Ben Johns/Gabe Tardio are into the men’s doubles final after an 11-1, 11-7 victory over No. 8 seeds Eric Oncins/Dylan Frazier.

Oncins/Frazier were riding high after a thrilling quarterfinal victory over Christian Alshon/Andrei Daescu on Friday, but the No. 2 seeds put that momentum to rest immediately and dominantly took Game 1 in just over ten minutes.

Johns spoke about how important it was to get off to a good start against such a dangerous team.

“Dylan’s one of the top right-side guys, and Eric is probably the hottest stock out there right now, so I honestly was not surprised to see a deep run,” he said. “With a team like that, you’ve just got to really start well because obviously they’re playing with energy and momentum and are stoked to be in a semifinal. I felt like we needed to start well, and we did that.”

Even though Oncins/Frazier did make things more competitive in the second game, it wasn’t quite enough as Johns/Tardio went on to close out the match in straight games to improve to 3-0 in semifinals as a partnership.

Tardio—who will also play in the men’s singles final on Sunday—spoke about the role that coaching from his doubles partners (Ben Johns and Jessie Irvine) has played in his success.

“It means a lot and helps a lot. Ben and Jessie have been playing pickleball for a long time, so they definitely have a lot of experience,” he mentioned. “I try to listen to everything they tell me and apply that to my game, and it’s working out perfectly.”

Johns/Tardio will face either top seeds Federico Staksrud/Hayden Patriquin or No. 4 seeds Tyson McGuffin/Dekel Bar in Sunday’s final.

In the second semifinal and the last match of the day at Cary Tennis Park, Federico Staksrud/Hayden Patriquin overcame a slow start to defeat No. 4 seeds Tyson McGuffin/Dekel Bar 4-11, 11-9, 11-4.

Things weren’t looking good for the top seeds when they trailed 3-7 in the second game after dropping the first, but they battled through an inspired performance from their opponents to steal Game 2 before cruising to a win in the decider to make their second final in as many weeks together.

This was Staksrud’s third match of the day after also competing in the men’s singles and mixed doubles semifinals. The first two didn’t go his way, so he was glad to finish the day with a win.

“I didn’t play my best today, but that’s how sports works. Sometimes you have off days, and you have to push through,” he explained. “Pickleball is kind of a weird sport where you play all three divisions. I played in two other divisions today and lost in both of them, so it was kind of tough to step on the court for a third time and try to actually win a match.”

The Argentine—who currently holds the top PPA ranking in both men’s singles and men’s doubles—gave credit to Patriquin for keeping him focused throughout despite his earlier defeats.

“I have to give kudos to Hayden. I’ve been playing with him for almost a year now, and it’s honestly unbelievable how much he has grown as a player,” Staksrud raved. “He’s literally more mature than I am—he picks me and keeps me positive. He’s gonna be number one very soon.”