Day 4
Sunday crowned the champions from the 2021 USHA Four Wall Nationals in Nashville, as the top two seeds from the men’s and women’s brackets battled for handball immortality.
Men’s Pro
Paul Brady entered Sunday’s final as the defending champion (2019) and seeking his 12th USHA national four wall title, which have put him alone at the top of handball’s Mt. Rushmore. Carroll was seeking to advance his legacy and add his face to handball’s Mt. Rushmore, with the eventual goal of catching and surpassing Paul Brady and Naty Alvarado, Sr.
“Paul and Killian played an incredible match that was truly handball at its pinnacle,” barked WPH reporter Max Langmack. “The power, endurance, technical ability, and sportsmanship was evident from the first serve and put the crowd on notice that both players came to win. Killian started the first game red hot, showcasing inch high serves, impressive kills and refused to let Paul pass him with incredible gets. He jumped out to a considerable lead and forced Paul to be even more aggressive to win rallies. Paul was undeterred and attacked his way back with rollouts and a barrage of kills to win the first. Killian regrouped in the second and employed his high pressure strategy to build a commanding lead again in the second before closing the game out. The tiebreaker was a thrilling, if brief, affair. Both players fought for each shot and left the crowd in disbelief with the level of play before a serious ankle injury to Paul cut the match short and left fans clamoring for more in this spectacular rivalry between two great players.”
Brady severely twisted his ankle during the 4-4 rally with Killian serving, sadly ending what was quickly becoming an instant classic.
Final: Carroll def Brady 15-21, 21-6, 5-4 injury fft.
Watch the replay of the Men’s Pro final, courtesy of the USHA HERE
Women’s Pro
Ashley Moler faced Danielle Daskalakis for the title that both desperately wanted to win. Daskalakis overwhelmed Moler in Sunday’s final, never allowing Moler to take control of the front court. “Danielle was shooting really well and stayed consistent,” stated Langmack. “Danielle’s great serve put her in a position to win rallies.”
“I feel great,” exclaimed Daskalakis. “This is my first 4-Wall national title and it was the last singles nationals title I needed so going into the match. I couldn’t really sleep because I was so anxious going into the match. I feel a lot of weight lifted from me after winning, so I’m feeling on top of the World right now. I finally found my power serve to the left this weekend and that helped me a lot. My right and left kills felt great and I’ve been training with Jai (Ragoo) a lot at the NYAC working on passing more, ceiling shots, and defensive shots l, which helped a lot going into the match.”
Final: Daskalakis def Moler 21-7, 21-8
Watch the Women’s Pro Final, courtesy of the USHA HERE
Age Bracket Champions
40+ Final: Mattioni def Mehilos 21-14, 15-21, 11-4
45+ Final: Ragoo def Leonis 21-10, 21-4
50+ Final: Tico def Tierney 21-5, 21-7
55+ Final: Canales def Goldstein 21-1, 21-4
60+ Final: Kelley def Garcia 21-14, 21-12
65+ Final: Scogin def Kirk 21-8, 21-2
70+ Final: Deckert def Cambell 21-12, 21-17
75+ Final: Braine def Ward 18-21, 21-9, 11-8
80+ Final: Scott (round robin champion)
Follow all of the results from the 2021 USHA National Four Wall Singles Championships HERE
David Fink
WPH Senior Writer
Day 2
Men’s Pro
Brady’s quest for #12 was never in jeopardy on Saturday, as “The Gunner” overwhelmed two-time Race 4 Eight champion Danos Cordova in two games in the upper bracket semifinal. “Brady looked pretty dominant,” stated WPH Race 4 Eight and Icebreaker pro + WPH reporter Max Langmack. “Daniel was having to serve lights out aces (to score), though Brady appeared to have a little trouble with Daniel’s inside out serve down the right. In the rallies, Brady kept Daniel on the run and was methodical in his shot making on both kills and passes.”
Killian’s mission to reclaim the national championship he so badly craves looked to be in teetering with uncertainty after the “K Train” found himself trailing 10-1 in game two after taking game one against Irish rival Martin Mulkerrins. “Martin was able to win the second by switching to a high wrap-around lob serve that dropped into the left back corner,” stated Langmack. “He built a good lead and took advantage of Killian favoring the right side more in his shot selection. Martin withstood the pressure of a Killian rally to force a tiebreaker.”
Killian quickly regained the momentum in the tiebreaker, starting from the service box. “Killian turned up the velocity in the third and the placement on his down the left reverse serve, forcing Martin into starting rallies defensively with his left – which Killian then exploited with a mix of fly kills and strong straight passes down the left side,” stated Langmack.
“Martin looked exhausted in the tiebreaker and Killian looked fresh,” stated Nationals quarterfinalist Shorty Ruiz.
“Killian dominated the tiebreaker and raced to a 10-1 lead,” stated handball super fan Rodney “RFC” Fink. “Killian is all business.”
Semifinals
Brady def D. Cordova 21-4, 21-9
Carroll def Mulkerrins 21-8, 9-21, 11-5
Final (Sunday): Brady vs. Carroll 11:30 am CST
Women’s Pro
Ashley Moler was dominant against her Southwest rival Kristen Hughes, allowing just seven points en route to the final.
Danielle Daskalakis and Mikaila Mitchell renewed their 3-Wall Icebreaker rivalry in Nashville, with Double D overcoming Mikaila in two games to set up a blockbuster final with Tucson’s Moler.
Semifinals
Moler def Hughes 21-3, 21-4
Daskalakis def Mitchell 21-10, 21-18
Final (Sunday): Moler vs. Daskalakis 10:15 am CST
Stay tuned to this thread for continuous updates throughout the championships.
Watch the USHA livestream on youtube HERE
Follow all of the results from the 2021 USHA National Four Wall Singles Championships HERE
David Fink
WPH Senior Writer
Friday saw the fields shrink in Music City, as the Men’s Pro eliminated 12 of the 16 players to start the day and the Women’s Pro saw its draw cut in half.
Paul Brady’s quest for #12 started with a two-game sweep against Ricardo Palma, while his closest pursuers were also dominant, setting the stage for a sensational semifinal Saturday.
Men’s Pro Singles
Round of 16
Brady def Palma 21-10, 21-8
Cooney def Esser 21-5, 14-21, 11-7
Cordova def Langmack 21-10, 21-13
Lenning def L. Collado 21-7, 21-1
Mulkerrins def Pesch 21-4, 21-2
Ruiz def Ure 21-13, 6-21, 11-2
Canales vs. Montijo 21-7, 21-15
Carroll def Mehilos 21-4, 21-2
Round of 8
Brady def Cooney 21-4, 21-12
Cordova def Lenning 21-1, 21-6
Mulkerrins def Ruiz 21-9, 21-16
Carroll def Canales 21-7, 21-10
Semifinals (Saturday)
Brady vs. D. Cordova
Carroll vs. Mulkerrins
Women’s Pro Singles
The Women’s Pro Singles kicked off on Friday, with the top four seeds comfortably advancing to Saturday’s quarterfinals.
Quarterfinals
Moler def Kirk 21-3, 21-4
Hughes def Rumping 21-18, 21-10
Mitchell def Bell 21-4, 21-3
Daskalakis def Pecaut 21-7, 21-8
Semifinals (Saturday)
Moler vs. Hughes
Daskalakis vs. Mitchell
Stay tuned to this thread for continuous updates throughout the championships.
Watch the USHA livestream on youtube HERE
Follow all of the results from the 2021 USHA National Four Wall Singles Championships HERE
David Fink
WPH Senior Writer
Daily Update Thread
WPH Press, Nashville, TN, 12/9/21
Day 1
The USHA proudly hosted the 2021 USHA National Four Wall Singles Championships in Music City, the first USHA National Four Wall Singles Championship since the pandemic. The 2021 USHA National Four Wall Singles Championships also serves as the Race 4 Eight X Stop #2, meaning the men’s pros would not only be playing for the national title, but Race 4 Eight ranking points as well.
Men’s Pro Singles
Round of 32
Palma def Schiller 21-7, 18-21, 11-5
Esser def Papathemetrios 8-0, fft
Cooney def Schmidt 21-2, 21-5
Langmack def St-Amant 21-2, 21-5
Collado def Elkin 21-9, 21-14
Pesch def Chapman 21-11, 21-15
Ure def Sayed 21-7, 21-16
Montijo def Vollink 21-16, 21-15
Meholis def J. Santerre 21-11, 21-20
Round of 16 (Friday)
Brady vs. Palma
Esser vs. Cooney
Cordova vs. Langmack
Lenning vs. L. Collado
Mulkerrins vs. Pesch
Ruiz vs. Ure
Canales vs. Montijo
Carroll vs. Mehilos
The Men’s Pro quarterfinals will also be played on Friday.
Women’s Pro Singles
Quarterfinals (Friday)
Moler vs. Kirk
Hughes vs. Rumping
Mitchell vs. Bell
Daskalakis vs. Pecaut
Stay tuned to this thread for continuous updates throughout the championships.
Watch the USHA livestream on youtube HERE
Follow all of the results from the 2021 USHA National Four Wall Singles Championships HERE
David Fink
WPH Senior Writer