COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – Fresh off of their NCAA Championship run, Kelly Claes and Sara Hughes won the women’s NORCECA playoff on Wednesday.
Adam Roberts and Marty Lorenz combined for a 4-0 record to sweep the men’s bracket. It is the first win for both teams in 2016 NORCECA playoffs.
The winning pairs will chose from three available events in: North Bay, Canada (June 30-July 4); Cuba (July 13-17); Puerto Rico (Aug. 3-8).
Seeded seventh, Hughes and Claes opened with a strong win, 21-5, 21-7, against Leah DeKok/Amanda Wiggins. They then topped No. 2 seed Amanda Dowdy/Emily Stockman, 21-16, 21-15. In the final against Ally McColloch/Kelley Reeves, they beat the four-seed by a score of 21-12, 21-19.
Kerri Schuh/Branagan Fuller finished with third, after beating Whitney Pavlik/Sheila Shaw 14-21, 21-12, 15-11.
Roberts and Lorenz earned their title after a pair of two set wins in the first two rounds. In the semifinal they edged David Mckienzie/Andrew Dentler 21-17, 14-21, 15-9. It was the last match they would play a point on, in the final against Miles Evans and Spencer McLachlin, they won via forfeit due to Evans and McLachlin leaving early to catch a flight.
Kevin McColloch/Avery Drost finished in third by beating Mckienzie/Dentler 21-13, 21-11.
RESULTS
Women | Playoff #3, May 25
1. Sara Hughes/Kelly Claes
2. Kelly Reeves/Allison McColloch
3. Kerri Schuh/Branagan Fuller
Men | Playoff #3, May 25
1. Adam Roberts/Marty Lorenz
2. Miles Evans/Spencer McLachlin
3. Kevin McColloch/Avery Drost