Board Update: Thank you Larry Steiner!!
(October 8, 2009) The news of Larry Steiner’s resignation from the Board of Directors of the CSRA is very shocking to say the least. There have got to be a number of things running through our brains. Shock, sadness, confusion are just a few emotions that come to mind. There is still work and programs that we need to continue moving forward and to that end, I have accepted the responsibility to temporarily step in as president with the blessings of my most ardent supporter, George Tellez. My hope is to bring continuity to the members of our organization and our board as we go through this transition.
This is not my organization; I am merely the caretaker while we get things in order and ready it to hand it over to our next leader. We will need to work together to design our path. There have been some very good initiatives implemented over the last year and we should keep moving ahead with those plans. Concentrate our efforts on these positive areas. We should examine the areas that have caused us discord and find out if there is a way to compromise in order to benefit the members and the organization.
Larry needs to be commended for the work he began. We learned that there is always more than one way to do things. There is work ahead of us, work that will be meaningful and important as we continue the mission of the association and I look forward to checking in with each of you about your thoughts, ideas and updates on the projects you have been working on.
Sincerely
Peggine Tellez
President, CSRA
CA Players on the US Junior Team
(Sep 26, 2009) A number of California's oustanding junior players will be competing for the US Junior Team at the Junior Worlds in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic (December 14-20th). Each of these players is responsible for raising a portion of the team's expenses. Your support would be a big help, so pick the cutest mug, or pick em' all:
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Aubrey O'Brien (contribute to fundraising) |
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Devon Pimentelli (contribute to fundraising) |
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Jose Diaz (contribute to fundraising) |
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Jose Rojas (contribute to fundraising) |
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Jose Serrano (contribute to fundraising) |
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Marco Rojas (contribute to fundraising) |
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Beyond the Short Line - Summer 2009
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(July 24, 2009) Marina Park in Huntington Beach, California again hosted The 2009 Racquetball Warehouse WOR Championships. Gorgeous weather, Jimbo’s magic on the grill, and hot tunes booming from the DJ booth all set the stage for an incredible weekend. Nearly 300 competitors from 24 states battled it out over 4 days for the right to be called National Champion.
Pro Doubles was certainly the talk of Day 1, with many surprises in the R32’s. Robert “Iceman” Sostre and partner Freddy Ramirez have dominated the 1 wall scene, but have logged very little time on these “Championship sized” 3 wall courts. They took out IRT stars Alvaro Beltran/Chris Crowther with their outdoor savvy and clutch shot making, surprising many in the crowd. Ken Grandy/Dave Smith were ranked higher than Charlie Pratt/Tony Carson, but most in attendance expected Florida’s #1 team to be outmatched by the young guns. Smith/Grandy again prove their doubters wrong, and made all the big shots in tiebreaker. Brian Pineda/John Ivers surprised many by taking out established veteran team of Rick Sandello. Cliff Swain and Jason Mannino barely squeeked past Willie Tilton/Ravi Sohoni, going 10,(9)10 in an exciting match.
But the match of the day was clearly Mike Orr/Brad Kirch vs former National Champions Craig “Clubber” Lane and Greg Solis. Lane and Solis played like champions, thrilling the crowd with incredible displays of power and shot making. But Mike Orr and Brad Kirch played with a magic that had to be seen to be believed. The last shot of the game was pretty much a microcosm of the entire match, which was a joy to watch. At match point Kirch/Orr were stuck out of position, with a gaping hole on the right side of the court. Of course the ball was sent perfectly flying out the right door with seemingly no hope for a return. Brad Kirch somehow launched himself through the air at mid court and time seemed to stand still. While flying completely horizontal and out the door two feet above the concrete, Brad perfectly hit a forehand for a dead flat kill. Game over.
For many in the crowd it was the absolute best racquetball shot they had ever witnessed firsthand. It was that good.
All this on the very first day!
The rest of the weekend was dominated by Kevin Booth and Mike Peters, in both the Men’s Pro Doubles and CPRT Master’s 40+ Doubles. Booth/Peters mowed down their first 3 opponents with relative ease until the big semifinals showdown versus IRT star Jason Mannino and living legend Cliff Swain. The crowd expected an exciting match and nobody was dissappointed! Mannino picked up outdoor very quickly, and was deadly when the ball was left up. Cliff is a master of any sized or shape court, regardless of how many walls there are. On one defensive shot, Cliff made an insanely impossible defensive “get”, while seemingly standing on his head. But Booth/Peters would not be denied. They used court savvy and clutch shot making to win what was probably the most anticipated match of the weekend. 10 (9) 9.
In the Pro Dubs Finals, Booth/Peters were able to fend off Rocky Carson and Mark Koiden in another exciting match. Carson and Koiden showed how they got to the Finals and made shot after shot, but the Booth/Peters train would not be denied.
In the Men’s Pro Singles, Alvaro Beltran fell to Rocky Carson in the Finals, in what was a rematch of last years Final. Another “crowd pleaser” of a match in this division was Ben Croft vs Greg Solis. Everyone in attendance appreciated the heart shown by both players in this intense battle. Croft’s ability to hit shots was matched only by Solis’s uncanny ability to get everything Ben hit. Ben Croft too the match 11 (14) and 10, but everyone in the audience was a winner having witnessed that match.
Women’s Pro Doubles had Martha McDonald/Rhonda Rajsich reclaim their title, taking down Janel Tisinger/ Michelle Poage in an exciting match.
Paola Longoria and Jackie Paraiso dominated the Women’s Pro Singles, and the crowd was anticipating a well fought final between these two. They certainly lived up to the hype and then some, battling it out till Longoria came out ahead with 11,(14) 10.
In 2007, racquetball lost a great man in Greg Sheffield. To honor his lifetime of giving to the racquetball community, World Outdoor Racquetball created the Greg Sheffield award. This award is given to “The Outdoor Racquetball Player Who Most Exhibits Honor, Integrity, and True Love For Growing the Game”. The 2009 recipient was Greg Lewerenz from Detroit Michigan. Greg has worked tirelessly to help grow the racquetball community in Michigan as well as in Ohio. Greg is respected and admired by his peers for all that he does.
The 2009 Racquetball Warehouse WOR Championships was a great success. Much thanks to Allan Kazem, Steve Cook, John Ellis and the entire event staff for putting on a first class showcase event.
Vic Leibofsky
National Director
World Outdoor Racquetball
Team California: #1 Juniors in Nation
(July 6, 2009) Against the odds, California Juniors take the National title for third year…
Heading into the Junior Nationals, it did not look good for California as we had 16 players going to the event and Oregon had 25. We had won the state championship the previous two years after Oregon had a long reign. It looked like they were back in the drivers seat. But wait, Gold in Boys 18's...Gold and Silver in 16's; Gold and Silver in Gilrs 16's yada, yada...California by a few points took the "threepeat". All players attending played a part in this, as one missing piece could have made the difference.
Congratulations to the California Juniors...Lets go for the Fourpeat!!!
Below is a summary of the event written by Elaine Dexter of ClubSport, Pleasanton:
Well, where to start? It’s hard to describe a tournament of this scope adequately for those who have not attended a junior national event. This year, California sent 16 players to East Lansing, Michigan to compete against the best junior players in the country. As proud as we are of our junior players, it is unfortunate that in our populous, sport-crazy state we produce so few national level junior racquetball players. Still, as slight as our numbers may be, our state won the tournament in points! Oregon sent 25 players and both Ohio and Michigan had more entries than our state, yet we emerged victorious. This impressive win says something for the strength of the programs we have here in California; kudos to our coaches for their dedication and our players for their talent. Next year the junior program will be losing one of the greatest junior players California ever produced: Jose Rojas. His winning record and amazing play will forever remain a brilliant distinction in the California junior annals. Jose has inspired his brother, Marko Rojas, and fellow Stockton junior, Jose Diaz, to aspire to his throne and we’re confident that they will. We also have the best 16 year old girls in the country right here in our state: Aubrey O’Brien and Devon Pimentelli, capturing both 1st and 2nd place in their singles GOLD division.
The junior nationals, though, represent so much more than high level racquetball and medals for California and our players. These kids go from high pressure indoor racquetball, resulting in triumphant wins or disappointing losses, directly to socializing with their opponents from all over the country. I watched kids leave indoor racquetball and head straight to outdoor racquetball, to basketball, to swimming. What better club to be able to appreciate sports and activities than the MAC, this year’s host racquetball facility? The kids lined up outside waiting to challenge on the outdoor courts, some went directly to play basketball, or jumped in a sand volleyball game or played dodge ball and keep away in one of the many pools available. It was great to see kids active all day without television or video games☺. As much as I enjoy playing racquetball and working out, I felt privileged to watch our players compete and have the time of their lives in this 5 day, once a year tournament.
With the California State Racquetball Association now spending time, energy and money on our junior program, hopefully coaches can look to encouraging more of our young players to attend this event next year. Fundraising is available; support from our organization is there, so we, as coaches, need to do all we can to bring more kids to the sport.
As soon as we hear where this event will be held next June, we can start preparing our juniors and their parents early enough so that plans can be made and money can be raised. Let’s continue to grow our programs and to support the kids who have dedicated so much effort toward attaining excellence in the sport. — Elaine Dexter
Congratulations to all our California Participants:
2009 Junior State Championships
(May 12, 2009)
The Junior State Championships were held on May 2nd at ClubSport of Pleasanton and provided some interesting twists on this yearly event. Thanks to the many volunteers and helpers, we were able to run the entire tournament over one day. We received a lot compliments and thanks from the parents for managing 55+ junior players and a multitude of events (including singles and doubles) in one day; especially those parents who traveled a long distance to have their children compete. It was great to welcome 9 players from the Southern California area. Thanks for making the trip!
Another innovative bonus was that the CSRA picked up the cost of the first year membership for all of the first time tournament entrants. This, too, was greatly appreciated by the parents and by the tournament directors, since the generous offer enlisted more junior players into the event. As coaches, racquetball directors, and CSRA board members, we are exploring more ways to encourage kids to get involved in the sport and accommodating the families is high on the list. There were 25 new Junior members as part of this tournament.
We used a format that R2 does not have programmed into its system, but one that allowed the juniors to play more games against different opponents than usual. The players were in pools, initially, and every player from these pools advanced to draws: Gold for the top players; Blue, red and white (if enough players) for the rest of the competitors. So, in addition to top finishers listed on R2, players did well in some of the other draws: 10 White singles 1st Brant Kickhofel 2nd Vittoria Tommasini; 14 Red singles 1st, Tyler Llapitan, 2nd Mikey Neishi, semis’ Logan Nance and Ben Koos. 14 White singles 1st Sara Leon, 2nd Michael Hinsberg. The 14 singles girls champion title was won by Sabrina Viscuso over 2nd place Sara Leon.
We offered both 6 and under and 8 and under multi bounce divisions. The youngest division had Ken Stone on the court with the little juniors while they played. He modified games and rules so they, too, could participate in the state championship. Let’s get the kids playing as young as we can!
We’d like to give a special thanks to people sponsoring this event: Larry Steiner, CSRA president and co-owner of Lee and Larry’s Bad Ass BBQ who provided the funds for our lunch. Gil Cepeda, racquetball director and junior coach at Los Gatos Health & Fitness club, provided the ice cream for our afternoon ice cream social. The members of Club Sport (too many to list) who spent so many hours refereeing, making and serving our delicious lunch, running errands, handling the check in desk, and generally assisting in any way they could are the greatest support for junior racquetball anyone could ask for.
Elaine Dexter
Tournament Director
ClubSport Pleasanton Racquetball Director
Women's Pro Stop in the news
(Apr 29, 2009) The Women’s Pro Ektelon Championships held this past weekend in Stockton got the attention of CBS Channel 5 News:
Collegiate Nationals
(Apr 12, 2009) Collegiate racquetball players descended on the ASU courts in Tempe, Arizona for the 2009 USAR Collegiate Nationals in the first week of April. California was represented by players from CSU Fresno, CSU Sacramento, UC Berkeley, and San Joaquin Delta College. This was Delta’s first year on the national collegiate stage, but they brought California junior veterans Jose Rojas, Teresa Diaz, Ismael Aldana, David Horn, and Jose Serrano. Even with just 5 players (out of 12 on a full team), they captured the men’s individual title, 2nd place men’s team, and 5th place overall team. Awesome.
 Jose Rojas playing Anthony Carson (CSU, Pueblo) in the Men’s I semi-finals. Jose went on to win the men’s individual championship. |
 The Cuerno Windmill—click on the photo to see the windmill in action. Contest |
| Images from the racquetballonline.tv live video streaming of collegiate nationals. Used with permission. They have videos of Div I finals matches on their site now. Viewers will need to sign up for a free account. | |
Additional information and results are available at USA Racquetball.
Racquetball Warehouse CSRA State Singles
The Wrapup
(Apr 10, 2009) The CSRA State Singles Championship was held March 20–22 in Fresno. Thanks to Racquetball Warehouse and our other sponsors for their help in building the event, and to all of the organizers and players who made it such a great event.
Results at r2sports.com |
Photos
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Videos at racquetballonline.tv |
Discuss at meetandplay.com |
The state singles championships came to Central California this year taking place at Sierra Sport and Racquet Club along with Centerpoint Athletic Club… Players from throughout the state attended the event held March 20-22.
John Ellis, Steve Cook and their band of tournament elves made the tournament run smoothly the whole weekend. Several CSRA Board members were on hand to help where needed. Merijean Kelley did an excellent job organizing the terrific Saturday night banquet.
The event began Friday afternoon with play at both clubs. Matches were self ref other than Open matches or if players requested a ref. This seemed to work out smoothly. Matches were on time for the most part.
Play continued early Saturday ending with a great match between Stockton buddies and junior stars Jose Diaz and Marco Rojas…
From there the players moved on to the banquet—an excellent Mexican dinner with the decor to go with it was arranged by Merijean along with Colleen Keating and Debra Nathan.
As players were eating their enchiladas etc. an awards presentation was done. First honored were the 2008 Junior Stars of the year. Seven Junior players were honored who made some significant accomplishments in 2008. Brian Dixon, CSRA Junior Director, made the presentations. Those honored included (by age): Sabrina Viscuso, Sawyer Lloyd, Devon Pimentelli, Jose Diaz, Marco Rojas, Aubrey O’Brien and Jose Rojas.
The awards proceeded with the presentation of the Presidents awards. Peggine Tellez (past CSRA President) made the presentations to the recipients who earned the honor by having an impact on Racquetball in 2008.
Play started up again Sunday with continuation of some round robins and the playoffs of pool play. The day culminated with the final of the Open match. This saw the new rivalry of John Ellis versus Junior star Jose Rojas. It was an exciting match with the crowd divided in who they should root for...It went to a tie breaker with John pulling it out 11-9!! You can catch this match as well as some others at www.Racquetballonline.tv.
Stay tuned for the State Doubles coming up in the Fall…
Again, a big thanks to our title sponsor Racquetball Warehouse as well as other sponsors Ektelon, Head, Gearbox, E-Force, and Pro Kennex…
Collegiate Racquetball Update
(Mar 23, 2009) On February 28th, players from University of Southern California (USC), Azusa Pacific University (APU), and Claremont University Consortium (CUC) met at the Claremont Colleges to represent their schools in the collegiate shootout. After a grueling day of round-robin play, with each player playing a minimum of 4 matches, Pascal Cooper (USC) beat Jeffrey Weiss (CUC) in the finals. In the consolation game, Ankit Bhargav (USC) and Joel Roberts (APU) tied for third due to the exhaustion of both players.
The support of Pro Kennex is gratefully acknowledged for providing prizes for winners of the tournament, as is the work of Jeffrey Weiss and the Claremont racquetball team for hosting the tournament.
The next collegiate racquetball event is going to be the UC Santa Cruz Surf & Slam, May 2nd–3rd. Collegiate events are open to all full-time college students. Visit the WCRC website for more information.
Wishing you were at National Doubles?
(Feb 12, 2009) Selected Men's and Women's US Team Qualifying matches are being streamed via live video through the Team USOC website:
So Where Did You Last Play Racquetball?
“Beware Jet Blast”
Racquetball Pros Join the Fleet onboard USS BONHOMME RICHARD (LHD 6)
[see MilitaryRacquetball.com for more photos and videos]
(Dec 5, 2008) For the first time in history, a portable outdoor racquetball court was placed on the flight deck of a naval vessel to showcase the benefits of racquetball as it relates to fitness for Sailors. The USS BONHOMME RICHARD (LHD 6) welcomed the top professional racquetball players from the International Racquetball Tour, Women’s Professional Racquetball Organization, World Outdoor Racquetball and Classic Professional Racquetball Tour. “We’re making history onboard this vessel, as we promote health and fitness for our Sailors through the sport of racquetball,” said Lt. Cmdr. Steven Harper of Maritime Expeditionary Security Squadron Five and event organizer. “This is an opportunity to show Sailors how to play the game and promote the sport in the military,” said Alvaro Beltran, the number four ranked player on the International Racquetball Tour.
The idea of merging Navy fitness with the game of Racquetball began two years ago, while Lt. Cmdr Harper was deployed to the Gulf onboard a Norfolk based Cruiser. “Initially I was only thinking of how cool it would be to bring some type of court onto my ship while underway.” says Lt. Cmdr Harper.” But then I learned about the possibilities of portable outdoor racquetball courts, and I thought it would be more exciting to bring the game of Racquetball directly to Sailors who have never been exposed to it and who know nothing about the physical and mental challenges of the game”.
He put his idea into action while attending the 41st USA Racquetball Association National Singles Championship, where he met Hank Marcus with World Outdoor Racquetball and Peggine Tellez with the California State Racquetball Association. Together, this dynamic team orchestrated the two day demonstration onboard the USS BONHOMME RICHARD, November 12-13, then seamlessly launched the All Military National Championship at Naval Base San Diego, November 14-16.
The planning of such a huge undertaking took massive coordination between organizers, sponsors and the ship’s staff. In fact, timing was critical as the BONHOMME RICHARD had just returned to port (San Diego) from for a four month exercise – conducting maritime exercise missions with coalition forces, and it was scheduled to fulfill additional operational mission requirements. Yet, even with such a tight schedule, the ship’s Commanding Officer, CAPT N. Parrott and CMDCM T. Verschueren thought this would be a unique way to introduce the sport and feature a new option for physical fitness to Sailors.
The day before the event kickoff Chuck West, of GIMEL Properties, and his crew transported and built the portable outdoor court on the flight deck of the ship. Working from sunup to sunset, they meticulously erected the court that would be used to make naval history. Then it was time to play.
The clinic began with exhibition matches between the professional players. Sailors were also given the opportunity to test their racquetball skills against the pros so see if they could score a few points. The professional players in attendance were IRT Professionals Rocky Carson, Jason Mannino, Alvaro Beltran and Chris Crowther; WPRO Professionals Rhonda Rajsich and Angela Grisar; CPRT Professionals Bret Harnett and Jimmy Lowe; and WOR Professionals Greg Solis and Craig Lane.
Between games, the sponsors, players, and guests were given the opportunity to tour the ship and have lunch with the crew. Professional players Rhonda Rajsich and Rocky Carson, agreed that this event was unique, as it was the first time either player had an opportunity to experience life on a warship. “We are pro’s in the sport of racquetball, but these Sailors are dedicated and committed to keeping this country free and democracy strong.” said Rhonda. “We are the ones who are honored, just to be able to promote the sport to these Sailors.” she continued. Rocky added, “We see the camaraderie amongst these Sailors, and pride they take in serving this country.”
The Sailors expressed gratitude and admiration for the Pros as they, in most cases, received their first introduction to the game of Racquetball. “It’s a very challenging sport and it’s an awesome way to keep in shape,” said Seaman Darren Larsen. “This was a successful event overall, both in terms of a morale boost for the crew and in promoting the ships continuing commitment to a culture of fitness,” said Anne Bolton, BONHOMME RICHARD’s Afloat Recreation Specialist. “We support a variety of fitness programs on BONHOMME RICHARD, and this racquetball clinic introduced the crew to an alternate method of staying in shape. It was a great event and it’s awesome that we [BONHOMME RICHARD] were the first to host such an event.”
As the clinics and demonstrations on the USS BONHOMME RICHARD; aimed at promoting racquetball to a new military audience, came to a close, the All Military National Championship, hosted by the Southwestern Region MWR, was just getting started, thanks to the generous support of Romano’s Macaroni Grill, E-Force, Ektelon, GearBox Racquetball, Head, ProKennex, Wilson, NMRA, & CPRT.
Over 100 military players from across the country and abroad (Germany and Italy) came to compete in this tournament; the first of it’s kind in over 15 years. In a celebration of military service, active duty and veteran service members from the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines and Coast Guard convened on Naval Base San Diego over Veteran’s Day weekend in Round-Robin competitions to determine who would rein as the military Champion. “It’s a passion and the Inter-Service competition keeps me coming back,” Lt. Cmdr Chhem Young-Pen, from SPAWAR System Center Pacific “I mean, this tournament brought out the best players.” Ron Dorst of Saratoga, N.Y. at 74, Dorst was the oldest player in the competition. The retired Vietnam-era veteran, who served in four branches of the military, has been playing racquetball for more than 25 years, said"It's fun coming together to have fun and see my friends."
“This week was a success for the sport of racquetball as we were extremely well received, not only by the tournament players, but also by those Sailors who had never heard of the game.”, said Lt Cmdr Steven Harper. “Getting the Military Racquetball-family back together again was just Great”, said Jeff Elder, (Air Force MSgt, ret.), former Presidential aircrew member of AIR FORCE ONE. “After 15+ years, it’s been a long time coming, and a dream of many to put on this type of event. We have to keep this program alive in the military”. And that is exactly what the supporters of this event intend to do!
To view photos, to read more about the demonstration onboard the USS BONHOMME RICHARD, or for a complete list of winners from the All Military Racquetball Championship visit www.militaryracquetball.com.
State Doubles Results
Los Caballeros in Fountain Valley was the site of the 2008 State Doubles Championships. Pool Play and Round Robin formats insured that there was no shortage of matches to play. You may view the winners and finalist on the CSRA below. Also check out photos from the event in the photo gallery. Thank you’s all around to the CSRA Board of Directors and Don DiPalma and Los Caballeros. And a special thank you to Terri Ann Rogers, she just knows how to make a tournament flow smoothly!!!
| Division | Winners | Finalists |
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| Men’s Elite | John Wong/Scott Davis | Keith Fisher/Kevin Watson |
| Men’s A | Alberto Gutierrez/Michael Myers | Mark Root/Warren Pettit |
| Men’s B | Joshua Buras/Larry Stephens | Steve Levine/Scott Mortensen |
| Men’s C | Joe Rosales/Pedro Jimenez | Alex Fischler/John Fischler |
| Men’s 25/30+ | A/B Mark Root/Warren Pettit | Steve Levine/Scott Mortensen |
| Men’s 35+A | Bryan Handlen/Ruben Lopez | Brad Levine/Joe Hayward |
| Men’s 35+/40+ | Keith Fisher/Kevin Watson | Gabe Medina/John Wong |
| Men’s 45+ A/B | Hatch Saakian/Tom Keefe | David Horton/Steve Amezaga |
| Men’s 55+ | Pete Chmielewski/Steve Cohen | Bill George/Mike Lippitt |
| Men’s 50/60+ | Steve Cohen/Pete Chmielewski | Dennis Riggs/Mike Alderson |
| Men’s 65+ | Hal Price/Luis Guerrero | Frederick Roe/Howard Nellor |
| Mixed Elite | Kris Kaskawal/Scott Davis | Debra Nathan/Randy Long |
| Mixed Age | Solanna Taragan/Grant Beatsen | Margie Der/David Aguirre |
| Mixed A | Vivian Schneider/Ernie Dominguez | Nico Richardson/Juan Diaz |
| Mixed B/C | Julia Mouser/Vic Martinez | Mickey Bellah/Dionne Reid |
Older news articles continued in the news archives…