Moycullen's Martin Mulkerrins claimed the Los Angeles Pro-Stop with a 15-13, 15-10 victory over Leo Canales last Sunday.
Canales, the #3 seed booked his place in Sunday's final with a convincing win over #2 seed Lucho Cordova. The world number one, Mulkerrins, dispatched Ivan Burgos in his semi-final.
Mulkerrins had to show resilience in Sunday's final. Canales raced into a 12-0 lead before Mulkerrins could register a score but the Moycullen man dug deep to tie the game 13-13 before completing the comeback to close out the game 15-13.
Canales refused to lie down, again storming into a 9-1 lead in the second game. But Mulkerrins remained calm and he powered his way back to win 15-10 to pick up his 16th Pro-Stop crown and secure his #1 seed ranking.
“That was a war, delighted obviously to come out of the right end of it, I stayed composed after being down 0-12 (in the first ) and 1-10 (in the second ). I ground it out," Mulkerrins told ESPN’s Kara Mack.
Heffernan victorious
In the ladies final, Claregalway ace, Niamh Heffernan, dominated the first game against Aoife Holden, needing just nine minutes to secure a one-game advantage.
“Aoife started up on me 10-2 in the first in Tucson, so I knew I had to get off to a good start,” Heffernan said afterwards.
Holden slowed the game down in the second with an underhand lob serve, zapping Heffernan’s quest to play low and hard drives. Holden led 10-9 midway through the second game, but Heffernan’s speed and offense proved to be the difference, as Heffernan clinched her fourth straight WR title.
“Feels great,” Heffernan told ESPN’s Kara Mack. “I knew today I had to come in on my 'A' game. Nobody realizes the heat in that alley.”
