MLP DAYTONA LIVE EVENT ANALYSIS & UPDATES – FRIDAY FEED!

Welcome to the “Friday Feed” – your go to destination for the most current info on matches and game play happening at MLP Daytona Beach all day Friday. Be sure to bookmark this page and come back for the latest updates all day!

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UPDATE: 9:53PM – See all potential knockout round outcomes after completion of Round 2 Premier Play!

Pool A | Round 3
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Seattle Pioneers vs Frisco Clean Cause

– If Seattle wins, they have the chance to force a tiebreaker to move on. Seattle must win to give themselves a chance to move forward.
– If Frisco wins, they need the Mashers to lose to force a 3 way tiebreaker for 2nd place or else they are out

BLQK vs Milwaukee Mashers

– If BLQK wins, they take the top seed and move forward. Milwaukee would need Frisco to win to force a 3 way tie for 2nd
– if Milwaukee wins, and Seattle wins, there will be a 3 way tie for first
– if Milwaukee wins and Seattle loses, Milwaukee and BLQK will move onto the knockout round

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Pool B | Round 3

NY Hustlers vs SoCal Hard Eights
The 5’s vs Las Vegas Night Owls

All teams are 1-1.

Whichever teams win their match moves onto the Knockout Round!

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Pool C | Round 3

St.Louis vs LA Mad Drops

– If St. Louis wins, they take the top seed and move forward. Mad Drops would need Florida Smash to win to force a 3 way tie for 2nd.

– If Mad Drops win, and ATX Pickleballers win, there will be a 3 way tie for first with St. Louis

– If Mad Drops win and ATX Pickleballers lose, St. Louis and Mad Drops will move forward

Florida Smash vs ATX Pickleballers

– If ATX Pickleballers win, they have the chance to force a tiebreaker to move on. ATX Pickleballers must win to give themselves a chance to move forward.

– If Florida Smash wins, they need the Mad Drops to lose to force a 3 way tiebreaker for 2nd place or else they are out

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UPDATE 9:05PM: Dreambreaker Drama: More than half of round robin matches across both levels were decided by the Dreambreaker tiebreak… Friday’s Premier Level action saw seven of 12 matches (58.3%) and Thursday’s Challenger Level saw nine of 18 matches (50%) go to the Dreambreaker.

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UPDATE 8:30PM – Los Angeles Mad Drops beat Florida Smash 3-2

The defending Premier Level Champs – LA Mad Drops – starting out the match strong with wins in both Women’s and Men’s Doubles. Florida Smash fought back grinding through every point to win both doubles matches that were extremely close – 21-19 and 22-20. Florida Smash’s Jessie Irvine played one of the best defensive points we’ve seen and the entire crowd was on their feet loudly chanting “JES-SIE IR-VINE!” Headed into the Dreambreaker, the ladies from LA (Tereschenko and Parenteau) rose above and sealed the win.

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UPDATE 8:30PM – St. Louis shock beats ATX Pickleballers 3-1

In one of the final matches of Friday, St. Louis Shock and the ATX Pickleballers faced off in a close, high energy match.

WD – St. Louis Shock’s Jardim and and Jones went head to head with Jackie and Jade Kawamoto. Jackie and Jade are notorious for their synchronization on the court and Allyce Jones and Simone Jardim needed to come in aggressive to take this team down. After plenty of resets and plenty of hype coming Allyce Jones, the shocks took down the Pickleballers 21-18.

MD – In game 2, the hocks Jay Devilliers and Eric Lange were coming in hot against JW Johnson and Gabe Tardio after a close win earlier that day over the Florida Smash. Jay’s hands speed has significantly improved over the past several months and it showed during this match. Unfortunately, that was not enough to beat thPickleballers, as they lost 21-15.

MX1 – St. Louis came out with Jardim and Devilliers to face JW Johnson and Jackie Kowamoto. Jay Devilliers was bringing all the energy this match, with his loud yells after what seemed every point they won. Jardim would offer feedback to Devilliers in between points, making slight adjustments to strategy along the way. Jardim’s consistent cross court dinking with Jackie at 20-18 was a notable point to rewatch, showing us how patience can still reign supreme in rally format. That point was soon after followed by a overhead cross-court shot into the kitchen closeout by Jay, winning them the game 21-18.

MX2 – The ATX Pickleballers were hoping to bring the match to a game 5 tiebreaker. Jade Kawamoto and Gabe Tardio faced off against the loud and fiesty Allyce Jones and Eric Lange. Allyce Jones was especially fired up this match, even fist pumping and jumping up in the air after points. Tardio and Kowamoto remained on the quieter side a majority of the game. At 16-8, the Pickleballers went on a short run, bringing the game to 16-11, prompting a time out from the shocks. Ultimately, Jones and Lange’s loud energy and consistency won them the game and the match at 21-16.

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KNOCKOUT ROUND UPDATE 6:44PM – The Challenger Finals are set! Defending champs, the Bay Area Breakers will face Dallas Pickleball Club at 3pm on Championship Court Saturday.

UPDATE 6:47PM – Bay Area Breakers beat Chicago Slice in a Dreambreaker and are headed to the Challenger Final!

WD – Breakers Ladies Radzikowska and Summer surf their way to a 21-15 win vs. Ackerman and Barr.

MD – Garnett/DeHeart from Chicago had a battle with Alshon/Tellez and came out on top 21-18.

MX1 – DeHeart/Ackerman from Chicago were on point and took the Iixed 1 game 21-12.

MX2 – Tellez/Radzikowska were just too solid and played super clean vs. Garnett/Barr to get the Breakers to the Dreambreaker.

Dreambreaker – It was close! The Breakers performed well under pressure as usual and took the game 21-18 to secure their place in the Finals and defend their title!

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UPDATE 6:20PM – Dallas Pickleball Club Beats Miami Pickleball Club 3-1 and secures a spot in the Challenger Level Semi-Finals

WD – Dallas Pickleball Club came out strong against Miami pickleball club with a 21-16 finish. Notably, DPC’s Jill Braverman did not wear any bubble wrap and avoided any unnecessary contact with the ground throughout the match.

MD – Game 2 was a rowdy match, with MPC’s Jeff Warnick and Brenden Long facing off against Brandon French and Daniel De La Rosa. At 11-10, DPC’s French was chirping back at MPC’s Warnick and getting the crowd involved in the match. The moment shift worked, with DPC taking the men’s win 21-18.

MX1 – DPC’s Gecheva and De La Rosa played Regina Franco and Brenden Long. MPC won 21-16.

MX2 – In game 4, DPC came out victorious after one of the rowdiest matches seen this weekend with a close 22-20 finish. Jeff Warnick and Alix Truong trailed behind Braverman and French for a majority of the match. After side out, the both sides became very chirpy, most notably from Truong and Warnick.

UPDATE 5:56PM – The Challenger Semi-Finals are happening now! Bay Area is tied with Chicago 1-1 on Championship Court and Dallas is up 2-0 vs. Miami on Grandstand Court so far.

UPDATE 4:58PM – Las Vegas Night Owl’s Beat SoCal Hard Eights 3-2 in a Dreambreaker

WD – Las Vegas Night Owl’s Vivienne David and Lauren Stratman faced off against the Hard Eights’ Mary Brascia and Lindsey Newman. A missed ATP by Vivienne David closed out the game for the Hard Eights with a 21-19 win.

MD – Las Vegas’ Dekel Bar and Kyle Yates and SoCal’s A.J. Koller and Riley Newman battled it out in what most would consider to be an upset with Bar and Yates beating Newman and Koller 21-16.
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MX1 – AJ Koller and Mary Brascia took on Dekel Bar and Vivienne David. Bar and David are no strangers to each other’s playing styles, as the two played numerous tournaments together in 2022 and drill together at Dreamland in Dripping Springs, TX.  This benefited the team, as the Las Vegas came out of game 3 with a close finish of 21-19.

MX2 – The pressure was on for the Hard Eights, who needed to win this game to bring the match to game 5. Lindsey Newman and Riley Newman played Lauren Stratman and Kyle Yates.  At 12-9, one of the best points of the match and potentially of the weekend was played out with Kyle Yates playing incredible defense against Riley Newman’s aggressive backhand rolls and Lindsey Newman’s consistent resets. While the point was ultimately won by the night owl’s due to a missed reset by Lindsey, it spurred an uproar from the crowd. The Hard Eights cane out vicotorious in game 4 with a 21-18 win, triggering a game 5 Dreambreaker .

Dreambreaker – Started off with Dekel bar screaming “let’s go” at opponent AJ Koller before the point was played out. Lauren Stratman, a seasoned singles player, stood out amongst the females in the game. Dekel bar finished the game with a cross-court passing shot 21-15.

UPDATE 4:50PM – New Jersey 5’s beat the New York Hustlers 3-2 in a dramatic Dreambreaker

WD – Hustler women Schneeman and Bright were on point and firey against the 5’s ladies Waters and Jansen taking game 1 21-13.

MD – The 5’s took the momentum back with a powerful performance from Hayden “Big H” Patriquin and James “Poppa Jimmy” Ignatowich vs. Hustler men Tyson McGuffin and Rafa Hewett, who seemed to be off this game.

MX1 – The Hustlers brought their energy back up and Hewett/Schneeman played clean and took game 3 21-16.

MX2 – The 5’s teens Waters/Patriquin rose up to beat Bright/McGuffin 21-16 to take it to a Dreambreaker.

Dreambreaker – This one was dramatic! The game was neck and neck but ultimately the 5’s were confident and in the end just outplayed the Hustlers, winning 21-18 to take the match.

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UPDATE 4:34PM: SoCal fights back to head to the Dreambreaker on Grandstand Court.

UPDATE 3:44PM – The California BLQK Bears beat the Seattle Pioneers 3-2

WD: Seattle struggled in women’s doubles making too many unforced errors. Wind played a role 21-17 for BLQK

MD: Federico/Dylan played smart and fast and were able to beat Ben/Tyler 21-17

MX1: Ben Johns stole a close one from Koop/Federico. 22-20

MX2: Megan Dixon played lights out and was able to force the Dreambreaker. Seattle took this game 21-18

Dreambreaker: A TIGHT Dreambreaker leads California BLQK Bears to coming out on top against the Seattle Pioneers 3-2. Dylan “Big Dyl” Frazier showed up big going 4-0 in his last four points against Ben Johns.

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UPDATE 3:38PM – Milwaukee Mashers beat Frisco Clean Cause 4-0

Overall, Frisco was just really outplayed today. 

WD: All 4 ladies played really well the entire game. It was very close until the very end ending at 21-19. At 17-16, Yana’s paddle snapped at the handle, and she had to switch paddles. She didn’t have a backup, so had to use Ben Newell’s CRBN paddle. It really affected her confidence and consistency. 

MD: This was a great game. Matt and Zane led pretty much the entire time, were up 20-16, and then Andrei/DJ came all the way back and won 22-20. Andrei/DJ won all the hand battles Zane/Matt threw at them to catch up.

MX1: This was all Andrei/Lucy from start to finish ended 21-8. Zane and Lina just couldn’t get it going. Lucy and Andrei just kept giving them unattackable balls and made it hard for Zane to be aggressive.

MX2: DJ/Callie played really well and led the entire game. DJ did a good job of cancelling out Matt’s aggression, and Callie was super good mixing in incredible consistency but also great attacking shots.

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UPDATE 3PM – The rivalry is back!! 

‍The rematch of MLP Mesa’s bombastic battle of the border is happening now as the New York Hustlers and the New Jersey 5’s stake their claim to the bridge and tunnel bravado of MLP Daytona Beach!

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UPDATE 2:54PM – UPSET ALERT!! ATX Pickleballers beat defending Premier Level Champs Los Angeles Mad Drops 3-2 In a Dreambreaker!

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After winning the title of Major League Pickleball Premier Level Champions in Mesa earlier this year, the LA Mad Drops were looking to start off their first match of the weekend strong. In Game 1, LA’s Catherine Parenteau and Irina Tereschenko had a huge momentum shift at 10-11, and went on a run until 16-12, with Jade and Jackie Kowamoto calling a time out to rethink strategy. The adjustments worked as the ATX’s Kawamoto twins took the game 21-19 over the the Mad Drops.

In game 2, Mad Drops’ Hunter Johnson (sub for injured Thomas Wilson) played alongside the loud and rowdy Julian Arnold. They faced off against Gabe Tardio and JW Johnson. The sidelines from the ATX Pickleballers were supportive and cheery, which fueled Tardio’s playing. At 10-13, a middle ball putaway triggered a notorious “andiamo” yell from Arnold, prompting a momentum shift in the game. The LA Mad Drops pulled through with a 21-18 win.

Game 3, ATX’s Jackie Kawamoto and Tardio set the tone of the match with an insane defensive point  against Irena Tereschenko and Hunter  Johnson at 0-0. Down 11-15, Hunter Johnson hit a momentum shifting Erne and went on a 10 point run after, winning the game 21-15.

In game 4, LA Mad Drop’s Catherine Parenteau and Julian Arnold took on ATX Pickleballers’ Jade Kowamoto and JW Johnson. At 9-11, a fiery hands battle broke out, with ATX coming out on top of the point. Johnson and Kawamoto’s consistency came out on top after a challenged game point 21-17, bringing the match to a Dreambreaker.

The game 5 Dreambreaker was anything but lackluster with amazing plays by Gabe Tardio and high energy from Jackie Kowamoto. JW Johnson closed out the dreamerbreaker with a  21-13 finish, securing the match win for the ATX Pickleballers.

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UPDATE: 2:25PM – St. Louis Shock beats Florida Smash 3-1

St. Louis came out with big energy today vs. Florida Smash. Allyce Jones and Simone Jardim were all heart and had incredible court coverage and came up with a 21-13 win vs. Jorja Johnson and Jessie Irvine. Jay “The Flying Frenchman” Devilliers had an incredible, firey performance quietting Travis Rettenmaier and Collin Johns – taking the game 21-18. Jardim and Deilliers carried the momentum into the first Mixed Doubles game and edged out Rettenmaier and Johnson 21-19. Then, knowing that every single game matters for knockout round qualifications, Irvine and Johns took Game four 21-16 vs. Jones and Lange.

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UPDATE: 12:45PM – Miami Pickleball Club beats Texas Ranchers 3 to 1 and earns a spot in the Semi-Finals. ‍

Here’s our updated Challenger Level Playoffs Bracket! The Semi-Finals are set!!!

QUARTER-FINALS UPDATE 12:30PM – Chicago Slice beats Columbus Pickleball Club 3-0 and secures spot in the Challenger Level Semi-Finals

In the Challenger Level Quarter-Final 2, the Chicago Slice faced off against Columbus Pickleball Team in an intense battle. Game one saw Emily Ackerman and Susannah Barr take on Megan Fudge and Milan Rane. Susannah Barr was loud and aggressive and after a nail-biting point at 11-8 won by the Chicago Slice, that set the tone for the rest of the game leading to a 22-20 finish.

Going into game two, Chicago’s Connor Garnett and Ryler DeHeart were eager to win a men’s game over Columbus’ Yates Johnson and Carson Klinger after a series of losses the day before.  There was a questionable line call at 16-9 by Chicago Slice, which ultimately was ruled in favor by the Columbus Pickleball Club bringing the score to 16-10. From there on, the Chicago Slice played lights-out with a 21-11 finish.

In Game 3, Chicago’s Garnett and Barr took on Columbus’ Yates Johnson and Megan Fudge. The Chicago Slice were high in energy, loud and looking to close out game 3 and secure the match. Susannah Barr’s consistent resets and well articulated set-ups allowed Garnett to play an aggressive and high-risk playing style. A missed return by Yates Johnson secured the game win for Chicago Slice 21-19. Game 4 was not played, as this was a Quarter-Final match.

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UPDATE 10:49am: SoCal Hard Eights beat the New Jersey 5’s in a nail-biter Dreambreaker!

Absolutely insane match. Whole thing was so much fun. So much trash talking.

Women’s Doubles: ALW and Lea were just too much. Lindsay and Mary just couldn’t get to the net and hit any attacking shots the whole game. They play more defense than offense, whereas ALW is all offense. Offense was too much in that one.

Men’s Doubles : Hayden and Ignatowich kept it close for a long time, but Riley and AJ were too clutch. In the home stretch, they just didn’t make any mistakes. And James felt like he needed to attack every ball to put pressure on Riley/AJ. But Riley and aj kept them in play, made them make mistakes, and won in the end.

Mixed matches: 1) ALW and Hayden were too aggressive and consistent for AJ and Mary to catch them. They just didn’t make any mistakes. Hayden was very very consistent, and ALW was poaching and putting pressure on them the whole game. 2) This was all newmans from start to finish. Lindsey was almost perfect, and Riley did Riley things. James and Lea went on all out attack mode, but Riley isn’t someone to do that to.

Dreambreaker: The 5’s are all top-tier singles players, whereas, the Hard 8’s are mostly not singles players. The difference maker was Riley in this one. Everyone kept their individual matchups close, but Riley beat ALW 10-3. In the last couple points of the match, Riley Newman called a time out and said to the 5’s – “That was for you.” 

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UPDATE: 10:55AM – California BLQK Bears beat Frisco Clean Cause 3-2

Lots of momentum shifts in this match! Koop and Brascia of BLQK were dominant over Grechkina and Padegimaite in Women’s Doubles winning 21-10. The Frisco men took game two 21-18. Frazier and Maggie Brascia secured a MX1 win, then Padegimaite and Navratil from Frisco won in a tight MX2 game vs. Koop and Staksrud.

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UPDATE 10:49AM: New York Hustlers beat Las Vegas Night Owls 4-0

Women’s doubles: Good combination of attacking from Schneemann and Anna. NY won 21-17

Men’s Doubles: Tyson and Rafa struggled in the beginning communicating on middle balls. NY went down 20-15, but came back to win 22-20 from very electrifying playing from Rafa/Tyson. Crowd was super into it and Bar/David could not match their energy.

MX1: Lacy did a great job complementing Rafa in MX1 to win 21-18

MX2: Another wild comeback from the New York Hustlers. David and Yates were up 18-11 at one point. Anna Bright hit an insane ATP winner when they were down 20-19…to save a game point. Tyson/Anna kept up the pressure to win 22-20…again.

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UPDATE: 10:20AM – Seattle Pioneers beat the Milwaukee Mashers  4-0

In game 1, Callie Smith and Lucy Kovalova had the advantage of familiarity going into the game, as these two are considered to be one of the top women’s doubles teams in pickleball. Seattle Pioneers Meghan Dizon and Etta Wright had no hesitations and played an aggressive playing style with many straight on-speed ups and consistent resets, resulting in a 21-16 win over the Milwaukee Mashers.
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During game 2, Ben Johns and Tyler Loong were up 11-5 at sideout, and Andre Daescu and DJ Young needed to make adjustments. Unfortunately, they were unable to find a strategy solid enough to take down the world #1 player and the lefty-Erne King, and ultimately lost 13-21.

In game 3, the Seattle pioneers were looking to secure the match win and the Milwaukee Mashers were eager to put some pressure. Dizon and Loong’s solid defense won them the game at 21-19 and ultimately secured them the match.

Game 4 was full of some of the most thrilling points of the match with Seattle’s Ben Johns and Etta Wright having a point at 14-13 where the two switched positions on the court mid-point against Milwaukee’s Kovalova and Daescu. Johns and Wright won the game 21-17.

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UPDATE 8:45AM – Thomas Wilson with the Los Angeles Mad Drops is out due to injury. Hunter Johnson from the Atlanta Bouncers will fill in.