When Paola Longoria, the #1 Women’s Professional Player, stepped on the court in Overland Park, Kansas on February 24th for the Championship Final of the 2013 Winter Classic over the weekend, it had been 1 year, 9 months and 23 days since she lost a match on the Ladies Professional Racquetball Tour (LPRT).
That’s 665 consecutive days since Paola did not come away the victor. No matter how you calculate it, it has been a very, very long time.
And the result in Overland Park was the same as the previous 16 LPRT events with Paola winning yet another title playing Rhonda Rajsich in the finals and beating her 3 games to 0.
Paola now holds a record streak of 17 LPRT events (15 Grand Slam/Tier 1 and 2 Satellite Events) won in a row, a span that covers another record of 68 consecutive professional matches.
Longoria has also dominated the courts during international competition. The weekend of February 14-17, Paola Longoria won The Mexican National Championships in both singles and doubles which will allow her to represent her country at the Pan American Championships in Cali, Columbia in March.
Her overall consecutive matches win streak for international and LPRT competitions has now reached 91.
While Paola Longoria is dominating the Ladies Professional Racquetball Tour (LPRT), there is a junior sensation in Florida that may
soon give racquetball’s La Princesa a game or two!
A decade ago Jordan Cooperrider, part of my “Jr. Championship Team”, picked up a racquet and was immediately a huge success. At the age of five she won her first tournament and since then has filled a trophy case with junior titles. On February 10th at the 2013 Florida State Racquetball Championships she added another title to her collection, Women’s Open State Champion, by beating some of the top adult players in the Sunshine State.
It is during this tournament each year that the FL. Racquetball Association presents its annual awards and Jordan received the “Most Improved Female Player of the Year”. Daryl Cooperrider, Jordan’s Dad, said, “Jordan and I learned from Coach Fran to always have a game plan. Coach Fran has been instrumental in Jordan’s development as well as mine. Jordan and I have attended four of Coach Fran’s weekend Instructional Clinics and many lessons. Most recently, I received my USAR-IP certification from Coach Fran. I feel, with Coach Fran’s help, Jordan will reach her goal of playing on the LPRT.”
Taylor Knoth, is back in style after foot surgery and then a foot infection which sidelined him since July 2012. In both his tournaments that he entered, one in OR and one here in Seattle, WA, he won. He is playing better than ever, just needs to get his timing back 100%.
We are getting him ready for the National Intercollegiate Championships toward the middle to the end of March, as he is playing a minimum of 3X per week.
Rocky Carson enjoyed some time off with the family, but he is now back training hard for the IRT Tier One Pro Stop in Tampa, FL with Kim Roy.
And I must CONGRATULATE some of my students who brought home some medals from the National Doubles Championships as well as who took home some trophies from the Mt. Rainer Open here in Seattle, WA this past weekend.
A BIG CONGRATS goes out to Rocky Carson, Richelle Kulju, Steve Kowalski, Grace Hughes, Jessica Munioz, Allan Lawson, Paul Julbees, Jeff Stark, Gil Cepeda,Joe Capozzolli, Mike Orr, Chris Wright, Carla Francis, Devon Pimentelli, Tammarrian Rogers, Vivian Rodriguez, Cheryl Jones, Alice Birnbaum, Frank Alongi, Dan Millar, Dave Boyovich, Jerry Evarts, Ty Holcomb, Leslee Underhill, Mike Lam and Loupe Chavez.
