31st Annual Christmas Classic
Dec 11, 2023
This very special event was one of the warmest, friendliest events of the season. It was a celebration of the holidays, and of the sport, and it showcased the amazing athleticism of the LPRT athletes, but it was also a coming together of the local racquetball community that included new junior players as well as former pros who came out as fans.
The event proceeds went to Frontline Family Foundation (frontlinefamilyfoundation.org), a non profit that grants care and support to veterans, first responders, and their family members to enable them access to the necessary care and treatment they need to lead healthy, fulfilling lives.
Maria Jose Vargas Clinched another title after some close battles and tight tiebreakers, playing some of her best racquetball to date. Montse Mejia and Alexandra Herrera also added to their doubles resume by earning winning another close final.
Thank you Todd Boss of ProRacquetballStats.com for the event recap:
LPRT 31st Annual Christmas Classic Recap
Congrats to your Pro winners on the weekend:
- Singles: Maria Jose Vargas
- Doubles: Alexandra Herrera and Monserrat Mejia
Vargas wins her 7th career LPRT singles title, putting her ahead of Mejia and tying her for 11th place all time with a couple of hall of fame caliber players in Marci Drexler and Caryn McKinney.
R2 Sports App home page for event: https://www.r2sports.com/website/event-website.asp?TID=41727
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Lets review the notable matches in the Singles draw.
Singles Match report in the PRS database: https://rball.pro/9pb
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In the 32s, the tour welcomed back @Maria Renee Rodriguez , who we hadn't seen on tour since May. She topped @Stephanie Synhorst to move on to face #1 Mejia. Texas junior @Naomi Ros got a nice win over fellow USA player Lexi York to move on, and Colombian @Maria Paz Riquelme took out Floridian Chanis Leon in a rematch of their opener from Boston.
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In the 16s
- #9 @Samantha Salas Solis got the better of Carla Muñoz this time around, winning in a breaker of the always-close 8/9 matchup.
- #13 Cris Amaya advanced to the quarters of a pro event for the first time since January 2020 with a close 2-game win over Brenda Laime 13,14.
- #6 Alexandra Herrera made fast work of country-woman Jessica Parrilla for the 2nd straight event, moving on 6,5
- An injury to Argentine @Natalia Mendez gave team USA Kelani Lawrence a walk-over into the quarters.
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In the Quarters
- #1 Mejia moved past Salas 2,11
- #13 Amaya turned back the clock once again and moved into her first pro semi since March of 2017 by topping Guatemalan @Ana Gabriele Martinelli in a breaker. Amaya lost game one easily and saved match points against in game two before topping Gaby in the breaker.
- #3 Vargas cruised past Herrera 3,10, another statement win defining the gulf that has opened between Herrera and the top 3 ladies on tour
- #2 @Paola Longoria was not very troubled by Lawrence, moving on 4,2.
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In the Semis
- Mejia ended Amaya's luck, advancing to the final 8,3
- Vargas topped Longoria for the 3rd time in their last 4 meetings, but it couldn't have been any closer. (13),10,10. Vargas controlled most of the breaker and got to 10-6, but then Longoria saved match point against (plus two more) as she clawed her way to 10-10. Vargas buried a side-out winner, then aced Longoria on her fourth match point attempt to take the win.
In the Finals, Vargas improved to 6-4 lifetime (including wins in their last two meetings) to take the title.
Doubles review
Match report in the PRS database: https://rball.pro/mrf
Mejia and Herrera won their third straight LPRT pro doubles title, and their 8th as a pair, with a comprehensive 10,8 win over the #1 seeds Longoria & Salas. The reigning Mexican champs (who won 2023 PARC but who got upset in the semis at the Pan Am Games) continues to be the best doubles team in the world, even if they're still ranked #2 behind Longoria & Salas.
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Open Singles, other notable draws
- Ros beat York again and then Synhorst to take Women's Open singles.
- Dylan Pruitt took out Mauricio Zelada in an all-Maryland Men's Open final.
- Pruitt teamed with Jessica Parrilla to win the Men's open doubles title.