Daily Blog from the XXXVI Pan American Racquetball Championships

Team USA – Day One at PARC

U.S. Team Head Coach Pablo Fajre comments on the first day of competition in Guatemala City: 

“It was a good day! The first day is always challenging with the team getting used to the courts in real-time competition, becoming accustomed to how the ball behaves at this altitude, etc. There are a lot of different variables. We were able to begin to settle in and logged victories in all six matches. We are fortunate to have our excellent physical therapists with us to help keep our athletes healthy and feeling strong and ready to compete at their best for the entire event.

“This team is comprised of five experienced athletes. What’s especially great is the way each member of the delegation (athletes and staff) supported the rest courtside all day. Take a look at match results on this first day of competition.”

TEAM USA -- SATURDAY’S RESULTS

Men’s Singles
Jake Bredenbeck def. Ramon De Leon (DOM), 11-8, 11-6, 11-6
Thomas Carter def. Diego Pimentel (DOM), 11-3, 11-4, 11-4

USA Racquetball Athletes, Friends, & Family

Women’s Singles
Michelle Key def. Jamileth Sipac (GUA), 11-3, 11-7, 11-5
Lexi York def. Maria Renee Rodriguez (GUA), 11-6, 7-11, 11-6, 11-4

USA Racquetball Athletes, Friends, & Family

Men’s Doubles
Jake Bredenbeck/Sam Bredenbeck def. Ramon De Leon/Ricardo Monroy (DOM), 11-5, 7-11, 7-11, 11-3, 12-10

Women’s Doubles
Michelle Key/Lexi York def. Merynanyelly Delgado/Maria Cespedes (DOM), 9-11, 11-7, 11-0, 11-0. WBF - Injury

PARC 2025 Format/Scoring

Let’s stop here for a moment and review some key points about this event:

As mentioned in Blog #1, the first part of the tournament is pool play/round robin, and it’s seeded by countries’ past results. The outcome of this first phase will determine the seeding for the main individual draws (aka playoffs) that will be competed Tuesday-Thursday. Then, Thursday-Saturday, the Team Competition phase will take place where single elimination draws by country will be formed using the results from the first (individual) phase of competition. This may already be “way TMI” so I’ll explain more about the Team Competition when the time comes.

The ball is Gearbox Sleek Black. The format throughout is Best 3 Games of 5, all to 11 points, all win by 2 points. In other words, the first player/doubles team to win three games is the match winner. If one player/team wins the first three games in a row, the match is over. If they split with their opponent(s), two games each, they go to a tiebreaker fifth game. 

Rally scoring is standard for the IRF, which means that a point is scored on every rally whether the rally winner was the server or the receiver. 

Results achieved by teams here at PARC 2025 will elevate PARC competition seeding positions in the years leading up to the 2027 Pan American Games in Lima, Peru (where we hope to see Racquetball included!).  

Travelogue

Guatemala, officially the Republic of Guatemala (Spanish: República de Guatemala), is a country in Central America bordered by Mexico to the north and west, Belize and the Caribbean to the northeast, Honduras to the east, El Salvador to the southeast, and the Pacific Ocean to the south. With an estimated population of around 18.6 million,  it is the most populous country in Central America and is the 11th most populous country in the Americas. Guatemala is a representative democracy; its capital and largest city is Nueva Guatemala de la Asunción, also known as Guatemala City, the largest city in Central America.  

Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guatemala 

Currency: Quetzal(es) - same as the National Bird (about Q7.81 to $1 USD)
Population (Guatemala): 18.6 million
Population (Guatemala City): 995,000
President:  Bernardo Arévalo
Official language: Spanish
Altitude: 4,920 ft. above sea level

ATHLETE OF THE DAY

Hey, it’s time for this popular Daily Blog feature to begin, with one athlete in the spotlight each day for the next five days, Then on Thursday and Friday, you’ll learn more about the staff members here in support of Team USA.

Athlete of the Day: Jake Bredenbeck

Age: 33
City/State: Marine, Minnesota
Rank on Tour: 4
Age when started playing Racquetball: 4-1/2 years old
Sponsors: ODISI Apparel, Gearbox, KWM Gutterman

What does it mean to you to compete for the USA at PARC? “Competing with USA on my back means everything. It is one of the best things we as athletes get to do. I am very fortunate to have this opportunity.”

USA Racquetball Athletes, Friends, & Family

Whom would you like to recognize/thank? “A huge thank you goes to my parents for supporting me in all I do. They are the reason I started to play racquetball, and they continue to support me to this day. I wouldn't be who I am or where I am in life without them. I would like to thank everyone who donated to support us in doing what we love, representing the best country on earth.”

USA Racquetball Athletes, Friends, & Family

Mail from Home   

Over 100 people (racquetball family members as well as family and friends of the delegation) are on a “Sneak Peek” list, receiving the Daily Blog hot off the press before publication the next day. We’re always happy to hear from them and indeed from any other fans who wish to offer encouragement to Team USA. 

We were glad to receive Blog #1 communication from Linda Price, Gail Cowley, Brett Elkins, Sharron Puckett Bradford, Maureen Mulvenna Keough, George Bustos, and Stewart Solomon. Here’s a special message from USA Racquetball Past President Keith Calkins: “Wishing our team success on and off the court. Always said you have to ‘beat them when you meet them.’ Athletes, listen to your coaches and be smart on the court. I will be watching and enjoying every moment of the tournament.” 

TEAM USA Info

It’s so important to the U.S. Team Delegation to share their experiences at PARC! To help everyone back in the States feel like they’re right here with the athletes and staff in Guatemala City, the following will be in place: 

1.     The Daily Blog, accompanied by plenty of photos posted on the USA Racquetball website, www.usaracquetball.com

2.     Social media posts from USA Racquetball as well as the athletes themselves

3.     Live streaming is provided on the IRF YouTube Channel, the IRF Facebook page, and Panam Sports. Visit the home page of PARC (just below*) for streaming links and more information about this event. Also, visit IRF or PARC Instagram each morning for the day’s streaming schedule. 

* https://www.panamericanracquetball.com/

Be sure to visit www.panamericanracquetball.com, or R2 Sports** to also keep up with the results and see how your favorite players are doing.  

** https://www.r2sports.com/website/event-website.asp?TID=48572

TEAM USA: SUNDAY'S SCHEDULE

What’s in store for Team USA on Sunday? See below, and wish them luck and tons of rollouts!

All times are the same as U.S. Mountain Time.  

Men’s Singles
11:30 am – Jake Bredenbeck vs. Jose Daniel Ugalde (ECU)
12:15 pm – Thomas Carter vs. Juan Francisco Cueva (ECU) 

Women’s Singles
10:00 am – Lexi York vs. Frederique Lambert (CAN)
Michelle Key (BYE)

Men’s Doubles
3:15 pm – Jake Bredenbeck/Sam Bredenbeck vs. Christhian Menendez/Raul Martinez Gutierrez (CUB)

Women’s Doubles
2:30 pm – Lexi York/Michelle Key vs. Chloe Jauvin/Ofelia Wilscam (CAN)

Mixed Doubles
4:45 pm – Michelle Key/Sam Bredenbeck vs. Merynanyelly Delgado/Ramon De Leon (DOM)

Sunday, here we come!

GO TEAM USA!!

USA Racquetball Athletes, Friends, & Family

USA Racquetball Athletes, Friends, & Family

USA Racquetball Athletes, Friends, & Family

Greetings from Guatemala City, where (most of) the U.S. Team Delegation had arrived as of Thursday evening. Our physical therapists arrived today, ready for action when competition begins on Saturday morning!

U.S. Team athletes will compete here in Singles, Doubles, and Mixed Doubles over the next week vs. 11 other countries. 

Introducing the U.S. Team Delegation

Let’s meet the delegation for this event, with competition taking place every day, April 12-19:

Jake Bredenbeck (Minnesota): Men’s Singles
Thomas Carter (Illinois): Men’s Singles
Jake Bredenbeck and Sam Bredenbeck (Minnesota): Men’s Doubles

Michelle Key (Arizona): Women’s Singles
Lexi York (Minnesota): Women’s Singles
Michelle Key and Lexi York: Women’s Doubles  

Michelle Key and Sam Bredenbeck: Mixed Doubles

USA Racquetball Athletes, Friends, & Family

Supporting our U.S. Team Athletes:

Pablo Fajre (California): Head Coach
Dr. Sarah Leong-Lopes (California): Physical Therapist
Santiago Villamil (Florida): Physical Therapist

First Things First

1: Arrive. 
2: Get supplies!

Thursday 

The traditional trip to the grocery store for (a lot of) water, fruit, bread, ham, peanut butter, jelly, pickles, ham, maybe a cookie or two, possibly chocolate, indeed took place on Thursday. 

A little later, Pablo and the athletes endured some heavy traffic (not unexpected in Guatemala City) to get to practice at the Domo Complejo de Racquetball, Guatemala’s beautiful 10-court facility, still new. The club’s inaugural event was the IRF Adult & Junior Worlds in December 2021 and was then followed a year later by IRF World Juniors. The Pan American Racquetball Championships were held here in 2023 and 2024, and we’re happy to be back again this year.

A Busy Friday

Friday’s schedule was brisk! While our Team USA athletes practiced at the club again before competition begins on Saturday, meetings of an administrative nature occurred as well. For example...

The Coaches and Delegates Meeting commenced at 12:00 pm at the host hotel where a great deal of information about the event was provided to the 12 countries* in attendance, especially the draws/match schedules for the first phase of competition. Head Coach Pablo Fajre represented the USA at this meeting and paid the entry fees for the U.S. Team.  

* Argentina, Bolivia, Canada, Chile, Costa Rica, Cuba, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Guatemala, Mexico, Peru, USA

From the USA, three more Americans also have traveled to Guatemala in support of the Pan American Racquetball Confederation/International Racquetball Federation. Gary Mazaroff (New Mexico) and Gustavo Farell (Texas), who are PARC/IRF veterans, will be providing live streaming commentary throughout the event. Dean Schear (Texas), an officer of both organizations, will be King of the Floor (aka operations director) each day.

USA Racquetball Athletes, Friends, & Family

Much Gratitude to the GIVEDIRECT Contributors!

Once again this year, the athletes have stepped up with fundraising on their own to cover their trip to represent us all as Team USA. They are simply amazing, so dedicated to our sport and to their fans across the United States. USA Racquetball, although the budget couldn’t bear the entire cost of the trip along with a number of other grow-the-sport initiatives in progress, was proud to start a grassroots "friends and family" fundraising appeal in March/early April that resulted in a number of benefactors stepping forward to financially support this competition. We can’t thank them enough for becoming an important part of this PARC event!

Our warmest regards go to James Greenspan, Stephen Czarnecki, Joe Repice, Christen Rexing, Kristen Costello, Chris Heye, Sharlene Lugo, Lavinia Lowe, Dennis Quintal, Mike Wedel, Orlando Cabana, William Gross, Rick Thorn, Frank Resnick, Donald Barrows, Edith Block, Tito Padilla, Gilad Shoshani, Melanie Paradis, Corey Litchfield, David Reilly, David Gopfert, Jolene Sullivan, Aaron Dardani, Raul Nieves, Kevin Harrington, Vincent Santilli, Karen Grisz, Cheryl Kirk, Glen Gitterman, Kimberly Luke, John Acampora, Jason Young, Theodore Keller, Kelly Shea, Kristin Wattz, Sandra Rios, and Stewart Solomon.

So here we go...Day One looms just a few hours from this writing!

Saturday’s Schedule 

All of a sudden, it’s April 12th and time for the pool play/round robin phase of competition to begin. Visit panamericanracquetball.com or R2 Sports to view all draws and divisions:

https://www.panamericanracquetball.com/

https://www.r2sports.com/website/event-website.asp?TID=48572

Yes, there will be live streaming beginning Saturday on the IRF YouTube Channel and IRF Facebook page. Visit the home page of PARC (just above) for streaming links and more information about this event. Streaming will begin on the Panam Sports Channel on Sunday. 

We can’t wait to see Team USA in action! Here’s the first-day lineup (all times are the same as U.S. Mountain Time):

Men’s Singles
10:00 am – Jake Bredenbeck vs. Ramon De Leon (DOM)
10:45 am – Thomas Carter vs. Diego Pimentel (DOM)

Women’s Singles
11:30 am – Michelle Key vs. Jamileth Sipac (GUA)
11:30 am – Lexi York vs. Maria Renee Rodriguez (GUA) 

Men’s Doubles
2:30 pm – Jake Bredenbeck/Sam Bredenbeck vs. Ramon De Leon/Ricardo Monroy (DOM)

Women’s Doubles
3:15 pm – Michelle Key/Lexi York vs. Merynanyelly Delgado/Maria Cespedes (DOM)

Mixed Doubles
Michelle Key/Sam Bredenbeck (BYE – 1st round Sunday)

Okay, everyone is settled in and ready to go to work. Tomorrow night’s blog will include match results and continuing stories from Guatemala. Stick with us, there’s so much to come!

GO TEAM USA!!

USA Racquetball Athletes, Friends, & Family

USA Racquetball Athletes, Friends, & Family