Mano--Torneo Bartolome de Elgoibar II (August 24-25, 2019)

Torneo Bartolome de Elgoibar II: Ikastola, Elgoibar (1) (2)

This was a brief 3 team tournament, with a Semi-final. The winner then played Artola-Zabaleta, who were seeded into the Final. One of the interesting features of the tournament was that each team had a member from each of the two companies that organize Mano at the professional level.

ASPE Roster

Baikopilota Roster

Tournament Preview article (21Iguales.com)

2018 complete results (baikopilota.eus)

August 25

FINAL

Artola(Baikopilota)-Zabaleta (ASPE) 22 Irribarria(ASPE)-Imaz(B) 2 (EITB--match begins at: 1:19:43)

Condensed linescore (21Iguales.com) (winners always listed 1st)

4-0; 4-1; 16-1; 16-2; 22-2

Scoring (EITB)

Artola +8 -0; Zabaleta +1 -0

Irribarria +2 -8; Imaz +0 -5

Balls in Play: 252: Artola 74; Zabaleta 62; Irribarria 48; Imaz 68

Time of the Match: 31:02

Match article (21Iguales.com)

The linescore says it all as A-Z demolish I-I with a double perfect game. Artola had 26 more balls in play than Irribarria.

August 24

Semi-Final

Irribarria (ASPE)-Imaz(B) 22 

Bengoetxea VI(B)-Martija(ASPE) 18 

There was no match video for this match.

Selected linescore (21Iguales.com) (winners always listed 1st)

6-0; 18-7; 21-18; 22-18

Scoring: (21Iguales.com)

Irribarria +12 -3; Imaz +0 -2

Bengoetxea VI +13 -6; Martija +0 -4

Balls in Play: 447

Time of the Match: 51:00

Match article (21Iguales.com)

A huge comeback almost overtakes the winners...but not quite.

Mano--Torneo Asta Nagusia Bilbao--August 21, 22, 24

Torneo Asta Nagusia Bilbao (1) (2) (August 21, 22, 24). This tournament was part of the Asta Nagusia (Great Week) Festival in Bilbo (Bilbao)

ASPE Roster

Baikopilota Roster

Tournament Preview (21Iguales.com)

Complete results (along with results going back to 2011 (baikopilota.eus)

Final scoring: (two of the matches were not televised, so 21Iguales.com scoring was used). EITB scoring was used in the other match.

Laso +13 -3; Albisu +0 -5

Urrutikoetxea +10 -3; Albisu +0 -0

Altuna III +15 -8; Rezusta +3 -11

Elezkano +8 -4; L. Galarza +2 -5

Oliazola +4 -2; +0 -9

Note: the individual scoring in the two 21Iguales.com matches did not add up to the total score. EITB's scoring did. 

The Tournament scoring was interesting. The fronts were +50 -20, while the backs were +5 -30. Laso was the "hero", coming in on short notice due to  a shoulder injury to Urrutikoetxea, while Rezusta had 2 uncharacteristically poor "days at the office." Altuna III, the leading scorer in the tournament, was able to help his team over the line once, but he was basically shut out in the Final. Albisu was player of the Tournament.

August 24

FINAL

Laso (substituting for Urrutikoetxea)-Albisu 22

Altuna III-Rezusta 13 (EITB--match begins at 1:15:42)

Selected linescore (Mundo Deportivo) (winners always listed 1st)

12-11; 15-11; 18-13; 22-13

Scoring (EITB)

Laso +13 -3; Albisu +0 -5

Altuna III +5 -4; Rezusta +0 -5

Balls in Play: 629; Altuna III 150; Rezusta 160; Laso 169; Albisu 150

Time of the Match: 69:00

Playing Time: 31:34

Match article (Mundo Deportivo)
Match article (Baikopilota.eus)

Laso's play made the difference as the substitute led his team to victory. Not only did he have a great offensive match, but he also (along with a lot of help from Albisu), limited Altuna III's offense enough to control the match and win decisively.

August 22

2nd Semi-Final

Altuna III-Rezusta 22 Elezkano II-L. Galarza (substituting for Zabaleta) 19

Selected linescore (21Iguales.com) winners always listed 1st)

5-3; 6-6; 7-7; 10-10; 11-12; 14-13; 20-13; 20-15; 21-17; 21-19; 22-19

Scoring:

Altuna III +10 -4; Rezusta +3 -6

Elezkano II +8 -4; L. Galarza +2 -5

(Scoring adds to 22-20)

Balls in Play: 595

Time of the Match 71 minutes

Match article (21Iguales.com)

After an equal 1st half, a 6 point run by the winners seemed to be sufficient, but E-G answered with a 6-1 run of their own to fall just short. The match article praised the play of Ladis Galarza, the substitute back.

August 21

1st Semi-final

Urrutkoetxea-Albisu 22

Oliazola II-Mariezkurrena II 7

Highlights (EITB)

Selected linescore (21iguales.com) (winners always listed 1st)

8-0; 8-1; 13-1; 13-3; 15-3; 16-4; 17-5; 17-7; 22-7

Scoring (21Iguales.com)

Urrutikoetxea +10 (including 3 service aces) -3; Albisu +0 -0

Oliazola II +4 -2 Mariezkurrena II +0 -9

(Scores add to 21-7)

Balls in Play: 331

Time of the Match: 41:00

Match article (21Iguales.com)

Oliazola II, playing for the 2nd day in a row after an exhausting 640 ball match in the Torneo Bizkaia Final Pairs match, and Mariezkurrena II, returning to action after a month's absence with "bad hands", were no match for a sharp U-A team, which scored 13 of the 1st 14 points to advance easily.

Main Nue--Two Simultaneous Tournaments--Tournois de Larrau and Tournois d'Ascain--August 15, 16, and 18, 2019

Two tournaments were held the weekend of August 16-18. We have very little information about either of them, and no video whatsoever, unfortunately.

Tournois de Larrau (1) (2) (August 16, 18)

August 18

FINAL

Bielle-Ducassou 40 Ospital-Guichandut 32

Selected linescore (winners always listed 1st)

12-5; 15-8; 21-13; 24-20; 26-25; 32-29; (Bielle 3 consecutive aces) 38-30; 40-32

Partial scoring:

Bielle 10 service aces; Ospital 6

Bielle 19 aces in 2 matches

August 16

Semi-Finals

Bielle-Ducassou 40 Etchegaray-X. Lambert 37

Selected linescore (Esku Pilota) (winners always listed first)

4-11; 10-18; 19-25; 27-27; 29-33; 33-33; 40-37

Partial scoring

Bielle 9 service aces; Etchegaray 5

Time of the match: about and hour and 25 minutes

Ospital-Guichandut 40

P. Larralde-Harismendy 28

Selected linescore (winners always listed 1st)

10-4; 14-14; (Ospital; 4 consecutive aces) 18-14; 32-19; 34-28; (Ospital 2 more aces) 40-28

Partial scoring:

Ospital 9 service aces

Match articles for all 3 matches (Esku Pilota)

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Tournois d'Ascain (1) (2) (August 15, 18)

Source for all scores: Esku Pilota Resultats

August 18

FINAL

Zirrusta*-Ugarte* 40 L. Lambert-Saint Paul* 29

August 15

Semi-Finals

Ziarrusta*-Ugarte* 40 Bideondo*-Palomes 26

L. Lambert-St. Paul* 40 Alcasena*-Lucu 24

Jai Alai/Cesta Punta--Jai Alai World Tour August 9-16 Wrap--Gernika Grand Slam Final; Hondarribia Grand Slam Liguilla and Semi-Finals

The 6th Jai Alai World Tour began on July 7 and will end on September 27. The  Tour will consist of:

Two Grand Slams

Gernika--July 13, 20, 27, semis-August 3, FINAL-AUGUST 10
Hondarribia--July 19, 26, August 2, 9, semis-August 16, FINAL-AUGUST 23.

6 teams will contest the Grand Slams. They will consist of an "A" Group and a "B" Group which will play a single round robin. The top two in each group will face off in the Semi-finals. The two winners will then play in the Final.

Three Master Series

Markina: Quarter finals--July 7; Semi-finals--July 14, FINAL--JULY 16
Lekeitio: Semi-finals--July 28; FINAL--AUGUST 4
Zumia: 1/4--September 6, 13; 1/2--September 20; FINAL--SEPTEMBER 27

There may be other Master series as well. The full schedule is still "pending."

JAWT Announcement

JAWT brochure (.pdf format,9p.)

Complete (at present) calendar (JAWT)

Ongoing results (JAWT)

JAWT Players Page

Due to the manner in which the Masters and Grand Slams will be intertwined, as well as the chronological length of the Grand Slams, the blog will cover this tour in weekly increments, mixing tournaments. The latest scores and links to match stories can be found either on the right side of any blog post, or at the Current Results page, which is also used to show current results on mobile phones (and can also be found with the "pages" on the right side of  the blog).

An up to date player table is always available at the "current results" page, and a cumulative table will be presented at the bottom of each blog post.

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July 7-16--Markina Masters (complete); Gernika Grand Slam (League)

July 19-20 Hondarribia Grand Slam (League); Gernika Grand Slam (League); Mutriku Open Independent Match

July 26-28--Hondarribia Grand Slam (League); Gernika Grand Slam (League); Lekeitio Masters (Semi-finals)

August 2-4--Hondarribia Grand Slam (League); Gernika Grand Slam (Semi-Finals); Lekeitio Masters (Final and 3rd Place match)

August 9-16--Gernika Grand Slam Final; Hondarribia Grand Slam (League and Semi-finals)

August 20-October 28--END OF SEASON--Hondarribia Final, Zumaia Masters, Ciudad San Sebastian Open, Gernika Urriko Open

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INJURY REPORT:

August 4, 2019

Imanol Lopez: Lopez suffered an arm injury early in the 1st set of the Lekeitio Masters Final on August 4. He had to leave for treatment but returned to finish the match. All of his throws from that point forward (except for 2 or 3 soft dejadas from deep in the back) were reverses. He is scheduled to play up to 5 matches the week of August 5-10, including 2 possible finals (Gant d'Or if he wins the semi-final 1st, and the Gernika Grand Slam). How many, if any, of those matches he is able to play remains to be seen. So far this summer, after winning the 2 Championships at Fronton Mexico, he is 9-0 in the Basque Country Summer Partidos, with 2 Championships.

Addendum. Lopez missed his Semi-final Gant d'Or match on August 5.

In an interview with Jai Alai News Facebook on August 7, he said that his arm was responding to treatment "incredibly" well and that he planned to play in the Gernika Grand Slam Final on Saturday, August 10. He is going to take the other matches he is scheduled to play  "a day at a time", according to the article.

July 28, 2019

Mikel Egiguren: For Egiguren the stress of having played 2 matches in 3 days (July 25 in the Cesta Punta World Tour Master 2 Final, and July 27 in the Jai Alai World Tour Gernika Grand Slam Liguilla match), along with the prospect of playing in the 1st Semi-Final of the CPWT Master 3 Tournament on July 30, led to his dropping out of the Leikeitio Masters Semi-final on July 28.

July 27, 2019

Txabi Inza: After playing twice in 3 days (July 23 and 25 in the Semi-final and Final of the CPWT Master 2 Tournament), Inza was unable to play in the 3rd Round Liguilla match of the Gernika Grand Slam. He was replaced by (Aimar) Aldazabal. I have found no information about the reason for his absence or any timetable for his return.

July 26, 2019

Diego Beaskoetxea: Beaskoetxea was unable to play in his Hondarribia League match with Minvielle v Erik (Mendizabal)-Ekhi on June 26. According to the JAWT story (the same story for all matches), he decided to skip the June 26 Hondarribia Grand Slam League match in order to be more physically fit for the Gernika Grand Slam League match on July 27. He was replaced by Ludovic Laduche. Beaskoetxea did play (and win) his League 3 Gernika match on July 27.

July 20, 2019

Nicolas Etxeto: Etxeto suffered an abdominal injury ("un pinchazo en la cintura") in warm-ups for his Round 2 Liguilla match in the Gernika Grand Slam. He played through it for one set but then could go no further. Etxeto returned to action on July 28 for his Lekeitio Masters Semi-final, partnering with Egiguren in a hard fought loss to (Jon) Zulaika-Lopez.

July 13, 2019

(Unai) Lekerika: Lekerika suffered a "cintura" (waist) injury in his July 13 opening Liguilla Group A match in the Gernika Grand Slam competition. He was unable to play in his Markina Masters semi-final match with Arbe v Erik (Mendizabal)-Irastorza on July 14. He was replaced by Ekhi. Lekerika returned to action, partnering with Goikoetxea on July 27 in their Gernika Grand Slam Liguilla match.

July 7, 2019

Jean Olharan: Olharan missed his Quarter final match in the Master Series Markina, still feeling the effects of the shoulder injury he played through at Fronton Mexico in the Moises Cosio Gomez Copa Premier League Final on June 30. Olharan returned to action on July 31 for a his Quarter-final of the Cesta Punta World Tour Gant d'Or Tourmanent in Biarritz. 

Ludovic Laduche: Laduche (who suffered a severe tendon injury in the April 26, 2019 FFPB (Federation Francais de Pelote Basque) Pro-Am Final. He missed the entire Fronton Mexico season and returned as a substitute for Olharan in the Master Series Markina on July 7. For more on Laduche's injury, including full match video of the match he was injured in, check the NEWS AND INJURY ARCHIVE OF THIS BLOG. Inujuries are listed under obituaries and news items, in reverse chronological order. Modalities are mixed together.

Matches are played in sets, two to 15. Tie breaker to 5. 5 pasas (over serves) are allowed. After that an over serve is a fault. Any under serve is an immediate fault (Error corrected August 3, 2019).

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The week saw Inaki Goikoetxea follow his greatest performance (+19 -0) in the Gant d'Or Final (BLOG POST) at Biarritz in Iparralde (North Basque) with 2  losses in the Jai Alai World Tour: the Gernika Grand Slam Final and the Hondarribia Grand Slam Semi-Final. We have much information on the 1st and hardly any on the 2nd.

Imanol Lopez played on and on with "one hand tied behind his back" as his bicep injury continued to prevent him from using his forehand. He adjusted amazingly well, covering much ground left to right in order to be able to return outside throws with his backhand. His results were mixed. He was, amazingly, 2-2 in the four matches he played during the week (3 in Hegoalde (South Basque), 1 in Ipparalde). And of course, he won the big prize, the Gernika Grand Slam (see below). Since his injury occurred on August 4, he has missed only one match, the Semi-Final at Biarritz. With the help of a great physiotherapist, along with his bottomless well of determination, and the ability that long experience brings to be able to adjust on the fly, he pretty much amazed everyone...except Imanol Lopez.

By the 16th, we knew who the finalists at Hondarribia would be (see below), but shortly after, the final was postponed from August 23 to August 30 (Jai Alai World Tour announcement) due to a G7 meeting in the area. So there will be a bit of a lull in Hegoalde while St. Jean de Luz (Donibane Lohizune) gears up for its SLAM tournament that ends the Cesta Punta World Tour's summer season.

And a final word on two players who had a great week. Diego Beaskoetxea, a 22 year veteran of quinela and partido campaigns, an artist/craftsman who is one of the best of his generation, had one of, if not the best partido match of his career. No small match either, it was on the brightest and most pressure packed stage, in front  of a full house (around 2,000) at the "Cathedral" of Zesta Punta in Gernika. He and Lopez put together a strategy that was designed to take the cesta out of Goikoetxea's hand. Having a strategy and executing it against the greatest player in the world (in my opinion) are two different things. With Lopez at a disadvantage, a lot of the "heavy lifting" fell upon Diego. Both of them executed the strategy to perfection, and it was fitting that Diego put the match and Grand Slam title away with a perfect cortada (hard, sidearm throw) past Goikoetxea, followed, a bit later, by an intercept of a Goikoetxea serve and perfect chic-chac (pelota hits the floor so close to the back wall that it bounces out too low to be returned), a "touch" throw that traveled around 70 yards (65 meters).

The other player who has probably surprised everyone except those who watch him day in and day out at Dania Jai Alai, is Erik Mendizabal. Erik is a consistent winner in the quinela arena, winning over 20% of his games, no small feat in the meat grinder of 35 (at the least) games a week, every week, from September to December, and from January to June. He has played in the Summer Partidos before, with middling results. This season he has come alive, winning at Markina with Irastorza and losing the final at Lekeitio with Ibon (Aldazabal) to (Jon) Zulaika-Lopez in a tie breaker. But he isn't finished yet. In the Hondarribia Semi-finals he and Ekhi beat Egiguren-Lopez in straight sets (see below). His summer will finish with another final.

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Grand Slam Gernika (1) (2)

August 10

FINAL

FULL MATCH VIDEO FOR BOTH MATCHES (EITB--final begins at 1:03:00) NOTE: PLEASE BE PATIENT WITH EITB. SOMETIMES IT TAKES A WHILE FOR THE MATCH TO COME IN. IF YOU SEE A RIGHT ARROW AT THE TOP LEFT OF THE PAGE, CLICK ON IT. 

IF THIS DOESN'T WORK, TRY:

http://eitb.tv/es

Buscar (upper right) "zesta punta" (without the quotes.

Click on the match (Gernikako Txapleketako Finala)

Diego (Beaskoetxea)-Lopez 2 

Goikoetxea-(Unai) Lekerika 0

(15-10, 15-6) (30-16) (EITB live broadcast)

Condensed linescore (EITB) (winners always listed 1st)

Set 1

2-0; 2-1; 4-1; 4-3; 6-3; 6-4; 8-4; 8-5; 11-5; 11-6; 12-6; 12-7; 13-7; 13-9; 14-9; 14-10; 15-10

Only twice did G-L score 2 consecutive points.

Set 2

0-3; 1-3; 1-4; 3-4; 3-5; (from 5-5--10-5 G-L committed 4 consecutive errors followed by a mixup where neither of them went for the pelota) 14-5 (Diego cortada); 14-6; 15-6 (Diego intercepts the serve and finishes with a perfect chic-chac)

Scoring (Deia)

Beaskoetxea +12 -6; Lopez +2 -1

Goikoetxea +7 -9 (including 1 service fault); Lekerika +1 -7

(Scores add to 30-15)

Balls in play: 454

Time of the match: 78 minutes

Attendance: about 2,000

Video of the queue to enter (Jai Alai News Facebook)

Match preview article (Deia)

Match preview article (Mundo Deportivo)

Match article (Deia)

Match article (Mundo Deportivo)

Match article (Gernika Jai Alai via Jai Alai News Facebook)

Match article (Jai Alai World Tour)

Lopez won his 16th in the last 17 matches. The strategy was, from beginning to end, to keep the pelota away from Goikoetxea and put pressure on Lekerika. It worked to perfection.

But how did that actually work in practice? I looked at the match a second time and only counted the times Goikoetxea and Lekerika caught and threw the pelota. Here is what I found:

Set 1

Goikoetxea: 39 (of which 30 were rebotes) (rebound shots off the back wall); He  served 10 times, with 1 fault.
He intercepted 2 Diego serves, converting 1 and missing a two wall on the other. He also yielded a service interception that Diego converted with a chic-chac to win the set.

Lekerika 66

Set 2

Goikoetxea 24 (18 rebotes)
He intercepted 2 Diego serves, missing on one and converting on the other.
He served 7 times and was intercepted once. Diego converted that with a perfect chic-chac to finish the match

Lekerika 55

For the match: Goikoetxea 63 (48 rebotes); Lekerika 121

Obviously, the strategy worked, but to really understand how well it worked  subtract the rebotes, which are inherently defensive throws (although Goikoetxea did score with them occasionally). That leaves 15 throws where he was facing the front wall (and quite a few of those were at or behind the 9 line). You cannot score if you don't have the pelota. This was the strategy. You can see it's effect in the body language of Goikoetxea as the 2nd set progresses. G-L finally cracked under the pressure, with 5 consecutive errors (4 physical and one from confusion that caused both of them to look to the other for a throw that neither of them got to).

G-L adjusted their strategy in the 2nd set so that Lekerika left more pelotas for Goikoetxea to rebote, and it worked early in the set. But Lopez, and especially Diego, were relentless. It was reminiscent of a similar strategy used in a different modality, Pala Larga, in the Mundo Parejas World Championship Final at Mungia last April. That match, like this one,  featured a big front man, the best player of his generation, perhaps of all time, Pablo Hernan "Fusto", who was looking for his 5th consecutive MP championship, the most prestigious championship in Pala Larga. He too is a big hitter and a big scorer. His opponents decided to deny him the pelota, deny, deny, and deny some more. And in long court Pala Larga, the rebote by anyone is very rare. The opponents frustrated him until he and his partner began to make errors, and, along with their excellent play, did indeed deny him his championship, just as D-L denied G-L.

3rd Place Match

Hormaetxea-Ibon (Aldazabal) 2

Zulaika-Etxeto (substituting for Barandika-Ekhi) 0

(15-12, 15-12) (match begins at 0:00)

FINAL Group A Table

Goikoetxea-(Unai) Lekerika (2-0; 3.3-1)

Hormaetxea-Ibon (Aldazabal) (1-1; 1-2)

Erik (Mendizabal)-Etxeto (0-2; 1-2.3)

FINAL Group B Table

Diego (Beaskoetxea)-Lopez (2-0; 3.3-1)

(Xabier) Barandika-Ekhi (1-1; 3-1.3)

Egiguren-Inza (0-2; 0-4)

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Grand Slam Hondarribia (Fronton Jostaldi) (1) (2) (3)

August 16

Semi-Finals

NOTE: ON AUGUST 18 EITB ADDED FULL MATCH VIDEOS OF BOTH SEMI-FINALS (IN THE ORDER THEY ARE LISTED BELOW)

Erik (Mendizabal)-Ekhi (Group A; 1-1 #2) 2

Egiguren-Lopez (Group B; 2-0 #1) 0

(15-10, 15-10) (30-20)

Scoring (EITB)

Erik +14 -3; Ekhi +5 -5
Egiguren +7 -7; Lopez +5 -4

Balls in Play: 469: Erik 134; Ekhi 105; Egiguren 96; Lopez 134

Time of the match: 76:04

Olha-Etcheto (Group B; 1-1 #2) 2 Goikoetxea-Ibon (Aldazabal) (Group A; 2-0 #1) 1

(13-15, 15-14, 5-4) (33-33)

Condensed linescore for tie breaker (match winners always listed 1st)

0-2; 1-2; 1-4; 5-4

Scoring (EITB)

Olha +18 -5; Etcheto +1 -0
Goikoetxea +23 -6; Ibon +5 -8

Balls in Play: 440: Olha 115; Etcheto 106; Goikoetxea 121; Ibon 98

Time of the Match: 75:17

4 consecutive Olha winners (dejada, two wall, and 2 left wall shots) bring O-E from the brink of defeat to victory.

Match article for both matches (Jai Alai World Tour)

Both matches were huge upsets, although the first was perhaps not as surprising as the second. Lopez is, after all, human. He has played 27 matches since the beginning of June, in Mexico City, St. Jean de Luz, Biarritz, and all over Hegoalde. He suffered from food poisoning in Mexico City and started in Europe on July 9 after winning the Champion of Champion's final on June 30. He had lost, by his own estimation, about 30 pounds from his bout with the food poisoning. He kept on keeping on, winning his first 9 matches in Europe after winning his last 5 matches in Mexico, a streak that is as long as any I know of in Basque Pelota in 2019. He suffered his bicep injury at the beginning of a Final on August 4 and has missed one match since.  He has already clinched a place in the SLAM finals at St. Jean de Luz, which means possibly 2 more matches. One of his matches in Mexico City (for one of the Tournaments they decided to switch from sets to 30 point partidos) was stopped at the half-way point because of an injury to his partner. The Fronton Mexico management, always with an eye on the bottom line, quickly arranged another 15 point partido, which he graciously agreed to play...in the front. (I counted those 2 as 1 above). 

It is possible that Imanol Lopez is wearing down. But I wouldn't tell that to his upcoming opponents.

In the first match, Ekhi overcame a painful blow to the shin suffered in warmups to play and win. Erik played an excellent match. Both took advantage of Lopez' continued inability to play anything but backhand throws. 

The second match was the surprise match of the summer so far, with O-E winning a "cliff hanger" against G-I. 

August 9

Liguilla 3

Group A Final Table

Goikoetxea-Ibon (Aldazabal) (2-0; 4-0)

Erik (Mendizabal)-Ekhi (1-1; 2-2)

Diego (Beaskoetxea)-Minvielle (0-2) (0-4)

Goikoetxea-Ibon and Erik-Ekhi advance to the Semi-Finals

Group B Final Table

Egiguren-Lopez (2-0; 4-0)

Olha-Etxeto (1-1; 2-2)

Zulaika-T. Basque (0-2; 0-4)

Egiguren-Lopez and Olha-Etxeto advance to the Semi-finals

August 9

Egiguren-Lopez 2 

Zulaika-Aimar (Aldazabal) (substituting for T. Basque) 0

(15-13, 15-13) (30-26) (Jai Alive Facebook)

This was Lopez 2rd of 3 matches in 3 days (one the day before at St. Jean de Luz, the other the day after in the Gernika Grand Slam Final. Thibault Basque suffered an ankle injury as a substitute in the Master 3 Final at St. Jean de Luz on August 6. Aimar (Aldazabal), the longtime front who has converted to the back for this summer's partidos, has gotten a lot of practice at the position. Between the matches he has been scheduled for and the substitutions he has been involved in, he has now played 9 matches this summer, all in Hegoalde.

UPCOMING

AUGUST 30

(FINAL HAS BEEN MOVED FROM AUGUST 23 TO 30 DUE TO G7 MEETING IN THE AREA (JAI ALIVE FACEBOOK)

ERIK (MENDIZABAL)-EKHI (GROUP A#2; 1-1; 2-2) v OLHA-ETCHETO (GROUP B#2; 1-1 2-2)

3RD PLACE MATCH

EGIGUREN-LOPEZ (GROUP A#1; 2-0; 4-0) v GOIKOETXEA-IBON (ALDAZABAL) (GROUP B#1; 2-0; 4-0)

Current JAWT rankings

Rankings explanation (see #8 and #9)

Cumulative record of JAWT players

Key: Player, match w-l, set w-l (5 pt. tie breaker worth .3) Tournaments won. Current through August 16, 2019

MM-Markina Masters; LM-Lekeitio Masters; GS-Gernika Grand Slam

Delanteros (front)

Diego (Beaskoetxea); 4-1; 7.3--3 GS

Olha; 2-1; 3.3--3

Erik (Mendizabal); 5-4; 11.3--6.6 MM

Goikoetxea; 5-4; 10.6--8.6

Egiguren; 3-3; 6--6

(Jon) Zulaika; 3-3; 4.3--8 LM

(Jokin) Arbe; 1-1; 2--2

Hormaetxea; 4-5; 7.3--10.3

(Xabier) Barandika; 1-4; 5--5.9

Laduche; 0-2; 0--4

Zagueros (back)

Irastorza; 2-0; 4--0; MM

Lopez; 8-1; 13.9--5; LM; GS

(Unai) Lekerika; 4-2; 7.6--5.3

Ibon (Aldazabal) 5-5; 11.3--8.9

Ekhi; 3-4; 8--6.6

Etcheto; 2-3; 4.3--5.3

(Aimar) Aldazabal; 3-6; 6.3--12.3

Minvielle; 1-2; 2--4

T. Basque; 0-1; 0--2

Inza; 0-2; 0--4

Salegi; 0-2; 0--4

Mano--VIII Torneo Bizkaia de Parejas Dentro del Cinco y Medio (July 21, 25, 28, August 20, 2019)

VIII Torneo Bizkaia de Parejas Dentro del Cinco y Medio (July 21, 25, 28, August 20, 2019)

This was team tournament, with 6 teams named after nearby mountains. Each team consisted of one singles, one pair, and one 4 1/2 member. Singles matches are played to 18, pairs to 22. 2 of the teams, Anboto and Oiz were seeded in at the Semi-Final level.

As with all Tournaments that take place over time, read this from the bottom up if you wish to follow it chronologically. 

Preview article (21iguales.com)

Results (along with reults going back to 2012) (baikopilota.eus)

ASPE Players Page

Baikopilota Players Page

Oliazola II, easing back into the grind at age 39 after returning from a career threatening quadriceps injury earlier in the year, was outstanding in this tournament: +28 -7 for his two matches. Laso was the man who closed out each of Anboto's wins in the 4 1/2 slot was +22 -12. He led each of his matches almost from start to finish. 

Altuna III was magnificent. In 2 matches for a Gorbeia team that didn't make the Final, he was +19 -3

August 20, 2019

FINAL

Bizkaia, Bilbo (Bilbao) (1) (2)

Anboto (seeded into Semi-finals; 2-0) 2 Oiz (Seeded into Semi-finals; 1-1) 1

FULL MATCH VIDEO OF ALL 3 matches, in the order they were played (EITB)

Highlights (EITB)

Singles: Elordi (O) 18 Arteaga II (A) 13

Condensed linescore (21Iguales.com) (winner always listed 1st)

0-1; 6-1; 6-2; 12-2; 12-12; 13-12; 13-13; 18-13

Scoring (21Iguales.com)

Elordi +15 (including 7 service aces) -1

Arteaga II +12 (4a) -3

Balls in Play: 189

Time of the Match: 41:47

Pairs:

Oliazola II-Aretxabaleta (A) 22

Elezkano II-Zabaleta (O) 21

Condensed linescore (winners always listed 1st)

4-0; 4-5; 5-5; 5-6; 10-6; 10-9; 13-9; 13-10; 14-10; 14-11; 17-11; 17-12; 18-12; 18-14; 19-14; 19-18; 20-18; 20-21; 22-21 (O-A survive 2 match pionts to keep their team alive)

Scoring:

Oliazola II +13 (including 1 service ace) -3; Aretxabaleta +2 -5

Elezkano II +13 (2a) -4; Zabaleta +0 -3

Balls in Play: 640

Time of the Match: 74:24

4 1/2: Laso (A) 18 Jaka (O) 6

Condensed Linescore (winners always listed 1st)

0-1; 4-1; 4-2; 9-2; 9-3; 11-3; 11-4; 12-4; 12-6; 18-6

Scoring:

Laso +12 (including 2 service aces) -3

Jaka +3 -5

(Scoring adds to 17-6)

Balls in Play: 160

Time of the match 29:39

Match articles for all 3 matches(21Iguales.com)

Just as in the Semi-finals the pairs match was the key. Down 21-20 in the match and 1-0 in the competition, O-A survived 2 match points to keep their team alive in the competition. After that  5 and 6 point runs by Laso led to an easy win in the 4 1/2 match and gave Anboto the championship. Elordi got Oiz off to the best possible start by scoring the last 5 points to defeat Arteaga II. 7 service aces helped him.  

July 28, 2019

2nd Semi-final

Zierbena (1) (2)

Anboto (seeded into the Semi-finals) 2

Sollube 1

FULL MATCH VIDEO of all 3 matches, in the order they were played (EITB)

Singles: Urretabizkaia II (SO) 18 Arteaga II (AN) 15

Selected linescore (21Iguales.com) (winner always listed 1st)

1-0; 3-2; 5-5; 5-8; 8-8; 10-12; 11-14; 15-15; 18-15

Scoring (21Iguales):

Urretabizkaia II +12 (including 3 service aces) -7

Arteaga II +8(1a) -6

Balls in play: 187

Time of the match: 43:36

Pairs: Oliazola II-Artxabaleta (AN) 22

Artola-Albisu (SO) 12

Selected linescore (21Iguales.com) (winners always listed 1st)

0-2; 4-3; 12-8; 12-9; 16-9; 16-10; 19-10; 19-11; 21-11; 21-12; 22-12

Scoring: (21Iguales.com)

Oliazola II +15 -4; Aretxabaleta +0 -3

Artola + 5 -4; Albisu +0 -3

Balls in play: 400

Time of the match: 50:20

4 1/2: Laso (AN) 18 Bakaikoa (SO) 14

Condensed linescore (21Iguales.com) (winner always listed 1st)

0-2; 3-2; 3-3; 5-3; 5-4; 8-4; 8-7; 10-7; 10-8; 12-8; 12-10; 15-10; 15-11; 17-11; 17-14; 18-14

Scoring: (21Iguales.com)

Laso +10 (including 1 service ace) -9

Bakaikoa +5(1a) -8

Balls in play: 233

Time of the match: 37:22

Match articles for all 3 matches (21Iguales.com)

This competition went down to the final points of the final match before Laso finally sent Anboto to the final. Oliazola II came through "in the clutch", with his team down 1-0. He had a brilliant +15 -4, most winners for any pairs player, to even the score and keep his team alive. They now will face Oiz in the final on August 20 at Bizkaia, Bilbo (Bilbao).

July 25, 2019

1st Semi-final

Ermua (1) (2)

Oiz (seeded into Semi-finals) 2 Gorbeia 1

Singles: Elordi (OI) 18 Egiguren V (substituting for Zabala) (GO) 16

Condensed linescore (21Iguales.com) (winner always listed 1st)

0-1; 4-1; 4-2; 6-2; 6-3; 8-3; 8-4; 10-4; 10-7; 11-7; 11-11; 13-11; 13-14; 17-14; 17-16; 18-16

Scoring:

Elordi +13 (including 2 service aces) -7

Egiguren V +9(1a) -5

Time of the match: 47:26

Pairs: Altuna III-L. Galarza (substituting for Rezusta) (GO) 22 Elezkano II-Zabaleta (OI) 10

Condensed linescore (21Iguales.com) (winners always listed 1st

2-0; 2-1; 9-1; 9-5; 13-5; 13-8; 21-8; 21-10; 22-10

Scoring (Deia)

Altuna III +11 (including 1 service ace) -1; L. Galarza +3 -4

Elezkano II +3 -2; Zabaleta +1 -6

(scoring adds to 22-9)

Balls in play: 301

Time of the match: 46:10

4 1/2: Jaka (OI) 18 Retegi BI (GO) 9

Condensed linescore (21Iguales.com) (winner always listed 1st)

2-0; 2-2; 4-2; 4-3; 5-3; 5-5; 12-5; 12-6; 16-6; 16-7; 17-7; 17-9; 18-9

Scoring (21Iguales.com)

Jaka +14 -5 (including 1 service fault)

Retegi BI +4(including 1 service ace) -3

(scoring adds to 17-9)

Balls in play: 176

Time of the match: 24:45

No video available for these matches at this time.

For the 2nd time, Retegi BI had a chance to win the day for his team. But this time it was Jaka who had the big mid-match run (7-0) to send Oiz to the final. It was a bitter pill for Altuna III to swallow, having won both his pairs matches for Gorbeia with total figures of +19 -3.

Match articles for all 3 matches(21Iguales.com)

Match articles for all 3 matches (Deia)

July 21, 2019

Quarter-finals

Barakaldo (1) (2)

Gorbeia 2 Ganekogorta 1

FULL MATCH VIDEO of all 3 matches, in the order they were played (EITB)

Singles: Zabala (GA) 18 Dario (GO) 2

Condensed linescore (21Iguales.com) (winner always listed first)

15-0; 15-1; 16-1; 16-2; 18-2

Scoring:

Zabala +7 -2; Dario +0 -11

Dario's only 2 points came on Zabala errors.

Balls in play: 134

Time of the match 30:18

Pairs: Altuna III-Rezusta (GO) 22

Ezkurdia-Martja 18

Condensed linescore (21Iguales.com) (winners always listed 1st)

0-2; 1-2; 1-3; 3-3; 3-8; 4-8; 4-9; 6-9; 6-10; 9-10; 9-11; 14-11; 14-13; 17-13; 17-14; 18-14; 18-16; 19-16; 19-18; 22-18

Scoring (EITB)

Altuna III +8 -2; Rezusta +1 -6

Ezkurdia +8 -10; Martija +2 -3

Balls in play: 740

Altuna 187, Rezusta 185; Ezkurdia 197, Martija 171

Time of the match: 80:53

An epic struggle that saw Ezkurdia put the pelota on the wall almost 200 times, but his 10 errors were the difference.

4 1/2: Retegi BI (GO) 18 P. Etxeberria (GA) 11

Condensed linescore (21Iguales.com) (winner always listed 1st)

0-5; 3-5; 3-6; 7-6; 7-8; 15-8; 15-10; 16-10; 16-11; 18-11

Scoring (21Iguales.com)

Retegi BI +10 (including 3 service aces) -4 (including 1 service fault)

P. Etxeberria +7(2a), -8

Balls in play: 202

Time of the match: 34:41

With his team's back to the wall at 0-5, Retegi BI fights his way back into the match, and then wins, aided by an 8-0 run in mid-match. Gorbea, after an exhausting day that started out disastrously, moves on to the Semi-finals.

Match articles for all three matches (21Iguales.com)

Etxebarri (1) (2)

Sollube 3 Kolitz 0

Singles: Urretabizkaia (SO) 18 Agirre (KO) 14

Pairs: Artola-Albisu 22 Urrutikoetxea-Mariezkurrena II 20

4 1/2: Bakaikoa 18 Victor 10

No match video available at this time

Match article (baikopilota.eus)

Match article (Deia)