Paola Longoria and Samantha Salas won the Ladies Professional Racquetball Tour (LPRT) doubles final at the 2018 UnitedHeathcare US Open Racquetball Championships in Minneapolis Saturday by defeating Alexandra Herrera and Montserrat Mejia, 15-11, 15-14. It was their 3rd US Open doubles title, and the 5th for Longoria, who has won the title each year it has been contested.
Longoria and Salas started well, taking a 6-1 lead in game one. But the lefty-right team of Herrera and Mejia fought back, and tied it at 6-6. Longoria and Salas called a timeout, but when play resumed Herrera and Mejia got the first point to lead 7-6.
However, Longoria and Salas got a sideout to stop their opponents' run, and then put together another run of their own to go up 13-7. Herrera and Mejia did call a timeout at 11-7, but to no avail.
Longoria and Salas got to game point at 14-8, but Herrera and Mejia weren't done, yet they could only get within three points at 14-11 before Longoria and Salas won it, 15-11.
Game two was streaky. Herrera and Mejia went up first, 5-0. Then Longoria and Salas went ahead 6-5. A Herrera and Mejia timeout resulted in a sideout following one winner by each player, and then six straight points to make the score 11-6 for Herrera and Mejia.
Herrera hit a ball out at that point, and then Mejia skipped a shot to give the serve up. Longoria ended a long rally with a forehand cross court shot from left to right that made the score 11-8 with Herrera and Mejia leading.
Longoria and Salas got within two again at 12-10, but a penalty hinder call on Longoria followed by a Mejia pinch shot winner put Herrera and Mejia back in the service box. They got two points on errors by their opponents - Longoria skipped a forehand and may have contacted Salas in making the error, and Salas skipped forehand shot - that made the score 14-10. Game point.
But two game points went by as Longoria hit a winning serve return, and then a winning backhand pinch shot, as she saw that Mejia was going for a forehand pinch shot in the back court, so Longoria moved up to cover it. And she did so like a blanket.
Not finishing the game at that point felt like trouble, and trouble it was, as Longoria and Salas ran off five straight points, helped by two penalty hinder calls at least one of which seemed generous. They score reached 14-14 when Mejia skipped a forehand shot. Then on their first match point opportunity, Salas hit a forehand winner to once again become a US Open champion.
If you missed any of the LPRT action from Minneapolis, check out the LPRT YouTube channel.
2018 UnitedHealthcare US Open
Minneapolis, Minnesota - October 3-7, 2018
LPRT Doubles - Final - Saturday
1) Paola Longoria & Samantha Salas d. 2) Alexandra Herrera & Montserrat Mejia, 15-11, 15-14
Follow the bouncing ball….
Saturday, October 6, 2018
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