Cincinnati, OH, WPH Press, 5/25/22
Race 4 Eight pros Sam Esser, Bill Mehilos, and Abraham Montijo traveled to the Queen City to compete in one of 2022’s first 3-Wall events, as tournament host Bob Bardeau and the Cincinnati handball community played host to three of the game’s top outdoor stars.
Esser cruised to the final in the upper bracket with a win against Anthony Collado in the semifinals, while Bill Mehilos overcame Abraham Montijo in a tiebreaker in the bottom half semifinal to meet Esser in the final.
Mehilos found himself in another tiebreaker in the final against the Race 4 Eight’s number six pro but fell just short, as the R48 #6 and Icebreaker #8 Sam Esser outdueled Mehilos in the three-game final.
“I played well in the final,” stated Esser. “I came out strong and won the first 15-3. Bill caught fire in game two, hitting great serves and fly-killing my return to win 15-5. The tiebreaker was close but a couple of errors from Bill and kill shots by me was the difference.”
Final: Esser def Mehilos 15-3, 5-15, 11-7
Two of the game’s top women’s players collided in an exhibition match, as 2022 WPH Icebreaker champion Mikaila Esser faced multiple-time USHA Three Wall national champion Megan Dorneker. Dorneker edged the WPH Icebreaker #1 pro in two close games. “Mikaila really struggled with Megan’s serve,” stated Sam Esser.
Final: Dorneker def Esser 21-19, 21-19
The pros also conducted a clinic for the local players, with the pros focusing on the serve, return of serve, proper ceiling ball positioning and striking, and 3-Wall doubles strategy. “The clinic was very well received by the Cincinnati group,” stated Bob Bardeau.
Much more 3-Wall action is on the horizon, as the WPH kicks off the 2022 Icebreaker Series on June 25 in Tucson, followed by the second Icebreaker on July 16 and the third on August 20.
For more information and to enter the three Tucson Icebreaker events, go HERE
David Fink
WPH Senior Writer