TTC Tournament

 

Henderson vs. Mill

   What a weekend of squash!  130 people participated in the tournament including many out of town players.  The weekend started with the traditional 50/50 draw for the B division.  Entries flooded in and in the end 68 entries were collected.  That meant $340 for one lucky person.  Friday saw many tight matches and a few upsets but for the most part, all the seeds moved on.
     Saturday began bright and early and staying out late Friday night didn't seem to affect most players.  I think this weekend set a tournament record for game 5s, and there were some epic matches.  Luca Dalla Bona was able to recover from a mid-match injury to force Brad Steele into a 5th game.  Game 5 remained tight the entire way.  Luca's retrieving led to long rallies and as the match neared its end, neither Brad nor Luca were interested in risky shot-making.  This led to some of the longest rallies of the weekend.  In the end, Brad Steele was able to hang on for a 13-11 win in game 5.
    In the B draw, Sara Khan battled it out with Andrew Garant.  Andrew returned to the squash scene after a 2 year absence and his style of game hasn't changed.  He chased every ball down, diving all over the court.  This match had big consequences for the 50/50 draw as many people had both of these players winning it all.  However, Andrew's retrieving eventually got the best of Sara in another game 5 extra points win.
     On the other side of the B draw it was the opposite styles of Dean Lansens vs. Usman Khan.  Dean is well-known for his shooting ability while Usman is well-known for his retrieving ability.  This made for a long match that came down to the final points of game 5.  At 11-10, Dean was able to hit one last winner to knock Usman into the consolation draw.  By the end of the matches on Saturday, many brackets were busted.

Open Final

     Sunday started early again.  However, back-to-back late nights out began to show.  Amin Khan and Dan Van Morsel battled it out in the semis of the A and Amin was determined to run Dan around.  Dan however wasn't interested in running and shot the lights out, winning 3-1.  Andrew and Dean met in the semi's with heavy 50/50 implications.  Dean ran Andrew all around the court and had him diving after many balls.  However, Andrew's retrieving got the best of Dean.  On the other side of the B draw, unknown Gabe Boldt from London defeated WSF legend Anis Khan.  This had major implications for the 50/50 draw.  Lee Bissonnette from London had 33 points and had Gabe winning.  Graeme Williams (definitely had insider info) had 33 points and Andrew winning.  Gabe let Andrew run all over the court and just played steady squash, winning 3-1 and helping Lee win $340 for the weekend.
     Doubles matches were close all weekend.  But it seemed liked every doubles match on Sunday was a 5 gamer, causing the doubles court to run way behind.  Rallies were long and points were hard to come by.

A Doubles- Hanebury/Uffleman
B Doubles- Porter/Lansens
Mixed Doubles- Berling/Siedel
Women's Doubles- Guthrie/Elliott

     The Open draw may have been the strongest Open draw we have had thanks to the Western Squash Team.  In the end it was Western #1(David Mill) vs. Western #2(Matt Henderson).  The match saw incredible retrieving ability and great shot-making.  Mill went up 2-0 and had numerous match balls but could not close out the match.  This opened the door for Henderson who won the next two games.  Game 5 was tight and no player could pull away from the other.  Henderson got hot for the last 2 points and finished the match with an impressive cross- court nick.
   
Open- Matt Henderson
Men's A- Paul Gabrael
Men's B- Gabe Boldt
Men's C- Ryan Macvoy
Men's D- Adam Kilner

     WSF juniors were all over the draws.  Some opted to not play in the junior draws and compete in the main rounds.  Their impact was felt throughout all the draws.  Some even showed some promise in the doubles draws.  Vishaal Mehta continues his great season with a win in this tournament.  However, the match of the draw goes to Carter Furmanek and Gavin Chamandy.  At no point were they separated by more than a couple of points.  Extra points was painful to watch as both players deserved a victory.  However, Carter was able to edge Gavin out in the end.  Watching these players rally showed just how good our juniors are.

Complete draws can be found here
50/50 Bracket Challenge can be found here.

TTC

     

New junior game... don't ask, you
don't want to play it

What a weekend of squash!  The competitiveness (is that a word?) throughout all the divisions was incredible.  Where to begin?  Let's start with the B draw.  The B draw became the draw that the "bracket challenge" took place in.  It was a full 32 player draw and there were no clear favourites.  Luca Dalla Bona was the local favourite chosen to win it, while the out-of-towners stayed loyal and chose their players.  In the end, only 1 person correctly chose one of the finalists and he ended up $190 richer!  Complete breakdown of score can be found here. 

     The C draw was hotly contested throughout the weekend but in the end it was 2 local buddies playing in the final.  Adam Pole and James Konrad played their 34th match of the year to decide the winner.  Despite James' new found fitness, Adam had too many shots for James to handle.  Bragging rights belong to Adam for the next 6 months. Congratulations to Adam for winning the C draw!

     The A division was a very tough division all weekend.  All matches were close and it was anyones draw to lose.  However, our own Mr. Ben Gay... I mean David Morrish,  somehow was still standing (barely) late Sunday afternoon to claim the A draw.  Dave's shot-making overcame all his opponents strengths.  I think David has booked himself "unable to walk for the next week".  And to think he wanted to play 40+......

     The Open final brought out many spectators who were keen to see how the student-who-moved-away would do against the teacher-who-trained-him.  Yes, David Mill vs. Graeme.  Both players seemed in top notch form all weekend and the final was a very entertaining event.  However, as all of us adults will find, our upward curve (or is it downward?) isn't quite as steep as the juniors.  David proved too much for Graeme and took the match 3-1.  

     While many of the juniors opted to play in the skilled divisions, we still had a strong junior division draw.  The winner of the junior division and possibly also the player that played the most matches in one weekend was newcomer Alec Cerimagic.  You could see Alec get stronger every match he played as the weekend went on.  Oh to be young....

Open Final, Graeme v David Mill

     The doubles draws proved to be as entertaining as always.  The Women's division was extremely close with Hannah Guthrie and Mackenzie Elliott winning two 5-gamers in a row to take the win.  In the mixed doubles division, Herb Funkenhauser and Marg Holman defeated Steve (I haven't slept this weekend) Allen and Janice Funkenhauser.  Janice, in an attempt to improve her chances for a win, upgraded her partner with a newer and younger model but to no avail.  The B doubles final went the distance with Dave Guthrie and Dean Lansens taking on an all-female Seth team.  In the end, the girls out-mistaked the boys. 

     The A final was an all-London affair, well almost.  Windsor was represented by Mark Eugeni as Brad Hanebury's partner against Chris Boden and Caleb Quinlan.  Mark and Brad just had too many shots for the young upstarts from London.  

     All in all it was a great weekend.  Thanks to everyone that came from out of town (London, Sarnia), thanks to the beer sponsors (Jeff Derochie, Sleeman's, Anonymous(no, not the hacker group)), and thanks to Graeme and Dave for putting on a great event.  Final standings can be found here.  

     

TTC- Final Wrap Up

  

      There was a definite sense of tiredness at the tournament today.  Yesterday took a lot out of people and with many going out on the town last night, there were many tired bodies at the club today.  However, in the end that didn't stop some great squash from being played.  In the Open draw, Mick Joint took down Mark Eugeni.  Mick was on fire, rarely missing shots and continuing to keep Mark on the run.  The A draw final was an old vs young final (sorry Dan) with Ryan Leslie vs. Dan VanMorsel.  Dan continued his deft shot-making and Ryan just couldn't match Dan's touch.
      The B final between Jan Potsmesil and John Leslie was the most highly anticipated match of the day.  Not so much because of the high quality of squash (which it was) but more for who was going to win.  There was big dollars on the line.  In our first ever bracket challenge, the bracket finals came down to Rob Kubic and Ryan Leslie.  Rob had the unknown Potsmesil winning it all and Ryan kept it in the family and going with his dad.  Despite a strong showing from Leslie, Potsmesil just looked to fresh for Leslie.  Which meant that Rob was $120 richer.  Here are the complete standings.
      The C final saw Kevin Donde vs. Jeff Hartling with Donde pulling it out in a hard fought match.  The D final may have been the loudest final of the day.  Two of Windsor's juniors, Hannah Guthrie and Jagroop Bhangoo met for what seems like the millionth time and every time it is very tight.  Cheering sections attempted to outcheer each other as Hannah and Jagroop battled right down to the final points.  Hannah snuck out the victory.
      The Women's 40+ saw Joyce Bennett continue her strong play with a win over Mary Pat Scarfone.  In the junior draw, the rapidly improving Vishaal Mehta emerged the victor.  The A Doubles was a great 5 game match between Hanebury/Boden vs. Eugeni/Uffleman.  Many great rallies ensued during this match but it was perennial local favourites Eugeni/Uffleman winning in the fifth.  We just won't tell the London duo that Jon was playing with a new titanium knee.
      The Women's Doubles draw was dominated by the Windsor duo of Janice Funkenhauser and Renka Gesing.  In the finals they defeated a pair from London.  In the Mixed Doubles, the Windsor-dominate team of Beneteau/Beneteau went up against a pair of newcomers from Sarnia, Seth/Bradd.  In yet another 5 game match, the Sarnia duo pulled out a great victory.  The Beneteau/Beneteau team wasn't done.  They also took the B doubles brackets.  Well done!
      Overall, this was a great weekend with 132 competitors from London, Sarnia, Toronto, Guelph, Waterloo, Chatham, US and I am sure some other places I didn't know about.  Complete results can be found here.  Everyone I spoke with talked highly of the club, the camaraderie, Windsor and how much fun they had.  Here is a link to all the pictures from the weekend.

TTC- Day 2

   

     The second day of the TTC saw a ton of squash matches played.   The big news is that pretty much everyone's bracket is busted (unless you are from Chatham).  The B draw saw many surprises with John Leslie (Ohio), Steve Mitchell (Chatham), Jan Potmesil (Toronto), and Chris Chamandy making it through to the semis.  The Open draw got under way with Graeme, Mick, Mark E, and Mark P moving through to the semis.  The semis provided quite a bit of excitement with Mark upsetting Graeme in a see-saw battle that saw age win over beauty.  Mick also advanced with a win over Mark Porter.
      The A draw saw Gabreal upset by Ryan Leslie (Ohio).  Also advancing to the semis were Berto Mill, Dan VanMorsel, and Seth Rogers.  Berto put up quite a fight but couldn't hold off Ryan.  Dan was just too steady to allow Seth to get into any kind of routine.  Ryan vs. Dan in the finals.
     The C draw saw Kevin Donde, Jeff Hartley, Maxi Bistrev, James Konrad advance to the semi finals.  I am not sure how much gas James Konrad has left in the tank after his gruelling 5 game match with Luca Dalla Bona.
     The bottom half of the D draw had WSF junior Jagroop Bhangoo going through to the finals untouched while in the other half, fellow junior Hannah Guthrie had her hands full with a hard-hitting Colin Bateman.  After going down 2-0, Hannah clawed back to take it in five.  It will be a WSF junior final in that division.
     Today was an incredibly long day of squash yet many of the participants chose to head to Rockhead for the Saturday night festivities.  We'll see what the morning look like.....

TTC- Day 1

Bateman and Shaw in action

   What a great start to the tournament.  100 competitors battling it out in Open, A, B, C, D, Women's 40+, Doubles A, B, Mixed and Women's.  A fun twist to this year's tournament has been the bracket challenge in the very full B draw.  47 people entered in hopes that their picks would take home half the purse ($117).  You can find the live updated scoring here.
     Many great matches took place tonight but some of the more entertaining matches that took place where in the B draw.  Young upstart tennis player, Adrian Mag, took on former Windsor-turned Toronto squash player Paula Kuzic.  The match was tight all the way with Mag diving all over the court but it was veteran experience that sent Paula through to the next round.
     In another entertaining match saw Windsor junior take on Lisa Bogden from London.  Nagy was the overwhelming favourite and many bracket challenges and he may have felt the pressure.  Bogden played consistent with a lot of retrieving and steady drives.  As the match closed on Nagy, it also closed on many people's brackets.
     And what would a tournament be without the classic Phil Dimitrov vs. Luca Dalla Bona match.  Dimitrov has been dominating this matchup of late but Dalla Bona proved to be too much tonight with an impressive 3-0 win.

Tony Tomicic Challenge 2012

March 23 - 25 - 2012

Events: Open, A, B, C, D, 40+, 50+

Doubles: A, B and Mixed

Players May Compete 2 Divisions Maximum

Entry Fee:$65.oo

Student Fee: $45.00

Friday Night Pizza

Dinner Saturday Night

"Kill The Keg" Friday and Saturday

Continental Breakfast - Saturday and Sunday

Par 11

Cash Prize for Open Division

Prizes for All Other Divisions

Tournament Chairpersons:

Brian Porter bporter@windsorsquash.ca and David Guthrie dguthrie@windsorsquash.ca

(519- 966-2141)

Payment Required to Register

Highlights For 2011 Tony Tomicic Challenge

2011 Tony Tomicic Results

Click On Picture to Enlarge

2011 Tony Tomicic Challenge

2011 TONY TOMICIC CHALLENGE At Windsor Squash and Fitness Club!

The 2011 Tony Tomicic Challenge is coming up March 25, 26 & 27/11. Don't Miss Out. Sign Up Today. This Year's Event Is Going to Be Outstanding.

Events: Open, A, B, C, D, 40+, 50+, Boys/ Girls U18. Doubles: A,B and Mixed.

Entry Fee: $60.00 - Tournament Souvenir, Cash Prizes for Event, Prizes for all other Events.
Entries: (519)- 966-2141 Email: squash@windsorsquash.ca or dguthrie@windsorsquash.ca

Social Events: Beer While it Last
Friday Night Snacks
Saturday & Sunday Continentail Breakfast
Dinner Saturday Evening

Please Note that Payment is Required at Sign Up.
Deadline for Sign Up: March 19th/11

If any Individuals are interested in Sponsoring this year's event please Contact David Guthrie dguthrie@windsorsquash.ca or Mark Porter squash@windsorsquash.ca

2010 Tony Tomicic Challenge

The 7th Annual Tony Tomicic Challenge.

This year’s event drew 106 squash players competing in 8 divisions and playing in over 200 matches. Players came from Detroit, London, Birmingham, Toledo, Toronto and Moncton, New Brunswick.

The level of play in the tournament was maybe the best that we had ever seen at WSF. The matches were simply amazing and the competition was very intense. Nobody wanted to be on the losing end of a match.

Mick Joint our good friend from the Detroit Athletic Club easily defeated everyone in the Open Division. Joint proved to be at a level above everyone else as he cruised through the competition and won the finals in dominating fashion. Throughout the whole tournament Joint never lost a game. Joint better hope that his DAC boys play as well as he did in the upcoming Cross Border Challenge on April 17/10. WSF has won 7 straight times!!!!!! But who is counting?

Dan Van Morsel finally let his squash game do the talking and not his mouth. With his coach in his corner (Wayne Carroll) Van Morsel played unstoppable squash and fought his way into the A Division finals. Although in the finals Van Morsel’s coach was noticeably absent and so was Van Morsel’s solid play. As a result Bruce Burrowes of London made quick work of Van Morsel beating him 3-0.

Team Bear Paw (Barry Leavitt/ Paul Gebrael) lived up to the hype. They are like a well oiled machine. Leavitt has mentored Gebrael beautifully as Gebrael has learned to control his emotions on the doubles court. As a result they cruised to the finals to face their nemesis’ Mike “Muscle Shirt” Wilbur and Syd “Right Wall” Strom. The B Doubles Finals proved to be everything that was anticipated. The finals were a hard fought five gamer that could have gone either way. In the end Leavitt and Gebrael pulled off the victory. As in the Fall Down Classic the paramedics were called again to help Gebrael from the court because his head could not fit though the door way.

Thank You to Everyone Who Participated in This Year’s Event and a Big Thanks To All Our Sponsors who made this tournament possible.

Tony Tomicic Challenge 2010

Sign Up Today!!!!! Beer, Squash & Good Times!!!!!!

Deadline For This Year's Event is March 20th/10

Payment Will Be Required At Sign Up.

$60.00 Entry Fee.