A seasoned pro and a novice entrant recovered from early stumbles to produce the best local results at the Bearskin Open squash tournament in Thunder Bay last weekend.
Bob Tkachyk added to his lengthy list of playing accomplishments by winning the consolation final of the men’s ‘A’ division while competitive newcomer Justin Depodesta rebounded from a tough start to win the men’s ‘D’ division consolation final.
Tkachyk lost 3-1 to Thunder Bay’s Dave Zabloski in his opening match, but reversed that score when he beat Shawn Donahue (Thunder Bay) in his second outing.
He then blanked Thunder Bay’s Mike Holowaty 3-0, before topping Tom Britton of Thunder Bay 3-1 in the consolation final.
Colin Drombolis of Fort Frances posted a fourth-place finish in that division, shutting out Britton 3-0, losing to eventual ‘A’ division champ Bob Shine (Thunder Bay) by a 3-1 count, and then stifling Zabloski 3-1.
Toby Munro was the other local men’s ‘A’ division participant, losing by identical 3-1 scores to Rod Tyreman (Red Lake) and Zabloski.
Depodesta was shut out 3-0 by Stan Roy (Thunder Bay) in his opener, but then posted the goose egg against Greg Kosnonen (Thunder Bay). He then edged Ron Hell (Thunder Bay) 3-2, before winning the ‘D’ consolation final 3-2 over Daniel Laughton (Thunder Bay).
Steven Boileau of Fort Frances also took part in the ‘D’ division, winning 3-0, 3-2, and 3-1 over Thunder Bay players Eric Laughton, Joel Biesenthal, and Derek Allan, respectively.
But his luck ran out in the ‘D’ final as Thunder Bay’s Kevin Clayborn came out with a 3-1 victory.
In the men’s ‘C’ division, Rory Ryan of Fort Frances finished fourth after finishing with a 2-2 record. He lost to Barb Rees (Thunder Bay) 3-0 in his first match, then whitewashed Steve Donaghy (Thunder Bay) by that same margin.
He lost another 3-0 decision to Ken Allan (Thunder Bay) 3-0, but closed his weekend with a 3-1 win over Jim Toppin (Thunder Bay).
Meanwhile, Mary-Beth Tkachyk pulled off a 3-0 win over Katie Arpin (Thunder Bay) in the ladies’ ‘A’ division, but then lost back-to-back 3-2 decisions to Thunder Bay players Mary-Beth Noble and Helen Rapino.
Darlene Barrett lost to Rapino 3-0, then was overwhelmed by the Thunder Bay family tag team of Cindy Arpin (3-0) and Katie Arpin (3-2) to end the tournament winless in three tries.
Tourney participants raised about $3,000 for the Thunder Bay Food Bank.
The competitive squash season possibly will continue June 12-13 in Red Lake, which tentatively is scheduled to host its first open tournament in two years.
Fort Frances Times
Local News from Across the Rainy River District
