Day 3
Tucson, AZ, WPH Press, 11/6/22
Sunday featured the conclusion of one of the sport’s greatest events in the Mecca of handball. Champions would be crowned in six pro divisions, as well as a number of amateur and masters brackets, with all of the players and fans celebrating the lives of our handball family that we have lost but not forgotten.
(Sunday’s Picture’s Posted HERE)
R48 Men’s Pro Singles
Final: Lucho vs. Mulkerrins
Lucho Cordova and Martin Mulkerrins met for the second consecutive Race 4 Eight XI final, with Mulkerrins winning their first encounter in two games at October’s R48LTE Portland Classic. Mulkerrins entered the final on the two tournament, 12-match R48 winning streak and seeking his fourth R48 title and second R48 Memorial title, while Lucho entered as the game’s hottest player after dominating the 2022 WPH Icebreaker Series with three wins in three events.
Lucho established the momentum early in the match, moving Mulkerrins side to side and keeping the Irishman off-balance. Lucho thwarted Martin’s offense with his court coverage and power, not allowing Martin to sit down on his shots. “It just looks like Martin is a bit flat-footed in there,” Killian Carroll would say in between games to ESPN’s Kara Mack about his compatriot.
Lucho comfortably took game one and seized control in game two, building an 11-1 lead. With the dozens of Lucho fans that traveled from Texas and Juarez in a frenzy, Mulkerrins mounted a charge but was never able to threaten Juarez’s hero, as Lucho claimed his fifth R48 title and first Memorial crown. “I’m really happy and it feels great to win this,” stated Lucho. “I love that I can share this with my wife and kids and family, who are always here supporting me. My wife is always encouraging me and it’s just a great feeling.”
Final: Lucho def Mulkerrins 15-7, 15-8
Playoffs
5th place final: Fink vs. Ruiz
Weekly sparring partners David Fink and Shorty Ruiz met for the coveted fifth place title, with Fink defeating Max Langmack (25-7) en route to the fifth place final and Ruiz overcoming a 15-21 deficit to defeat the 2022 Memorial’s Cinderella Man Ivan Burgos 25-21.
Fink and Shorty were far from their best in the 5th place final, with both making a number of errors and missing opportunities. Fink led 15-10 at the half and extended the lead to 23-12, eventually closing out the match, 25-15. “You were serving really well and the serves were coming out,” Shorty would later say to Fink.
Final: Fink def Ruiz 25-15
9th place final: Walsh vs. Hernandez
Current collegiate national champion David Walsh brushed aside his round of 16 loss to Lucho Cordova with impressive wins against Mark Doyle (25-22) and Loren Collado (25-9) to advance to the fifth place final, while Dylan Hernandez continued his impressive rise to the game’s elite with wins against John Wayne Cortez (25-14) and Niall O’Connor (25-14) to meet Walsh in the ninth place final.
Walsh and Hernandez played the Playoff match of the tournament, with the two evenly matched stars from 5100 miles apart needing overtime to decide the winner. Ultimately it was the Irishman crossing the line, winning three Playoff matches in all for his best R48 finish.
Final: Walsh def Hernandez 26-24
17th place final: *MVP Alert*
Kyle English earned tournament MVP honors with his outstanding 17th place triumph, defeating two pros en route to the 17th crown. “I hurt my back in my first match and already booked a flight for the next day,” stated Kinglish. The King was persuaded to stay and made the most of it, winning four matches in the 17th playoffs, including a semifinal win against Abraham Montijo and a finals win against teenage sensation Andres Cordova.
Final: English def A. Cordova 15-12
1st: Lucho
2nd: Mulkerrins
3rd: Carroll/Canales, Jr.
5th: Fink
6th: Ruiz
7th: Langmack/Burgos
9th: Walsh
10th: Hernandez
11th: O’Connor/Collado
13th: Doyle/D. Cordova/Cortez/Chapman
17th: English
WR48 Singles
Final: Casey vs. Tully
Catriona Casey entered the 2022 WR48 Memorial with only her records to break, as the WR48 #1 had won 22 of 24 WR48 starts since the inception of the tour in 2014. Fiona Tully is one of the game’s most dedicated and meticulous players and would be aiming to conquer her great rival to win her first WR48 event in her second WR48 final.
Based on Catriona’s play on Saturday and Tully’s strong Saturday form, Sunday’s final appeared to provide an opening for Tully to grab her first WR48 title. Casey quickly dispelled any notion that she was ready to relinquish her crown, dominating Tully from the outset en route to a convincing two-game sweep to claim her twenty-third WR48 title in twenty-five WR48 starts. “I am hoping to attend the rest of the stops this year but I just started a new job (teaching) and it could be hard to get away,” stated Casey, who traveled to the Grand Canyon in the days prior to the event. Fans will certainly hope to see the best women’s player in the game at all of the season’s upcoming starts.
Final: Casey def Tully 15-3, 15-7
Playoffs
3rd Place Final: Ruiz vs. McCrory
Tournament director and top 4 WR48 pro Dr. Ashley Ruiz faced WR48 newcomer Eilise McCrory in an intriguing first-time matchup. The left-handed Tik Tok sensation McCrory impressed the handball world by taking a 10-8 lead in the second game of her semifinal against Catriona Casey, becoming one of the few WR48 stars to lead a game against Catriona Casey and to score double digits in a game against the WR48 #1. Dr. Ruiz enjoyed impressive moments against Fiona Tully and was aiming to play more consistently in the third place final.
The first matchup between Ruiz and McCrory was a good one, as both players had their moments in the one game to 25 final. McCrory was able to cross the line first on Ruiz’s home court, earning third in her first WR48 start. “I’ll definitely be in Houston and can’t wait,” stated McCrory.
Final: McCrory def Ruiz 25-20
5th Place Final: Esser vs. Davis
WPH Icebreaker star Mikaila Esser and living legend Tracy Davis renewed their rivalry in the fifth place final, with both women aiming for a top five finish to kickoff the four-event WR48 season. Esser was too strong for Davis on finals Sunday, winning the match going away.
Final: Esser def Davis 25-11
1st: Casey
2nd: Tully
3rd: McCrory
4th: Ruiz
5th: Esser
SR48 Singles
Final: Fink vs. Mehilos
8-time SR48 champion David Fink lost just two points en route to the SR48 Memorial final (60-2), while Bill Mehilos was challenged in his semifinal win against the ageless current national champion Leo Canales, Sr. in the bottom bracket SR48 final. Fink and Mehilos continued their friendly rivalry that started fifteen years ago in the final, with the 2022 SR48 Memorial final being the second consecutive SR48 final for the top two SR48 stars (2022 SR48 Player’s Championship).
Fink was in control for the first game and a half, leading 15-2, 8-1. “The match was going my way early,” stated Fink. “I was playing well and making good decisions but Bill was also missing.”
Mehilos caught fire at 8-1, killing every shot he touched with his right hand off the back wall and adding diving re kills and punch fist kills to thrill the pro-Mehilos gallery. Mehilos tied the game at ten and continued to apply pressure, taking the lead with a diving kill at 12-11. Fink responded, earning a side out and scoring two points to lead 13-12. A good return of serve and a kill on the sixth shot of the rally earned Mehilos a side out and three quick points forced a tiebreaker and an eruption from the Mehilos Maniacs in the front row.
“I wasn’t panicking because Bill just played outstanding handball to come back and win that game,” Fink would later say. “I knew I had to win two games so nothing really changed after that second game.”
Fink built an 8-1 lead for the third consecutive game in the decider and squashed any comeback attempts with steady play and timely kills, winning the match and his ninth SR48 title.
“I have played Bill many times and I know he can get hot at any moment, which he did,” stated Fink. “Bill has more experience than anyone in the draw and he knows how to compete and problem solve, so I was expecting a run. I was happy with how I played, especially in the third.”
5th Place Sr40+ Final: Svennungsen vs. Aranda
Svennungsen and Aranda played a very close one game match, with both players having their chances. Pistol Pete made his move late, overcoming “Jesse Phoenix” 25-22.
Final: Svennungsen def Aranda 25-22
1st: Fink
2nd: Mehilos
3rd: Canales Sr./A. Garcia
5th: Svennungsen
Men’s Small Ball Pro Doubles
Final: Ruiz/Esser vs. Lucho/Killian
One of the largest small ball pro doubles fields (16 teams) included many of the game’s best R48 stars, to include Killian Carroll, Lucho Cordova, Leo Canales, Jr., Shorty Ruiz, Sam Esser, David Walsh, Niall O’Connor, Dylan Hernandez, Max Langmack, Mark Doyle and many more. After playing the semifinals early on Sunday morning, Lucho and Killian emerged from the top bracket to face Team Ruiz/Esser.
Lucho’s Memorial slam appeared to be within reach, as Team Kucho took a 9-2 lead in the first. The 3-Wall national champions showed why they are one of the best doubles teams in the sport, outscoring Team Kucho 13-3 to win the first game and carried the momentum to the title. “Sam and I always play well as a team and we love playing together,” stated Ruiz.
Final: Ruiz/Esser def Lucho/Killian 15-12, 15-11
1st: Ruiz/Esser
2nd: Lucho/Killian
3rd: O’Connor/Walsh
3rd: Langmack/Doyle
Men’s Big Ball Pro Singles
Final: Samzon vs. Chava
Two of big ball’s greatest stars collided in the 2022 Memorial Big Ball singles final, with Samzon Hernandez advancing to the final in the upper bracket with dominating two-game victories against Christian Salcedo, Jesus Luna, and Manuel Chavez. Chava Cordova overcame Fernando Zapata and Jonathan Chavez to advance to the bottom bracket semifinals and rallied from a one-game deficit against Wiz Duenas to meet Hernandez in the final.
“I hurt my shoulder at my tournament (The Amado) a few weeks ago but I’ve been doing therapy and taking care of it so it feels good now,” stated Hernandez, who would be aiming to add to his 400+ pro tournament titles in the Big Ball Memorial singles final.
Samzon lived up to his nickname, as “The Machine” decimated the big ball singles draw, winning all four of his matches without dropping a game, including a dominating sweep against Chava Cordova in the final.
“Sam was was passing, passing, passing and overpowering Chava,” stated Big Ball ambassador and leader Tim Flores. “There was nothing Chva could do.”
Final: Samzon def Chava 15-5, 15-7
1st: Samzon
2nd: Chava
3rd: Wiz Duenas
4th: Manuel Chavez
Men’s Big Ball Pro Doubles
Final: Siordia/Cordova vs. Samzon/Shorty
Top-seeded Oscar Siordia and Chava Cordova and second-seeded Samzon/Shorty played the big ball match of the tournament in the final, with the teams splitting the first two games and reaching 14-14, sudden death in the decider. Team Siordia/Chava scored the final point, denying Samzon the slam and Shorty the doubles slam.
Final: Siordia/Chava def Samzon/Shorty 15-11, 12-15, 15-14
1st: Siordia/Chava
2nd: Samzon/Shorty
3rd: Chavez/Chavez
3rd: Wiz Duenas/Flash Tojin
Thank you!
Thank you to Ashley Ruiz, Jeff Healam, Scott Cleveland, Jim Verhaeghe, Bill Selby, Renee Sitter, Shorty Ruiz, Max Langmack, Lolita De Vincent, Kris Gurrad, Linda Manning, Kara Mack, Che Lowenstein, Kyra Vidas, Fred Banfield, Doug Clark, the WPH/TRC staff and volunteers who made the 2022 Tucson Memorial a huge success.
Follow the draws and results from the R48 XI Tucson Memorial HERE
Watch replays of the 2022 Tucson Memorial on the Watch ESPN App
David Fink
WPH Senior Writer