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Handball Article: New York Times - Sunday October 24th, 2004 - "For A Rough and Tumble Sport, A Surprisingly Soft Spoken King" by Peter Duffy The article is about Satish Jagnandan's rise to Handball stardom. You can read the article by logging into New York Times Online....and type Handball in the websites search box.

1-Wall Mens Doubles Stop #2 By Ben Brighton   Sports are in competition with other forms of entertainment for the ticket buying public. Should I take my hard earned money and go to a movie, restaurant, or Broadway show? Bill Veeck. Owner of the Chicago White Sox, understood this 50 years ago. He came up with a series of promotions (such as firework displays and adding a midget into the lineup) to attract fans to his ballpark. The Yankees started give away days (free bats or balls), old-timers day and other events to fill the stands.   Well the promotion idea has hit handball. Tournament promoters have always offered food, drinks and t-shirts to attract players. PeeWee Castro and Willie Polanco came up with the unique and novel idea to induce players into participating in their tournament. A cash incentive of $100 to the team that beats them. In effect they placed a bounty or target on themselves.   The field of eight teams included a mix of up and coming youngsters as well as veterans and current stars. In the quarters, Robert Smallwood and Stan Zavoyskiy lost to PeeWee and Willie 25-14, Paulie Angel and Kareem Wilkerson gave a good accounting of themselves but went down 25-15 to Dave Rojas and Rookie Wright, Herman Mendez and "Snuka" Rodriguez made Cesar Sala and  Robert Sostre earn their 25-14 victory and Albert Apuzzi and Tony Roberts defeated Jon Lee and Alvaro Rebaza 25-14. Albert filled in for Joe Kaplan who had to drop out due to work.   In the semis, Apuzzi and Roberts lost a competitive 25-12 game to Castro and Polanco, while Sala and Sostre left Rojas and Wright on 14.   The finals was action packed. Cesar and Rob were on a mission as they defeated the 2004 USHA National Champions 25-15. The game was closer than the score indicated as there were many long rallies ending with a crowd pleasing killshot or miscue that brought groans from the crowd. Sala played tremendous and flawlessly. I've been critical of his play in the past; only because I expect greatness which he has only shown occasionally. Robert was steady as an anchor on the right side. Congratulations to Sala and Sostre as well as all those who made donations.   ***NOTE - The results of this USHA sanctioned tournament will be used, instead of the Mayor's Cup (which did not meet the guidelines) in the USHA rankings.

Results - A/B Doubles - Saturday October 9th, 2004 - Knickerbocker Park, Brooklyn, NY    In the Finals it was the 2004 Big Blue Citywide Doubles Champion's Jaime Rivera and Pauly Yagual defeating Ervin Irizarry and Oscar DeJesus.

ONE THE COURT - SERVE Magazine's supplement/Newsletter - VOL. 2 Issue NO.3 Sept/Oct 2004 - Published by: Ace Tour Handball

Handball Article!!! Courier Post Online - Tuesday October 5th, 2004 - (South Jersey) Handball: City game gains in popularity elsewhere!!!

Results - Ace Tour Championships - Saturday October 2nd, 2004 - Liberty Park, Queens, NY   This was the 2nd Pro Singles small ball event hosted at Liberty Park this year. Spectators were wowed with some of the spectacular playing. In the semi-finals: Satish Jagnandan d. Tyrone Snell, and Cesar Sala d. Jonathan Iglesias. In the Finals it was Satish Jagnandan defeating Cesar Sala 21-9, 21-17. Rumors were circulating that many of the Pro players did not play in this event due to Jagnandan and Sala's domination in recent tournaments. Many of the younger players are taking advantage of any chance they get to play the top players...Lookout they will soon be the pro's of the future as they gain vital tournament experience.  Tourney coordinated by Milton Jones (photo L-R  Snell, Sala, Jagnandan, and Iglesias)

PeeWee Castro & Willie Polanco

Results - Open Doubles & "B" Doubles - Saturday September 25th, 2004 - Edison Park, Queens, NY. This event was coordinated by Fred Lynch from West 4th Street, with no web coverage, and promoted by word of mouth....he had a huge turnout (only a $5 entry fee and had a $500 prize.) In the Open event: semi-finals PeeWee Castro/Willie Polanco d. John "Rookie" Wright/Emmitt Fitzpatrick 21-19, and Herman Mendez/Dave Rojas d. Jamie Rivera/Paulie Yagual. In the Finals it was Castro/Polanco d. Mendez/Rojas 21-4. In the "B" Doubles it was an all Bronx Finals...the match never finished due to darkness, but 1st place was awarded to Oscar DeJesus/Lenny (Human Racquet) d. Jerry Afaro/Pete Rivera. Players from the Bronx were criticized in the past for not traveling to tournaments...not this year, they are representing in Big Blue and small ball Handball.

Oscar DeJesus & Lenny

Results - Marty O'Malley Classic, Pro Open Singles - Saturday September 25th, 2004 - Bailey Park, Bronx, NY   13 players participated in the rescheduled event due to rain the week before, the low turnout was also due to other tournaments running at the same time. Those who did come to watch were not disappointed. A rising star was born, 17 year old Emmanuel "E" Fuentes defeated Open players Jesus Ayala and Milton Jones to get to the Semi-Finals. Emmanuel is a one of Satish Jagnandan's Handball students. All who attended were treated to high level Handball and FREE FOOD!!! In the Semi-Finals it was Cesar Sala defeating Raul Retian, and Satish Jagnandan defeating Emmanuel Fuentes. In the Finals it was the match everyone was waiting for...Satish Jagnandan from Bailey Park who has won this tournament  3 years in a row vs. Cesar Sala...who some feel is the best player from Coney Island since Durso and Apuzzi. Today belonged to Sala though.....Satish jumped out to an 8-1 lead and looked comfortable on his home court; but Cesar with no pressure on him roared past Satish, and never looked back winning 25-14. Hail Cesar!!!  (photo left-right Retian, Sala, Garcia, Jagnandan, and Fuentes.)

Results - Marty O'Malley Classic, Pro Open Doubles - Sunday September 19th, 2004 - Bailey Park, Bronx, NY  With the threat of rain only 8 teams showed up to do battle in this small ball event. The hottest Doubles team of the year did show up...and they took home another Championship. In the Finals PeeWee Castro and Willie Polanco defeated Tony Roberts and Joe Kaplan. The next event at Bailey Park will be a Pro Singles on Saturday September 25th, 2004.   (photo L-R Castro, Kaplan, Garcia, Roberts, and Polanco)

USHA Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony - Sunday November 14th, 2004 - Honoring Al Torres. Al Torres winner of 11 Open National Handball Titles, and 35+ National Handball Titles.

Results - A/B Doubles - Sunday September 12th, 2004 - West 4th Street Courts, West 4th/6th Avenue, NYC      The winners of the West 4th Street A/B Doubles were Herman Mendez and Snuka ("BX Beast").

Results - Park Side A/B Doubles - September 11th, 2004 - Park Side Houses, Bronx, NY    In the Finals Herman Mendez and Giovanni "Lil Rookie" Vasquez defeated Lenny the "Human Raquet" and Pete Rivera (University). Coming in 3rd place was Cisco Aponte and Jerry (Park side).

Results - Wildman Rick's 2nd Annual Open Doubles & Women's singles - September 5th, 2004 - Van Cortlandt Park, Bronx, NY  The tournament had a "King of the Courts" atmosphere....with 25 teams and over 100 spectators. The semi-finals winners were John "Rookie" Wright/Gio "Lil Rook" Vasquez defeating Ray Lopez/Ervin Irizarry 21-7 and in the other semi-final match it was PeeWee Castro/Willie Polanco defeating Darnell Sutton/Rich(Bronx) 21-13.  In the Finals PeeWee Castro and Willie Polanco pulled out the win against "Rookie" and Lil "Rook" 25-23. PeeWee and Willie were losing at one point, but PeeWee's quickness and Willie's strong playing was the difference. Rookie and Lil Rook played great but seemed to lose steam towards the end. Prizes: 1st place $400/trophies, 2nd place $200/trophies. The Women's singles winners were 1st place Jackie (Van Cortlandt Park, BX), and 2nd place Regina (St. Mary's Park, BX). Tournament coordinator Ricky Montalvo

Results - OOHA-2K4 Doubles Tournament - September 4th, 2004 - John Burns Park, Massapequa, L.I., NY   The tournament was partially sponsored by White Castle (T-shirts & coupons were distributed) to players and refs. 14 team participated in the event. The winners were Tyrone Snell and Karen McConney, they defeated Darwin Lee and Marcell by default. (Both players got injured due to cramping)  The score was 16-10. Tourney coordinator was Lenny Salvo

Results - Open Doubles Tournament - August 29th, 2004, PS. 127, Castle Hill, Bronx, NY  The tournaments original date of August 21st was rained out, 10 teams did show up for the unofficial rescheduled date.  In the Finals it was the "BX Beast" Snuka and Robert Ortiz defeating Herman Mendez and Dave Rojas by default. Herman had to leave due to a family emergency, Snuka and Rob were leading by the score of 12-9.  Tourney coordinated by Tony "Sniper"

East Coast 3 Wall Handball is Alive in New Jersey!!! HandballCity will start to cover select 3 Wall Handball Events.

Is it true? Rumor has it that video game developer Rock Star Games has begun production on a one-wall Handball video game.  Early August at West 4th Street, New York City. Spectators said that players were wearing sensors on their bodies to record movement while they were playing handball. If anyone has more information, please forward to: Jimmy  This can be a major step forward with promoting Handball to kids across the world.

Results - ABEHA $1,000 Annual Open Doubles - August 15th, 2004 - Jordan Park, Allentown, PA

2004 Pro Handball Small Ball Summary - Check out all the action so far...      USHA Rankings coming soon!!!

Pictures: Top Row, Left to Right- 1st Place, Henry Santiago (Brooklyn, NY) 2nd Place, Carlos Figueroa (Brooklyn, NY) 3rd Place, Wally Amaro (Philadelphia, PA) 4th Place, Izzy Alvarado (Waterbury, CT)   With players from Philadelphia, Brooklyn, Queens, Bronx. Hartford, New Britain, and Waterbury: We had a very exciting weekend of handball, at a high competitive level. Next year there should be an increase in prize money and ESPN Coverage!

Results - Lakewood Park Annual Tournament Singles & Doubles - August 7-8th, 2004 - Lakewood Park, Waterbury, CT Singles Results:   Winning two matches to none in best of three by the scores of,15- 11/15-11. 1st Place, Henry Santiago (Brooklyn, NY) 2nd Place, Carlos Figueroa (Brooklyn, NY) Winning two matches to none in best of three by the scores of, 15- 0/15-3.   3rd Place, Wally Amaro (Philadelphia, PA) 4th Place, Izzy Alvarado (Waterbury, CT) TOURNAMENT SPONSORS: Dr. Gonzalez-Associated Spine and Rehab. HandballCity.com ESPN Ektelon Sports Gear Coca-Cola Space Age Copy YMCA

Doubles Results: Winning two matches to none in best of three by the scores of, 21- 16/21-14. 1st Place, Henry Santiago and Damian (Brooklyn, NY) 2nd Place, Wally Amaro and Carlo Velez (Philadelphia, PA) Winning two matches to one by the scores of 15-10/20-22/21-19. 3rd Place, Hector Lugo and Danny (Hartford, CT) 4th Place, Miguel Torres and Tito (Philadelphia, PA)   information provided by Felix Osorio - Director L.P.H.A.   TOURNAMENT SPONSORS: Skybounce Ball Co., Inc. Berties-Jamaican and West Indian Restaurant La Borinquena Restaurant The City of Waterbury - Dept. of Parks and Recreation The Lakewood Park Handball Association

Pictures:   Top Row, Left to Right- 1st Place, Henry Santiago and Damian (Brooklyn NY) 2nd Place, Wally Amaro and Carlo Velez (Philadelphia, PA)   Second Row, Left to Right- 4th Place, Tito and Miguel Torres (Philadelphia, PA) 3rd Place, Hector Lugo and Danny (Hartford, CT)

Results - U.S.H.A. One-Wall Nationals - August 5-8th, 2004 - Coney Island, Brooklyn, NY   Satish Jagnandan wins the men's open singles by defeating John "Rookie" Wright, Brenda Pares wins the women's open singles by defeating Veronica Figueroa...both matches went to tie-breakers. The men's open doubles winners were PeeWee Castro/Willie Polanco defeating John "Rookie" Wright/Dave Rojas. The women's open doubles winners were Anna Calderon/Theresa McCourt defeating Karen McConney/Adrian Floyd. FULL RESULTS, ARTICLES,  and PHOTOS.....COMING SOON!!! Satish holding $1,000 check, & Brenda holding the hardware with the Hickman's.

Results - USHA Nationals - Thursday, August 5th, 2004  - 1st Day Results

USHA one-wall Nationals, August 5-8th, 2004, Coney Island, Brooklyn, NY  drawsheets, including playing times.  David Chapman 4 -Wall Pro Superstar will be playing in this years one-wall Nationals.

Results - S.A.H.A. The King of the Courts - Saturday July 31st, 2004, Roy Wilkins Park, Queens, NY    The 2004 King of the Courts was by far the best tournament of the year so far...it had lived up to all the hype prior to the event. The original date was cancelled due to rain. The King of the Courts singles tournament is where stars are born and reputations are made. If you defeat a top player it is just as big as winning the whole tournament...and we had many upsets this year. The tournament had 64 entrees and was coordinated very well by Dwight Worley - president of the St. Albans Handball Association. Why such a success?? Large prize money and trophies for 1st place through 8th place, the tournament had huge fan support, food (BBQ), drinks, and T-shirts were for sale, high energy drama game after game, and most of the best one-wall Handball players in the world played. The winner of 2004 KOTC was John "Rookie Wright (ranks #1) defeating Lefty George Figueroa (ranks #2) 25-20. Lefty Henry Santiago captures 3rd place. (ranks #3) Comeback of the year was "Tyrone Snell". (ranks #4) The star that was born was named "Justin". (ranks #5) Reggie Mckeiver shows he is still a top player (ranks #6) The Prince Emmitt Fitzpatrick lost to the winner. (ranks #7)  Rejuvenating his Handball career was "Ervin Irizarry". (ranks #8)    Full Results, Articles, and Photos Coming Soon!!!!

Results - Continuation of the ICHA Mayor's Cup Championships - Sunday July 25th, 2004 - Coney Island, Brooklyn, NY    Winning the women's open singles was Brenda Pares defeating Anna Calderon 21-11, 21-15. The women's open doubles winners were Anna Calderon/Theresa McCourt defeating Tracy Davis/Sydell Smith 21-14, 21-12. The men's open doubles winners were PeeWee Castro/Willie Polanco defeating John "Rookie" Wright/Dave Rojas (21-17), 21-14, 11-4.  info provided by Albert Apuzzi  More Info coming soon!!

Partial Results - ICHA Mayor's Cup Championships - July 18th, 2004 - Orchard Beach, Bronx, NY   Due to rain the tournament was not completed. Satish Jagnandan serving to Cesar Sala in the Finals. MEN’S SINGLES Semis – Cesar Sala d. Robert Sostre, Satish Jagnandan d. Joe Kaplan Finals – Jagnandan d. Sala (18),5,9 MENS DOUBLES Semis – PeeWee Castro/William Polanco d. Satish Jagnandan/Robert Sostre Dave Rojas/Rookie Wright d. Joe Kaplan/Cesar Sala Finals – Rojas/Wright are leading 18-10 in the first game	WOMEN’S SINGLES Semis – Brenda Pares d. Karen McConney 11,9, Anna Calderon d. Dori Ten 14,19 Finals – Brenda Pares won the first game 21-11 and is losing the second game 7-4. Anna injured her left ankle while attempting to play Brenda’s return of serve and was using an injury time out when it started to rain. The rain worsened and play was halted for the day. WOMEN’S DOUBLES Semis – Anna Caderon/Theresa McCourt d. Barbara Jackson/Dori Ten Tracy Davis/Sydell Smith d. Adrian Floyd/Karen McConney Finals – Must be rescheduled due to rain.	MASTER (40+) SINGLES Semis – Dan Vera d. Armando Duchense, Lin Fernandez d. Paul Williams default Finals – Vera d. Fernandez 16,13 MASTER (40+) DOUBLES Semis – Mike Angley/ Dan Vera d. Grim/O’Donnell 1,0, George Brandberg/ Paul Williams d. Mike Testa/Rob Weissbard Finals – Angley/Vera d. Brandberg/Williams 1,13 GOLDEN (50+) DOUBLES Semis – Dioniglio/Vignola bye, Sal Catuadella/Mike Grabowski d. Carl Cohen/Steve Rosenberg 8,7 Finals – Catuadella/Grabowski d. Dioniglio/Vignola (5),7,7
B SINGLES Semis – Carlos Espinal d. Iglesias (11),12,10, Victor LoPierre d. Eliel Torres 15,17 Finals – B DOUBLES Semis – Paul Angel/Kareem Wilkerson d. Carlos Espinal/Phat Kat Soriano (19),18,3, Caleb Torres/Eliel Torres d. Ference Domiguez/Victor LoPierre 17,(13,8 Finals – Torres/Torres d. Angel/Wilkerson	WOMENS AMATEUR Semis – Alethia Mendez d. Nabia 19,2, Cynthia Johnson d. Talia Elfassy 19,9 Finals – Mendez d. Johnson 6,3 MENS AMATEUR Semis - Aaron Velez d. Wand Jr. 7,0, Juned Khan d. Roman Ramdas 17,2 Finals – Velez d. Khan (10),14,9	SUPER GOLDEN (60+) SINGLES Semis – Dennis Uffer bye, Ron Eaton d. Tom Adams 0,8 Finals – Uffer 7,(14),10 SUPER GOLDEN (60+) DOUBLES Finals – Steve Kraft/Dennis Uffer d. Ron Eaton/Reyes (19),12,2

Today July 19th is the deadline for the USHA 1-wall Nationals. Payment by credit card can be done by calling 520-795-0434

Results - "B" Doubles - Sunday July 11th, 2004 - Juniper Valley Park, 80th St. & Juniper Blvd., Queens, NY    
In the semi-finals it was Christian Rivas (Elmurst) /Fabian defeated Wally Amaro and Brian (Philly) 21-19; Jamie Rivera/Paulie Yagual defeated Allen Sanchez (Elmurst) and B.J (West 4th St.) 21-7. In the Finals Jamie and Paulie defeated Christian and Fabian 21-5 1st prize $400; 2nd Prize $150  info provided by Margo

Results - SAHA Queen of the Courts - Women's Singles - Saturday July 10th, 2004 - Roy Wilkins Park, Queens, NY  semis: Karen McConney d. Maggie Crespo 21-10, Brenda Pares d. Lori Acevedo 21-17 finals: Pares d. McConney 25-21 "Brenda Pares" the brunette with a Volleyball player build...far from the Anna Kournikova of Handball. Anna Kournikova at her best was only ranked #17th in the world in Tennis. After winning the Queen of the Courts Brenda is now one of the #1 female Big Blue players in the world. She is also seeking a National Championship title with the small ball in a couple of weeks.  If this was another sport Brenda would have landed a modeling contract promoting women's sportswear or sports drinks. Brenda has shown with determination you can become a great player. She entered numerous tournaments to gain experience, played against male players, and practiced in the off season. This shows if you try hard enough you can be anything you want to be. Look out for the Brenda Pares exclusive HandballCity.com interview!!!

Brenda Pares serving.

Results - Allentown "Sportsfest" Annual Small-ball Handball Tournament - Saturday July 10th, 2004 - Jordan Park, Allentown, PA.   Touranament coordinators - Neil Leiby & Larry Shankweiler. You couldn't pick a more perfect day to play in a tournament, the competition was  ruff & rugged but after some very good matches, the team of Hector "Repoman" Diaz and his partner George Negrete pulled it off to win the tournament, it was a real handicapper literally speaking... 1st place: Hector "Repoman" Diaz / George Negrete, 2nd place: Johnny Jimenez / Bob Kester, 3rd place: Tommy Howard Jr. / Dick Keiper, 4th place: Joe Gritter / John Stevens.     Thanks to everyone who helped and supported; Leo Todd, Randy (Reading), Frank Zuercker, Frank Jelensitz.     "Sports Fest" - Handball Champions  info by Hector Diaz

Results - OOHA "B" Doubles - Saturday July 3rd, 2004 - Edison Park, 164th St./Grand Central Pkwy, Queens, NY.  This was the 1st "B" Doubles tournament where "A" players can play...but only with a female player. The tournament was advertised as the White Castle Open, but due to the holiday weekend which caused a poor turnout...it was cancelled. Everyone kept asking where the White Castle cheeseburgers were? Those who did come were treated to some high caliber Handball...especially since the #1 Big Blue Handball player in the world was present (John "Rookie" Wright). Rookie teamed up with Gladys Miranda. "The Wildman was on the loose again" who left his cage open?? In 2nd round action it was Oscar DeJesus and Gio "Lil Rook" Vasquez defeating Rookie/Miranda 21-20. Rookie missed a murderous kill shot with point game, this gave DeJesus/Vasquez the serve and they ended the match. Then Herman Mendez and Julie defeated Lefty Henry Santiago & Tamika Pearson, and Jamie Rivera and Dennis Beadreau defeated Emmitt Fitzpatrick and Bernice Torres.  (They did not allow Jamie and Pauly Yagual to play together after winning the "Open doubles Citywide") Wildman Rick Montalvo and Larry Dubois also advanced by defeating Rivera/Beadreau in the the most exciting game of the day. With Larry hooking the ball and Rick in a Killing Zone all day...they were just to strong. In the Semi-Finals it was Montalvo/Dubois defeating DeJesus/Vasquez in a very hard fought game where Lil Rook Vasquez went flying in the air and rolled the ball out twice. Herman Mendez and Julie got a bye to get into the Finals. In the Finals Wildman and Larry got off to a fast start with a 10-0 lead, many felt the match was over...then Herman gets up to serve and scores 11 straight points. Herman was hitting the ball so hard they could not even touch it, let alone put it back on the wall. Finally with the score 11-10 Rick and Larry got their composure back and pulled out the win by picking on the weaker player.   Wildman Rick talks!!!  HBC Exclusive!!!

Results - $1,000 A/B Doubles - Sunday June 27th, 2004 - West 4th Street Courts, West 4th/6th Avenue, NYC    In the Finals it was John "Rookie" Wright and Gio "Lil Rookie" Vasquez defeating Oscar DeJesus and Robert Sostre 21-2.

Results - A.B.E.H.A. "B" Doubles - Saturday June 26th, 2004 - Jordan Park, Allentown, PA.   1st place Mello & Bucky ($200) Bronx, 2nd place Zeav & Superman Frankie ($100) Staten Island, 3rd place Skinny & Junior     info by Big Hec  A.B.E.H.A.

Results - A/B Doubles - Saturday June 19th, 2004 - West 4th Street Courts, West 4th/6th Avenue, NYC    In the Finals Herman Mendez and Snuka defeated Emmitt Fitzpatrick and Paulie Yagual.  info by B.J.

Results - L.T.H.A. Diva - Women's Open singles - Saturday June 19th, 2004 - Lincoln Terrace Park, Brooklyn, NY    The winners were 1st place Karen McConney, 2nd place TeeTee Simmons, 3rd place Veronica Figueroa, 4th place Brenda Pares       info by Brenda Pares

Results - Graduation Day "B" Singles & Doubles - Saturday June 19th, 2004 - Frank D. O'Conner Playground, 78th St.& Broadway, Elmhurst, Queens, NY   Allen Sanchez won the Graduation Day Tournament by defeating Sean Pearlman 21-19. In the Doubles the winners were Darnell and Armando from West 4th over Shiron and Jose from Maple Park 21-12.  info by Michael Watson - Elmhurst Handball Club

Results - 2004 Big Blue Citywide Handball Championships - Sunday June 13th, 2004 - London Plantree Park, Queens, NY  Results, Photos, and Articles.    >  >  >    Feedback is welcomed.  

Results - $1,000 A/B Doubles - Sunday June 6th, 2004 - West 4th St. Courts, W. 4th & 6th Ave., the Village, NYC  In the Finals Dave Rojas and Cesar Sala defeated Herman Mendez and Snuka 21-18  Coordinated by Fred Lynch, West 4th Street Association.

Results - Bucky's Open Doubles - Saturday May 29th, 2004 - Tremont Park, Bronx, NY  In the Finals it was Herman Mendez and Dave Rojas defeating Bucky and Ervin Irizarry.  The upset of the day came in the 1st round when the team from Philly (Wally Amaro & Little Sammy) defeated the NYC dream team (John "Rookie" Wright & Cisco "Bx Monster" Aponte) 21-18. Wally hit a back hand roller to end the game. Cash prizes: 1st place $800 & 2nd place $200     info provided by Mellow

Results - Junior Pyramid (Big Blue) - May 23rd, 2004 - Frank D. O'Conner Playground, 78th St.& Broadway, Elmhurst, Queens, NY   Allan Sanchez manages to win the first Big Blue Junior Pyramid in the collegiate division despite the fine play of veteran youngster, now a young man, Victor Lopierre, after defeating Kareem Wilkerson in the semi-finals. It was a battle to be won and Allan came out on top. It was great to see such a game with such energetic and adept collegiate players. Victors showing gains him the overall lead with both balls.  Also, to my astonishment, two young females other than myself, showed up to the Big Blue Junior Pyramid, Michelle Leon and Rebecca Ang, Michelle being a young age of twelve. Unfortunately, there were not enough girls to play in each division, but this may be the beginning of a new age for young women. These two females, the other being 16, battled against the guys and gave a strong showing. Keep up the good work ladies! In our High School division, there was yet another great finals game between Richard Barquero and Jonathan Iglesias. Richard Barquero really showed his skills on this great day, giving Mr. Iglesias a run for his money. Stunned, the slightly more experienced Jonathan shines through winning 21-20. Who’s the best at crunch time? We’ll see at the next Junior Pyramid.   To finish off, we had a group, ranging from age eleven to thirteen, to make up the 13 & under division. For some it was their first time. Tyree Bastidas, (or little Jurell as we call him) played to his potential and showed the rest that the Bastidas family doesn’t lose in Elmhurst, Queens, seeing that his older brother Jurell Bastidas, from Midwood H.S. won the first small ball Pyramid game of the year. Tyree won in the finals, being our new 13 & Under Champion! Who will win the battle of the Finest? Who’ll be at the top of the pyramid…    (Special Thanks to our QuJHO Board Members: Victor Lopierre, Alethia Mendez, and Kareem Wilkerson for running the tournament desk.)    Written By: Alethia Mendez
 

Results - Open Doubles - Sunday May 23rd, 2004 - Knickerbocker Park, Brooklyn, NY   In the Finals it was Emmitt Fitzpatrick and Lefty Henry Santiago defeating Dave Rojas and Herman Mendez 25-18. Coming in 3rd place was Ray Lopez and Willie Polanco.

Results - 2004 PSAL Handball Team Championships - Saturday May 22nd, 2004 - Central Park, Manhattan, NY    Forest Hills defeated Midwood to win the Boys Championship, and Fort Hamilton defeated Boys & Girls to win the Girls Championship.

Results - St. Francis Prep wins the 2004 CHSAA Handball Championships, May 17th, 2004 - Marine Park, Brooklyn, NY  It was a cloudy and gloomy day. Nothing much happening at the W5th St handball courts. I was invited to watch some high school players competing for the Catholic High School Athletic Association Championships (CHSAA) at Marine Park in Brooklyn. I was hesitant at first, but I needed my daily dose of handball so I went. Well, I was glad I went. Both the quality of play and the enthusiasm of these young people impressed me. Where sports has become a reflection of society with greed, boorish behavior, and lack of sportsmanship prevalent it was uplifting to see young people playing for the love of the game. St Francis recaptured it's past glory by defeating a game but undermanned Christ the King. Billy O'Donnell, who plays first singles for St Francis, was injured but came down to support his teammates. Watching Billy warm up, with a cast on his left hand, I pictured Willis Reed limping onto the court to rally the Knicks over the Lakers. But safety rules prevented his participation. First singles went to Rich Barquero (SF) over Rich Koster (CTK). Second singles Pete Foglio (SF) defeated Lester Aquilera (CTK). A gutsy Lester injured his right elbow but finished the match. Third singles went to Christian Valcarcel (SF); runner-up Jose Rivera (CTK). First doubles Kenny Maldonado and Daryl Lumaban (SF) defeated Gabriel Figueroa and Joe Abreu (CTK). Second doubles Anthony Pereira and Erica Sztangret (SF) over Jonathan Velez and Kenny Moncada (CTK). That was not a misprint. That was Erica not Eric anchoring the right side. Comparisons to high school phenom Anna Calderon in the 1980s came to mind watching Erica play. Players on both teams were well coached in the fundamentals. There were long sustained rallies, good footwork, and a court sense and strategy that comes with good coaching. Credit goes to St Francis Prep's coach Tony Grimm and assistant Ed O'Donnell and Christ the King coaches Paul Brower. CHSAA Handball League Coordinator, Joe Sciame, presided over the awards ceremony. In any sport the future lies in its young people. Champion players, who leave their imprint on the game would like to feel the game is in good hands. From what I witnessed, the future of handball is bright. Perhaps in this group are some future adult champions. Congratulations to St Francis Prep who won it's second straight Championship and to Christ the King for bringing its defunct team to the Championship Game after only two years back. Saint Francis has not only won two in a row but did it in style by going undefeated  for both seasons. When I go back to the W5th St handball courts, the one thing I'll remember and try to put back in my own game is the simple joy of  hitting the ball. Thanks for the lesson kids. After the victory Tony's players poured Gatorade over his head in appreciation for his hard work and dedication in bringing them to the championship.     Written by Ben Brighton

Results - Wanna B's - "C" Singles & Doubles - Sunday May 16th, 2004 - Frank D. O'Conner Playground, 78th St.& Broadway, Elmhurst, Queens, NY Hosted by EHA and QuJHO. What to do when stupidness runs rampant? 64 players entered the C singles, 64 came to battle and two brought along people who should have stayed home. 18 Teams in the B- Doubles. 100 entries, 85 players 2 events,4 Courts.  Results 38 new members for USHA & QuJHO/EHA. An amazing amount of players combined to create the Largest Local Big Blue tournament held in over ten years. The ages ranged from 13 to 50, the skill level C.  Hearts and minds, guts and Focus.  Rich Fabre proves his way into the B's with a thrilling Victory over Johnathan Villgeros by outlasting all others. Either player could have won and both were extremely tired. Handball booster Adam Gitlitz had a vary strong showing. Long Island Rep Tony Lopilito came down to support showing very smart play. Many of the names here are going to become well known in a few years. The winner of the singles was Rich Fabre over Jonathan Villegos 21-15 Oh, the stupidness you ask? An unfortunate incident happened about haft into the fourth round. Two family members of Players got  into an altercation with each other. Both players were already eliminated by the time of the fight and were in the unfortunate position of having childish family members along for the Day. The incident escalating on the Basketball courts marred what was otherwise a great day for Handball. A stupid  thing started the fight and the day ended with the people involved dealing with the Police. Both players have been banned from future QuJHO events. This cost the Singles event an Hour of Court time and held up the start of the Doubles a similar amount. The Doubles were won with the fabulous run of Emilio Molina and George Barcia from Hoover Park. Defeating Ference Dominguez and Victor LoPierre (21-19)  right after  Allen and Kareem (21-20) to set the stage for a 21-20 Final win. Unfortunately the Doubles games were all rushed due to the lose of court time and I apologize to the players for it. We finished in the Dark. One Last note: It was great to see both Ference and Victor playing in the doubles as they were set to play in the NYAC 4 wall event over the weekend.  The boys were free due to the NYAC's restriction that they could play but could not have their coach with them. The Young men both then declined to participate. Special Thanks go to. Alethia Mendez , Victor LoPierre, Kareem Wilkerson for Running the Desk. All are members of QuJHO's Board.  Info provided by Mike Watson - Tournament coordinator

Results - LTHA "Player Player" Men's "B" Singles - Saturday May 15th, 2004 - Lincoln Terrace Park, Brooklyn, NY   In the Finals it was Christian Rivas defeating Pauly Yagual.

Results - Handball Gear Open Doubles - Saturday May 15th, 2004 - Gravesend Park in Boro Park, Brooklyn, NY     In the Finals it was Herman Mendez and Dave Rojas defeating John "Rookie" Wright and Fred Lynch 25-22.

HandballCity.com is not responsible for tournament cancellations or changes of locations. It is the coordinators responsibility to make sure the information of their events are correct. Any event changes will be updated as soon as possible, so please check the tournament schedule often for updates. Have fun, play Handball.

Results - S.A.H.A. Open Mixed Doubles Tournament - Saturday May 8th, 2004 - Roy Wilkins Park, St. Albans, Queens, NY   This was by far the best tournament of the year, and reminded me why I became interested in the sport of Handball. This tournament had a lot of drama with a King of the Courts atmosphere. You hear mixed doubles and you would think that the male players of each team would attack the female players of the other team. All the women played like superstars, and held there own against the top male players today. The play that said it all was seeing Lefty Lori Acevedo dive cross court and roll out a shot with her opposite hand. Then Jumping off the ground with her elbow bleeding and not even acknowledging her injury. I do not think it was the high prize money, but the competitive nature of all the players that made this a very exciting event. In the Finals it was John "Rookie" Wright and Gladys Miranda vs. Emmitt Fitzpatrick and Tanya Brown. This match was close all the way to the end. Rookie and Emmitt would try to pick on there opponents female partners; but it did not work...They hit key shots to end volleys. So the guys went at each other. Rookie hit a spike shot in the left corner in which Emmitt went diving into the crowd almost threw the fence like a superhero. The score was 24-23 and Rookie went for a game winning killer in which he setup with his deep serve...but he hit it under. It's now Emmitt and Tanya's turn to serve and they score 1 point, then Emmitt went for a game winning killer and hit it under. It was like a replay of Rookie's attempt to win the game. John "Rookie" Wright and Gladys Miranda finally won the 25-24. Trophies & Cash Prizes: 1st place $1,000 Rookie/Gladys, 2nd place $400 Emmitt/Tanya, 3rd place $200 Karen McConney/Giovanni "Lil Rook" Vasquez, 4th place $100 Lori Acevedo/Snuka da "BX Beast"  The Tournament had 16 teams and was coordinated by Dwight Worley President of the St. Albans Handball Assoc.   Please submit Articles and full results of this event.

NEW - Handball website L.T.H.A - Lincoln Terrace Handball Association is an athletic association, which, targets all handball players of the New York City area. Our goal is to teach and encourage an athletic sociable environment that is cost effective and readily accessible. Our long term goals are: 1) To Provide athletic, Charitable, health and educational services. 2 ) To become the largest handball organization in the NYC area. President - Veronica Figueroa, Vice President - Joseph Thompson, and Secretary/Treasurer - George Figueroa   Well Good Luck with your assoc. and keep promoting the sport of One-Wall Handball.
 

Results - P.O.W.H.A. Fundraiser Open doubles & Beginners Doubles - Saturday May 1st, 2004 - 3rd & Spruce Rec., Reading PA.  It was a beautiful day for handball and the turnout was even better. There were about fifty participants for the beginners and the more experienced players. For the beginners tourney we had about twenty kids ranging from 8 years old (the youngest being my son, Lil Rick) to 17. The kids had a great day and played their hearts out. I decided to have a singles match for them so they could get a feel of the game, which they enjoyed. 1st place went to Chris K.; 2nd place went to Gab D.; and 3rd place went to Daren W.   There were 16 teams in the open doubles match. Games went to 16 and in the trophy rounds games went to 21. Players from Allentown, Philly, NY, and Reading came down to support a great cause. The last game prior to the finals were two teams from Reading that really didn’t want to face each other who were, Kyle A/ Eddie and Richy/Juan. Juan and Eddie were up 13-2, then Kyle and Eddie had an incredible comeback and won 16-14. In the trophy rounds were Kyle/Eddie facing Wally Amaro and Andre Diez. Wally and Dre won 21-14 while Kyle and Eddie took 3rd place. Wally and Dre then faced the undefeated team Jose “Skinny” Perez and Johnny “Billy” Faust. Wally and Dre came away with the match winning 21-17 but had to face Skinny and Billy again-being that they were undefeated-. This game was tight but Billy took charge as he killed the last two shots on the right side winning 21-18. All the games were well match and everyone had fun. There were well over 200 spectators and many of them were in awe by the hustle of the wonderful sport. POWHA raised about $500 and will use this money to make more money in order to repair our courts. Special thanks goes out to Hector “Repoman” Diez @ ABEHA; Sam @ chinosport; Miguel “MigDog” @MDPHA; All the players from A-town, Philly, Reading, Zev and Jimmy from NY; Duane Cecil from Summit Quest; and Many more that helped in this event. One more thing I just had to comment on is: This day is officially dedicated to the players that love this wonderful sport and just wanted to come down and play for competition and for fun.   Info and photos provided by Ricardo Medina - President of  POWHA

May 1st, 2004 USHA Pro-Singles at Coney Island, NY    Full Results, Articles, and Photos!!!

View & Print USHA Pro Handball Rankings (updated for May 2004)

Results - YMCA Pro Singles - May 1st, 2004 - Coney Island, Brooklyn, NY. ALL MATCHES WERE ONE 25 POINT GAME WOMENS SINGLES (1ST PLACE $125, 2ND PLACE $75, SEMIFINALISTS $25) ROUND OF 16 - ALETHIA MENDEZ D. BARABARA JACKSON 14 QUARTERFINALS - TRACY DAVIS D. ALETHIA MENDEZ 15, VERONICA FIGUEROA D. THERESA MCCOURT 11, BRENDA PARES D. DORI TEN 14, ANNA CALDERON D. LORI ACEVEDO 4 SEMIFINALS - DAVIS D.FIGUEROA 8, CALDERON D. PARES 14 FINALS - CALDERON D. DAVIS 24

MENS SINGLES (1ST PLACE $200, 2ND PLACE $100, SEMIFINALS $50, QUERTFINALS $25) ROUND OF 32 - MIKE ROSS D. STAN ZAVOYSKIY 22, PETE PELLIGRINI D. PHONG NGUYEN 6, MILTON JONES D. JOHN INGLESIAS 4 ROUND OF 16 - CESAR SALA D. MIKE ROSS 22, JOE DURSO D. ANDY ROUSSEAU 11, PEEWEE CASTRO D. PETE PELLIGRINI 8, ROBERT SOSTRE D. PAUL ANGEL 13, JOE KAPLAN D. VICTOR LOPIERRE 19, SATISH JAGNANDAN D. GEORGE FIGUEROA 8, JESUS AYALA D. ALBERT APUZZI 13, TONY ROBERTS D. MILTON JONES 17 QUARTERFINALS - SALA D. DURSO 15, SOSTRE D. CASTRO 22, JAGNANDAN D. KAPLAN 9, ROBERTS D. AYALA 21 SEMIFINALS - SALA D. SOSTRE 7, ROBERTS D. JAGNANDAN 20 FINALS - SALA D. ROBERTS 22 Thanks to site director Artie Fuchs.                   More Info. and Photos coming soon!!! This tournament ran at a loss of $250-300.

Results - of the First 2004 USHA/QuJHO New York City Junior Pyramid - Saturday April 24th, 2004 -Frank D. O'Conner Playground, 78th St.& Broadway, Elmhurst, Queens, NY The Largest Junior HANDBALL tournament so Far in NEW YORK 2004 Small Ball Events Total players 45 - one event Collegiate event (Men) - 11 Players preliminary round Miguel Cano def Kamran Syed 21-1, Joseph Gonzalez def Horace Yu 21 – 17, Genciano Cotter def George 21 – 7 Quarters Mike Schneider def Cano 21 -15, Sal Cotticelli Def Kareem Wilkerson 21-8, Paul Angel def Cotter 21-5, Victor LoPierre def Gonzalez 21-7 Semis Schneider def Cotticelli 21-16, Angel Def LoPierre 21-16 Final round Angel def Schneider 21-12 3rd place LoPierre def Coticelli 21-15 (Womens not held no entry's)

High School Varsity (Boys) – 16 Players Round of 16 John Iglesias def Henry Chavez 21-2, Pablo Fajardo def Marcello Quiroga 21-12, Sammy Nguyen def Matthew Thomas 21-1, Sherman St John def Fabian Mendoza 21-0, Stan Zavoyskiy def Anthony Pereira 21-3, Richard Barquero def Rudy Legros, Anderson Palaez def Jose Delgado 21-12, Jurell Bastidas def Peter Foglio21-17. Quarters Iglesias Def Fajardo 21-1, St John def Nguyen 21 – 14, Batiste def Palaez 21-9 Zavoyskiy def Barquero 21-9 Semis Iglesias def St John 21-4 , Bastidas def Zavoyskiy 21-7 Final Bastidas def Iglesias 21-19 3rd place Zavoyskiy def St John 21-16 (Girls) 4 players Semis Christina Chai def Jennifer Reynoso 21 – 7, Catherine Lam def Mercy Leviste 21-1 Finals Chai def Lam 21 – 14 3rd place Reynoso def Leviste 21-3

High School Junior Varsity (Boys)– 14 Players Round of 16 John Amen def Jose Garcia 21-9, Jay Choi def Victor Santana 21 -12, Michael Amen def Brian Jawahir 21-7, Sebastian Porre def Daniel Stosic 21-15, Chistian Valcarcel def Kelvin Guillen 21 – 14, Gary Chang def Kevin Franco 21-12 Quarters Alex Gavryushenko def Jimmy Chan 21-9, J Amen def Choi 21-7, M Amen def Porre 21-15, Valcarcel def Chang 21-16 Semis J Amen def Gavryushenko 21-8, M Amen def Valcarcel 21-15 Final J Amen def M Amen 21-3 Third Place Game Not PLAYED Intermediates were not held due to lack of entrys Info & photos provided by Mike Watson - tournament coordinator

Results - ICHA/USHA High School/College Spring meet - April 17-18th, 2004 - Central Park, NYC    FULL RESULTS

Results - Open Doubles - Sunday April 18th, 2004 - West 4th Street Courts, West 4th/6th Avenue, NYC  In the Finals it was John "Rookie" Wright and Lefty Henry Santiago vs. Herman "El Duro" Mendez and Super Dave Rojas. The Final was not completed due to darkness, so cash prizes were split.

Results - Bucky's "C/D" Singles - Sunday April 18th, 2004 - Tremont Park, Bronx, NY   The winners were 1st place Fonze (BX), 2nd place Brasil (BX), and 3rd place Sal Coticelli (Bklyn) (They must have cancelled the "C/D" tournament??? All of these players are very good "B" players, and you must have no knowledge of the sport of Handball not to realize these players are by far not "C" players. A "C" class player is a beginner and can barely keep the ball on the wall. These players should keep practicing and enter a "B" tournament. HandballCity will no longer promote "C" events).