FALL/WINTER 2015-2016 | VOL 34 NO 1 THE OFFICIAL PUBLICATION OF THE ILLINOIS STATE RACQUETBALL ASSOCIATION • Annual Awards • Hall of Fame Induction • Events: Local/State/National/International Facebook: Illinois State Racquetball Association | www.illinoisracquetball.com | 1 ²"MMUIF1SPµTPOUIF*35LOPXUIBUUIF1SP 1FOO)%CBMMJTTFDPOEUPOPOF8JUIUPEBZµT ²*MPWFUIF1SP1FOO(SFFOCBMM5IFGBTUDSJTQ MJHIUXFJHIUSBDRVFUTUIJTJTUIFPOMZCBMMUP BDUJPOPGGNZSBDRVFUIFMQFENFXJO(0-% QMBZXJUI*UTMJHIUXFJHIUEFTJHOBOETPGUFS .FEBMTBUUIF1BO"NFSJDBO(BNFTBOE GFFMPGGFSTQMBZFSTPGBMMMFWFMTUIFNPTU 8PSME$IBNQJPOTIJQT/PPUIFSCSBOE DPNGPSUBCMFFYQFSJFODFPOUIFDPVSU FWFO DPNQBSFTUP1FOO³ XJUITIPUTFYQMPEJOHPWFSNQI³ 1BPMB-POHPSJB 3PDLZ$BSTPO 2 | www.illinoisracquetball.comQFOOSBDRVFUDPN | Facebook: Illinois State Racquetball Association ILLINOIS STATE Table of ISRA COURTSIDE RACQUETBALL ASSOCIATION CONTENTS FALL/WINTER 2015-2016 | VOL 34 NO 1 PRESIDENT Laurel Davis - Oak Brook From the President ............................................................................................... 4 VICE PRESIDENT ISRA Family News .................................................................................................. 5 Cheryl Kirk - Naperville Notice of Annual Meeting and Election of ISRA Board Members ........8 SECRETARY Marla Cusano - Glen Ellyn ISRA Annual Awards and Hall Of Fame Induction Ceremony ............... 9 TREASURER Michelle Halverson - Lombard What Racquetball Means to Me .....................................................................10 ZONE VICE PRESIDENTS United HealthCare US Open Racquetball Championships ..................11 Geoff Peters - Chicago (North) Doug Halverson - Lombard (West) 24th Annual Turkey Shoot Open/IRT Pro Stop .........................................12 Samuel Gomez - Peoria (Central) John O’Donnell, Jr. - Champaign (South) 2016 WSMRA 27th Annual National Championship...............................14 GOVERNING BOARD ISRA State Doubles Championships .............................................................16 Todd Burris - Streamwood Patrice Calvi - New Lenox USA Racquetball National Doubles Championships ..............................18 Mike Davern - Naperville Jonelle Dubois - Naperville State Singles is in the Record Books! ............................................................20 Pam Grace - Wheaton Dolores Lamberson - LaGrange Bob Schwab Memorial ......................................................................................23 Rick Seaberg - North Aurora Joe Silius - Mokena 31ST Annual Shamrock Shootout and IRT Tier 1 Pro Stop ......................24 AUXILIARY BOARD XXVII IRF World Junior Racquetball Championships ..............................27 Marian Bala - Indian Head Park Jeff Grace - Wheaton Pan American Racquetball Championships ..............................................29 Paul Jepsen - Hinsdale Kit Lawson - Naperville ISRA Calendar .......................................................................................................32 Lisa Mayer - Naperville Dave Milazzo - Gurnee Challenge Courts .................................................................................................33 Liz Molitor - Glen Ellyn Vickie Onesti - Elmhurst John Puccio - Naperville Advertising Rates/Deadlines ...........................................................................34 Bill Roberts - Chicago Barbara Vagedes - Carol Stream USAR Membership Application ......................................................................34 Mike Vicary - Metamora ISRA NEWSLETTER STAFF Cheryl Kirk - Editor Joe Silius - Advertising Editor On the COVER Kit Lawson - Photo Editor The ISRA eMagazine is published quarterly, and Top – Hall of Fame 2016 Inductees: Dave is the offi cial publication of the Illinois State Milazzo, Dr. Bob Troyer, Jack Newman Racquetball Association (ISRA). All rights reserved. Copyright 2016. Reproduction in whole or in part of any text, Bottom – ISRA Award Winners: photograph or illustration without written permission from the ISRA is strictly prohibited. Alcides (and Erick) Gutierrez, Lynn Yeazell, Letters to the Editor, photographs, and articles Eugene Coyle, Daniel Jaskier or editorial contributions should be sent to [email protected]. Design & Layout by: TypaGraphics Facebook: Illinois State Racquetball Association | www.illinoisracquetball.com | 3 From the PRESIDENT And now, the season end is near And so we face the fi nal curtain My friends, I’ll say it clear I’ll state my case, of which I’m certain We had a great season For all the right reasons We all got to play And we made it all the way There are only a couple more Tournaments in store And then we will be done And will have some summer fun Regionals In April Will bring Nationals in May Then will follow Summerfest And some rest before the Open play! Thanks to everybody who made the 2015-2016 ISRA Racquetball season a great one. We had good tournament participation, great volunteers and generous sponsors. Thanks to the ISRA Board of Directors for their hard work. Congratulations to our Annual Award winners and to our special award recipient, Tony Cosmano. A big congratulations to our Hall of Fame inductees Dave Milazzo, Jack Newman, and Dr. Bob Troyer -- an impressive group! Have fun and be safe this summer. See you on the courts, Credit to songwriters Claude Francois, Marcelo Drumond Nova, Jacques Revaux, and Gilles Thibaut for the parody of “My Way” lyrics in the fi rst stanza. From the EDITOR We hope you like the fresh new look of this ISRA publication! Perennially called the ISRA Newslet- ter (a serviceable but somewhat uninspiring title), due to its gradual growth and its updated appearance, we have decided that the new ISRA Courtside deserves a promotion to “eMagazine”! Going forward as ISRA Courtside, our eMagazine staff will appreciate any news, ideas, or stories you’d like to share. Thanks to Mary Jo Downen of Typagraphics who has been producing issue after issue for over 20 years. She is great to work with and so good at what she does! Have a great summer! 4 | www.illinoisracquetball.com | Facebook: Illinois State Racquetball Association ISRA FAMILY NEWS Fran Davis Racquetball Camp The weekend of November 6-8, 2015, saw ten intrepid campers from four states converge on Glass Court for three days of racquetball instruction from Fran Davis, one of the game’s premier coaches. Fran currently works with LPRT #1 and World Champion Paola Longoria and IRT #2 and 2015 Pan American Games gold medalist Rocky Carson. This was an opportunity for many local and regional players to learn from the best. Local teaching pros Andy Pitock and Marian Bala assisted during the classes and on-court instruction that began Friday evening and concluded on Sunday at noon with certifi cates of completion. Along the way, the class focused on stroke mechanics, shot selection, tournament preparation, and game strategy with multiple on-court sessions including video analysis that (frequently) pointed out the fl aws (aka opportunities for improvement) in each player’s game. Fran’s camp has come to Glass Court annually for many years. All-in-all, a very worthwhile weekend that everyone who wants to improve their game should consider! Fran will be bringing her camp back to Lombard in late October or early November. Check the ISRA website peri- Photo courtesy of Ernie Lehman odically for updates! -- Geoff Peters Charles “Chuck” Martarano Ambassador to Racquetball | 1928-2016 Chuck Martarano was an ambassador to racquetball. He competed locally and nationally for many years before formal associations were formed, winning many titles along the way. For over 20 years Chuck ran a league of 16 pretty good players starting out at the Oak Park Court House, then moving to Melrose Park and ending up at Glass Court. Chuck was not only an accomplished player but a mentor to many along the way, such as last year’s inductee into the Hall of Fame, Billy Lyman. The following story is told by Doug Peterson, a multiple State Champion: “I had been playing racquetball for six months and thought I was pretty good. I went over to the Oak Park Courthouse and saw Chuck playing. He saw me watching and invited me down to play. For the next hour he just ran me around the court until I could barely stand. I went back to my friends and told them that I just played a guy who must be the greatest player in the state. Chuck was a painter/wallpaper hanger by trade. Over the years Chuck helped by hiring more than a few friends who had lost their jobs. Chuck was a friend, mentor, and inspiration to many racquetball players.” During the 2015 Shamrock Shootout/IRT Tier 1 event, Chuck was honored by the ISRA and IRT as a great racquetball ambassador for over 50 years. Photo courtesy of Paul Jepsen Photo courtesy of Paul -- Paul Jepsen Doc Sinno, Kane Waselenchuk, Chuck Martarano, Bob Randazzo, Ricky Rinella continued on page 8 Facebook: Illinois State Racquetball Association | www.illinoisracquetball.com | 5 FAMILY NEWS continued from page 7 Howard Spaeth Long-Time Member of Illinois Racquetball Community | 1938-2016 Howard W. Spaeth, 77, passed away peacefully in Chicago on his father, Dr. Ralph Spaeth, and Wednesday, January 20, 2016, after a long battle with heart mother, Dr. Erma Jaskulek. Howard disease and diabetes. Born May 13, 1938, Howard lived in will be remembered fondly for his Chicago throughout his life with fond memories of time in life-long interest in aviation, robust Lenox, Massachusetts; Canton, North Carolina; Monroe, New storytelling skills about grandiose York; Terre