Recap

Wolverines Overcome Two-Game Deficit to Steal Match Against Smash

Smash Women Outlast Wolverines in Classic Barnburner

The East Toronto Smash, who lost their first match against the Prairie Pronghorns, wanted to come out flying in this tilt with the West Coast Wolverines. They did, but there were are few periods of turbulence on the way to a close 15-14 triumph in Women’s Doubles.

The Smash’s Jordann Vigna and Leigh Bradwell were down early but got their feet under them and played some solid defense against the Wolverines Vicky Strandlund and Angie Walker. They forced a side out by Strandlund to tie it 4-4, then went on a five-point run, highlighted by a Vigna cross, and some miscommunication by the Wolverines. Of note, Strandlund returned several shots with defensive aplomb on the Smash’s eighth point, sending a message they wouldn’t go down without a fight.

The Smash kept pouring it on, building a commanding 10-5 advantage after Walker made an unforced error with a long return. Yet, the Wolverines didn’t let that faze them, playing excellent team defense and dinking to get it to 10-7. Bradwell, though, built on that lead again, figuring in on two points with amazing shots as the Smash went up 13-10.

Strandlund, one of the oldest players in the CNPL, got the Wolverines within one a bit later with a vicious overhand, while Bradwell made three unforced errors to send it to 14-14 freeze. The game was decided when Walker sent a Dura ball into the net.

Smash Replacements Sting Wolverines Veterans in Men’s Doubles Comeback

Take a bow, Brent Jackson and Connor Weeks. The two undrafted Smash men’s doubles players didn’t let a little adversity in this key game get to them, overcoming several deficits against proven players Joel Pelletier and Haddow Thul of the Wolverines to emerge triumphant with a huge 15-13 victory.

After the Smash sent a return on serve to go down 4-1 early, they got together to play superb defense and turn the score in their favor at 5-4. Thul and Pelletier, like the pickleball veterans they are, wiped that deficit out with great defense of their own, forcing the Smash to take a timeout down 7-5. The rest did wonders, as Jackson and Weeks eventually went ahead 9-8 after Jackson set up Thul to return one long for a 9-8 lead.

But back came the Wolverines, with Thul setting up Weeks to hit one side out and Pelletier swatting an Erne that hit Weeks to make it 10-9 Wolverines. Just a bit later, Thul set up the Smash to hit a return into the net and give the Wolverines a commanding 13-10 cushion. That lead, though, was short lived as the greenhorns forced both Pelletier and Thul to make three unforced errors in a row to knot the game up. Jackson then sent a shot that Pelletier found the net with, and the deciding point was scored when Jackson sent a sneaky serve that the Wolverines couldn’t return.

Wolverines Stay Alive with End-to-End Triumph in Mixed Doubles

It was do-or-die time for the Wolverines and the mixed doubles duo of Joel Pelletier and Angie Walker injected some life into a team down 2-0 in the match. After close but demoralizing losses in men’s and women’s doubles, Pelletier and Walker took down the Smash’s Jordann Vigna and Connor Weeks, taking an early lead and never letting it go in a 15-13 win.

The Wolverines built an early edge, taking advantage of Smash unforced errors, going up 4-2. They followed it up with some well-choreographed defense and a Walker forehand winner followed by a Pelletier flick to take a 7-2 lead. Vigna came out firing then, setting up a net return by Pelletier and then launching an overhand bomb to cut the lead to 7-4. Before long the Wolverines made a couple more errors and were holding a slim 8-7 advantage.

Vigna, however, would make a couple of key errors of her own, allowing Walker to set her up for two net returns, forcing a Smash time out with the Wolverines holding an 11-9 lead. But, after the break, both Pelletier and Walker made unforced errors to knot it up. Pelletier redeemed himself with a nice deep shot to force Vigna into a net return and then flicking a forehand that Weeks sent side out.

Pelletier got this pivotal game to freeze at 14-12 with another smooth flick, while Vigna sent a great return flick to go to double freeze. However, three holds later, Weeks sent a serve long to hand the Wolverines a hard-earned triumph.

Wolverines Erase Early Deficit in Big Mixed Doubles Victory to Tie Up Match

Again, it was a win-or-else situation for the Wolverines, down 2-1 in this match, and again the mixed doubles pair of Haddow Thul and Vicky Strandlund came through with a big comeback victory. The Wolverines didn’t start out well, as the Smash duo of Leigh Bradwell and Brent Jackson rallied and forced Thul and Strandlund on their heels to take a 4-1 lead.

The unforced errors, though, three by Bradwell in a row into the net, erased that lead. They regained it when Strandlund hit one side out, only to see Thul rip a forehand to make the score 5-5. From there, the Wolverines built a slim lead and never allowed the Smash to tie it or go ahead.

Strandlund set up Bradwell for another unforced error on some great dinking to get the Wolverines into a 9-6 lead, followed by a bullet off the paddle of Jackson that hit Thul for an Erne. The Smash would get within one at 9-8 but let the Wolverines off the hook in the next four plays, highlighted by a big Wolverines rally, a Thul cross and a Strandlund flick to make the score 13-8.

Bradwell got the Smash a point with a great set up, but her counterpart Strandlund took the game to freeze with a set-up that Bradwell found net on to push the score to 14-9 Wolverines. The Smash, to their credit, fought hard, with both players figuring in key points to trim that cushion to 14-13 and force a Wolverines timeout. It benefited the Wolverines though, who scored the game-winning and match-tying point on a Thul flick.

Wolverines Complete Improbable Comeback with Masterful Singles Tiebreaker Triumph

Not to be too cheeky, but the Wolverines did claw all the way back to complete a glorious comeback match victory with a 15-10 win in the singles tiebreaker.

The format of this one, too, was interesting, as there were a mix of men-on-men with women-on-women and then men-against-women battles. Haddow Thul got the old Dura ball rolling by taking two of three from Connor Weeks. Then, Joel Pelletier increased that cushion to 5-1 by sweeping the Smash’s Leigh Bradwell, who couldn’t return three blistering shots.

The player of the match, Angie Walker, acquitted herself well against Brent Jackson, surrendering a point but then winning the next two on amazing backhand shots to give the Wolverines a 7-2 lead. After Vicky Strandlund surrendered three straight points to Jordann Vigna to make it 7-5, Haddow Thul scored two quick points on Connor Weeks, who scored a nice cross to make it 9-6.

Pelletier completed his dominance of Bradwell with a 2-1 count to push the score to 11-7, just in time for player of the match Walker to scorch Brent Jackson 2-1 again to push the advantage to 13-8. Strandlund then got the game to a 14-8 freeze but couldn’t close out Vigna who rallied well to give the Smash two points. However, Weeks hit serve into the net on freeze and Thul put the exclamation mark on the match with a great shot to win it.