Ben Johns and Anna Leigh Waters competing at the Rate Championships presented by Skechers.
Ben Johns and Anna Leigh Waters will go for their fourteenth title of the year together on Sunday. PPA Tour

Waters, Johns outduel Wright, Alshon in three games to make mixed final

Anna Leigh Waters and Ben Johns are through to Championship Sunday in mixed doubles after an 11-2, 10-12, 11-6 victory over No. 5 seeds Etta Wright and Christian Alshon.

The top seeds took the first game handily, thanks in part to some early struggles from their opponents in keeping their third shots down.

Around midway through Game 2, however, the match came to a screeching halt.

Leading 7-5, Alshon hit himself in the side of the head with his paddle on a follow through, which brought on a medical timeout for the 24-year-old.

He didn’t let the injury impact him too much, as he and Wright went on to close out that second game a few minutes later to bring on the decider.

Waters and Johns jumped out to a 4-1 lead in Game 3, but they remained stuck on that score for several side outs due to some uncharacteristic errors from Waters on her counters.

That lapse in level from the 17-year-old didn’t last too long, though, and they ended the match on a 7-2 run to make their fifteenth final of the year together.

The top-seeded tandem will face the winner of the second semifinal pitting Jorja and JW Johnson against Catherine Parenteau and James Ignatowich.