Jamaica National Racquetball Team
2002 New York State
Doubles Championships
Some of the best athletes in the Northeast gathered recently in Syracuse for a chance to earn a state title in the New York State Doubles Racquetball Championships. Held at Gold's Gym in Dewitt, the weekend was filled with intensity, energy and endurance. Players traveled from all over New York State as well as from places like Washington and Massachusetts.
In the Mixed division, two members of the Jamaican National Racquetball Team would find themselves in a close match against a Rochester based duo. Number one ranked Jim Green and Donna Renelt would advance to the finals by defeating Mike Osborne and Joy binder 15-10 and 15-2. Number two-ranked John Edwards and Jackie Gopie, members of the Jamaican team, would also advance to the Mixed finals with a win over Bruce Mayberry and Wendy Hildmann with scores of 15-9 and 15-6. In the championship round, each team would play to win in what proved to be another point for point battle. Green and Renelt would eventually inch forward to a 15-13 first game win. Gopie, who traveled in from Washington, would move her team forward with a series of Ace serves and earn a chance to go to the tiebreaker with a score of 15-12. In game three, the Jamaicans would continue their run and earn the championship title with an 11-4 win.
The number four seeded team of Bill Conz and Chuck Van Horn would come close to an upset as they took the number one ranked team of John Edwards and Rhinehart Zimmerman to three games in the bid for that Mens division final.
Conz would rely on his cut-off shots to eventually earn the 15-8 win in game one. In a point for point battle, Zimmerman would begin to fire consistent forehand kill shots as he and Edwards moved to a 15-12 second game win. In game three Zimmerman and Edwards would control and change the tempo, which would lead them to a final score of 11-8.
In the other bracket, the Syracuse, Albany combo of Lanny Kinner and Scott Picket would dominate their semi-finals opponents and restrict them in two games to 11 and 5 points respectively. In an intense final round, Kinner and Picket would fall in two games to the Cortland-Buffalo combo of Edwards and Zimmerman.
For the first time ever, the Jamaicans would capture titles in 2 separate divisions of the New York State Doubles Championships as they prepare for the 2002 World Championship Games.