Friday, August 11, 2006
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So far so good. Rhonda was awesome in the breaker and beat Christie 11-2. What a match that I'm told looked very similar to her match against Cheryl in Houston. As far as level of play......Jack in two against Ode. Fairly routine although Ode played a very tough second game and hit great shots. Jack continues to play at a high level even at these international events which often get players to overswing too much.
Next up is the women's doubles which will be a good match. Our women's doubles have just looked okay although most matches have been too easy. They were pressured by Mexico yesterday and will probably be as well today. I'll report back after the men's doubles which I hope will be the last match of the day.
Elli
Here we are, last day of play. I'm ready to win, party and get out of here. I miss my family and especially the comforts of living in the best country in the world. All and all it's been a fun trip and I have no major complaints.
First up may be the best match of them all. Rhonda vs Christie. But chicks look a little tired this morning so I'm thinking the play might be a little sloppy which will be great for the crowd but nerve racking for us coaches. Rhonda mentioned feeling real strong for the first time last night. She seems to be in better spirits and I hope she can transfer that to the court. I know must of you reading my blogs know about the online tv site. Not sure if they will be set up today because of the arrival of Royster Productions but I hope they are for your sake. That's all I got. Wish us luck and I'll give my update later.
Coach John Ellis
Thursday, August 10, 2006
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Coming to you from the hotel connection. Not cheap. We play Canada in both men's and women's finals. Canada pulled out two tough wins in the men's to get them to the finals. Respect to them but that will be the end of the line. I'm certain. Jack first, then doubles and Shane if needed. Women are Rhonda and Christie first, which should be fantastic to watch. It's at 9:30AM though and we'll see who has the advantage with tha
Here we are on the semis day and it's been a great one so far. Men first, Vandy pulled off the minor upset and beat Alvi in a great breaker. Vandy owned the breaker 11-2. He basically made Alvaro tired as hell and ran him silly the whole match. Alvi was able to handle the first game with a tough comeback. I'm proud of Vandy as this was his first win over Alvi in any tournament. Doubles next and this one was a great one. We came out smokin and won the first easy. Game two was all Mexico for most of it until we made a solid comeback to 14-11 before they finished it off. This comeback provided the momentum to win the breaker although it was not easy. I'm equally as proud of these two, especially Rock as they were trying to get in his head big time. This led to a forfeit in the last match by Mexico which means SWEEP for the US.
The women are still playing right now. However, Cheryl defeated Paola in two. Paola will win this match up in a few years but right now Cheryl has more experience and is still a better shot maker. Cheryl will likely have a chance to play Jen Saunders tomorrow in an important match. The women doubles are playing right now but I fully expect them to win. Hope I don't eat my words. Rhonda later if necessary, although I believe she wants to play no matter what.
As for the trip, it's been long but we are having fun. The rooms aren't great but the hotel has much to offer. Royster Productions is here and ready to film the matches on finals day. My guess is we'll play Canada in both. More to come tomorrow, possibly later from a connection at the hotel.
HOLD ON!!! Luke just came in and informed me that Cesar Castro just beat Francios Viens in the first singles match for Venezuela vs Canada. That means that Canada has to win both the other singles and doubles match to advance and meet us in the finals. I love it because now I get to watch my boys Istace and Green possibly blow it for Canada. Nothing more fun to watch then those two play with pressure on them. Okay I now expect Venezuela to win that matchup. Surprising!!
All for now....Ellistyle
Wednesday, August 09, 2006
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So let me try to paint this picture for you. The ride to the club is about a half hour. I always sit in the front row of this half bus and it basically has no front. Just drops straight down so it feels like you are about to hit the cars in front of you. We start at the beach with two policemen on motorcycles that aren't brand new. They lead us down empty roads for a few miles until we turn onto the main highway which is no more than March Lane width. There is traffic on this road but not to heavy at first. Forget about the dogs, they know not to hit the middle of the roads or else die. As traffic gets heavier the closer we get to Santo Domingo and morning work traffic the more aggressive the officers get until they are now ordering everyone to scoot over at speeds of 40 mph or so. Sometimes giving cars a shove with their feet as they ride. Everyone is getting pissed at them but that only makes them more aggressive. Then we start hitting busy intersections and this is when it gets amazing. These officers will pull up to an active intersection and straight get off their bikes and stop traffic for us and any other cars who happen to be lucky enough to be near us get the privaledge to pass with us. Then they hop on and haul ass to get back in front of us, at times weaving in and out of spots that are only about two feet wide if not less. I'm of course tripping but loving every minute of this. Fully expecting to get in a wreck on one of these trips. I'd say there have been at least three or four unbelievably close calls that we somehow escaped accident. When we get in the heart of SD then it's a little different but equally interesting. Traffic is slower but noone pays attention to the lanes so everyone is weaving in and out of each other while we of course still have two officers paving the way for us. People in cars next to us do not appreciate the athletes they are trying to get to the venue. It's truly amazing and I realize this happens in other countries too but it's just a shocker. Well that is all for this story. I hope it gives you a good vision of drive.
As for a few of your questions, there are 8 courts here and they are in great condition. The facility could use some air conditioning outside the courts but so could the rest of the island. No big deal with that. The courts are air conditioned perfectly. No other work out stuff but they have plans to add. Rocky and I are meeting with Rafa today to brainstorm ideas to add outdoor racquetball courts to the venue. Probably needs to begin with our portable outdoor courts and then build the real thing and plenty of them. More to come on this later if the news is good. We're getting ready to start today with the men playing Chile and the women playing Venezuela. Should be a good day.
Johnny Bruce
Tuesday, August 08, 2006
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I mean I really have no idea what today is. The date I have but day of the week is no clue. Anyway, no problems today other than the team seemed a littel lazy due to the sun yesterday. But we got by Catalonia in the women's and the DR in the men's. Jack had the toughest match with Simon Perdoma. First game was easy but Simon played well in the second but lost 15-13. Jack looked like he had no legs. Wonder what is up with that!! Anyway, we play.......not sure actually. I'll have to check the schedule myself. So nothing much to report today. Any questions out there, feel free.
Peace in the Middle, El
Man I´ve been in the DR a long time. Day off day yesterday and it´s safe to say that we are all very much looking forward to getting back to the states. Not that it is not a good time, it´s just a long trip. We kicked it at the beach for a few hours in the morning where Rocky and I put a mad whoopin on Oliver (Germany) and Vandy in discuss keep away. A new game we created. Vandy is no fish in the water and Rock was man handling him. Then we moved it to the pool and hung out for about 6 hours straight. Rock and Vandy threw every girl not in the pool into the pool which was somewhat funny. The Mexican girls were a blast to play pool sports with yesterday as the chicken fights were intense. Rhonda made it out of her room yesterday and was man handling Suzie, Nancy and especially little Paola during the chicken fights. Nice to see Rhonda as it had been a few days. She doesn´t feel good at all. The party the night before the day off was fun. Of course every other country was drunk but not the US Team. Uh huh..........So today is the beginning of the Team Competition. We will do well this week. It will come down to US vs Mexico in both the men´s and women´s competition semi finals. Interesting seeding in the ladies as Chile is seeded ahead of the Mexicans. We are seeded second in the men´s even though we sport the number 2 ranked player in the world and possibly the soon to be number one player in Huge Sacks. Oh well, international racquetball for you. I´m looking forward to the Rhonda vs Paola match up most of all. Done for now.
King Ellistyle
Sunday, August 06, 2006
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So here we are on Sunday from sometimes sunny, sometimes pooring rainy Santo Domingo. I've been watching a little bit of racquetball these last few days. Bad news first. Cheryl went down to Christie, 15-14, 15-13. Tough match that was well played in stretches by both ladies. Christie is a determined player and I think the difference was just more mobility than Cheryl. But Cheryl played tough and had a good tournament. The finals for the ladies singles are going down right now with Christie vs Angela Grisar. Should be fun to watch although I don't think I'll watch it!!
Good news, Men's singles finals is all American with Vandy vs Jack. Vandy took out Gilberto Mejia in two. Gilberto skipped too many balls and Vandy was for the most part solid throughout the match. Jack got a forfeit from Abraham Pena as Pena has a broken pinky finger on is playing hand from last night's barn burner against local boy, Simon Perdoma. That match ended in an 11-9 tie breaker. So Jack got a little rest before his semis in doubles which was a waxing for the most part of the Canadiens. A little controversy at 14-7 in the first as they asked to check the measurement of Jack's racquet which passed regulations. The racquet with grip can not be more then 22 3/8" long yada yada yada, blah blah blah. I guess they needed to try something. Let me just say that Jack and Rock can cover the court!! They will have a tough one with Alvaro and Javier in the final. Women's doubles of Laura and Amy won 2 and 1 against Japan. No problems and they will dismantle the Chileans later this afternoon. Mark my words!! More to come later or tomorrow.
We have the day off tomorrow so I may not be able to post a blog which really doesn't matter since I'm noticing that noone is checking this anyway. Is it that I'm not informative or my attempts at humor are not going over well. Whatever, Willie is full of it with this stuff until proven otherwise. But I'll keep doing it anyway because I'm amusing myself.
Happy B-Day Jackie. Hope Willie hooks it up for you tonight.
El Boogie....
Saturday, August 05, 2006
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Okay, this is day two for the tourney but day I am not sure anymore for the tourney. BTW, I do not have an apostrophe button so I will have to type it all out. Just so you all know that I would never talk or think like this. So.......this was a good day but not a great one. The team of men from the US is on fire and playing great. Both singles and doubles won two matches each. Of course Jack is whalloping players and playing both events. Rock and Jack are playing smooth doubles beating both Ecuador and Costa Rica. Jack took out whoever in singles. Could not quite tell since it was over before I settled in. Vandy played awesome in his first match and beat the numero uno from Bolivia. Then Vandy played Balmori from Venezuela. Vandy won in two close games but Fabian was definitely hurting a bit. I am not going into the draws since they are on the R2 site for the Worlds. Check it yo self!!! The bad news first......Rhonda lost in the quarters to Angela Grisar. Two games. Tough draw for both but Angela thoroughly outplayed Rhonda. Hopefully Rhonda will right herself for the team competition. The rest of the ladies won easy. Cheryl looks very solid and will only get better as her new husband Doug is now in the DR with us. Our hopes in singles ride with her and we feel great about that. She plays Christie in the semis tomorrow. The doubles will wax all comers as Amy Ruiz is a straight up rally ender. Laura is a great right side and the two are aching to play matches. Upset notice I guess is Paola loosing to Jen Saunders in two. I think it is an upset but others do not. Regardless, Jen played awesome and is in the semi against Angela. As for any other info that may interest anyone reading this update is that it has been raining cats and dogs everyday and I wish I was in sunny Stockton playing golf and working on my Ektelon business. But for the love of Rb and the country. Plus it is fun at the club watching so many of the international players. BTW, there are cuties here from every country. Watch out for the Ecuadorians in the near future as they will be the best in five years. I am talking mostly about the girls. I am out for now. Fire away any questions you may have.
The original Mighty Mouse!!!!
Friday, August 04, 2006
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Okay, let me just say that last night was mexican food night at the resort and the mac was nice. I ate well but that has been the first time so far and this means chubby Elli is dropping a few lbs. My wife will be on it upon my return!! Okay on to what matters. No doubles today. Both teams play their first matches tomorrow morning at 9AM. All four singles matches were wins today with Jack throwing the double donut to Tristan from Ireland. Tristan has talent but Jack is playing smooth and truly loves the international atmoshere. I have him in the finals of my fantasy bracket, no doubt. Shane played smooth and won in two over the Irish player. Easy win for Cheryl as her preparation is as good as anyone in the game. She reminds me a lot of what Michelle Gould was like as a US Team member. Rhonda will play better tomorrow but she did win in two. She´s ready for a long tournament. As for the other countries, Paola looked impressive against a very talented Ecuadorian girl. BTW, the Ecuadorians will be a major threat in these international tourneys in about 4 four years. There whole team is 17 or younger except for one male player. As far as I know there were no upsets. Two very close matches today. First, Korea over Chile 11-10 tiebreaker. Second, Japan over DR in a close tie breaker. Okay, so tomorrow Jack has four matches since he´s playing both events. Singles vs Canedo from Bolivia. He´s an excellent player but will fall to the Huge Sack. Also, for those of you who once played juniors during about the same time as me, Fabion Balmori is back playing for Venezuela and doing very well. He actually took second in the Central American Games a week ago here at this same venue. To do that he took out Alvaro Beltran in the semis. I won´t go into the story of the finals as I don´t agree with how the outcome was handled but that is quite a win for Balmori. Well that is it for today. We´ll be here bright and early with reports of our wild nights. I´m out........Sir Ellistyle