Recap

East Toronto Smash Come Back to Win Tiebreaker Thriller over Vancouver Rush

Smash Beat Rush Handily in Women’s Game

It’s not to say that the Rush duo of Jordann Vigna and Hailey Almusa of the struggling 1-5 Rush didn’t put up much of a fight in this one, but the East Toronto Smash pair of Christina Chin and Kim Layton were less error prone. The Smash led wire-to-wire in this first contest, taking the game to the Rush, especially Almusa, who was a second-day emergency call-up and couldn’t quite find her game.

Chin was effective in the early going, smacking two winners, while Vigna also got in on the action with a wicked overhand and set up shot for a point. The Smash were up 10-4 when the Rush made a bit of a run to close the gap to 11-7. That was short-lived, with eventual Player of the Match Layton smoking a cross to make it 15-8 and later adding another for a freeze at 20-12. Chin then set up Almusa later for a net return and a 21-14 Smash triumph.

Rush Men Even Up Match with Huge Victory over Smash

Just looking at the fiery – and some big – competitors set to tangle in this one, it had to be good. And it was, with amped up Joe Willemsen and Brett Forsythe of the Rush taking down Smash giants Nathan Choi and Dalbir Bhandal by a count of 21-18. Needing a win, the Rush deployed some wicked shots early to go up 5-2, but the Smash rallied and clawed back to tie it 7-7.

Willemsen and Forsythe enjoyed the upper hand midway through, bot contributing nasty shots, while Choi and Bhandal didn’t back down, eventually tying things up at 16-16 after trailing for an extended period. Unfortunately for the Smash, the unforced errors played a role in the late going, while Willemsen and Forsythe each pounded shots for winners, squaring the match.

Rush Do Number on Smash in Mixed Doubles

Kudos must go to the Rush’s Brett Forsythe and Jordann Vigna for this complete win that gave the Rush a stranglehold on the match. The duo overwhelmed a very good Smash side of Nathan Choi and Christina Chin, 21-12. It was reasonably close early, but Choi didn’t do himself any favors when he was called for a push off and stared down the referee. Things didn’t go well from there, with Vigna and Forsythe switching smoothly from offense to defense and getting the lead up 15-8.

A couple of rallies later, a fired-up Chin smashed a backhand winner to make the score 16-10 and then did a finger wag to say, “we’re not done yet.” However, that bravado was misplaced, as the Rush stood fast, playing outstanding Pickleball. Vigna secured the big win with a sweet set up shot that Chin fired into the net.

Smash Send Match to Tiebreaker with Impressive Victory

With their team’s hopes of victory resting on their shoulders, Dalbir Bhandal and Player of the Match Kim Layton were full value. They dominated the kitchen and sent many an unreturnable Dura ball at the Rush pair of Hailey Almusa and Joe Willemsen. After briefly trailing early, the Smash went on a tear and sent the match to singles tiebreaker with a 21-14 win.

Almusa found her game in this one, scoring a couple of winners early and not making as many unforced errors. Willemsen was decent too, contributing well to a 5-5 draw. Yet, Layton and Bhandal took over proceedings, with three straight set ups of Layton’s paddle and some Bhandal defense and big strokes leading to a 17-10 lead. To their credit, Almusa and Willemsen didn’t concede, tacking up four to keep it close, but in the end the Smash’s defense and shot making was too much.

Smash Rally to Win Singles Tiebreaker and Match

She may not want it, but there must be some pity for Rush emergency call-up Hailey Almusa. Up against the veteran Christina Chin, she went 0-for-9 in this singles tiebreaker, which went a long way to contributing to the Smash’s come-from-behind victory. Interestingly, Almusa’s fiancé, Joe Willemsen took 7 of 9 from Player of the Match Kim Layton to make it interesting.

Otherwise, Nathan Choi got the better of Brett Forsythe, 5-4, as both Titans made some brilliant shots in their three mini sets. Dalbir Bhandal was also good in this pivotal game, taking six of nine against a game Jordann Vigna. As far as the Chin-Almusa mini sets went, it was telling that Almusa was called for a foot foul and was just a bit less consistent with her offensive to defensive transition against Chin.