One of the best things about the PPA Tour Challenger Series powered by JOOLA is that it gives aspiring pros the chance to earn PPA Tour points while competing against other pro hopefuls.

That opportunity was on full display this past weekend at the Raleigh PPA Challenger, which was the tour’s final stop of 2025.

This weekend’s event also welcomed several other more established pros to the North Carolina capital, including Lauren Stratman, Julian Arnold, Rafa Hewett, Michael Loyd, Liz Truluck, Eric Roddy, Travis Rettenmaier, and James Delgado.

Stratman and Arnold, who have a PPA silver medal together from the 2023 Indoor National Championships, entered the mixed doubles draw as the top seeds and comfortable favorites to win, but their run ended in the quarterfinals with a 10-12, 11-7, 9-11 loss to Mary McGowan/Garrison Eaby.

That was obviously a big win for the 17-year-old McGowan and 21-year-old Eaby, but it’s also the latest installment in a growing collection of evidence supporting the PPA Challenger Series’ status as a legitimate pipeline for pickleball’s next top talent.

This also became apparent last month at Worlds, where Challenger Series regulars Anouar Braham/Christopher Crouch upset No. 9 seeds AJ Koller/Dekel Bar in men’s doubles before winning the Challenger Showdown later in the week to earn PPA Tour contracts.

In Raleigh, though, it was all about the teenagers.

17-year-old Kiora Kunimoto led the way and nearly earned a Triple Crown, winning gold in mixed doubles (with Will Mackinnon) and women’s singles to go along with a silver medal in women’s doubles (with Ella Yeh).

Here’s a complete rundown of the podiums from all five pro events.

Men’s Doubles

•                         Gold: Oscar Serra/Sanil Jagtiani
•                         Silver: Eric Roddy/James Delgado
•                         Bronze: Rafa Hewett/Will MacKinnon
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Men’s Singles

•                         Gold: Rafael Lenhard
•                         Silver: Grayson Goldin
•                         Bronze: Matthew Finnerty
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Mixed Doubles

•                         Gold: Kiora Kunimoto/Will MacKinnon
•                         Silver: Liz Truluck/Eric Roddy
•                         Bronze: Isabella Dunlap/Christopher Haworth
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Women’s Doubles

•                         Gold: Aibika Kalsarieva/Ting Chieh Wei
•                         Silver: Kiora Kunimoto/Ella Yeh
•                         Bronze: Alia Brown/Samantha Buyckx
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Women’s Singles

•                         Gold: Kiora Kunimoto
•                         Silver: Masa Grgan
•                         Bronze: Keilly Ulery
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The next Challenger Series event is scheduled for Jan. 9-11 in Punta Gorda, FL.