Hood River, OR, WPH Press, 6/6/24
The 8th annual Hood River Invitational was held on Saturday, June 1st at the Elks Lodge in Hood River, Oregon. The Stenberg family has hosted the event every year since 2015, with the exceptions of 2020 and 2021 due to the pandemic. More than forty handball players from Oregon, Washington and Texas descended on Hood River to play handball, enjoy Hood River camaraderie and wish each other well for the summer as the Oregon 4-Wall handball season came to a close.
The Hood River Doubles Invitational splits players into two divisions, pairing the players together based on skill level.
Division Two
The Division Two finals consisted of two mixed gender teams. Mike Wecker (Portland, OR) and Chris Kersey (Eugene, OR) reached the finals to face Frank Swehosky (Austin, TX) and Ivette Heredia (Hillsboro, OR). The match was close throughout, with Swehosky/Heredia managing to separate themselves at the end of both games, claiming the Division Two championship.
Division One
Division one saw two of Oregon’s top open players meet in the finals, as Dalton Beall (Junction City, OR) and Ed Fredenburgh (Beaverton, OR) matched up against Tyler Stevens (Eugene, OR) and Ben Liebman (Clackamas, OR). Stevens/Liebman took the first game and appeared to be headed for a clean sweep as they served for the match in game two. However, Beall/Fredenburgh stepped up under the immense pressure and battled back, sending the game into overtime, ultimately winning 16-14. After falling behind 3-7 in the tiebreaker, Beall/Fredenburgh again battled back to tie the game at nine and eventually pulled away to win the Division One championship.
Philanthropy at the Hood River Invitational
Aside from the handball competition, the Hood River Invitational is also a philanthropic event, with this year’s beneficiary being Chal Lauber and his family. Chal is a four-year-old boy from Grants Pass, Oregon who suffered severe burn injuries when his t-shirt caught on fire at home. He was rushed to the local hospital, stabilized, and then transferred to Portland, Oregon to be treated at the Legacy Oregon Burn Center. Multiple surgeries were required, which racked up medical bills, in addition to travel and lodging expenses. Philip Stenberg was one of Chal’s nurses, and as Philip connected more with Chal and his family, the idea to benefit the family at the Hood River Invitational took shape. At the tournament banquet, the Stenberg family read a statement from the Lauber family, then proudly announced the tournament had raised over $7,000, a new tournament record.
Those interested can read more about the Lauber family and Chal’s journey at their GiveSendGo page by clicking HERE
Thank you to the Hood River Handball Association and the Stenberg family for hosting this record-breaking event. To learn more about the HRHA, please visit their Facebook page by clicking here.
Thank you to the World Players of Handball for their continued sponsorship of the Hood River Invitational. To learn more about the WPH, please visit wphlive.tv
Nick Flores, Chairman
Oregon Handball Association
www.OregonHandball.org