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The All-Challenger MLP is here

The All-Challenger MLP is here

MLP Virginia Beach starts tomorrow

Team KOTC
September 25, 2024

Challenger league hits the beach

Pickleball Virginia Beach is hosting all 10 challenger teams this week, in an event that will tee up the next PPA event in the same location (a progressive Cup event that begins Sept 30th).

Challenger teams are half-way through their season, with almost all teams having played 12-13 matches thus far (Black Bears have played 14), and a total of 33 matches will be played over the course of the weekend.

Here are the current standings (reminder that the top 6 will make playoffs, and top 2 seeds get a bye in the first round)

The top 5 teams are separated by just 4 points, but the Breakers, Smash, and Bears could easily close the gap with a couple strong matchups.

CBB and Bay Area will play their first events since their latest acquisitions: Chris Haworth and Genie Erokhina for CBB, and Marty Emmerich for the Breakers. CBB especially needs to make the most of these pickups to inch their way forward. They play six matches in Virginia Beach: Slice, Pandas, Bouncers, Aces, Smash, Miami.

Bay Area has a hefty schedule, playing seven matches this weekend: Smash, Pandas, Miami, Bouncers, Aces, Slice, Night Owls. The big question marks are, how rusty will Jilly B be, and how will having Marty replacing DJ shift the balance?

The Smash are looking promising, as Donald Young gets better every tournament, and he and Travis have been drilling together. They won 3 matches in Dreambreakers in NYC, losing two matches total. The Dreambreakers didn’t get them as many points, so they’ll need to win these outright to move up the ranks.

Brooklyn Aces went 0-5 at MLP NYC, and the Pandas went 1-4. It’s not likely either team will gain ground here, but they may hold position if they stay focused. Ewa Radzikowska played lights out for the Pandas in NYC, going 8-2 in her games, so that’s a smidgen of hope they can cling to.

With the trade deadline approaching at the end of this event, we could still see a change in team structure, as Premier teams out of contention for playoffs offload players for cash to Challenger teams anxious to make theirs.