Brian Pointelin, Ruben Gonzalez, Mike Guidry, Dan Llacera

Men's Open Finals
Going into the finals everyone was wondering if the rookies had it in them to pull off one more amazing upset. It would be their biggest challenge yet, going against the veteran team of Gonzalez and Guidry that had played together for many years. But as the previous rounds had shown – anything was possible.

Gonzalez and Guidry knew, going in, that they had to play hard. “They beat a lot of great teams to get this far,” said Guidry. “Any team that gets to the finals is playing great and has a chance to win.” Not taking any of those chances, Gonzalez and Guidry came out of the gates smoking and quickly built a 10-3 lead and then went up 14-8. Llacera and Pointelin seemed a little nervous in their first finals appearance but that soon dissipated and they regained their earlier swagger.

After facing game point three times during their comeback, Llacera and Pointelin suddenly found themselves serving for the game at 14 all. Llacera pushed a lob serve to Guidry who blasted an overhead crosscourt return into the back of Llacera’s head from five feet away. Llacera went down immediately, quickly re-considered charging the mound, then took most of his 15-minute injury timeout. Still a little shaken, “I felt like I had been on a cruise for a week and everything was spinning,” Llacera returned to the service box, re-served the lob and promptly ended the first game with a pinch rollout.

A murmur ran through the crowd. Could it actually be possible for the stringers to take it to the house? How could a team that had never made it out of the first round suddenly be one game away from a national title?

Gonzalez and Guidry refused to let up and re-focused for the second game, where their experience began to shine through after the two sides fought to a 6-6 tie. “There was a rally where I had a good dive that I think ignited us in the second game,” said Gonzalez. “We were more aggressive in the second game and we knew that we had to keep shooting the ball.” ‘Ignited’ was the right word as Gonzalez caught fire and rolled out the next four shots. The two sides switched serves once after that before Gonzalez and Guidry finished off the game with a 9-0 run to take it to three.

“Our experience was hugely important for us when we get into those situations,” said Guidry. “We got a little tight in the first game when they were putting pressure on us – which they should have – but we were able to rebound.” The tiebreaker belonged to Gonzalez and Guidry as they started on a 7-0 run and never looked back, taking the third game, and the match, 11-2. “I wasn’t surprised at how well they played because they have been playing great all week, “ said Guidry. “I think that our experience helped us out in the second and third games.”

“We had a good run,” a dejected Pointelin said after the match. “There was a lot of pressure being that it was our first national final against two great players and a great team.”

Kim Russell, Cheryl Gudinas, Malia Bailey, Rhonda Rajsich

Women's Open Finals 
For long-time national team veteran Gudinas, a victory would not only mean that she would reign as a U.S. National Doubles champion, but also bookend the singles title she won this past May in Houston. “I am kind of on a streak and I don’t want it to end,” said Gudinas. “I felt confident going into this tournament because I feel that Kim (Russell) is the best doubles player in the world.”

In the first game they looked like the best doubles team in the world by starting the game out on an 8-0 run. Bailey and Rajsich were able to close the gap with three quick points to bring the score to 8-3 but they never got any closer in the first game, eventually falling 15-4.

“They were playing good,” said Rajsich. “They were hitting all of their shots and I felt like I didn’t take advantage of the opportunities that were given to me.”

The second game was much closer as Bailey and Rajsich did begin to take advantage of the opportunities that they were presented with. They started the game on a 3-0 run only to see Gudinas and Russell catch up to tie the score there. Bailey and Rajsich again inched their way ahead to lead 6-3 and again Gudinas and Russell were able to catch up and tie the score. Both sides continued their cat-and-mouse game until the score was 11-9 in favor of Bailey and Rajsich.

“We called a timeout to refocus and point out our positives to each other,” said Gudinas. Russell added, “She would tell me that I was the best doubles player and I would tell her how quick she was. It was all about thinking positive thoughts and keeping our heads in the game.” Their plan worked as they pulled away with the lead for good and took the second game, and match, 15-12, to earn their first national women’s open title as a team.

Women's Semi-Final (L-R): Cheryl Gudinas, Kim Russell, Kersten Hallander, Michelle Gould.

Men's Semifinal (L-R): Josh Tucker, Llacera (obscured), Brian Pointelin, Chris Wright.

Women's Final (L-R): Kim Russell, Malia Bailey, Rhonda Rajsich, Cheryl Gudinas.

Men's 35+ Round of 16 (L-R): Mark Helton, Dave Peck, Woody Clouse (obscured), Marty Hogan.

Deja Vu 
The "Peck Brothers" were at it again -- this time in Las Vegas, bringing home gold medals in divisions that shaped up into pro tour reunions (at the "master's level"). Now competing in the 35+ and 40+ age divisions, the Pecks chose top-names, and former pro tour rivals, for their partners. 

Marty Hogan teamed with Dave Peck to oust defending champions Tim Hansen and Gordon Kirkland in the Men's 40+ division; while younger brother Gregg paired with southpaw local Bret Harnett in the 35s to defeat '2000 champs Dave Eagle and Dave Watson.

And the brothers might even have met in the 35's, if Hogan and Dave Peck hadn't been eliminated by another former pro tour regular -- Woody Clouse and teammate Mark Helton, of Denver. Had Dave advanced another round, the sibling rivalry could have re-kindled in the semi's. But instead, Hogan and Peck shifted gears to continue on in the 40s (one of the largest event draws, with 77 entrants), to go up against Hansen and Kirkland for the tiebreaker win.