Cavan’s Paul Brady defeated Seattle’s Sean Lenning in the US Open of Handball in California yesterday (Sunday) after a cracking final.

Paul Brady ... US Open handball champion 2007
Trailing Lenning 10-7 in the tiebreaker, Brady rallied for an 11-10 win to take the $25,000 first-place prize.

“He keeps coming back at you and I know we’ll have many more great matches in the future,” Brady said, as he received the cheque. “It was a really hard battle in there and I’m just glad I came out on top in the end.” Lenning showed plenty of stamina and style in the court, but the sheer athleticism of the Cavan footballer Brady was the telling factor in the end as he pushed into top gear.

Lenning worked the right side on the serve throughout and he had his reverse cracking in the first game to take control early, winning 21-13. Brady turned the tables in the second game and with passion and power pulled himself back into the match to win 21-5. Lenning held a lead throughout the tiebreaker, starting with a 4-0 lead and then led 9-4 on his short swing kills but Brady battled back. From 10-7, Brady refused to grant Lenning another clear opportunity to score the match point, keeping the American on the run and off balance for the rest of the nerve-wrecking tie-breaker. In dramatic fashion, Brady took the next four points to retain his US Open title and bag the $25,000 cheque. In 2003, Brady defeated US all-time handball great, David Chapman at the Ultimate Showdown in Seattle to make his mark on the American circuit and collect $50,000 for his efforts.

Cork’s Tony Healy, who lost out to Brady in the semi-final, will have to be content with his third place finish after he defeated Californian, Naty Alvarado Junior in the play-offs. In the pro doubles, defending champs Vince Munoz and Marcos Chavez dashed Irish hopes of a final appearance when they defeated hard-hitting Mayo handballer, Dessie Keegan and Galway’s Noel McHugh, 21-13, 21-18 in the semi-final. Munoz and Chavez went on to take the final honours.

US OPEN OF HANDBALL Singles Final:
Paul Brady (Cavan, Ireland) df Sean Lenning (Seattle, USA), (13), 5, 10.

Third Place Play-off:
Tony Healy (Cork, Ireland) df Naty Alvarado Jr. (California, USA), 17, 9.

Pro Doubles Semi-Final:
Marco Chavez/Vince Munoz (California, USA) d. Dessie Keegan/Noel McHugh (Mayo and Galway, Ireland), 13, 18