WPH Press, Houston, TX, 2/20/23
The eighth edition of the Houston Race 4 Eight produced a number of exciting moments and great handball. Let’s take a look at some of the highlights from Space Town.
Top Moments from the 2023 Houston Race 4 Eight
- The Men’s Final: Houston’s men’s final produced more twists and turns than a Six Flags roller coaster, as Killian surged to a 9-0 lead to start the match and took game one, Lucho seized a 13-4 lead in game two, only to be caught at 13 before eventually winning the game, and Lucho led 7-2 in the third, got caught at eight, then scored seven of the final ten points of the match to earn his third win of the season and the R48 top ranking
- The Saturday VIP Victory Party: Ron Cole and the Houston Handball Club know how to party! All of the pros showed up after Saturday’s semifinals to celebrate the great event, the hosts, and the tour.
- Martin and Killian Thrill the Crowds on Saturday Night: Martin and Killian thrilled the fans in Saturday’s first R48 semifinal, as Killian fell behind 11-14 in game one before a five-point rally stole game one from Mulkerrins in a scenario nearly identical to their first game in Montana two weeks prior. The second game featured a shocking drop in form from the 21-time R48 champion, only to regain his magic in the tiebreaker, as Killian ended the tiebreaker with five points in 45 seconds to defeat Mulkerrins for the second consecutive event after dropping two consecutive matches to his Irish rival in April and November of 2022
- The Houston Handball Club Rolls Out the Red Carpet: The Houston Handball Club ensured that every player and fan was treated with sensational Texas hospitality, as players were greeted with endless food, a tremendous facility, and the Saturday night Victory Party
- Catriona Wins #24, outscoring her opponents by a combined 60-15: Catriona continues to be the dominant force on the WR48 tour nine years after winning the inaugural WR48 stop at the 2014 Simple Green U.S. Open. While all of the names in the WR48 draws have changed since 2014, Catriona remains the constant, breaking records with every match win and redefining domination
- Diarmuid Mulkerrins debuts on the R48 with a bang: Diarmuid Mulkerrins entered his first R48 stop at the 2023 Houston R48 and made an impression straight away, rallying from three match points down against R48 Elite 8 pro Max Langmack to advance to the quarterfinals in his R48 debut. Diarmuid joins a very small group that has advanced to the R48 quarterfinals in his first R48 start
- Collegiate rivals Leo Canales and Same Esser dominate the playoffs: Canales extended his streak of R48 top five finishes to five on the season by winning the fifth place playoffs by a combined 50-25, including his second consecutive win against Danos Cordova in the final, while Sam Esser notched his second-best finish of the season by sweeping the ninth place playoffs. Canales also teamed with his dad to win the Open Doubles, announcing Team Canales as possibly the best father-son doubles team in handball
David Fink
WPH Senior Writer