WASHINGTON, D.C. - Grandstand Court at MLP D.C. witnessed a debut on both sides of the net to start off Friday’s action: a season debut for the Utah Black Diamonds, and a Major League Pickleball debut for Quang Duong.

Duong’s was the more successful of the two, as the Texas Ranchers beat the Black Diamonds 3-1 in the first Premier level match in the nation’s capital.

After the teams split the gender doubles matches, attention turned to mixed doubles, where Texas’ Etta Wright and Pablo Tellez faced Utah’s Callie Smith and Tyler Loong.

The match had a unique look, with both males playing the right side due to their left-handedness. Texas eventually took that match 25-17 behind some especially stellar play from Wright to get within one win of the victory.

From there, Duong and Tina Pisnik closed out the encounter with a 25-20 win over Alix Truong and Jay Devilliers.

Duong was picked up by the Ranchers earlier this week to fill in for the injured Christian Alshon, which gave him the opportunity to compete in MLP for the very first time.

The 18-year-old certainly made the most of it, clinching the victory that earned the Ranchers three standings points.

“It’s a great experience,” Duong said of his first taste of MLP competition. “I’m learning so much from my teammates just by playing with them. They’re giving me strategies and different things to think about.”

The next match for both teams is against the D.C. Pickleball Team, with Utah set to play at 2pm ET and Texas set to play at 6pm ET.