Martinez & Longoria in Denver LPRT final

Gabriela Martinez posted two upsets Friday to reach the final of the 2024 Ladies Professional Racquetball Tour (LPRT) Frontline Family Foundation Mile High Open in Denver, Colorado. The first upset was the largest, as she took out LPRT #1 Maria Jose Vargas in two straight games, 15-7, 15-6, in the quarterfinals. Then in the semi-finals, Martinez eked out a tie-breaker win over LPRT #4 Brenda Laime, 12-15, 15-14, 11-7.

Martinez, the 9th seed, will face LPRT #2 Paola Longoria in the final on Saturday. Longoria advanced to the final with a win over 10th seed Samantha Salas, 15-4, 14-15, 11-8, in the quarters, and then a straight game defeat of LPRT #3 Montserrat Mejia, 15-8, 15-14.

Martinez and Longoria have met in the Women’s Singles final at three of the last four International Racquetball Federation (IRF) World Championships (Martinez winning once and Longoria twice), and the 2024 IRF World Championships are coming up at the end of the month in San Antonio, Texas. Could Saturday’s final be a preview of another Worlds final?

In the doubles quarterfinals, 5th seeds Kelani Lawrence and Jessica Parrilla upset 4th seeds Michelle Key and Carla Muñoz, 15-8, 8-15, 11-5, and in the semi-finals will face top seeds Brenda Laime and Mejia, who needed a full three games in defeating 8th seeds Angelica Barrios and Valeria Centellas, 14-15, 15-13, 11-4.

The other doubles semi-final will be between 2nd seeds Paola Longoria and Samantha Salas and 3rd seeds Natalia Mendez and Maria Jose Vargas. Longoria and Salas beat 7th seeds Gabriela Martinez and Maria Renee Rodriguez, 15-7, 15-8, while Mendez and Vargas need three games to see off Cristina Amaya and Maria Paz Riquelme, 13-15, 15-5, 11-0.

The doubles semi-finals will be Saturday morning at 10 and 11 AM. The singles final will be Saturday at 3 PM followed by the doubles final at 5 PM. All times mountain. You can watch the action live from Denver via the LPRT YouTube channel.

2024 LPRT Frontline Family Foundation Mile High Open
Denver, Colorado - August 1-3, 2024

Singles Quarterfinals - Friday

9) Gabriela Martinez d. 1) Maria José Vargas, 15-7, 15-6
4) Brenda Laime d. 5) Kelani Lawrence, 15-5, 15-3

3) Montserrat Mejia d. 6) Natalia Mendez, 12-15, 15-11, 11-6
2) Paola Longoria d. 10) Samantha Salas, 15-4, 14-15, 11-8

Singles Semi-finals - Friday

9) Gabriela Martinez d. 4) Brenda Laime, 12-15, 15-14, 11-7
2) Paola Longoria d. 3) Montserrat Mejia, 15-8, 15-14

Singles Final - Saturday

2) Paola Longoria v. 9) Gabriela Martinez - 3 PM

Doubles - Round of 16 - Friday

1) Brenda Laime & Montserrat Mejia - BYE
8) Angelica Barrios & Valeria Centellas d. 9) Andrea Gabriela Reyes Perez & Lexi York, 15-10, 15-0

5) Kelani Lawrence & Jessica Parrilla - BYE
4) Michelle Key & Carla Muñoz - BYE

3) Natalia Mendez & Maria Jose Vargas - BYE
6) Cristina Amaya & Maria Paz Riquelme - BYE

7) Gabriela Martinez & Maria Renee Rodriguez - BYE
2) Paola Longoria & Samantha Salas - BYE

Doubles - Quarterfinals - Friday

1) Brenda Laime & Montserrat Mejia d. 8) Angelica Barrios & Valeria Centellas, 14-15, 15-13, 11-4
5) Kelani Lawrence & Jessica Parrilla d. 4) Michelle Key & Carla Muñoz, 15-8, 8-15, 11-5

3) Natalia Mendez & Maria Jose Vargas d. 6) Cristina Amaya & Maria Paz Riquelme, 13-15, 15-5, 11-0
2) Paola Longoria & Samantha Salas d. 7) Gabriela Martinez & Maria Renee Rodriguez, 15-7, 15-8

Doubles - Semi-finals - Saturday

1) Brenda Laime & Montserrat Mejia v. 5) Kelani Lawrence & Jessica Parrilla - 11 AM
3) Natalia Mendez & Maria Jose Vargas v. 2) Paola Longoria & Samantha Salas - 10 AM

Follow the bouncing ball….