MLP DALLAS: DAY 3 RECAP – PREMIER LEVEL GROUP PLAY AND QUARTERFINALS PLUS CHALLENGER LEVEL FINALS

Day 3 Recap 

What an electric Saturday of pro pickleball action at Brookhaven Country Club! From chest-bumping, joy-jumping celebrations to frustrated paddle slams, emotions ran high as players gave today’s high-stakes competition their all.

Premier Level Group Play matches wrapped up this morning. Strong finishes from the Columbus Sliders, Miami Pickleball Club, Brooklyn Aces, and Chicago Slice qualified them into the afternoon’s Quarterfinals, while the undefeated Orlando Squeeze and D.C. Pickleball Team secured byes and spots in tomorrow’s Semifinals.

During the Challenger Level Final, the Frisco Pandas almost toppled the reigning champs, but the SoCal Hard Eights won the final Dreambreaker and took home the MLP Dallas Challenger Level Championship, cementing their status as back-to-back tournament champions! Once again, young phenom C.J. Klinger was named Challenger Level MVP for his indispensable skillset and consistent play for the Hard Eights.

Read on for all match scores and high-level highlights from Day 3.

To rewatch all matches, head to MLP’s YouTube channel.

PREMIER LEVEL GROUP STAGE PLAY

Group A Matches
Arizona (1-2), Chicago (1-2), Orlando (3-0), Texas (1-2)

Orlando (4) vs. Arizona (0)

The ladies of the Orlando Squeeze and Arizona Drive engaged in intense firefights to start this match and warm up the court on this chilly morning. After several unforced errors, AZ’s Vivian Glozman and Vivienne David made a valiant comeback effort, but Anna Bright and Rachel Rohrabacher stayed focused and bagged the first game point. The men’s game started out with tense rallies and hard slams, but Andrei Daescu and Zane Navratil put on a united front against Julian Arnold and Dekel Bar. Orlando continued their undefeated campaign and swept the Drive in this match.

Game 1 – Women’s Doubles: 22-20 (Orlando)
Game 2 – Men’s Doubles: 21-11 (Orlando)
Game 3 – Mixed Doubles: 21-11 (Orlando)
Game 4 – Mixed Doubles: 21-18 (Orlando)

Chicago (2) vs. Texas (3)

After being down for most of the game, Ben Johns and Jessie Irvine clawed their way back to take the first Mixed Doubles game. Texas fended off a comeback and sent the match into the first Dreambreaker of the day! Travis Rettenmaier brought the overhead slams for the Ranchers, while Chicago’s Jessie Irvine countered with her cross-court zingers. Dylan Frazier and Ben Johns traded hard-to-reach shots, but the Ranchers galloped away with the win. Despite this, it wasn’t enough for Texas to qualify into the knockout rounds, after going 0-2 in yesterday’s matches.

Game 1 – Men’s Doubles: 19-21 (Texas)
Game 2 – Women’s Doubles: 21-13 (Chicago)
Game 3 – Mixed Doubles: 24-22 (Chicago)
Game 4 – Mixed Doubles: 14-21 (Texas)
Dreambreaker: 15-21 (Texas)

Group B Matches
Atlanta (0-3), Bay Area (1-2), Columbus (2-1), D.C. (3-0)

D.C. (3) vs. Bay Area (2)

The D.C. Pickleball Team entered and exited the match undefeated, but not without being challenged by the Bay Area Breakers in front of a packed Court 3 crowd. Bay Area’s Lea Jansen and Susannah Barr gave Jackie and Jade Kawamoto their first Women’s Doubles loss of the tournament. After the Breakers took the first Mixed Doubles game point, Rafa Hewett hoisted Susannah Barr with elation as the match went into a Dreambreaker. Christian Alshon shined for D.C. with explosive putaways in critical moments.

Game 1 – Men’s Doubles: 23-21 (D.C.)
Game 2 – Women’s Doubles: 20-22 (Bay Area)
Game 3 – Mixed Doubles: 19-21 (Bay Area)
Game 4 – Mixed Doubles: 21-17 (D.C.)
Dreambreaker: 21-19 (D.C.)

Columbus (3) vs. Atlanta (1)

After taking the first three games in convincing fashion, this was almost a sweep for Columbus, but Parris Todd and Hunter Johnson salvaged a game point for the Atlanta at the end. This match win gave the Sliders a seat in the Quarterfinals, where they went on to face the Brooklyn Aces.

Game 1 – Women’s Doubles: 21-19 (Columbus)
Game 2 – Women’s Doubles: 21-12 (Columbus)
Game 3 – Mixed Doubles: 21-14 (Columbus)
Game 4 – Mixed Doubles: 16-21 (Atlanta)

Group C Matches
Brooklyn (2-1), Dallas (1-2), Miami (2-1), Utah (1-2)

Miami (3) vs. Utah ()

After a tight Women’s Doubles game that excited the full house around Championship Court, Tyson McGuffin and Federico Staksrud ran away with the Men’s Doubles game for Miami. Orange card to Staksrud on Miami for offensive language, resulting in a point being taken away on game point. MPC still picked up the win.

Game 1 – Women’s Doubles: 23-21 (Miami)
Game 2 – Men’s Doubles: 21-11 (Miami
Game 3 – Mixed Doubles: 21-11 (Miami)
Game 4 – Mixed Doubles: 21-15 (Miami)

Brooklyn (3) vs. Dallas (1)

Catherine Parenteau and Andrea Koop took control of the first game for the Brooklyn Aces, though Callie Jo Smith and Allyce Jones had hometown fans on the edge of their seats as they celebrated every hard-fought point. Although James Ignatowich and Jay Devilliers played big and won the Men’s Doubles point, Brooklyn came back with a vengeance to tip the match scale in their favor, earning them a spot in the Quarterfinals.

Game 1 – Women’s Doubles: 21-19 (Brooklyn)
Game 2 – Men’s Doubles: 14-21 (Dallas)
Game 3 – Mixed Doubles: 21-16 (Brooklyn)
Game 4 – Mixed Doubles: 21-14 (Brooklyn)

CHALLENGER LEVEL FINAL

Final

Frisco (2) vs. SoCal (3)

Of course the final showdown of these Challenger Level teams ended with a Dreambreaker! After a close Men’s Doubles game, Bobbi Oshiro and Martina Frantova came out firing on all cylinders, and capitalized on SoCal’s errors to take the Women’s Doubles game point. Frisco countered with a deftly won Mixed Doubles game, followed by C.J. Klinger and Ewa Radikowska playing with unstoppable momentum and forcing the match into a Dreambreaker. The SoCal Hard Eights proved their preparedness for the moment and took home the MLP Dallas Championship trophy.

Game 1 – Men’s Doubles: 18-21 (SoCal)
Game 2 – Women’s Doubles: 21-17 (Frisco)
Game 3 – Mixed Doubles: 21-13 (Frisco)
Game 4 – Mixed Doubles: 14-21 (SoCal)
Dreambreaker: 16-21 (SoCal)

PREMIER LEVEL PLAYOFFS

Quarterfinals

Columbus (2) vs. Brooklyn (3)

Throughout the match, Hayden Patriquin hit incredible angles for the Aces, while his partner, Tyler Loong, was all-over the court on both offense and defense. The Sliders put on their armor and brought out their swords with Collin Johns and Megan Fudge winning the first Mixed Doubles point. During the fourth game, Megan Dizon had to take a breather after J.W. Johnson’s paddle swiped the back of her head. After a tough loss, the Sliders had to rally for a Dreambreaker against the on-fire Aces. In a tight DB situation, Andrea Koop won two huge points to keep Brooklyn in it and finished off the match with two more big shots. This match win gave the Aces a coveted spot in tomorrow’s Semifinals, against D.C..

Game 1 – Women’s Doubles: 21-16 (Columbus)
Game 2 – Men’s Doubles: 13-21 (Brooklyn)
Game 3 – Mixed Doubles: 23-21 (Columbus)
Game 4 – Mixed Doubles: 20-22 (Brooklyn)
Dreambreaker: 23-21 (Brooklyn)

Miami (0) vs. Chicago (3)

With DUPR rating predictions giving each team a 50% chance of winning, this was truly anybody’s match. The Women’s Doubles duel was neck-and-neck with Miami and Chicago trading dinks over the middle and measured, smartly crafted offense. Lacy Schneeman and Jessie Irvine banked the first game win for the Slice. The final Mixed Doubles game wasn’t needed as Chicago clinched their spot in the Semis with three back-to-back game wins.

Game 1 – Women’s Doubles: 18-21 (Chicago)
Game 2 – Men’s Doubles: 18-21 (Chicago)
Game 3 – Mixed Doubles: 14-21 (Chicago)