2000 Wilson 13th USRA
National High
School Championships
The Concord Club
St. Louis, MO:
March 3-5
dailies
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Final Four Set at National High School Championships
After 127 matches, the field of 133 players in the boys' singles division has been narrowed down to the final four at the Wilson 13th U.S. National High School Championships at the Concord Athletic Club in St. Louis, Mo.
The action heated up in the sweet sixteen and quarterfinals today, but the top-four seeds still managed to survive to advance into Sunday's semifinal and gold-medal matches. Four-seed Matthew McElhiney (Bayshore High/Bradenton, Fla.) struggled in a tiebreaker match against his doubles partner Zack Miller (Alta Loma High/Alta Loma, Calif.), losing to his partner, the fifth seed, 15-12, 10-15, 11-9.
Top-seed Jack Huczek (Adams High/Rochester Hills, Mich.) continued his dominate reign through the draw, easily knocking off Jason Kerwood (Beaverton High/Beaverton, Ore.), 15-0, 15-1, while No. 2-seed Mitch Williams (Washington High/Washington, N.C.) topped Joey Delfino (Hudson Catholic High/Westboro, Mass.), 15-7, 15-2. Williams will meet his doubles partner, Bart Crawford (Henley High/Klamath Falls, Ore.), in the Sunday's semifinals. Crawford knocked off Hal Rutherford (Parkway Central High/Chesterfield, Mo.), 15-8, 15-4.
In the girls' division, top-seed Kristen Walsh (Skyline High/Salt Lake City, Utah) continued her quest for back-to-back titles by defeating Erica Beaudry (Centennial High/Pueblo, Colo.), 15-1, 15-4, while fellow-U.S. National Junior Team member Adrienne Fisher (Centerville High/Centerville, Ohio) advanced by topping Kris Alatorre-Martin (Wakefield High/Arlington, Va.), 15-9, 15-10. Hometown-favorite Jane Rombach (Nerinx Hall High, Mo.) pulled out a tiebreaker win against Mary Martin (Sprague High/Salem, Ore.), 15-7, 13-15, 11-4. Fourth-seed Jenny Cary (Aloha High/Hilsboro, Ore.) defeated fellow-Oregonian Amy Hollingsworth (North High, Ore.), 15-1, 15-1.
Both singles and doubles semifinals will be played in the morning, with the finals on Sunday afternoon.
garcia brothers travel from germany seeking gold
The 13th Wilson U.S. National High School Championships have drawn the best prep athletes from all across the United States, including teams from Oregon, Alaska and Utah. But, the it's the top-seeded boys' doubles team who traveled the farthest in search of a gold medal. Brothers Marco and Rey Garcia are representing Kaiserslautern High, which is located in the Germany.
The Garcias father is an active member of the U.S. Air Force and relocated the family to Germany two years ago when he was stationed there. Despite being relocated, the two brothers continued to pursue their interest in racquetball, which was sparked by their father four years ago.
"We travel back to the states for the major tournaments," 15-year-old Marco said. "Last year we competed at junior nationals and junior worlds. We came to this event, because our father felt we had a really good shot of winning the doubles division."
Tournament officials at the U.S. National High School Championships agreed with the Garcias' father, awarded the brothers the top-seed in the boys' doubles division. However several of the top singles players opted not to play in the doubles competition at this tournament, leaving the Garcias with less competition than they expected.
"We would like to win, but we aren't getting any competition so far," 17-year-old Rey said. "We wanted a shot at the top players, but we aren't going to get our chance this time. I still think that we could have done well against them."
Both brothers agree that training in Germany is a disadvantage to them. The base has a facility with only four racquetball courts and only a handful of players to practice against, causing the brothers to mainly practice by them selves. The two travel to tournaments throughout Germany and Europe, and have earned the fifth-place ranking in Germany in the adult men's open division, which is the toughest amateur division.
The Garcias will play in the quarterfinals tonight at 9:30 p.m. at the Concord Athletic Club. If they advance, they will play in the semifinals Sunday morning, with the gold-medal match being held Sunday afternoon at 2:15 p.m
chat with a champion: kristen walsh
- Skyline High School, Salt Lake City, Utah
- At the Wilson 13th U.S. National High School Championships -Top seed in the girls' singles division
- 1999 U.S. High School Girls' Singles Champion
- 1999 World Junior Girls' 16-and-under Singles Champion
- 1999 U.S. Junior Olympic Girls' 16-and-under Singles Champion
Being the defending champion and top seed in a draw of 67 girls, do you feel a little bit of pressure at the tournament? I feel a little bit of pressure, but not much really. Pressure is good though. This is such a fun tournament for me though; it's hard to think about pressure. Its great being at this tournament with kids from my school. We are having so much fun.
After playing at an elite level, how do adjust to playing in such a long tournament where you might meet beginner players in the first few rounds? It's a little different. You have to adjust when you meet players who aren't at the level you are used to playing. I really noticed that last year. You have to adjust mentally. After playing some easier matches in the first rounds, I really had to pump myself of even more for the finals.
This is a fun tournament though. Its great to come and see so many of the players who don't play at the other national tournaments. Everyone really enjoys this tournament.
How do you feel about the thought of winning back-to-back championships? If I win twice in a row, it would be cool, because not many have accomplished that. I just don't feel the pressure to repeat though. If I play my best, I do think I have a good shot at it. I just don't really feel any pressure though.
How does it feel to compete as part of the Skyline High School team? In past years, I have been the only one from my high school who would travel to tournaments. It's great having a team here from my high school and so many players from Utah. It makes the tournament even more fun. We really get into the team spirit. We cheer everyone on and help coach them.
How do you feel about Skyline's chances in the team competition? That has been something we have talked about quite a lot. This year I think we definitely have a good chance of being able to win the team title. We have some guys who have been getting some good points, in addition to the ones I've been getting. We don't have as many people as some of these schools, but we are doing pretty good. We get so exciting thinking about us having a shot of winning that trophy. It would be great if a Utah school won it, instead of a St. Louis or Oregon school.
chat with a champion: jack huczek
- Adams High School, Rochester Hills, Mich.
- Boys' Singles Top Seed in Draw of 133 players
- 1999 World Junior Championships Boys' 16-and-under Singles and Doubles Champion
- 1999 U.S. Junior Olympic Championships Boys' 16-and-under Singles Champion
Do you feel any extra pressure being the top seed in a draw of 133 players, knowing that all of them are shooting for you? I don't feel any pressure really. Maybe a little. Compared to the past few big tournaments I've played, this isn't nearly as much pressure. The pressure on me at the U.S. Open and World Juniors was much greater. I don't feel much pressure even though I am the number-one seed here. I've never won this tournament, and I'm just glad a have shot at it this year. I've had some trouble here in the past, especially last year, but I look at this year's tournament as a clean slate.
After the tremendous success you have had at U.S. Junior Olympic Championships and the World Junior Championships, how does it feel to have never won the U.S. National High School Championships? My first year at this tournament was two years ago, and I was a freshman. If you look at my two years here, I think my freshman year was more fruitful, because I knocked off Shane (Vanderson) and took third place.
Last year was a nightmare. I had problems with my plane, and I had the flu and an ear infection. I wasn't my year at all. I ended up taking third again, but I was really going in hoping for a shot at the title. Hopefully I can do it this year.
Since you turned 17 in January, you are still eligible for playing in the 16-and-under division, however everyone agrees you could play at the 18-and-under division. Do you plan on moving up for junior nationals? I am thinking about moving up to the 18s, but if I do, I would play both 18s and 16s. As of right now I haven't made that decision.
You have had great success at the open and pro level for your age, winning eight open division tournaments in a row last year and making it to the round of 16 at a pro stop. How does it feel coming back to a junior tournament and playing some athletes who are still at the beginning level? Its unusual and different compared to a normal weekend for me. Typically, the first round would be a little easy, but the rest are all tough matches. Here, I have a few rounds of easy matches before it starts getting tough.
I think by playing in the open and pro stops, it makes me more on my toes. Where as if I'm not getting used to the continuous tough play, I might get sore at a long tournament like this one. You can't really train for a long tournament like this one, because you have to keep yourself up mentally and physically. You can train everyday and play a lot of players, but its not the same as the mental wear during a tournament.
I would rather play 12 or 15 matches in a row, because I can go all day long. Most of these kids can't do that, so its definitely in my favor.
friday
The field of 133 players in the boys' singles division was narrowed to 32 today at the Wilson 13th U.S. National High School Championships at the Concord Athletic Club in St. Louis, Mo. The 133-player draw had been one of the largest in racquetball history, but only 32 players survived Friday's competition.
Although St. Louis-area prep athletes made up a large portion of the competitors, few made the cut to 32. Of the nine area schools who sent teams to the competition, only St. Louis University High School and Vianney High School have placed two players in to the round of 32. Todd Barett and Dan Moore continued on the draw from St. Louis University High, while Gary Berry and Ryan Maher advanced for Vianney High. Other area players advancing this afternoon included Kirkwood's Craig Stanley and Parkway Central's Hal Rutherford. The boys' singles round of 32 will be played this evening, with the sweet sixteen hitting the court Saturday around noon.