Round of 16 at the 30th Annual LPRT Christmas Classic

Paola Longoria - the #1 player on the Ladies Professional Racquetball Tour (LPRT) - is on track to get back in the winners’ circle, as she beat 17th seed Gabriela Martinez, 15-8, 15-8, in the Round of 16 at the 30th Annual Christmas Classic in Millersville, Maryland on Friday in what was a re-match of the 2022 International Racquetball Federation (IRF) Women’s Singles World Championship final that Longoria also won.

Eighth seed Kelani Lawrence will be Longoria’s next opponent, as Lawrence defeated 9th seed Brenda Laime, 15-13, 8-15, 11-7. That was one of four matches to go to a tie-breaker in the 16s, and two of them were 11-10 upsets.

In one, 13th seed Valeria Centellas eked out a win over 4th Erika Manilla, 15-14, 1-15, 11-10. She came back in the breaker from 10-6 down to win it. There was some controversy late, as Manilla thought she’d hit a match winning shot at 10-9, but the referee called a skip, which gave the serve back to Centellas, who closed it out on the next two rallies. Centellas will play 5th seed Natalia Mendez in the quarters, as Mendez was a straight game winner over 12th seed Sheryl Lotts, 15-9, 15-9.
Hollie Scott, the 11th seed, won the other 11-10 breaker, as she held on to defeat 6th seed Jessica Parrilla, 15-8, 6-15, 11-10. Scott will play 3rd seed Montserrat Mejia in the quarterfinals Saturday, as Mejia beat 14th seed Maria Renee Rodriguez, 15-7, 15-6.

The fourth tie-breaker was played by 7th seed Carla Muñoz and 10th seed Samantha Salas with Muñoz coming out on top, 15-8, 14-15, 11-8. She’ll play 2nd seed Alexandra Herrera in the quarters, as Herrera narrowly avoided playing a tie-breaker with 15th seed Cristina Amaya, winning, 15-4, 15-14.

Big upset in doubles, as 7th seeds Brenda Laime and Carla Muñoz beat 2nd seeds - and US Open Champions - Erika Manilla and Natalia Mendez in two straight games, 15-11, 15-10. They’ll play 3rd seeds Longoria and Mejia in the semi-finals Saturday, as Longoria and Mejia defeated 6th seeds Centellas and Parrilla, 15-7, 15-8.

On the top of the draw, #1 seeds Herrera and Salas beat 8th seeds Sheryl Lotts and Nancy Enriquez, 15-6, 15-3, and will play 4th seeds Gabriela Martinez and Maria Renee Rodriguez, who defeated 5th seeds Kelani Lawrence and Hollie Scott, 15-10, 15-6.

You can watch the action from Maryland live via the LPRT YouTube channel. Play continues Friday afternoon with the Round of 16 at 3 PM and the quarterfinals of doubles going off at 7 and 8 PM Friday evening. The singles final will be noon Sunday with the doubles final to go at 1 PM Sunday. All times EST.

2022 LPRT 30th Annual Christmas Classic, December 9-11, 2022
Millersville, Maryland

Round of 16 - Friday

1) Paola Longoria d. 17) Gabriela Martinez, 15-8, 15-8
8) Kelani Lawrence d. 9) Brenda Laime, 15-13, 8-15, 11-7

5) Natalia Mendez d. 12) Sheryl Lotts, 15-9, 15-9
13) Valeria Centellas d. 4) Erika Manilla, 15-14, 1-15, 11-10

3) Montserrat Mejia d. 14) Maria Renee Rodriguez, 15-7, 15-6
11) Hollie Scott d. 6) Jessica Parrilla, 15-8, 6-15, 11-10

7) Carla Muñoz d. 10) Samantha Salas, 15-8, 14-15, 11-8
2) Alexandra Herrera d. 15) Cristina Amaya, 15-4, 15-14

Quarterfinals - Saturday

1) Paola Longoria v. 8) Kelani Lawrence - 11 AM
5) Natalia Mendez v. 13) Valeria Centellas - 11 AM

3) Montserrat Mejia v. 11) Hollie Scott - 10 AM
2) Alexandra Herrera v. 7) Carla Muñoz - 10 AM

Doubles - Quarterfinals - Friday

1) Alexandra Herrera & Samantha Salas v. 8) Sheryl Lotts & Nancy Enriquez, 15-6, 15-3
4) Gabriela Martinez & Maria Renee Rodriguez d. 5) Kelani Lawrence & Hollie Scott, 15-10, 15-6

3) Paola Longoria & Montserrat Mejia d. 6) Valeria Centellas & Jessica Parrilla, 15-7, 15-8
7) Brenda Laime & Carla Muñoz d. 2) Erika Manilla & Natalia Mendez, 15-11, 15-10

Doubles - Semi-finals - Saturday

1) Alexandra Herrera & Samantha Salas v. 4) Gabriela Martinez & Maria Renee Rodriguez - 7 PM
3) Paola Longoria & Montserrat Mejia v. 7) Brenda Laime & Carla Muñoz - 6 PM

Follow the bouncing ball….