Minneapolis, MN, WPH Press, 4/15/25
The students of the Handball Club at the University of Minnesota and tournament director Josiah Hakala were proud to present the 2025 Gopher Classic on the second weekend of in April at the RecWell on the campus of the University of Minnesota.
The 2025 Gopher Classic featured a strong Men’s Open Singles field comprised of former and future Race 4 Eight pros.
Former top 20 Race pro Ryan Pesch advanced to the final of the upper bracket by overcoming a slow start in the semifinals to defeat Minnesota’s former Race 4 Eight pro David Schiller in a tiebreaker.
Current collegiate All-American Bryan Trejo faced match point in his semifinal match in the bottom bracket against North Dakota’s former Race pro Luke Sandy. “Luke was serving really good and at one point had four aces in a row where I couldn’t even get to the ball,” Trejo would later say. “The right-side wall glass wall was throwing me off a little bit so I had to get used to that during the match.”
Trailing 9-10 in the tiebreaker against Sandy, Trejo rallied to make the final. “It was a battle,” stated Trejo. “I called a timeout at 9-10 and got back into the box and scored two to win it.”
Trejo would not need a dramatic comeback against “Depesche-Mode” in the final, cooling off the Minnesota attorney in two games to take the Gopher. “The final was good,” stated Trejo. “I was playing good, shooting the right shots and playing defense when I needed to. Ryan was getting a little worn out, so I just kept pushing and ended it in two games.”
Semifinals
Pesch def Schiller 20-21, 21-4, 11-0
Trejo def Sandy 21-12, 2-21, 11-10
Final: Trejo def Pesch 21-19, 21-15
“The student-led Handball Club runs the Gopher Classic as a fundraiser to sustain year-round activities,” stated Gopher Classic tournament director Josiah Hakala. “The U of M also has one of the premier handball facilities in the country and your support helps to keep those courts available to our state, region, and communities beyond. Your contributions help fund equipment, handballs, uniforms, tournament entries, travel, and, most importantly, spreading The Perfect Game!”
Follow all of the brackets from the 2025 Gopher Classic HERE
David Fink
WPH Senior Writer
