Brazil, USA Win Pan Am Titles
Nov 1 2005, by Rob Dinerman     
Squashtalk Independent News; © 2005 SquashTalk LLC

Victory For U. S. Women And Brazilian Men

Ivy Pochoda's clutch straight-set victory over Canada's young star (and former Princeton No. 1) Ruchika Kumar in the deciding match of the Pan Am Federation team final enabled the U. S. women's team to defeat their Canadian counterparts, two matches to one, in the culmination of a hectic and exciting weekend and to thereby win this tourney for the third year in a row.

The U. S. women had advanced to the final via a 2-0 semifinal win over Brazil in which Carlin Wing had won her match in three games and Louisa Hall at No. 1 had out-played the strong Karen Redfern in four. Wing then defeated Canada's Ashley Clackson 3-1 before Hall lost to just-crowned Pan Am Fed Individual champion Alana Miller in three games. This left the team outcome in the hands of Pochoda and Kumar and the former took control in the opening stanza and never relinquished it.

The American men's chances in their semifinal tilt with Mexico were considerably boosted when Individuals winner Eric Galvez had to leave El Salvador and return home. Deprived of their No. 1 performer, the Mexicans fell 2-0, with Michael Puertas winning handily and Julian Illingworth avenging his 3-2 loss two days earlier to Hector Becimil by the same close margin.

But this may have been a Pyrrhic victory for the Yale senior, who faded in the fifth game of his subsequent team final encounter with Brazil's Rafael Alarcon, an outcome which, coupled with the 3-0 loss that Jamie Crombie had earlier sustained, enabled Brazil to clinch the men's team gold medal.

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