The New Jersey 5s defeated the St. Louis Shock 3-1 in Orlando to secure the No. 1 seed for the Major League Pickleball playoffs, answering the questions created by their Mid-Season Tournament defeat and reclaiming their position as the team everyone else must beat.
Key Takeaways
- New Jersey defeated St. Louis 3-1 to secure the No. 1 seed for the Major League Pickleball playoffs.
- The victory came three weeks after the Shock swept the 5s at the Mid-Season Tournament, reversing the most significant result of the regular-season title race.
- New Jersey’s response showed that the arrival of Federico Staksrud strengthened an already deep team rather than creating its success from scratch.
Three weeks ago, the Major League Pickleball title race appeared to have shifted.
The St. Louis Shock swept New Jersey 3-0 at the Mid-Season Tournament, producing the kind of statement victory that inevitably changes perceptions. For the first time in months, there was genuine discussion over whether the league leaders had finally become vulnerable.
On Sunday in Orlando, New Jersey provided its answer.
The 5s defeated St. Louis 3-1 to secure the No. 1 overall seed heading into the MLP playoffs, reversing the narrative that had emerged since their defeat in July and ensuring the road to this year’s championship once again runs through New Jersey.
It was a regular-season victory.
It also felt like something much bigger.
More Than Revenge
The immediate storyline writes itself.
New Jersey avenged the heaviest defeat it has suffered all season against the opponent many believe represents its biggest obstacle to lifting the MLP title.
But reducing Sunday’s result to revenge misses the wider significance.
The No. 1 seed carries tangible competitive value. New Jersey receives a first-round bye before being given the right to choose its opponents in both the quarter-finals and semi-finals, should it advance that far.
Instead of entering the postseason at the mercy of the bracket, the 5s have earned a degree of control over it.
They can watch the opening round unfold, assess which teams arrive in form and decide which matchup best suits the depth and flexibility of their expanded roster.
Championships are rarely won before the playoffs begin.
The conditions in which they are pursued can still be shaped long before the first elimination match.
The Match Turned on One Partnership
The contest itself reflected the quality of the league’s two strongest teams.
Anna Leigh Waters and Jorja Johnson opened with an 11-5 victory over Anna Bright and Kate Fahey, reversing the result that had started the St. Louis sweep three weeks earlier.
Hayden Patriquin and Gabe Tardio responded with an 11-5 win against Federico Staksrud and Will Howells, improving one of the league’s strongest men’s partnerships and levelling the tie at 1-1.
Everything changed in the first mixed doubles game.
Waters and Noe Khlif fell 7-1 behind Bright and Patriquin before producing one of the most resilient comebacks of the MLP season. They saved several game points and eventually completed a 15-13 victory, preserving their league-leading 29-3 season record.
Instead of St. Louis moving within one game of another victory over its biggest rival, New Jersey suddenly had the opportunity to finish the job.
Federico Staksrud and Johnson did exactly that.
Their commanding 11-2 victory over Fahey and Tardio sealed the match and secured the top playoff seed.
One Signing Did Not Change Everything
Much of the discussion surrounding New Jersey’s second half of the season has centred on the franchise’s acquisition of Staksrud and Milly Rane from Orlando Squeeze.
The trade, which Pickleball.com reported included a $400,000 payment, represented one of the boldest roster investments of the MLP season.
Sunday’s result will inevitably be cited as evidence that the investment paid off.
There is truth in that argument.
Staksrud played the deciding game and finished his first event for New Jersey with a 5-1 record alongside Johnson in mixed doubles. His arrival has also given the 5s a stronger route through the men’s game, the part of their line-up that had previously appeared most open to attack.
That was the central question when WPM examined how the Staksrud trade could change New Jersey’s matchup with St. Louis.
Yet attributing the team’s success to one transaction would still oversimplify what makes New Jersey so difficult to beat.
Waters remains the defining presence in Major League Pickleball. Johnson has become one of the competition’s most dependable performers. Khlif delivered under immense pressure in the pivotal game of the afternoon.
The trade strengthened an already exceptional roster.
It did not create one.
That distinction matters because championship teams are rarely built around one player. They are built around depth, flexibility and the ability to respond when momentum begins to shift.
New Jersey showed all three qualities in Orlando.
The Psychological Battle May Matter Just as Much
The standings will record only that New Jersey finished first.
The greater consequence may be less tangible.
Three weeks ago, St. Louis left the rest of the league wondering whether the balance of power had finally changed.
The Shock had not merely won the Mid-Season Tournament. They had removed Waters from much of the women’s doubles game, exposed pressure points within New Jersey’s established combinations and completed a 3-0 sweep before the 5s could adjust.
That defeat gave the rest of MLP evidence that New Jersey could be solved.
Sunday supplied the counterargument.
The Waters-Johnson partnership reversed its previous defeat. New Jersey absorbed another outstanding performance from the Patriquin-Tardio men’s pairing. Waters and Khlif recovered from the brink of defeat before Staksrud and Johnson closed the match emphatically.
The 5s did not win because every part of their team performed perfectly.
They won because enough parts responded when the match demanded it.
That is consistent with the structure that made New Jersey the MLP benchmark earlier in the season. Their central advantage is not that they possess one unbeatable partnership. It is that opponents must continue finding answers across the entire line-up.
Elsewhere, the Chicago Slice claimed the 12th and final playoff berth, completing the postseason field after defeating the California Black Bears in a 25-23 DreamBreaker.
There is still every chance New Jersey and St. Louis meet again with the title on the line.
If they do, Sunday’s result will not decide who lifts the trophy.
It will, however, shape how both teams walk onto the court.
Three weeks ago, the Shock made the rest of Major League Pickleball question whether New Jersey were still the team to beat.
On Sunday, the 5s answered the biggest question of the regular season.
If another team wants to win this year’s MLP title, it will almost certainly have to go through New Jersey first.
Further Reading
- Latest pickleball news from around the world
- Tournament coverage and results
- Rankings and player profiles
- Regional pickleball coverage
Chris Beaumont
Founder and Editor-in-ChiefChris Beaumont is the founder and Editor-in-Chief of World Pickleball Magazine. Chris follows the global game closely, reporting on the latest news, developments, stories and tournaments from all five continents. He also hosts the World Pickleball Podcast, interviewing people at…
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