Rising
Aisling Reilly (+10%): Trailing 7-0 in the tiebreaker, Reilly battled back, tying the score at nine and closing out the most dramatic final at the 2015 Simple Green U.S. Open final with an emphatic statement victory. Reilly now holds the All Ireland 40×20 Women’s title, the World Title, and the Simple Green U.S. Open of Handball. Reilly also spent time in the WPH/ESPN broadcast booth announcing the 3-Wall Big Ball Singles final, adding flair and culture to the WPH’s 28th live hour of weekend coverage from the U.S. Open
Mando Ortiz and Vic Perez: Seeded fourth in the Open Doubles, Portiz rallied from a seemingly insurmountable 11-21, 1-10 deficit against current world champions Robbie McCarthy and Diarmaid Nash to advance to the final and thrashed Paul Brady and Emmett Peixoto in the final. “To win on this court where all of the greats have played is just a dream come true for me,” revealed an emotional Ortiz
Sandy Ng (+10%): As she always does, Ng quietly collected titles in singles and doubles at Simple Green’s “Festival of Handball.” Ng became the only pro player to slam at the U.S. Open, defeating Danielle Daskalakis in the singles final and teaming with Daskalakis to win the doubles. Ng has announced herself as one of the best all-around handball stars on the planet
The Simple Green U.S. Open Team (+10%): An endless stream of tournament volunteers led by tournament host Naty Alvarado ensured that the courts were dry, matches were on time, players were fed, and referees were in place, making the U.S. Open a highlight of the handball year for players and fans
Timbo Gonzalez (+9%): Timbo kept his undefeated 1-Wall record intact at the U.S. Open, dominating one of the best 1-Wall fields of the year en route to the title. Timbo advanced to the 3-Wall Doubles final, coming up just short with partner Shorty Ruiz. Timbo also appeared on ESPN alongside good friend and 1-Wall sparring partner Blake Griffin (here)
Paul Brady (+9%): Brady proved that he can not only dominate fields, as evidenced at the World Championships in August, but also overcome adversity and not playing his best to win titles. Standing just six points from elimination at 14-21, 15-15 in the semifinals against Sean Lenning, Brady rallied to win in a tiebreaker then overcame a slow start in the final against Luis Moreno to win in two games. Brady advanced to the finals of the doubles, but appeared to be running on fumes in a two-game loss to Ortiz and Perez
Samzon Hernandez (+9%): Hernandez continued his October tradition of collecting Simple Green oversized checks, clinching his third consecutive 3-Wall Singles title in the third year of 3-Wall singles play at the U.S. Open. Known as “The Machine,” Hernandez becomes the “ATM Machine” each October in Fountain Valley
Falling
Jarring between players and referees in 3-Wall and 1-Wall (-10%): Several of the U.S. Open’s outdoor referees seemed to forget the matches are about the players, as these referees appeared to intentionally provoke players with unnecessary lectures and aggressive antics
Excessive Playoffs (-6%): With most players playing in two divisions, very few are keen to play in third place singles and doubles playoffs and seventh place singles playoffs. Playing for fifth in singles in great, third in singles and doubles and seventh in singles…not so much. We wonder why most 50+handball players have shoulder, hip, and knee replacements? #savethejoints