomes collegiate handball athletes from around the country and from overseas this week for the 69th USHA National Collegiate Championships.
After nearly a two-year hiatus, Collegiate Handball officially kicks off again this Wednesday at 2 p.m. (Central) at the Dr. Thomas H. Burnett Handball Courts in Missouri State University Plaster Sports Complex.
See below to see the tentative start times for all singles players and doubles teams. Please note that these start times are tentative and may change up to Wednesday afternoon.
The main exhibition court matches will be featured and streamed on the USHA YouTube Channel beginning Friday afternoon.
Brackets and results will be posted here and will be updated every 2-3 hours, starting Wednesday (Feb. 23) afternoon.s
The Vince Gabriel Sportsmanship Award winner Collin Beturne with Head Coach Abraham Montijo
TUCSON — Day three saw several more champions crowned in both the small ball and big ball divisions.
Eliseo Gutierrez became the first champ of the day when he finished off his sweep through the 5 person round robin in the 13 and under. Gutierrez was dominant in every match and certainly has a bright future.
The 21 and under final between provided the match of the tournament when Tucson’s Jorge Pimentel took on Juarez’s Alejandro Garcia. Garcia took a commanding game one lead, but Pimentel began to crawl his way back. Pimentel stepped into the service box at 19-20 but could not convert on a setup, giving Garcia the serve and ultimately a game one win. Pimentel came out fast game two and never let up, defeating Garcia 21-11. The tiebreaker was back and forth. Garcia earned a sideout to get into the service box facing match point down 7-10 after a Pimentel error. Garcia could not take advantage and would end up double faulting, giving Pimentel the serve back where he converted a back-wall set up for the championship.
Check out all of the results HERE and re-watch the action from Wednesday on our Youtube page by clicking HERE.
Congrats to all of our banquet award winners:
Newcomer of the year: Isaac Holguin Most improved player: Nathan Stoffel Vince Gabriel Sportsmanship award: Collin Beturne (pictured above)
TUCSON —Day two of the USHA 2021 Junior Four-Wall Nationals saw are first champions being crowned. Ray Ure became the first champion today when he defeated David Sanchez in the 19 and under final 21-4, 21-2. Ure finished off an incredible junior handball career with another title and will look to add one more in the 21 and under doubles with his partner Nathan Stoffel.
The 17 and under final featured Mexico’s Andres Cordova vs Minnesota’s Nathan Stoffel. Cordova showed off his vastly improved game by running Stoffel all around the court, and claiming victory 21-4, 21-5.
In the female 21 and under division, decorated junior players Belisa Camacho and Sophia Della Croce squared off for the final. The two good friends displayed excellent Handball, with Della Croce just edging Camacho 21-19 in the first game. She kept that momentum going in the second game and was able to defeat Camacho 21-11 to win another national title.
The last final was the 11 and under final which saw Luke Lambert defeat fellow Fred Lewis Foundation player Gabe Torgeson 21-13, 21-12. Both players showed that they have a bright future ahead of them!
Follow along with all the results on R2sports by clicking HERE.
TUCSON — Day one of The USHA 2021 Junior Four-Wall Nationals kicked off Monday morning at the Tucson Racquet Club. Every small ball division was in action from the 11 and under to the first ever 21 and under, which was added due to last year’s event being cancelled and several juniors missing out on their last year of eligibility.
Many small ball divisions will have their final played tomorrow morning, and the big ball action will begin in the afternoon. Follow along with all the results on R2sports by clicking HERE.
Pro Singles finalists Timbo Gonzalez and Tywan Cook.
BROOKLYN, N.Y. — Play resumed early Sunday morning on the final day of the 13th USHA Wallball Nationals, after a full first day of matches with a few exciting finals. Nine of the twelve Wallball Nationals divisions would crown champions on our Championship Sunday.
The highly anticipated Pro Singles final of Timbo Gonzalez and Tywan Cook delivered another electrifying exhibition of skill and athleticism from the two top-seeded players. As the match neared the 45-minute mark, Cook pulled away and executed crucial kills and passes that skimmed the court lines to win his third singles crown over Gonzalez, 25-19.
Things looked bleak early on, as Gonzalez looked unbeatable for the first few points, cruising to an 8-0 lead. Cook withstood Gonzalez’s barrage of shots and would score his first point with a sharp angled “ace” serve to the left. As Cook began to crawl back into the match, frustration grew for Gonzalez, as he burned two failed appeals (USHA One-Wall / Wallball Rules give a player three failed appeals) over Cook’s first three points. Cook tied the score at 13-13 with a pass down the right line forcing Gonzalez to use a time out.
Once play resumed, Cook would take the lead; however, Gonzalez stayed within striking range as the two traded side outs before Cook pulled away leading 19-14. Gonzalez produced one more push, getting within two points from Cook, down 19-21. While Gonzalez began to wear down, Cook found an extra gear. After one amazing shot, even Gonzalez showed appreciation for his opponent with a fist bump. Gonzalez would prolong the match by fight off one match point, but a wide shot to the right gave Cook the serve where he would kill match point. With the win, Cook joins Gonzalez as the only two players to simultaneously hold wallball and one-wall small ball national titles in the same year.
Cook hardly had a moment to enjoy his win before jumping on the courts for the Pro Doubles with partner Eddy Troncoso. Cook /Troncoso endured a semifinal nail-biter against Joshua Garcia and Paul Yagual, 25-24. Their final opponents, Carlin Rosa and Mickey Osorio did the same, defeating the super team of Allan Sanchez and Carlos “Los” Pena by the same score, 25-24.
The championship match didn’t hold the same drama, Cook/Troncoso dropped Roas/Osorio 25-9; however, both teams treated the crowds to some more amazing handball to close the tournament while Cook earned the “slam.”
In Women’s Pro Doubles, sisters Jessenia and Melanie Garate held on to defeat previous champions, Ruby Lloyd and Birdiana Garcia, 25-12. The win marked the first National Doubles title for the Garate sister and completed the “slam” for Melanie.
In other action, William Polanco and Steve Robalino captured the Masters (40+) Doubles, defeating Ray Lopez and George Figueroa, 25-13. Gary Luk closed his B career with a “B Slam,” winning both the singles and doubles. In the Women’s B Doubles final, Lily Fung and Hope Valenica turned back Erica Mendez and Sabrina Roberts, 25-17. Michelle Wu captured the Women’s B Singles title the day before, edging Shantel Mena, 25-23. In the Men’s Golden (50+) Singles, Jose Olivencia stopped Ronald Beard, 25-12 to win his first National Singles title.
Finally, in the Men’s Golden (50+) Doubles, Darwin Lee and last-minute sub Peter Ostander held off a valiant effort from Tim Samuel and Javier Pellot to win the title, 25-23.
Thank you to all the players for entering while showing cooperation and patience to complete each day’s matches. Thank you to USHA Board Members, Jared Vale, Alethia Mendez and every one from the USHA One-Wall Committee for their outstanding work. Thanks to Shenta Pizarro for keeping the tournament desk humming and matches on time. And thank you to all tournament volunteers and refs. Be sure to read the full coverage and see some of the wonderful action photos in the Summer Issue of Handball Magazine.
It is amazing to finally hold tournaments once again. We missed all of you, and we’re already looking forward to next year!
See the 13th USHA Wallball Nationals results HERE.
BROOKLYN, N.Y. – The 13th USHA Wallball National Championships kicked off Saturday morning on Sea Breeze Courts in Coney Island, marking the first Nationals in 2021. Matches began at 8:00 A.M. sharp, since a full draw of 153 players meant a full day of play. Ideal conditions, player cooperation, volunteers and tournament staff kept matches rolling.
In the Women’s Pro Singles, the top two seeds, Jenny Qu and Melanie Garate blazed their way to a highly anticipated final. Garate made the most of her first final appearance (her sister Jessenia had made the final in 2018) winning her first national title over Qu, 25-14.
The first championship final played was the Men’s Masters (40+) Singles division between George Figueroa and Ray Lopez. The two legends put on a tremendous show with Figueroa holding on for a 25-24 win. Lopez, left everything on the court, making some tremendous gets and dives, but Figueroa executed all the crucial shots down to the wire to successfully defend his title from 2019.
ICHA President Cesar Sala (left) and Vice President Bryan Lucero (right) congratulate Boys 19-Under finalists Christian Pimentel and Steven Poon.
BROOKLYN — The USHA One-Wall Junior Nationals hosted by the Inner City Handball Association (ICHA) took place this past weekend in Brooklyn, NY showcasing the future stars of the sport. Thanks to event co-sponsor Jared Vale and his ValeU Group the event was free for the kids. Safety guidelines were put into place to protect both the players and the spectators. All matches were one game to 21.
Steven Poon entered the boys 19 and under as the 1 seed, and survived an early scare from the 16 seed Brandon Lopez-Herrera just escaping him with a 21-16 victory. Poon was rolling after that, not conceding more than 6 points in any game the rest of the tournament, including a 21-6 championship victory over surprise finalist 14 seed Christian Pimentel.
On the girls side of the 19 and under, Cathy Chen emerged victorious against Kunga Chodon in the finals. Chen easily took care of Lizbeth Sierra in her semifinal while Chodon upset 1 seed Amy Liang to earn her spot. Chen and Chodon put on a great show, showing the future of the sport is in good hands with Chen ultimately winning 21-20 to become the champion.
Daniel Lin won the boys 17 and under by defeating Angelo Balajadia in the final. Lin only gave up 3 points the entire tournament proving he’s ready to compete in the next age group.
1 seed Ivett Avila won the championship of the girls 17 and under and did so in dominating fashion by holding every opponent to single digits. She defeated 2 seed Shirley Chen in the finals, who was also coming in hot, holding her opponents to less than 4 every game but was ultimately no match for Avila, falling 21-3.
Thank you to the ICHA and ValeU group for making this event happen for the kids! To see all of the results from the tournament go here:
USHA Hall of Fame and 2020 Masters Doubles Postponed Dear Handball Family,
As I mentioned in my last message, the COVID-19 response is fluid and things are changing rapidly. As a result of care and concern for our members and families, as well as current restrictions on facilities, businesses, and gatherings, we are postponing the following events at this time:
Hall of Fame Tournament, Tucson, Arizona, April 3-5; and National Masters Doubles Championships scheduled for Schaumburg Tennis Plus in Schaumburg, Illinois, April 16-19.
Of course, we do this with heavy hearts and we sincerely apologize to those who may be inconvenienced. The USHA will give full refunds for entry fees. We are also pleased that most businesses associated with travel (e.g., airlines, hotels) are accommodating cancellations, as well. But, concern for our handball family and friends necessitates these postponements. We encourage you to contact your tournament directors regarding upcoming local, state, and regional events as they may be postponed or cancelled. We are already aware of some of these situations.
We are committed to doing what we can to reschedule the important USHA events identified above. And, of course, we look forward to a time when we can go back to “business as usual.” In the meantime, we hope you stay safe and take care.
